HAWAIIAN EYE

[308GUY]

HAWAIIAN EYE

Bought the whole series from an independent source a couple months back. Not a studio issue...recorded from the tv as it was broadcast on a station local to the seller.

Quality is what you might expect given the circumstances...plus it was produced originally in B&W. The commercials ARE edited out, and the audio is good most of the time. If you grew up watching most everything in black and white...it looks fairly "normal" most of the time, but does tend to be slightly "grainy" in places.

The plots in the episodes are what is most intriguing to me....you know....actual premises that could happen in "real life".

The saving grace beyond the writing and production, (which are very good in my opinion), are the stars.

Anthony Eisley as Traci Steele....Robert Conrad as Tom Lopaka....Connie Stevens as "Cricket" Blake....and Poncie Ponce as Kim the cabbie.

It's not the same as watching Magnum, mostly because of the lack of color in the environment, but it's still Hawaii! The stories, the characters and the production more than carry it for me.

I'm sure there won't be many others here that would enjoy it the way I do, but just thought I'd mention it here. It was a Warner Bros. production along the lines of "77 Sunset Strip"....which a couple of the stars of which showed up as guest stars in one of the episodes I've watched so far...season 1 I believe. Some of the guest stars are also a welcome surprise at times. I've seem Mary Tyler Moore in two episodes now. The last one also had Max Baer as her "stalker"!

At any rate, it really is a fun, well produced, (for the times 58'-63'), show that I for one am thoroughly enjoying going through an episode a night.

Conrad looks great in it, and actually surfs! I understand he also did all his own stunts, just like he did in The Wild, Wild West. And Connie Stevens is very easy on the eyes, and man.....what a voice! She always does at least one number in the Shell Bar, the watering hole for the hotel, (The Hawaiian Village Hotel), that Steele and Lopaka ran security for.

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0052472/


Yea.....I'm getting "old"....LOL!

[NotthatRick]

I would watch anything with Connie Stevens in it. Had a big crush on her when I was a young boy.

[Pahonu]

HAWAIIAN EYE

Bought the whole series from an independent source a couple months back. Not a studio issue...recorded from the tv as it was broadcast on a station local to the seller.

Quality is what you might expect given the circumstances...plus it was produced originally in B&W. The commercials ARE edited out, and the audio is good most of the time. If you grew up watching most everything in black and white...it looks fairly "normal" most of the time, but does tend to be slightly "grainy" in places.

The plots in the episodes are what is most intriguing to me....you know....actual premises that could happen in "real life".

The saving grace beyond the writing and production, (which are very good in my opinion), are the stars.

Anthony Eisley as Traci Steele....Robert Conrad as Tom Lopaka....Connie Stevens as "Cricket" Blake....and Poncie Ponce as Kim the cabbie.

It's not the same as watching Magnum, mostly because of the lack of color in the environment, but it's still Hawaii! The stories, the characters and the production more than carry it for me.

I'm sure there won't be many others here that would enjoy it the way I do, but just thought I'd mention it here. It was a Warner Bros. production along the lines of "77 Sunset Strip"....which a couple of the stars of which showed up as guest stars in one of the episodes I've watched so far...season 1 I believe. Some of the guest stars are also a welcome surprise at times. I've seem Mary Tyler Moore in two episodes now. The last one also had Max Baer as her "stalker"!

At any rate, it really is a fun, well produced, (for the times 58'-63'), show that I for one am thoroughly enjoying going through an episode a night.

Conrad looks great in it, and actually surfs! I understand he also did all his own stunts, just like he did in The Wild, Wild West. And Connie Stevens is very easy on the eyes, and man.....what a voice! She always does at least one number in the Shell Bar, the watering hole for the hotel, (The Hawaiian Village Hotel), that Steele and Lopaka ran security for.

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0052472/


Yea.....I'm getting "old"....LOL!

I hope this doesn’t impact your opinion of the series given your exclamation point after Hawaii, but it wasn’t shot in Hawaii at all. It was mostly filmed at the Warner lot in Burbank northeast of LA. Prime time network TV series rarely filmed on location outside of the LA area in that era. Surf side 6 and 77 Sunset Strip were filmed at Warner’s too. They used stock footage for the credits and establishing shots of the supposed settings, which in 77 Sunset Strip was actually Sunset Blvd. just a few miles away... so they got close. Warner’s had a short-lived fourth series in the same mold set in New Orleans whose name I don’t recall.

[308GUY]

I hope this doesn’t impact your opinion of the series given your exclamation point after Hawaii, but it wasn’t shot in Hawaii at all. It was mostly filmed at the Warner lot in Burbank northeast of LA.

Not at all....I believe I read that somewhere online in an article about the show....seems like the intro was filmed in HI...but not sure about that either.

It is "presented" as being set in HI....and I think they do a pretty good job....for the most part. You know the old saying..."It's all in the presentation."

If a known "landmark" is referenced, I believe they edit in actual footage/pic/whatever, (no CGI back then! ), and it comes off with the "feeling" of Hawaii...but that's just me....sometimes letting the imagination "fill in the blanks" works...being that it's all "fantasy" anyway.

Maybe the other shows you're thinking of could be....Bourbon Street Beat...and/or Surfside 6?

At any rate, I still enjoy watching the show!

Thanks for your input and fact sharing.

[Pahonu]

I hope this doesn’t impact your opinion of the series given your exclamation point after Hawaii, but it wasn’t shot in Hawaii at all. It was mostly filmed at the Warner lot in Burbank northeast of LA.

Not at all....I believe I read that somewhere online in an article about the show....seems like the intro was filmed in HI...but not sure about that either.

It is "presented" as being set in HI....and I think they do a pretty good job....for the most part. You know the old saying..."It's all in the presentation."

If a known "landmark" is referenced, I believe they edit in actual footage/pic/whatever, (no CGI back then! ), and it comes off with the "feeling" of Hawaii...but that's just me....sometimes letting the imagination "fill in the blanks" works...being that it's all "fantasy" anyway.

Maybe the other shows you're thinking of could be....Bourbon Street Beat...and/or Surfside 6?

At any rate, I still enjoy watching the show!

Thanks for your input and fact sharing.

Bourbon Street Beat is it! Thanks

I could never really get into these shows, though I tried several times. I’m a big fan of Robert Conrad and WWW but didn’t stick with Hawaiian Eye when I gave it a try a few years back. The same for the other two. I never did see any of Bourbon Street Beat.

Strangely, in one of the episodes of 77 Sunset Strip I watched, I recognized the Playboy Mansion in Holmby Hills. This would have been long before Hefner bought it in the 70’s. It was actually built for the son of the developer of the neighborhood in the 20’s. They only used some outside shots to establish the scene, as was usual.

I do clearly remember the Hawaiian Eye opening with the tiki and the surfers shown in front of Diamond Head, but I think they may have shot closeups of the stars elsewhere. I’ll have to look at it again. Hawaiian Eeeeyyyeee!!!

Glad I didn’t ruin anything for you about the show! Maybe I’ll try again sometime.

[ZelenskyTheValiant (Ivan)]

That's why HAWAII FIVE-O was such a big deal when it debuted in 1968. Because it actually WAS shot completely on location in Hawaii. Plus in glorious color!

Never seen HAWAIIAN EYE and I'm glad you're enjoying the show but knowing it wasn't shot in Hawaii would definitely put a damper on things. For me, anyway. Though I do enjoy old B&W shows in general, mostly westerns.

[308GUY]

For those who liked the Star Wars franchise.....does it detract from your enjoyment knowing that none of it is "real"?

All the WWII flics....does it make them anything less than what they are because they are just "sets" and not actually shot during battle in the 1940's?

Ben Hur...Cleopatra...One Million B.C. 2001 A Space Odyssey....Hunchback Of Notre Dame.....Frankenstein....The Wolfman....etc.,etc.,etc.. Are any of these less entertaining....anymore "unwatchable" because they use soundstage sets...makeup...ACTORS...and now, CGI.....(Jurassic Park franchise comes to mind)..it's all "fake"?
That's Hollywood....that's "the movies"....it's all "fantasy"....a representation of what it's SUPPOSED to be. For the most part, I think they do a damn fine job most of the time. Sure there's gonna be some "clinkers".....you know the old saying..."If you never make a mistake...you're not DOING anything!"

Would Hawaiian Eye be "better" if it had actually been filmed in HI....I don't know....maybe it would give us geeks something else to peruse and obsess over...finding where things were filmed...when they were used in "other" productions, etc......yea...I guess that might be "fun". But I for one, think the production of Hawaiian Eye was well done, at least for the time frame it was done in. It would've been better in color...no question about that!

Connie Stevens is a doll and has a great voice and presence in the show. Anthony Eisley is "ok"...I think he maybe wanted to be in 77 Sunset Strip instead...but not sure what happened there...maybe he had to go up against E.Z. Jr.?
I think Poncie Ponce helps pull the whole group together and lends the most "authentic" HI feel to the show...he can sing too! Watching Robert Conrad in his younger years is also somehow "satisfying". No....not a "man crush"....I just think you can see him developing his "style" and honing his skills as an actor..sort of like watching T.S. over the years in MPI. I think he would have been a great guest star to have appeared on MPI. JMHO.

Anyway....doesn't matter to me if anyone else likes it or not..or why, one way or the other. I'm very happy I have it in my collection, and it WILL go in the "HI" section.

[ZelenskyTheValiant (Ivan)]

Anyway....doesn't matter to me if anyone else likes it or not..or why, one way or the other. I'm very happy I have it in my collection, and it WILL go in the "HI" section.

It should go in the "HI but not HI" section.

[308GUY]

"It should go in the "HI but not HI" section. "

LOL! I'm not all "that" organized....

Gee....I wonder if they flew the crew to Sicily during the filming of "Italian Ice".....Pretty sure they DID go to England for "Deja Vu"!

[ZelenskyTheValiant (Ivan)]

Gee....I wonder if they flew the crew to Sicily during the filming of "Italian Ice"

Yep, they did. In fact they shot it in the same house where Don Vito Corleone was born!

[308GUY]

Gee....I wonder if they flew the crew to Sicily during the filming of "Italian Ice"

Yep, they did. In fact they shot it in the same house where Don Vito Corleone was born!

https://m.imdb.com/title/tt0639667/loca ... =tt_dt_loc


I really don't care one way or the other....but given that TM himself gives the "north shore" as the location of the Robin Masters estate....I think a fair amount of "artistic license" or suggested "facts" go without saying when it comes to ANY scripted production or episodic tv show. The exception might be documentaries...where true "facts"....matter.

The location guide from IMBD does not list Sicily amongst the sites used in this episode....but what do they know?

I'm just gonna leave this alone now.....being "right" is not something I'm overly "attached" to. You probably wouldn't like my watch, my ring or my car either!

My point was only to say I am enjoying watching an old tv show...and I still am.

[Pahonu]

Gee....I wonder if they flew the crew to Sicily during the filming of "Italian Ice"

Yep, they did. In fact they shot it in the same house where Don Vito Corleone was born!

https://m.imdb.com/title/tt0639667/loca ... =tt_dt_loc


I really don't care one way or the other....but given that TM himself gives the "north shore" as the location of the Robin Masters estate....I think a fair amount of "artistic license" or suggested "facts" go without saying when it comes to ANY scripted production or episodic tv show. The exception might be documentaries...where true "facts"....matter.

The location guide from IMBD does not list Sicily amongst the sites used in this episode....but what do they know?

I'm just gonna leave this alone now.....being "right" is not something I'm overly "attached" to. You probably wouldn't like my watch, my ring or my car either!

My point was only to say I am enjoying watching an old tv show...and I still am.

A forum member found the house used as the Italian villa. It’s in Hawaii. I believe it was Gorilla Mask.

[ZelenskyTheValiant (Ivan)]

Gee....I wonder if they flew the crew to Sicily during the filming of "Italian Ice"

Yep, they did. In fact they shot it in the same house where Don Vito Corleone was born!

https://m.imdb.com/title/tt0639667/loca ... =tt_dt_loc


I really don't care one way or the other....but given that TM himself gives the "north shore" as the location of the Robin Masters estate....I think a fair amount of "artistic license" or suggested "facts" go without saying when it comes to ANY scripted production or episodic tv show. The exception might be documentaries...where true "facts"....matter.

The location guide from IMBD does not list Sicily amongst the sites used in this episode....but what do they know?

I'm just gonna leave this alone now.....being "right" is not something I'm overly "attached" to. You probably wouldn't like my watch, my ring or my car either!

My point was only to say I am enjoying watching an old tv show...and I still am.

A forum member found the house used as the Italian villa. It’s in Hawaii. I believe it was Gorilla Mask.

Correct. The "villa" was definitely some house in Hawaii. Was just kidding about Sicily.

[Luther's nephew Dobie]

HAWAIIAN EYE
Bought the whole series from an independent source a couple months back. Not a studio issue...recorded from the tv as it was broadcast on a station local to the seller.
Quality is what you might expect given the circumstances...plus it was produced originally in B&W. The commercials ARE edited out, and the audio is good most of the time. If you grew up watching most everything in black and white...it looks fairly "normal" most of the time, but does tend to be slightly "grainy" in places.
The plots in the episodes are what is most intriguing to me....you know....actual premises that could happen in "real life".
The saving grace beyond the writing and production, (which are very good in my opinion), are the stars.
Anthony Eisley as Traci Steele....Robert Conrad as Tom Lopaka....Connie Stevens as "Cricket" Blake....and Poncie Ponce as Kim the cabbie.
It's not the same as watching Magnum, mostly because of the lack of color in the environment, but it's still Hawaii! The stories, the characters and the production more than carry it for me.
I'm sure there won't be many others here that would enjoy it the way I do, but just thought I'd mention it here. It was a Warner Bros. production along the lines of "77 Sunset Strip"....which a couple of the stars of which showed up as guest stars in one of the episodes I've watched so far...season 1 I believe. Some of the guest stars are also a welcome surprise at times. I've seem Mary Tyler Moore in two episodes now. The last one also had Max Baer as her "stalker"!
At any rate, it really is a fun, well produced, (for the times 58'-63'), show that I for one am thoroughly enjoying going through an episode a night.
Conrad looks great in it, and actually surfs! I understand he also did all his own stunts, just like he did in The Wild, Wild West. And Connie Stevens is very easy on the eyes, and man.....what a voice! She always does at least one number in the Shell Bar, the watering hole for the hotel, (The Hawaiian Village Hotel), that Steele and Lopaka ran security for.
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0052472/
Yea.....I'm getting "old"....LOL!

Hi 308 Guy,
One of my earliest memories was when the Hawaiian Eye theme came on and then the shot of the guys surfing, because at that point I was sent to bed but not before my 4 older brothers
would sing the stretched out lyric "Hawaiian Eye" and then the da da da da, da da da da! As they did so each would grab a limb and run with me hiked up in the air to my bedroom, then toss
me into bed. My twin sister would disdainfully ignore our stooges routine and regally make her own way to the other bed in our room.
This routine finally aged out after the first year of Mod Squad, though in that case I was the fugitive fleeing from them as they chased me thru the house just like Linc, Julie and
Pete were doing during the opening credits.
I was too young to have viewed the H.E. series, and since then I have only caught 5 or so episodes on line. I liked what I saw and after what you wrote above I hope some station such as
MeTV will run it again. When MeTV ran 77 Sunset Strip there were several cross over episodes with the Hawaiian Eye folks turning up in cameo roles, the opposite of what you mentioned above.
The Flintstones did a take off on Hawaiian Eye that wasn't bad.
Hawaiian Eye, Surfside Six and Bourbon Street were all cloned from the 77 Sunset Strip show, which was so immensely popular that Kookie at one point graced more magazine covers
and got more fan mail than any star in the world! El Cheapo Warner Brothers recycled 77 Sunset Strip scripts among the other 3 series.

"Sit tight, live right and keep the lamp in the window"...Kookie

[308GUY]

"Cookie...Cookie...lend me your comb"..

Thanks for your input Luther....well written...a glimpse of your own past tied to the show and beyond...luvit!