I wrote about the Waikiki and Toyo theaters in my Jan. 15 column, and the next day, Hawaii’s oldest theater, the Akebono in Pahoa on Hawaii island, burned down.
Theater historian Lowell Angell believes the Akebono opened Dec. 7, 1917.
“The Liberty in Honolulu, which opened in February 1912, was the oldest extant theater in Hawaii until it was demolished in 1984,” Angell said, “and the Akebono then took that title.”
The Liberty Theater was between Nuuanu Avenue and Bethel Street, just makai of Beretania Street. There’s an open parking lot where the 1,500-seat theater once stood.
The loss of the Akebono Theater means the oldest theater in the state would be the downtown Hawaii Theatre, which opened in 1922 and now operates as a performance venue.
Hopefully, the Akebono will be rebuilt. Big Island theaters face dangers that are unknown on other islands. Lava threatened the Akebono — and the entire town of Pahoa — last year, and, of course, the Hilo theater has been hit twice by tsunamis.
I don’t know how the founders arrived at the “Akebono” name, but multiple websites say it means “dawn” or “daybreak.”
SPLENDOR INSIDE AND OUT
I received many responses to my article on the Waikiki and Toyo theaters.
BettyAnn Kamakani, who says she was a 1971 Kaimuki High School graduate, remembers going to the old Waikiki Theatre.
“There was the friendliest Hawaiian usher who greeted us at the front door at the top of the stairs,” Kamakani recalled. “He had endless tidbits about the movie industry. He later worked at the Varsity Theater.”
Kamakani remembers a “moon” mounted on the rainbow proscenium arch above the large screen.
“Just before the Waikiki Theatre was demolished,” Angell said, “I climbed up the proscenium on a built-in ladder to salvage the ‘moon’ and found that it was fashioned from a tin pie plate cut in a crescent. It was covered with a sheet of colored stage gel and lit by a 10-watt light bulb.”
Jim Branchaud said the Waikiki Theatre was his favorite when he lived in the “Waikiki Jungle” in the 1960s. “The projected clouds drifting over the ceiling during John DeMello’s pre-movie organ miniconcerts were worth the price of admission!
“The fountain at the entrance was circled by a concrete bench. Many signatures of famous actors covered the surface. Was the concrete bench bearing those names saved?” Branchaud asked
“They were actually bronze plaques, eight of them,” Angell replied, “with autographs of Hollywood stars of the 1930s. They were mounted on the concrete rim of the large fountain in the courtyard. There were at least a dozen autographs on each plaque, if not more. ”
The plaques were part of theater’s beautiful decor, both inside and out. The patio with the fountain was where people waited before the evening show, and folks could admire the plaques and the great fountain with its colored lights.
“The fountain was removed in the late ’70s or early ’80s,” Angell said, “along with much of the patio, when the lobby was expanded for a bigger concession stand.
“I have no idea what happened to the plaques, and neither did anyone else at Consolidated (Theatres) when I inquired many years ago. They are probably in someone’s office or perhaps were sold or destroyed — I hope not!”
Do any readers know what happened to the bench or plaques?
ASIAN MOVIES DELIGHTED GIRLS
My friend Betty Santoki told me she had many fond memories of the Toyo Theatre.
“When we were in intermediate school, five or six of us girls caught the bus almost every Sunday to attend the Toyo Theatre. It was the samurai shows and the handsome stars such as Hashizo Okawa, Kinnosuke Nakamura and beautiful actresses such as Satomi Oka and Hiroko Sakuramachi that we were enamored with.
“I recall the Toyo Theatre’s pond with carp swimming that we watched from a bridge above. There was often a long line of young movie fans. We sometimes waited an hour to get in. We normally went early and had saimin at a nearby restaurant.
“The theater was very Oriental, but I had no idea it was a replica of the Toshogu Shrine of Tokugawa Ieyasu in Nikko, Japan,” Santoki said.
If the Toyo did not have their favorite stars or they didn’t like the movie, the girls headed for the Kokusai Theatre, only a few steps behind the parking lot. “Here we saw the handsome Raizo Ichikawa as a samurai and the beautiful Fujiko Yamamoto or Ayako Wakao.”
Another nearby theater was the Nippon Theatre. It was closer to Aala Park and walking distance from both Kokusai and Toyo theaters. “Here I recall seeing modern movies like ‘Aoi Sanmyaku’ (‘The Blue Mountains’) about young people in love.
“The Wakadaisho series with Yuzo Kayama and Yuriko Hoshi was another that we loved. It has the song ‘Kimi to Itsumade Mo.’ I think it was the Nippon Theatre that showed a lot of Hibari Misora shows like ‘Hanagasa Dochu.’”
The three theaters represented different movie studios. For example, the Nippon’s movies were from the Shochiku movie studio, and the Kokusai showed Daiei studio releases.
“Of course, it was way before the computer age, so going to the theater, skating at Rainbow Rollerland, and the Natatorium were fun activities of us junior high girls.
“It’s such a shame that the beautiful and historical Toyo Theatre was torn down. Can you imagine if it was standing there today? Cultural events could have been shown, even the nostalgic movies of yesteryear. So sad,” Santoki said.
MOVIE NIGHTS ON THE PLANTATION
Mark James of Laie remembers North Shore plantation theaters.
“The Haleiwa Theater became famous mainly because it was the last stand of ‘Captain Haleiwa,’” he said.
Captain Haleiwa was actually Hawaiian Airlines pilot Rick Rogers. He was protesting bulldozers trying to tear down the 1931 theater to make way for a McDonald’s in 1983.
“How can anyone forget seeing that guy up there at the top of the theater in a helmet, purple leotards and pink cape with his hands on his hips, daring the bulldozers to finish their dirty work and tear down that iconic landmark!”
James also recalled the Kahuku Plantation theater, which survived until the 1970s. Retired librarian/historian Riley Moffat told him that he used to go to Kahuku for the movies, which changed every night. “They printed a monthly calendar so you could plan ahead. You could get a ticket, a drink and popcorn all for $1,” James said.
“One day it was Filipino movies. Another day it was Chinese kung fu or Japanese samurai. On Mondays it was ‘adult’ night for the plantation men (when Mormons were expected to be in their homes for family gatherings).
“The seats were sprung, so you had to brace your legs on the seat in front, and when it rained the sound on the tin roof drowned out the movie’s audio.
“I also heard that if anyone yelled ‘Centipede!’ everyone held their feet in the air until the danger passed by,” James said.
ATTRACTING YOUNGER AUDIENCES
As many of you remember, several theaters had Saturday kiddie clubs. A partial file I found from 1947 lists them as:
>> Kaimuki: Porky Pig Club.
>> Kalihi: Donald Duck Club.
>> Kapahulu: Bugs Bunny Club.
>> Kewalo: Woody Woodpecker Club.
>> Palama: Popeye Club.
>> Pawaa: Mighty Mouse Club.
>> Wahiawa: Joe Palooka Club.
Bob Sigall, author of “The Companies We Keep” series of books, looks through his collection of old photos to tell stories of Hawaii people, places and companies. Contact him via email at sigall@yahoo.com.
