"Hawaii 5-0", which I reviewed for the Encyclopedia of Popular Culture, was the first major series set in Hawaii. Its locale, its central character, and much else have been copied since. From beginning to end of its dozen-years' run, this was a quality production. It began as a TV movie; and from first to last Jack Lord played the head of this special investigation unit, Steve McGarrett. He reported directly to the Attorney General and Governor of the state; and his unit took on murder and all the other most difficult cases. A look at the directors and writers who toiled for the show reveals the quality of the attempt. The directors included TV's biggest names, I assert, among them Danny Arnold, Reza S. Badayi, Richard Benedict, Abner Biberman, Bruce Bilson, Robert Butler, Marvin Chomsky, Barry Crane, Lawrence Dobkin, David Friedkin, Alvin Ganzer, Robert Gist, Gordon Hessler, Alj Kjellin, Paul Krasny, Philip Leacock, Bernard McEveety, John Llewellyn Moxey, Gene Nelsom, John Newland, Michae O'Herlihy, Leo Penn, Seymour Robbie, Sutton Roley, Barry Shear, Bob Sweeney, Jerry Thorpe, Don Weis, Paul Wendkos and Nicholas Colasanto. The fine writers who worked for "Hawaii 5-0" included Ed Adamson, Albert Aley, John D.F. Black, Walter Black, Jerome Coopersmith, Robert C. Dennis, Meyer Doilinsky, Jackson Gillis, Herman Gorves, Darid P. Harmon, Laurence Heath, Shirl Hendryx, Stephen Kandel, E. Arthur Kean, Curtis Kenyon, Anthony Lawrence, Seeleg Lester, Robert Lewin, Jerry Ludwig, Bob and Esther Mitchell, Irv Pearlberg, Gilbert Ralston, Sy Salkowitz, Alvin Sapinsley, George F. Slavin, Jack Turley, Carey Wilber, and Preston Wood. The producers maintained both a mainland and an Hawaii-based unit. The cast included besides Richard Denning as the Governor and several other regulars McGarrett's unit, comprised of James MacArthur as young Danny Williams, Zulu as Kono Kalakaua, Kam Fong as Chin Ho Kelly and Harry Endo as lab man Che Fong for seven years. As regulars left the series, others were hired including Al Harrington, Herman Wedemeyer, and later in the series Sharon Farrell. Regular guest stars. included Kawn Hi Lim, Seth Sakai, Khigh Dhiegh as Chinese spy Wo Fat, Danny Kamekona, Tommy Fujiwara and more. Prominent actors who were hired for prominent guest roles included Stephen Boyd, Mark Lenard, Charlene Polite, Ricardo Montalban, Hume Cronyn, Simon Oakland, Constance Towers, Marianne McAndrew, Luther Adler (the Vachon trilogy), Nehemiah Persoff, and hundreds more. The topics included the degradation of the original Hawaiian culture, plague, murder of tourists, robberies, power-crazed locals and newcomers, organized crime's 'lords', vicious malefactors and fantastic plots of assassination or worse. The show's theme, its locations, Jack Lord's saying, "Book 'em Danno--murder one" became household icons. Finally the series ran out of new cast members and new crimes worthy of an hour's length of narrative film. But the ethical quality of its tough-minded lead, the clear, crisp photography and the swift-paced and intelligent dialogue read in authentic locales set a new standard in each case for what had until 1968 been a rather insular TV production system, shot mostly in Los Angles regardless of the storyline. The show was very fine by my standards; and it is still missed today.
Review of Hawaii Five-O
Hawaii Five-O
(1968–1980)
Quality, Hawaiian Locations; The Standard For Police Shows
10 October 2005