Tapping his local roots for 'Haole-er Than Thou!'

By Wayne Harada
Advertiser Entertainment Writer

The comedy of real-life experiences (and then some), which he authored, premieres Thursday at The ARTS at Marks Garage, where it will run Thursdays through Sundays, through Feb. 13, before taking a quick detour to Kilauea Theatre on Kaua'i on Feb. 15.

"I simply have more tales to share," said Pinkosh, now 40, who grew up on Island stages. A decade ago, he and partner Godfrey Hamilton moved to California. They had been movers and shakers of the now-defunct Starving Artists Theatre Co. and were "starving artists," eager to find a niche in the stage spectrum.

Being haole on the Mainland is different from being haole in Hawai'i, Pinkosh said. That's the reason he wrote the current show, which is being world-premiered here.

"I grew up in Kailua, amid the different cultures," he said of the melting pot that is Hawai'i. "But in Hollywood, it's quite different."

Essentially, Pinkosh often feels like a fish out of water.

"It's all about how different people treat you if you're white," he said of the sequel.

"I'm local," he said, meaning he's unquestionably of Hawai'i origins. "I still wear slippahs, except when I have to go out, then I put on shoes."

But folks in California have a peculiar, sometimes bizarre, reading, on who or what he is. That's fodder for the comedy of sketches.

"The first half of the play allows everyone to play catch-up," he said, referring to the original "Haole Boy," in which he introduced memorable characters such as Auntie Eleanor with the motor mouth. "She comes in twice; once, she's in a wrestling match with Imelda Marcos and Jean Ariyoshi, but I cannot reveal who wins. It's a grudge match."

Hollywood is a competitive forum for all kinds of wannabes, he said.

"Everybody, everything so uptight."

Pinkosh has been bald for a couple of years now — which has had an effect on how he's perceived.

"I used to be cast as a haole," he said. "But when I went bolohead, with a goatee, I was Hispanic. That's because a lot of Hispanics here are bald."

The shaved dome was a result of his thinning hair, he said. "Was easier to just get it all off."

Pinkosh said 80 percent of his job pursuit involves his or Hamilton's scripts. "We tour Europe, the East Coast, all over the place, and annually do the Edinburgh Festival. We hit the festival circuit. We're now negotiating with Australia."

It's a decent living, he said. "We're not rich, but the dogs are fed and we're healthy and happy doing our art. What's there to complain about?"

The other 20 percent of the time involves film and TV work.

In the first season of "The O.C.," the trendy Fox-TV series, he had a one-shot role. "When I got the call, I wondered how I'd fit. White, skinny, bald, 40. Not the usual 'O.C.' look. I wound up playing a lawyer in a suit in Peter Gallagher's office," he laughed.

But coming up: a just-completed episode of ABC-TV's "Alias," directed by Ken Olin (formerly of "thirtysomething"), in which Pinkosh plays a Russian scientist. As for series star Jennifer Garner, he said: "She's really nice. Really sweet. Honestly."

"Haole Boy 2" was conceived as an excuse to retreat to the Islands. "We don't look at Hawai'i as a hard or easy place to work, just another place we play," he said. "But it does have a warm and friendly environment, much gentler than other markets, down to earth and honest."

It's also home, he said, although the visit will be the first in which he won't be able return to his Kailua origins, since his parents have sold their home and moved to the Bay Area. "My brother's in Berkeley, where there is a grandbaby, and my sister is in Florida, which simply means that they (his parents) will be closer to the family," said Pinkosh. "But after 40 years in Kailua, it's culture shock to move."

Reach Wayne Harada at 525-8067, wharada@honoluluadvertiser.com, or fax 525-8055.