Myrtle Kahea Hilo

We met Auntie Myrtle through a mutual friend – 1950s Hula Nani dancer and HPS volunteer, Winnie Wong Naihe. At that time, they both lived in Waimanalo, and Auntie Myrtle invited us in to come talk story with her. It was the start of an exquisitely enjoyable ride over a two year period. Auntie Myrtle was widely known and loved as a comic personality, full of kolohe (rascal) spirit and endearingly called “The Singing Cab Driver!” In our talk-stories, we came to see a different side of her, deeply rooted in love for her grandmother, Annie Hulama Holi, who raised her in Hauʻula, Oʻahu, and admiration for her parents and family's talents which she strove to emulate. HPS took a road-trip with Auntie to Hauʻula so she could share more memories of her childhood, and we documented two performances she did with Kent Ghirard and the Hula Nanis, one at Lunalilo Home in Hawaiʻi Kai, Oʻahu and the other at the Waikīkī Hawaiian Civic Club Lūʻau at St. Francis School in Mānoa, Oʻahu.