"TINY BUBBLES" SINGER PASSES

Legendary Hawaiian singer, Don Ho, has passed away at 76. From the New York Times:

"Don Ho, an entertainer who defined popular perceptions of Hawaiian music in the 1960s and held fast to that image as a peerless Waikiki nightclub attraction, died Saturday in Honolulu. He was 76."

Melting-pot background:

"Born in the Honolulu enclave of Kaka‘ako, Donald Tai Loy Ho had an ethnic background worthy of the islands’ melting-pot ideal: he was of Hawaiian, Chinese, Portuguese, Dutch and German descent. He grew up in Kaneohe, on the windward side of the island of Oahu, and it was there that he began his singing career at Honey’s, a restaurant and lounge owned by his mother, Emily."

Ho was a veteran Air Force Pilot:

"Mr. Ho enlisted in the United States Air Force in 1954, receiving his certification as a fighter pilot in Texas but never seeing combat. He transferred to the Military Airlift Command and flew cargo transport routes across the Pacific before leaving the service the year that Hawaii became the 50th state."

The Revs Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson couldn't be reached for comment on the passing of Ho.