He survived cancer, beating the odds and coming back stronger; at 76, he is still one of the busiest entertainers in Hawaii. And now we know his secret: Jimmy Borges has firecrackers under his papayas.
On Monday night, Borges made a triumphant return to "Hawaii Five-0," playing a character he describes as "an underhanded produce shop owner who sells more than papayas." In a scene with stars Alex O’Loughlin, Scott Caan and guest star James Caan, Borges portrayed a fruit seller who imports illegal fireworks from China.
In the original series that ran from 1968-80, Borges appeared in 15 episodes, playing good guys and bad guys, including one where he was "Marco the record store owner" and another where he played himself singing in a nightclub. Those were not brief appearances but guest-star roles, and Borges was often clad in the grooviest clothes on network TV. This time, though, no leisure suit.
"They won’t let me wear my own wardrobe … damn. I had some bell-bottoms that would have filled the screen," Borges joked.
The new "Five-0" has featured local actors with ties to the original series, including recent appearances by Al Harrington and Dennis Chun (son of actor Kam Fong, who played Chin Ho Kelly.) There have also been a number of roles for newer local names, like Kaiwi Lyman-Mersereau, son of original Hokule‘a crewmember Marion Lyman-Mersereau, and major leaguer Shane Victorino of Maui. But the circle wasn’t complete until "Five-0" got Borges back.
The show itself falls into that "it is what it is" category: fast-paced, pretty to look at, plots with more twists than an Escher staircase and lots of things that go boom. In terms of ratings, it regularly wins its time slot. In terms of critical success, well, it has the same sort of aesthetic as the original "Five-0" — that is to say, there’s a layer of cheese on that Subway sandwich, brah.
But the local guest stars, like the local scenery, are what Hawaii people get excited about, and Jimmy Borges is as beloved a guy as there is. Everyone has seen him perform and anyone who has met him feels like he’s their good friend.
With a 57-year career as an entertainer, Borges is still looking ahead to new challenges, still redefining himself.
"I am in peak shape, doing a concert at the MAAC (Maui Arts & Cultural Center) in Maui on March 18, planning a guest recording with Hiroshima, the jazz group, in the process of doing my own CD, and now ‘Five-0,’" he said. He has also been visiting schools, lecturing on his career in show business. "I want my young proteges to be goal-setters and then to pursue that goal with wild abandon."
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Reach Lee Cataluna at lcataluna@staradvertiser.com.
