Queen Elizabeth II died Sept. 8 after a reign of 70 years. I’ll write about her three visits to Hawaii another time. Today I thought I’d write about her mother, Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother, who visited Honolulu twice, in 1958 and 1966.
It had been 38 years since a member of the British royal family last visited Hawaii. Edward, the Prince of Wales, stopped here twice in 1920 for a few days. Duke Kahanamoku gave him surfing lessons, and he loved it.
The highlight of the Queen Mother’s visits also involved the famed waterman and Olympic champion. Let’s take a look.
First visit in 1958
Britain’s Queen Mother first arrived in Honolulu on Jan. 30, 1958. She was on her way to Fiji, New Zealand and Australia. Her plane stopped in Honolulu 90 minutes to refuel.
Gov. and Mrs. William F. Quinn were to greet her at the airport, The Honolulu Advertiser’s Bob Krauss reported, but their radio-alarm clock didn’t go off.
Their driver waited but they didn’t appear. Sensing something was wrong, he woke them up at 4 a.m. The Queen Mother was scheduled to arrive at Honolulu Airport at 4:30 a.m., but fortunately her plane was 10 minutes late.
“We got there just in time,” said Nancy Quinn, “but I’d rather not think about how we did it.” On the way she discovered she’d forgotten her hat, a serious faux pas.
The 57-year-old former monarch descended the steps at 4:45 a.m. Gov. Quinn greeted her with a lei.
The Queen Mother was tired of sitting and wanted some fresh air. “Can we take a tour of your city?” she asked. It was raining, but the governor complied with the unanticipated request.
Quinn’s chauffeur, Daniel Kaulahau, drove the governor, the Queen Mother and her secretary, Col. Martin Gilliat, to the Iolani Palace grounds, past Ala Moana Park and the Kewalo sampan basin, and back to the airport.
Quinn said she asked several questions about Hawaii, its people and its geography. The governor told her about the “rapid growth of our tourist industry.” Quinn said he considered driving her to Diamond Head to see the sun’s first light, but they ran short of time.
After the ride the Queen Mother was escorted into United Airlines’ Aloha Lounge, where an array of refreshments, including several magnums of Champagne, was set out. Quinn said she had only coffee and toast.
The Queen Mother boarded her plane at 6 a.m., and her first visit was over.
Second visit in 1966
Eight years later the Queen Mother was again passing through Honolulu en route home from Australia to London after a seven- week goodwill visit. She stopped here to refuel. It was 10:15 p.m.
Gov. John Burns presented a pikake lei to her. A full moon was overhead, and the Queen Mother commented on the lovely, warm tropical breezes. They were “just marvelous,” she said.
Honolulu Advertiser reporter Judy Chase wrote, “The Queen Mother was dressed in a polka-dotted white silk organza dress, matching flared coat, and a hat of white, ostrich feathers.”
She graciously shook hands and chatted with some 75 official greeters, including Hawaii’s congressional delegation, military leaders and prominent British subjects living in the city.
“Some 800 islanders stood within inches of the Queen Mother and cheered her as she passed through a receiving line that ran all the way from Gate 15 to the restaurant.”
Members of the Hawaii Royal Guard, kahili bearers and a conch blower were there. The Kamehameha girls choir, which also sang for the visit of Queen Elizabeth II, sang again for her mother.
I would think Gov. Burns would take her someplace spiffy, but due to time constraints, he opted for Honolulu Airport’s Host International Restaurant, where entertainment awaited.
The Queen Mother told the governor that she had a special love for the folk music of her native Scotland and that she felt like dancing the hula. Who did she want to dance with? Would Duke Kahanamoku give her the honor of a lesson?
A band provided the musical backing. Kahanamoku’s wife, Nadine, stood nearby, demonstrating the proper hand gestures, but the Queen Mother mostly followed the movements of her handsome dance partner.
Afterward, Kahanamoku told reporters that the Queen Mother’s hula skills were “pretty good.”
The Queen Mother and her entourage were here for just 90 minutes, and after the impromptu hula it was time to re-board the plane.
Burns presented her with a conch shell in a koa wood box, similar to the one presented to her daughter, Queen Elizabeth II, when she visited in 1963.
The Queen Mother always seemed to be smiling. Gilliat, her private secretary, was asked whether she was always this happy.
“The Queen Mother is always this jolly,” he said. “Every day is a new adventure for her. She loves people.”
“I have greatly enjoyed my brief visit to Honolulu, and I sincerely appreciate your kind welcome to me,” the Queen Mother said. “I am so pleased to be able to see something of the islands in such pleasant and unusual circumstances, and I hope I may someday see some more of it in daylight.”
Alas, it was not to be. Those two 90-minute nighttime stops were all she would have.
RMS Queen Elizabeth
If you’re a British queen, a ship is likely to be named in your honor.
Cunard Line’s RMS Queen Elizabeth was launched in 1938 and was named for the Queen Mother, King Charles’ grandmother.
It first served as a troop ship during World War II, then in 1946 was the largest passenger liner in the world until the 1990s. It made over 900 Atlantic crossings, but in 1967 was at the end of its days in service and was put up for sale.
Many places thought it would make a great floating hotel, including San Francisco, Philadelphia, Florida, Guam, Acapulco, Brazil, Japan and Australia.
In 1967, Hawaii Teamsters Union leader Art Rutledge proposed bringing the Queen Elizabeth to Honolulu to be a floating convention center.
Rutledge’s first job was working as a cabin boy on a ship sailing between Seattle and Alaska. He was 14 years old at the time.
He proposed that the ship be purchased, sailed to Hawaii and set up permanently off Magic Island as a convention center. It would have meeting rooms, a theater and 1,000 hotel rooms.
Rutledge saw it as a way to build facilities away from Waikiki. He anticipated costs of $10 million but said building a similar facility on land would top $25 million.
An artist’s drawing showed the Queen Elizabeth on the reef, perpendicular to shore, pointing toward Piikoi Street.
Long Beach, Calif., purchased a similar Cunard liner, the Queen Mary, in 1967 for $3.44 million, and it serves as a floating hotel and event venue. Over 50 million people have visited the Queen Mary in Long Beach.
A West Coast resort operator expressed interest in using it as a floating hotel off Waikiki but never got as far as a serious bid. An unidentified Hawaii bidder did manage to make an offer that fell short.
Rutledge’s proposal generated a little more interest but could not come up with sufficient funds. Honolulu lost out.
In 1972 the Queen Elizabeth was purchased by Hong Kong businessman C.Y. Tung to be used as a seagoing university, but a fire caused its demise.
The Queen Mother herself lived a long life, dying in 2002 at the age of 101. Despite her longevity and financial resources, she never managed to return to Hawaii to see more of it in daylight.
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Bob Sigall’s “The Companies We Keep 5” book contains stories from the past three years of Rearview Mirror. “The Companies We Keep 1 and 2” are also back in print. Email Sigall at Sigall@yahoo.com.
