Measure seeks to honor Moffatt

There appears to be widespread agreement that some entertainment venue in Honolulu should be named after Tom Moffatt, the veteran concert promoter and radio personality who died last month.

Where he should be honored is the question.

Councilman Ernie Martin, who introduced Resolution 16-323, told colleagues at an Executive Matters and Legal Affairs Committee meeting Tuesday that he cannot think of someone more deserving of having a city facility named after him, especially for all he’s done for the state.

A slew of Moffatt fans urged committee members to take action.

Former Councilman John Henry Felix, who described himself as a representative for “The Friends of Tom Moffatt” and Moffatt’s family, said he first became friends with Moffatt in 1952 when they were in the U.S. Army together based out of Schofield Barracks.

After Moffatt left the military, “he’s made incredible contributions to our entertainment industry, 50 years of exemplary service for the people of Hawaii bringing joy to thousands of individuals,” Felix said.

He said that he and others first thought Waikiki Shell would be appropriate because “it is a stand-alone entity and would have wide coverage” because of its proximity to Waikiki’s tourism mecca. But the family would be fine with any appropriate entertainment venue, he said.

Bart DaSilva, who worked with “Uncle Tom” in the radio business for 19 years and considered him a mentor, said “there’s nobody that can come close” to having the impact Moffatt did on the local entertainment scene. The statue of Elvis outside Neal Blaisdell Center Arena would not be there if Moffatt had not brought “The King” to Honolulu, he said.

The vast majority of the hundreds of concerts Moffatt brought to Hawaii took place at the NBC Arena. “I would like to have the Council sincerely weigh naming the arena the Tom Moffatt Arena at the Neal Blaisdell Center,” DaSilva said. “It’s got a nice ring to it. Tom Moffatt built that arena, in my opinion, and deserves that lasting monument.”

Both the Shell and NBC are managed by the city Department of Enterprise Services.

Guy Kaulukukui, the city’s director-designate for the department, said the Caldwell administration agrees Moffatt should have some entertainment facility named after him. But he pointed out that the city is in the middle of planning a major renovation for the Blaisdell Center, which is more than 50 years old.

“We know that once the development is complete, there will be multiple indoor and outdoor spaces that will provide us a better opportunity to honor his memory,” Kaulukukui said.

Hawaii concert promoter Rick Bartalini said he did not know Moffatt well but respected him greatly. To bring Michael Jackson’s 1997 History Tour to an island as Moffatt did “takes an incredible level of passion, dedication and risk,” Bartalini said.

While the concert promoter occupation may sound glamorous, “it can be very risky, very stressful and heartbreaking at times in this business,” Bartalini said. “Imagine putting everything you own at risk, all of your assets. If you lose, you lose everything. Hawaii is not an easy stop for any tour. You can’t just pull up 20 trucks and 20 buses on the way to the next city. Tom took the risks and he made the sacrifices. He bet on himself and he bet on the people of Hawaii and he won.”

The committee voted unanimously to forward the resolution to the full Council for a final vote, likely at its next meeting Jan. 25.