ThingsToDo.com Logo Things to do in Hawaii

Famous People from Hawaii


Benny Peter Agbayani, Jr. (1971 - ) A retired professional baseball player. He played with the New York Mets, Colorado Rockies and Boston Red Sox. Born in Honolulu, HI (789)

Christine Keiko Agena (1973 - ) An American actress best known for the television show, Gilmore Girls where she played Lane Kim for seven seasons. Other shows she has appeared on include Scandal, House, ER and Without a Trace. Born in Honolulu, HI (790)

George Ryoichi Ariyoshi (1926 - ) He served as the third Governor of Hawaii from 1974 to 1986. He was the first American of Asian descent to be elected governor of a state of the United States. Born in Honolulu, HI (1420)

Kimberly Jonelle Balmilero (1979 - ) An American actress. Toured with "Miss Saigon" for three years and was part of the original Broadway cast of "Mamma Mia!". She joined the TV series, "Hi-5" as the American counterpart of Sun Park. Born in Kaneohe, HI (1421)

Sasha Barrese (1981 - ) Born Alexandra Barrese. An American actress known for her role as Tracy Billings in The Hangover films. Born in Maui, HI (1422)

Tia Carrere (1967 - ) An American actress, model, voice artist and singer. Her big break came as a regular on the soap opera General Hospital. She has also appeared in Wayne's World and Wayne's World 2, and several television shows including Airwolf, The A-Team, MacGyver and Relic Hunter. Born in Honolulu, HI (122)

Benjamin Jerome Cayetano (1939 - ) He served as the fifth Governor of the State of Hawaii from 1994 to 2002. He is the first Filipino American to serve as a state governor in the United States. Born in Honolulu, HI (1423)

Mark Alan Dacascos (1964 - ) An American actor and martial artist. He won numerous karate and various styles of kung fu championships between the ages of 7 and 18. He has portrayed the Chairman on the television series Iron Chef America and Wo Fat on the series Hawaii Five-O. Born in Honolulu, HI (1424)

Ronald Maurice Darling Jr. (1960 - ) A former American pitcher in Major League Baseball who played for the New York Mets, Oakland Athletics and Montreal Expos. Born in Honolulu, HI (1425)

Sanford Ballard Dole (1844 - 1926) A lawyer and jurist in the Hawaiian Islands as a kingdom, protectorate, republic and territory. He advocated the westernization of Hawaiian government and culture. He was the first territorial Governor of Hawaii. Born in Honolulu, HI (1426)

Yvonne Marianne Elliman (1951 - ) An American singer who performed for four years in the first cast of Jesus Christ Superstar. She had a #1 hit, "If I Can't Have You" in the 1970s. After a long hiatus she made a come-back album as a singer-songwriter in 2004. Born in Honolulu, HI (1427)

Sid Fernandez (1962 - ) Born Charles Sidney Fernandez. Former Major League Baseball pitcher from 1983 to 1997. Born in Honolulu, HI (116)

Hiram Leong Fong (1906 - 2004) Born Yau Leong Fong. He was a United States Senator from 1959 to 1977. He was the first Asian American and Chinese American to be elected as such. Born in Honolulu, HI (123)

Bethany Meilani Hamilton (1990 - ) An American professional surfer. She is known for surviving a shark attack in which she lost her left arm, and for overcoming the serious and debilitating injury to return to surfing. Born in Kauai, HI (1428)



Don Ho (1930 - 2007) Born Donald Tai Loy Ho. A traditional pop musician, singer and entertainer. Best known for the song "Tiny Bubbles." Hawaii's most famous entertainer. Born in Honolulu, HI (119)

Kamehameha I (1758 - 1819) Also known as Kamehameha the Great. He conquered the Hawaiian Islands formally establishing the Kingdom of Hawaii in 1810 and founding the Kamehameha Dynasty. Born in Kohala district, HI (120)

Daniel K. Inouye (1924 - 2012) When Hawaii became a state in 1959, he was elected as its first member of the U.S. House of Representatives and in 1962 he was elected to the U.S. Senate. He was the first Japanese American to serve in the House of Representatives and the Senate. He was the President pro tempore of the U.S. Senate from 2010 until his death in 2012 making him the highest-ranking Asian American politician in U.S. history. Born in Honolulu, HI (118)

Duke Paoa Kahanamoku (1890 - 1968) A competition swimmer, actor, lawman, early beach volleyball player and businessman credited with spreading the sport of surfing. He was a five-time Olympic medalist in swimming. Born in Honolulu, HI (117)

Bette Midler (1945 - ) An American singer-songwriter, actress, film producer and entrepreneur. She has released 13 studio albums as a solo artist and sold over 30 million records. Some of her songs include "The Rose" and "Wind Beneath My Wings." Some of her films include The First Wives Club, The Stepford Wives, and Beaches. Born in Honolulu, HI (121)

Barack Hussein Obama II (1961 - ) 44th President of the United States. Barack Obama is the first African-American president of the United States of America. Born in Honolulu, HI (739)

Danny Ongais (1942 - ) Former race car driver. His nickname is "The Flyin' Hawaiian." The first native Hawaiian to compete at the Indianapolis 500. He has competed in motorcycle, sports car, Formula One, and drag racing. Born in Maui, HI (791)

Ellison Shoji Onizuka (1946 - 1986) Successfully flew into space with the Space Shuttle Discovery on STS-51-C, before losing his life to the destruction of the Space Shuttle Challenger. He was the first Asian American to reach space and the first person of Japanese ancestry to reach space. Born in Kona, HI (792)

Harold Sakata (1920 - 1982) Born Toshiyuki Sakata. He was an American Olympic weightlifter, professional wrestler, and actor. His most famous role was Oddjob in the James Bond film Goldfinger. He won a silver medal for the U.S. in 1948 in weightlifting. Born in Holualoa,, HI (124)

Bob Shane (1934 - ) Born Robert Castle Schoen. An American singer and guitarist and, the only surviving founding member of The Kingston Trio. He was influential in the revival of folk and other acoustic music as a popular art form. Born in Hilo, HI (793)

James Shigeta (1929 - 2014) An American film and television actor. He is also a standards singer, musical theatre and nightclub performer, and recording artist. He was known for his roles in Flower Drum Song, Die Hard and Mulan. Born in Honolulu, HI (1429)

Shannon Marie Kahoolani Sossamon (1978 - ) An American actress, dancer, model, and musician. She starred in the film A Knight's Tale, 40 Days and 40 Nights, Wristcutters: A Love Story, The Order and Road to Nowhere. She provided vocals and drums to Warpaint from 2004 to 2008. Born in Honolulu, HI (1431)

Donald Lee Stroud (1943 - ) An American actor and surfer who appeared in many films in the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s, and as of 2014 he had starred in over 100 movies and 175 television shows. Born in Honolulu, HI (1430)

Michelle Sung Wie (1989 - ) An American professional golfer who plays on the LPGA Tour. At age 10, she became the youngest player to qualify for USGA amateur championship. Wie would also become the youngest winner of the US Women's Amateur Public Links and the youngest to qualify for a LPGA tour event. She won her first major at the 2014 U.S. Women's Open. Born in Honolulu, HI (1432)