Pat Sajak, host of the popular syndicated "Wheel of Fortune" program, will be in Hawaii twice this year.
America’s No. 1 game show host will return to the Hilton Waikoloa Village in September with his letter-turning co-host Vanna White for four weeks of taping — 20 episodes — to celebrate the show’s 32nd season.
It will be the fifth visit for "Wheel" and the first since 1996, when Sajak and 225 crew members came to shoot against the tropical seaside backdrop.
Auditions for contestants will be held on the Big Island later this month and on Oahu in June; expect a mix of local and visitor candidates. Prospects must be 18 and may be married couples or best buddies who are not related. KHON2, the Fox affiliate here that airs "Wheel" at 6:30 p.m. weekdays, can provide audition details and how to secure filming tickets. Go to www.khon2.com. …
As earlier announced, Sajak also has an acting gig with his Army buddy Joe Moore, the KHON news anchor, in Steve Conrad‘s "Wrestling Ernest Hemingway," which the two players adapted for the stage from a film script for a June 19-29 run at the Hawaii Theatre. Loretta Ables Sayre has a role, too, in the buddy comedy about two pals facing the frustrations of aging. For tickets, go to www.hawaiitheatre.com. …
DEAR FRANCES: Frances Kakugawa, a poet, writer, author, former educator and advocate of caregiving for elders, adds "columnist" to her growing accomplishments. "Dear Frances," her new monthly column in the Hawaii Herald, explores the challenges of caregiving and coping with elder issues such as Alzheimer’s. She’s a dear — the perfect shoulder to lean on. …
SHOW BITS: Diamond Head Theatre’s 10th Broadway Bound travel tour, led by Deena Dray and John Rampage, still has a few openings. The tour will be from Nov. 13 to 19, with a stay at the Warwick Hotel.Three shows — perhaps "Rocky," "Bullets Over Broadway," "If/Then" — and dinners are included. Call 733-0277, ext. 301, if interested. …
If you’re Broadway-bound, you must know that the Tony Awards will be June 8. "Hedwig and the Angry Inch," "Bridges of Madison County," "Beautiful," "Les Miserables," "Aladdin," "Cabaret," "The Cripple ofInishmaan," "All the Way," "Of Mice and Men" and "A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder" are among the nominees. …
DATEBOOK: The aforementioned DHT launches "Catch Me if You Can,"a former hit on the Great White Way, on May 23. Saw the original with Aaron Tveit as Frank Abagnale Jr., the notorious real-life trickster portrayed here by Aleks Pevec. John Rampage directs a cast that includes Zack Oldham, Laurence Paxton, Fabienne Flandre-Herold and Samantha Stoltzfus. …
And Manoa Valley Theatre presents the Hawaii premiere ofTony-winning "Claybourne Park" beginning May 22, with Vanita Rae Smith directing. The cast includes Dezmond Gilla, Jeanne Herring, Greg Hunt, Adam LeFebvre, Russell Motter, Miriam Neuman and Therese Olival. …
One more Mother’s Day gig worth considering: A Jay Larrin-Melveen Leed-Danny Couch-Kupaoa affair, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Sunday at the Pomaika‘i Ballrooms of Dole Cannery. Cost: $55 adults, $27.50 kids ages 6 to10. To see if space still is available, call 695-4380 or 695-4376. …
And that’s "Show Biz." …
Wayne Harada is a veteran entertainment columnist; reach him at 266-0926 or wayneharada@gmail.com; read his Show and Tell Hawaii blog at www.staradvertiser.com.
