Center for Labor Education & Research, University of Hawaii - West Oahu: Honolulu Record Digitization Project
Honolulu Record, Volume 10 No. 9, Thursday, September 26, 1957 p. 5
Gadabout
There’s a new gimmick being used by fleecers here, the talk around town has it, though it isn't a new gimmick in Mainland circles. Anyhow, it's merely the use of a rumble on "hot money." The sucker is told he, or she will be allowed to purchase a large amount of money that is for some reason "hot" on the Mainland, possibly stolen, swindled, or acquired in some other illegal fashion. The sucker may be given a bargain such as maybe $5,000 for $3,000, which represents $2,000 clear profit if the sucker spends it here id Hawaii instead of on the Mainland. At least that's what he or she is told. When the exchange comes, of course, only the sucker does the paying. About the time he or she is to get the big boodle, a "cop" walks in and makes a "pinch" of one of the fleecers involved. If it works well, the sucker is convinced he or she is lucky to get away without being pinched, too. Of course, the sucker may get a little sore later and decide to call some real cops into the case, and that's what we hear happened not long ago in one of the cases around town.
The sharpies have all pricked up their ears for the details and will undoubtedly be out trying the "hot money" gimmick on other prospective victims. But as we said, it's no newer in principle than the fake "opium" swindle that's been worked here for years and, years.
Joe Rose may be the "most dynamic, most listened to" TV personality in the islands, as his announcer claims, but he's apparently far from being paid the best. Did you note in Krauss' column that Billy Sherman gets $50 each for his shows, and his report earlier that Rose gets $40?
The public relations committees of the various Chambers of Commerce in Honolulu should get after downtown stores about this important point:
Janitors of too many stores are put to work too late in the mornings so that when they come to, sweep, the sidewalks are busy with the morning rush of pedestrians on their way to work and said pedestrians are plastered with the dust and filth.
They should take a leaf out of the Ritz Store book up Fort St. The Ritz janitor does the sidewalk real early. He not only sweeps it but gives the Ritz share of toe sidewalk a thorough mopping with disinfected water.
There’s still a bit of talk about the character of the crowd of about 200 that met Delegate Jack Burns when he arrived from Washington at the International Airport Saturday before last, something that wasn't mentioned in this or any other paper, though the Star-Bulletin gave an indication of it. That indication was in the picture of little Mary Arce greeting
him. She's the girl from the Philippines who suffers from polio and was enabled to stay in Hawaii through a bill Burns introduced into Congress. But generally the crowd was made up of those sometimes called the "little people." There were custodians from City Hall, farmers from Waianae, salesmen, retired Veterans from the Armed Services and generally people from the middle and lower economic strata. There was some of the Democratic Party's brass, too, of course and some of the larger economic' interests were represented.
There’s some room for anyone to argue about that phrase, "little people," of course, though it's used a great deal. We rather like a comment Joseph Mitchell put in the preface of his book, "McSorley's Wonderful Saloon." Mitchell wrote. "There are no little people in this book. They are as big as you are whoever you are."
The Joe Rose-Bob Krauss sideshow wound up last week with Joe eating considerable crow on his last TV broadcast oh the subject, and all but apologizing. He didn't give much explanation except that he'd got a letter from Bucky Buchwach, an epistle he didn't read to his audience. Somehow, he'd managed to drag Bucky Buchwach and Billy Sherman into the beef, though it was never clear how the "Tiser city editor and the show business writer were supposed to be involved.
Rose was right when he said he's had more written about, him in the RECORD than other papers, but he was dead wrong when he said this paper called him either "dangerous" or "vicious." He's generally been treated in; the RECORD as the sideshow he is. with his statements set alongside toe truth so the readers can judge for themselves. One of the prizes, of course, was his "inside" dope on how Bill Vannatta was going to run for mayor on the GOP ticket with the backing of toe late Mayor John H. Wilson. Another was the time he redbaited the message of President Grover Cleveland on the annexation of Hawaii. But he usually produces one or two a week.
As for his "plot" of the UPW and its school custodians to run the RECORD, we've still heard of it only on his program, and then via a comment by Bob Krauss in his critique.
The beverage bulletin, newspaper of the liquor business published at Berkeley, Calif., reflects plenty of interest in Hawaii. First, there's the 12-day tour of liquor dealers, just arrived on the Leilani, which cost the takers $397 for the trip which includes 12 days here. Then there's a newsy column by Jack Schreiberman that tells all the liquor news from the troubles of Shirley Mendelson with the liquor commission over the Top O' The Isle's pay scale for entertainers to a new gadget by which bartenders, measure out "shots" for customers. The gadget keeps the shots standard and, according to the owners, makes 25 percent more per bottle for the house. Bartenders aren't reported quite so enthusiastic.
Ray Robinson says he'd like to take a trip into foreign countries, including the USSR, boxing for goodwill and the state department, and thus taking a somewhat different view of Satchmo Armstrong's. "Pops" said in very strong terms he wouldn't take a trip, to the USSR for the state department because he couldn't very well explain what people like Gov. Orval Faubus of Arkansas were doing to his people. Ray seems to agree on one point, though. He says he'd like to fight Faubus for free. It remains to be seen whether or not he's serious about touring for the state department. Robinson talks a lot and sometimes he even means it. There was a time when he turn-ed over his end of a purse for the Damon Runyon Cancer Fund.
It is only common humanity to feed the hungry. If our hospitals are too big, too complex, too impersonal to do these small kindnesses for the sick, something is very wrong.