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The Honolulu Advertiser
Posted on: Sunday, May 10, 2009

Double bypass surgery a success for music biz whiz


By Wayne Harada

Jim Linkner of Punahele Productions is up and about, following his April 1 double bypass surgery at the Peachtree Cardiac and Thoracic Clinic at Saint Joseph's Hospital in Atlanta. The new robotic surgery, by Dr. Sudhir Srivastava, took 2 1/2 hours, with less invasive trauma to the body, reducing recovery time from a couple of months to four or five days — enabling Linkner to drive within two weeks. "I think it's an option everyone in my situation needs to evaluate," he said. He has a few stab-like scars as a result. Meanwhile, the music biz whiz is working on a Keali'i Reichel TV show, so stay tuned for details. ...

MAVRO-LOUS: Chef Mavro — that's George Mavrothalassitis — is back from Las Vegas where he received a United Fresh award for his longtime commitment to fresh produce. Mavro's chef de cuisine Kevin Chong had reserved a "lake-front" table for him at Le Cirque Las Vegas, where the exec chef is David Werly, previously Chong's sous chef. "The food was even more exciting than the water show on Lake Bellagio, and that's saying something!" said Mavro. ...

Chef Ming Tsai, en route to Manila, paused long enough to dine at Chef Mavro. Ming and Mavro cooked together a few weeks ago at the James Beard House with other culinary kingpins who prepared a dinner for Beard House pillar Mildred Amico. ...

WHEE, THE PEOPLE: TV icon Glen Larson, one-time Four Preps singer, married Jeannie Pledger last Sunday at a sunset beach ceremony at Diamond Head, with Tom and Sweetie Moffatt serving as best man and matron of honor.

Singer-composer Audy Kimura performed his signature "Lovers & Friends" at Larson's request. Jimmy Borges did a cappella renditions of "Day By Day" and "Ke Kali Nei Au." For the first dance, six-time "Star Search" winner Katrina Adams shared Anne Murray's "Could I Have This Dance" accompanied by guitarist Kimura. Following the ceremony, Makana (backed by Ben Kaumehiwa and Lopaka Colon) provided entertainment, along with Haumea Ho, her mother Johnny Frisbie, niece Sophia Hebenstreit, realtor Frankie Anderson, Borges as well as the bride and groom doing impromptu hula — eliciting cheers from pals Robin Mann and Sue Damon. ...

TRAVEL LOG: Lindsay Lohan vacationed in the two-bedroom Presidential Suite at Wailea Beach Marriott Resort & Spa and sunbathed at the resort's Maluhia serenity pool. She dined with her sister and friends at the hotel's Mala Wailea. ...

Ballet Hawaii board member Janie Davis saw 22 shows — Broadway, off-Broadway, dance, Tribeca film fest — on a recent New York trip. One evening, she and lawyer husband Mark met up with Ballet Hawaii's artistic director Pam Taylor Tongg and school coordinator Lesley Young at the finals for the Youth America Grand Prix, joined by dancer John Selya, who's now in the "Guys and Dolls" revival, along with Selya's girlfriend, Jackie Burns, who's in "Hair." ...

Comic Jazz Kaner is on an Island visit with his son, Patrick Kanoa, through May 18. He'll visit his mom in a local retirement home, reconnect with his sister, who works at The Queen's Medical Center, and soak up local lore and food, or, as he says in his funnyman mode, "bite a hole in a bag of poi and suck on it while driving to the North Shore to surf." With a side of lau lau, no doubt. ...

TUBE TALK: "Long Story Short," hosted by Leslie Wilcox, airs as a two-parter, at 7:30 pm. May 12 and 19 on PBS Hawaii. Produced by Phil Arnone, the show focuses on Clyde Aikau, younger brother of famed surfer Eddie Aikau of "Eddie Would Go" fame, and includes reflections on the 1978 Hokule'a voyage that took Eddie's life. ...

And that's Show Biz. ...

Reach Wayne Harada at 266-0926. Read his blog Fridays in TGIF and at http://showandtellhawaii.honadvblogs.com.