"Hawaiian Eye" (1959) TV series 1959-1963

User Rating:

8.0/10   

Seasons:

1 | 2 | 3 | 4

Release Date:

7 October 1959 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Adventure | Crime | Drama | Music

Plot:

Set against the beautiful tropical landscape of Honolulu, Hawaii, this series centered around the cases...

Plot Keywords:

Detective | Honolulu Hawaii | Private Eye | Hawaii | Oahu Hawaii

Cast

Connie Stevens	...	Cricket Blake (90 episodes, 1959-1962)
Robert Conrad	...	Tom Lopaka (88 episodes, 1959-1962)
Poncie Ponce	...	Kazuo Kim / ... (88 episodes, 1959-1962)
Anthony Eisley	...	Tracy Steele / ... (73 episodes, 1959-1962)
Mel Prestidge	...	Lt. Danny Quon / ... (44 episodes, 1959-1962)
Douglas Mossman	...	Moke / ... (43 episodes, 1959-1962)

Also Known As:

Diamond Head (USA) (working title)
The Islander (USA) (original script title)

Runtime:

60 min (134 episodes)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound Recording)

Certification:

Argentina:13

Company:

Warner Bros. Television

Trivia:

Robert Wagner was asked to play Tom Lopaka, but he wanted to concentrate on movies instead. He then recommended his friend Robert Conrad for the role, which led to Conrad being cast. He had a dark tan from his time at the beach during the previous year, when he was looking for work, and that made the producers think of him as a beach type.

Quotes:

Tracy Steele: I come from a long line of nose-pokers. Oh, by the way, where's Mr. Lewis?

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Mystery Science Theater 3000: Women of the Prehistoric Planet (#2.13)" (1990)

Early Hawaiin detective show

Before Hawaii Five-0... before Magnum P.I., there was... Hawaiian Eye!

The stars really did surf during the forward credits (I think)! I thought that was so cool! I was only around 5 when this show appeared.

What I remember about the show is, Tracy Steele had a really cool name and a pencil thin mustache. I loved pencil-thin mustaches back then. Paladin (Richard Boone) in "Have Gun Will Travel" had one too. I always thought, "When I grow up, I'm going to grow a pencil-thin mustache like those guys. But, I never did.

Tom Lopaka. By his name, were we being asked to believe pretty boy, Robert Conrad, was Hawaiian? Puh-LEEZE! There's a link on a website called Whirlygig that offers a portion of the episode called "The Comics." It guest stars Mary Tyler Moore. In it, Tracy Steele has arranged for Lopaka to be asked to the stage in a nightclub they are enjoying for the evening, to sing a song. With a little coaxing, Lopaka goes to the stage and sings the cheesiest lounge lizard style song called, "I Want You, Pretty Baby." Holy cow, is it hokey! Was that really Robert Conrad's voice or was it a dub-in?

All that aside, this was a fun detective show. I remember thinking Cricket Blake was pretty cute! Connie Stevens became an early sixties blonde female icon in this series.

The series made us think of Hawaii and its tropical enticements. The theme song still haunts my memory.