Al Kikume (born Elmer Kikumi Gozier;[3] October 9, 1894 – March 27, 1972) was an American actor, musician, and bandleader of Hawaiian descent. He was a frequently featured musical performer—on radio,[4][5] preceding silent film screenings,[6] and at miscellaneous live events[7][5]—during the 1920s and early thirties, as well as a familiar face among supporting actors in Hollywood jungle movies during the thirties, forties and fifties.[8]
Al Kikume | |
|---|---|
 Kikume in Bela Lugosi Meets a Brooklyn Gorilla, 1952 | |
| Born | Elmer Kikumi Gozier October 9, 1894 Kauai County, Hawaii, U.S. |
| Died | March 27, 1972 (aged 77) Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
| Other names | Elmer Kikume |
| Occupation(s) | Actor, stuntman, musician, bandleader |
| Years active | 1933–1954 |
| Spouse(s) | Virgil Edna Smith (m. circa 1911;[1] died 1925[citation needed]) |
| Children | Bernard Kikume Gozier (aka Bernie Gozier)[2] |
Early life and career
editKikume was born in Kauai County, Hawaii.[3] Known for his association with Honolulu's Royal Hawaiian Band, as well as revivals of the Broadway play, Bird of Paradise,[9] Kikume's first credited screen appearance was as "Chief Mehevi" in John Ford's The Hurricane (1937).[8]
Personal life and death
editBy no later than 1911, Kikume was married to Virgil Edna Smith, with whom he had one son, Bernard Kikume Gozier,[10] aka Bernie Gozier.[2] Gozier went on to have a substantial Hollywood career of his own, both as bit player and stuntman,[11] appearing in at least one film, Green Dolphin Street, alongside his father.[12]
Kikume died in Los Angeles on March 27, 1972.[13]
Partial filmography
edit- Hula (1937) – Native musician accompanying Clara Bow's hula dance[14]
- Tarzan the Fearless (1933)
- The Perils of Pauline (1933) serial
- The Hurricane (1937) – Chief Mehevi
- Air Devils (1938) – Don Kahano
- Mandrake the Magician (1939) serial
- Typhoon (1940)
- South of Pago Pago (1940)
- Jungle Girl (1941) serial
- Perils of Nyoka (1942) serial
- White Savage (1943)
- She Gets Her Man (1945) – Joe
- Song of the Sarong (1945)
- Green Dolphin Street (1947)
- On the Isle of Samoa (1950) – Chief Tihati
- Bela Lugosi Meets a Brooklyn Gorilla (1952)
References
edit- ^ "California, County Birth and Death Records, 1800-1994", FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QPH5-YTJN : Sat Mar 09 10:22:34 UTC 2024), Entry for Bernard Kikume Gozier and Albert Kikume Gozier, 21 January 1912
- ^ a b "Alaska Is Cold, But Music Is Hot". The Cincinnati Post. September 11, 1943. p. 9.
- ^ a b "United States World War II Draft Registration Cards, 1942", FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:V4D7-DXF : Sat Feb 24 02:27:30 UTC 2024), Entry for Elmer Kikumi Gozier, 1942.
- ^ "Radio Programs: Al Kikume – Hawaiian Orchestra". Oregon Journal. September 25, 1924. p. 25. Retrieved November 22, 2024.
- ^ a b "Hawaiian Players With Kline Known Well by Radio Fans". The Roeburg News-Review. May 19, 1925. p. 3. Retrieved November 22, 2024.
- ^ "On Calgary's Silent Stages: Queen's Hawaiians at Capitol Theatre All Next Week; 'Cold Steel' Is Booked for the Capitol Theatre". Calgary Herald. August 13, 1921 p. 12. Retrieved November 22, 2024. See also:
- "Empress Theatre". The Kamloops Telegram. June 21, 1921. p. 4.
- "The Strand". The Provo Post. March 24, 1922. p. 6.
- "Tonight, Grand: Two Shows". The Bend Bulletin. September 29, 1923. p. 5.
- "Double Bill on Sunday at the Garden". South Bend Daily Press-Tribune. April 4, 1930. p. 5.
- ^ "Entertain Clubmen" Albany Democrat-Herald. June 11, 1925. p. 2. Retrieved November 22, 2024.
- ^ a b "Al Kikume Filmography". American Film Institute.
- ^ "Sherman, Clay & Co.: Ukeleles – Kikume". The Oregon Daily Journal. November 8, 1926. p. 3. Retrieved November 22, 2024.
- ^ "California, County Birth and Death Records, 1800-1994", FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QPH5-YTJN : Sat Mar 09 10:22:34 UTC 2024), Entry for Bernard Kikume Gozier and Albert Kikume Gozier, 21 January 1912.
- ^ Freese, Gene Scott (2014). Hollywood Stunt Performers, 1910s-1970s: A Biographical Dictionary, 2d ed.. Jefferson, NC: McFarland & Company. p. 109. ISBN 978-0-7864-7643-5.
- ^ Sorensen, Sterling (Nov 27, 1947). "Movies, Music, Shows in Madison: 'Green Dolphin Street'". The Madison Capital Times. p. 45. Retrieved November 22, 2024.
- ^ "California, County Birth and Death Records, 1800-1994", FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QG64-KW58 : Fri Mar 08 17:17:16 UTC 2024), Entry for Elmer K Gozier, 27 March 1972.
- ^ "Joyland Will Present 'Night in Honolulu'". The Grass Valley Union. March 3, 1932. p. 3. Retrieved November 22, 2024.
External links
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