Jack Lord wasn't exactly easy to work with. Everyone in Hollywood knew it. But when you look back at the Hawaii 50 original cast, it’s impossible to imagine anyone else wearing that stiff suit and delivering the iconic "Be there! Aloha" line. The show premiered in 1968, a time when Hawaii felt like a foreign planet to most Americans living in the mainland. It wasn't just a police procedural; it was a postcard with a siren.
Most people today associate the brand with the shiny 2010 reboot, but the DNA of the "Five-O" unit belongs to a very specific group of men who filmed on location when the logistics were a nightmare. They didn't have green screens. They had heat, humidity, and a lead actor who demanded absolute perfection.
The Core Four: More Than Just Backups for Steve McGarrett
The Hawaii 50 original cast was anchored by Jack Lord as Steve McGarrett, but the chemistry of the supporting players—James MacArthur, Kam Fong, and Gilbert Lani Kauhi—is what gave the show its legs.
James MacArthur, who played Danny "Danno" Williams, was actually the son of legendary actress Helen Hayes. He brought a youthful, slightly more relatable energy to the screen compared to Lord’s stoic, almost robotic McGarrett. MacArthur wasn't the first choice, though. In the pilot episode, the role of Danno was played by Tim O'Kelly. Test audiences didn't vibe with him. They felt he looked too young to be a seasoned detective, so the producers pivoted to MacArthur. That pivot created one of the most famous catchphrases in television history: "Book 'em, Danno." Interestingly, Lord rarely said the full phrase in the early seasons; it evolved into a mandatory trope later on.
Then there was Kam Fong. He played Chin Ho Kelly. Fong’s life story is actually more dramatic than many of the scripts he filmed. Before he was an actor, he was a real-life Honolulu Police Department officer for nearly twenty years. He survived the 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor while working at the shipyard. He lost his first wife and two children in a horrific air disaster in 1944. When you see Chin Ho on screen, that weary, grounded authority isn't just acting. It's a man who had seen the real streets of Oahu long before the cameras started rolling.
The Zulu Factor and the Native Connection
Gilbert Lani Kauhi, known simply as Zulu, played Kono Kalakaua. He was a local boy, a surfer, and a beach boy who brought genuine Hawaiian "aloha" to the set. Zulu was massive, both in physical presence and personality. However, the tension on set was real. Jack Lord ran the show like a military operation. Zulu was a free spirit.
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By the end of the fourth season, Zulu was fired. The stories vary depending on who you ask, but most accounts point to a confrontation between Zulu and the production's publicist, which was the final straw for the higher-ups. He was replaced by Al Harrington, who played Alani "Al" Vano. Harrington had actually appeared in the show previously as several different characters—a common practice in 1970s TV—before becoming a series regular. This shift in the Hawaii 50 original cast marked the first major crack in the foundation, but the show was such a juggernaut that it kept rolling for a total of twelve seasons.
Why Jack Lord Refused to Leave the Islands
Jack Lord was the first actor to ever be offered a percentage of a show's profits, a deal orchestrated by his wife, Marie de Narde. He was obsessive. He would check the lighting. He would critique the scripts. He stayed in Hawaii until the day he died in 1998.
He became a local icon. While the rest of the Hawaii 50 original cast moved on to other projects or retired, Lord became a recluse in his Kahala condo. You have to understand that in the late 60s, TV stars didn't usually stay in character once the cameras stopped. Lord did. He felt a responsibility to the image of the Hawaii Five-O task force. He insisted that the show portray the Hawaiian people with dignity, which was a pretty progressive stance for a white guy in charge of a major network show in the 1960s. He fought against "tourist" clichés, even if the show occasionally slipped into them anyway.
The Rotating Door of Villains and Guests
You can't talk about the cast without mentioning Wo Fat. Khigh Dhiegh played the recurring villain, and honestly, he stole every scene he was in. Dhiegh wasn't even Chinese; he was of Anglo-Egyptian and Sudanese descent, born in New Jersey. Yet, he became the face of international espionage for a decade of viewers.
The guest stars were a "who’s who" of talent:
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- A young Harrison Ford appeared in an episode titled "No Blue Skies."
- Christopher Walken (credited as Ronnie Walken) showed up in 1970.
- Martin Sheen played multiple different roles across the years.
- Helen Hayes even guest-starred as Danno’s mother, creating a meta-moment for the audience.
The Reality of the "Five-O" Task Force
The show made it look like Five-O was a massive government entity. In reality, the "Five-O" name was a nod to Hawaii being the 50th state. The unit didn't exist in real life, which actually confused tourists for years. People would arrive in Honolulu and ask where the Five-O offices were. The show filmed at the Iolani Palace, which was the former royal residence of the Hawaiian monarchs. This gave the production a sense of gravity and history that most backlot shows in California couldn't touch.
The Hawaii 50 original cast worked in brutal conditions. High-definition didn't exist, but the heat did. If you watch the early seasons closely, you can see the actors literally dripping with sweat. They didn't have the luxury of climate-controlled soundstages for most of the exterior shots. They were in the jungles, on the beaches, and in the crowded streets of Waikiki.
The Tragic and Quiet Ends
It’s a bit melancholy when you look at where the original stars ended up.
James MacArthur eventually left the show in 1979, just before the final season. He said he simply got bored. He wanted to do theater and spend time with his family. He was the last of the "original" trio (McGarrett, Danno, Chin Ho) to remain on the show.
Kam Fong lived a long life, passing away in 2002. Despite being killed off in the season 10 finale—one of the most shocking TV deaths at the time—he actually returned for the 1997 pilot of a failed Five-O revival. Because, in the world of TV, if the fans love you enough, being dead is just a temporary setback.
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Jack Lord’s final years were spent battling Alzheimer’s. He left his entire $40 million estate to Hawaiian charities, proving that his love for the islands wasn't just a PR stunt. He genuinely cared about the place that made him a legend.
How the 1968 Cast Still Influences TV Today
The Hawaii 50 original cast created the blueprint for the "ensemble" procedural. Before Five-O, most cop shows were about one guy or a pair of partners. Five-O felt like a team. They had a tech guy (sort of), a muscle guy, and a leader.
If you're a fan of the 2010 reboot, you owe it to yourself to watch the 1968 pilot, "Cocoon." The pacing is slower, sure. The haircuts are different. But the tension is exactly the same. The original cast had a certain grit that you don't see in modern, polished television. They weren't "CW pretty." They looked like guys who worked for a living.
What You Should Do Next
If you want to truly appreciate what these actors did, don't just watch clips on YouTube.
- Find the Season 1 DVD or high-def streams. Look for the episode "Yesterday Died and Tomorrow Won't Be Born." It’s Jack Lord at his most intense.
- Visit the Jack Lord statue. If you ever find yourself in Honolulu, there’s a bronze bust of him at the Kahala Mall. It’s a weirdly fitting tribute to a man who became a permanent part of the landscape.
- Research the real Iolani Palace. Learning the history of the building where they filmed helps you understand why the show felt so "official" and important to the locals.
The Hawaii 50 original cast wasn't just a group of actors; they were ambassadors for a version of Hawaii that was rapidly changing. They captured a moment in time where the old world met the new, all wrapped up in a groovy theme song and a "Wave" that still gives people chills.