Rearview Mirror: There’s no shortage of celebrity sightings in Hawaii

Readers continue to share their interesting encounters with the rich and famous. Here are a few more of their stories.

Doris Duke

Carol Chun said: “In the summer of 1954, I was 6, and on Saturdays I would go ulua fishing with my pop at Sandy Beach. Ours were the only footprints in the sand.

“On Sundays I would go with Pop to fish at the Diamond Head cliffs. We would park at the bottom of the hill and trudge along the cliff side to Pop’s favorite fishing spot. He carried his three long poles (which he made himself), his fishing gear and lunch. I carried the gallon glass jug of water.

“It was a long, torturous trek for a 6-year-old, wearing a swimsuit and flimsy rubber slippers. There were tall ironwood trees, and I could feel the droppings underfoot. But once we settled in, I loved exploring the cliff side and watching the waves below.

“After the first couple of Sunday treks, a Japanese gardener approached Pop and said, ‘The lady says you can park at the top of the driveway.’ This would have eliminated the cliff-side walk. Of course, my father declined, saying he didn’t want to make humbug.

“Meanwhile, this whiny 6-year-old is begging her father to accept the kind gesture. Finally, a couple of weekends later, my father compromised and parked halfway up the driveway. Yay!

“That day, a man dressed in white approached Pop and said, ‘Ma’am says the girl can swim in the pool.’ Again, my father declined, saying he didn’t want to make humbug.

“The next Sunday, the gentleman makes the same offer, and Pop relented and I spent the rest of the day in and out of the pool. Being a novice swimmer, I spent the entire time clinging to the pool edge looking down at the deep blue bottom.

“After a time the gentleman came back and set a silver tray down on the poolside table. On it was a glass of milk and a plate of cookies. I ran to my father to ask if I could eat the cookies. Knowing I didn’t like milk, he said I had to drink the milk first. I quickly drank the milk and then ate the cookies.

“I waved my thanks to the gentleman, and that’s when I saw ‘the lady.’ So, I waved my thanks to her, too.

“I thought that she must not be well, as she was dressed in a long cotton gown and had a bandage on her head.

“It was an idyllic summer, lounging poolside and snacking on cookies.

“Not until years later did I realize that ‘the lady’ was Doris Duke and that she wore a caftan and a turban.

“Several years ago I finally took the Shangri La tour and could relive Sundays at poolside and the kindness of ‘the lady.’”

Tom Selleck

Kathleen Sattler told me that her late husband, Jim, was well known as a collector of vintage cars. The original “Magnum, P.I.” hired one of his Thunderbirds for $100.

“I was gladly on the set for three days watching the cast and crew film for this episode as I drove the T-Bird in and around the driveway for various scenes.

“On the third day, everything was wrapping up, and I decided I’d better get a picture with Tom Selleck, so I asked his bodyguard if I could do that.

“‘Sorry, mum, he’s too busy.’ Right, I thought. He’s just going down to the Outrigger (Canoe Club) to play volleyball.

“So, I pulled the blue T-Bird right up to the front door where I knew Tom would be exiting, stepped back and placed a plumeria on the ground where my camera would be in focus.

“‘Hey, Tom, can I get a picture with you?’ I said as he was leaving.

“‘Sure,’ he said as he took my camera and handed it to his bodyguard. I told him, ‘Thanks.’”

And to the bodyguard Sattler said, “Just take the shot from the plumeria.”

The Nixon White House

“My mom and I were invited to dinner at the White House when Nixon was president in February 1970,” Margaret Gammon told me.

“The White House dinner was to honor my grandfather Gen. Lewis B. Hershey, who was leaving as head of the Selective Service (draft) after 30 years. He worked for all the presidents from Roosevelt to Nixon. It also honored my grandmother, who had been with him since the eighth grade in Angola, Ind.

“I was a student at Indiana University at the time. When my sorority sisters put mail in my box, they’d say, ‘How come you’re getting letters from the White House?’

“I told them that my grandfather had an office in the White House extension, so his return address was stamped in gold with ‘The White House.’

“I shook the president’s hand in the receiving line. Nixon was polite and somewhat wooden,” she said. “That may not be fair, as he was shaking LOTS of hands in the receiving line.

“President Nixon was my grandmother’s dinner partner, and they sat far away from us. We all were at round tables of eight. I sat at a table with Gen. William Westmoreland across from me. He was chief of staff of the Army at the time and was quiet.

“My grandfather and Mrs. Nixon sat to my left. I asked Mrs. Nixon about her daughter, Tricia, who had the flu. She was gracious in her response.

“I still have the invitation and menu, framed and signed by Gen. Westmoreland and Melvin Laird, secretary of defense (my mom’s dinner partner).

“They danced after dinner while he told her what a great job my dad was doing in Vietnam/Cambodia as an Army adviser. Melvin Laird was the nicest and most down-to-earth person at this event.

“I will never forget that evening.”

Bing Crosby

Willson Moore told me: “In the early 1970s Bing Crosby was touring Kauai and looking for a golf game. He was paired with my father-in-law, Frank Churchill, at the Wailua Golf Course.

“Frank was then manager of McBryde Sugar plantation on Kauai’s west shore. He had an 8 handicap and invited Bing to his plantation manager’s home in Kalaheo for a post-golf lunch.

“Both Frank and his wife, Kay Churchill, reported they had a grand time with the down-to-earth famous star. The following year, Bing was slated to play in the pro-am portion of Waialae Country Club’s then-Hawaiian Open golf tournament (in those days sponsored by United Airlines, long before Sony).

“We lived nearby, and Frank instructed me to go up to Bing and, after introducing myself as Frank’s son-in-law, tell him in so many words, ‘Frank Church­ill says if you are not chicken, you will return to Kauai as the Churchills’ guest and have a golf rematch with Frank.’

“I protested that I could not say that to such an august personage, but Frank (apparently well aware of Bing Crosby’s easy disposition) insisted.

“So, I mustered up enough courage to go up to Bing on Waialae Golf Course and repeated what I was instructed to say. Bing just threw back his head and laughed, but asked me to convey his regrets to the Churchills that his schedule this time did not permit a return to Kauai.

“Bing also asked me to convey his best regards to the Churchills, and thereafter, until Bing’s death, my in-laws received a Christmas card from the Crosbys every year.”

Have you met someone famous? If so, send me an email about it.

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Bob Sigall is the author of the five “Companies We Keep” books, full of amazing stories about Hawaii people, places and organizations. Send him your comments and suggestions to Sigall@Yahoo.com.