SHOW BIZ
Oprah, Adam Sandler kick back island-style
By Wayne Harada
Advertiser Entertainment Writer
STAR WATCH: Oprah Winfrey was spotted at the Renaissance Wailea Beach Resort on Maui (she was staying at the Four Seasons), doing her power walk on the hotel's beach front. Crews from Portland, Oregon's KATU-TV, here for a series of travel shows for "AM Northwest," recognized the talk-show hostess; she asked them the nature of their shoot. Turns out the special shows are being aired during the February sweeps — a nice boost for the luxury resort and Hawai'i. ...
Adam Sandler dined at Nick's Fishmarket last week. Ben Dowling, the restaurant's vice president, earlier spotted the actor at the Sony Pro-Am at the Wai'alae Country Club, when Dowling was working as a radio communicator. ...
Keo's in Waikiki continues to attract a myriad of celebs, too. Erin Brockovich (the real one, not the reel one) had a quiet dinner one night; ditto, Graham Nash of Crosby, Stills & Nash, who also stood still for a new Wall of Fame photo with Keo Sananikone. ...
Sansei Seafood Restaurant & Sushi Bar also had a mammoth Pro Bowl weekend business, according to manager Ivy Nagayama. St. Louis Ram Marshall Faulk and seven San Diego Chargers cheerleaders were among the celebrants. ...
And Dwayne Johnson, aka The Rock, also dined at Sansei the other night. Wonder if he ordered the Asian Rock Shrimp Cake? ...
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AROUND 'N' ABOUT: Pianist Ron Miyashiro, a staple at the defunct Tahitian Lanai, now performs from 8:30 to 11:30 p.m. Saturdays (he opened last weekend) at Davey Jones' Ribs in Waikiki. It's flashback time, since the sing-along format prevails, and Davey Jones manager Perkin Lee earlier worked with Miyashiro at the Tahitian Lanai when it was owned by Fred Livingston, who also owns Davey Jones. Waitress Iwalani Hodges, who also has history with the gang, made the reunion even more meaningful. ...
For more nostalgia, note this: Pianist Kit Samson and singer Connie Kissinger, who were regulars at the Kahala Hilton's Maile Lounge when Samson's Sound Advice showcased Kissinger, will do Valentine weekend shows from 9 to 11 p.m. Feb. 14 and 15 at the Sheraton Moana Surfrider's Ship's Tavern. ...
Ten Feet has good reason to celebrate; its "Island Feeling Part II" was logged at No. 15 on Billboard's World Music charts. ...
Don Humphrey and The Geezers, the country-music band, is in the final stages of releasing its first local CD, "Geezers in Paradise," recorded at the Rendez Vous studios. The band played to a jammed house Sunday at Da Smoke House on Hobron Lane, with the first two hours aired on KUMU-AM. ...
Brickwood Galuteria and Imai and Friends will perform from 8 to 11 p.m. at Brew Moon the first Friday of each month, starting tomorrow. So March 7 would be the next one. ...
Comedians Ruben Paul and Frasier Smith open tonight at the Laugh Factory at the Queen Kapi'olani Hotel. They perform through Wednesday. ...
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WHEE, THE PEOPLE: Local boy Rob Fukuzaki has been named weekend sports anchor at KTVK-TV, the No. 1 independent station in Phoenix. He used to be here on KITV-4. ...
Micah Tiedemann, hanai son of Jack and Cha Thompson of Tihati Productions, has the title role in Saint Louis School Center for the Arts' upcoming production of the musical "Pippin," playing March 7 and 8 at Mamiya Theatre. Girls from seven other schools are also in the cast. Naturally, the Tihati 'ohana bought a cluster of $100 fund-raising tickets for the opening-night gala to support one of their own. ...
When Michael W. Perry and Larry Price brought their KSSK show to The Shops at Wailea on Friday, before the Hula Bowl, on Maui, they broadcast live from in front of Ruth Chris Steak House, giving engineer Dale Machado a thrill when he spotted whales offshore. Ruth Chris g.m. Jessie Ibanez hosted the group to dinner, including Clear Channel g.m. (and boss to Perry and Price) Chuck Cotton and his wife Sheri, and Sweetie Pacarro, whose husband Brad Johnson took quite a ribbing from the footballers since there's a gridiron star with the same name. ...
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HERE 'N' THERE: Richard Jay-Alexander, a frequent Hawai'i visitor, continues to garner more show biz credits, the latest being a Grammy nomination (awards are handed out Feb. 23) for his "Bernadette Peters Does Rodgers & Hammerstein" CD. (It's a goodie, with the belle of Broadway doing justice to the show classics). The category boasts works by Barbra Streisand, Tony Bennett, Michael Feinstein and Rod Stewart. Jay-Alexander also is working on a national TV spot with Luther Vandross ...
And that's Show Biz ...
Wayne Harada's Show Biz is published Tuesdays and Thursdays. Reach him at wharada@honoluluadvertiser.com, phone 525-8067 or fax 525-8055.
