October

1965

Preserving History
In 1965, Hawaiian Fruit Preserving Co. opened the doors of its new $20,000 Kauai factory. Equipped to produce annually 800,000 pounds of the Tateishi family's Kukui brand preserves, the new production line featured a novel automated conveyor system. Today, visitors and kamaaina alike can still enjoy Hawaii's oldest specialty jams, envisioned by creator Ryoichi Tateishi, when he started the company in 1931. The Hawaiian Kukui name expanded after the family sold the business in 1991 to former big fiver C. Brewer & Co. Ltd., which renamed it Hawaiian Fruit Specialties. Later, chief executive officer George Morvis and some partners bought the firm in 2001 and turned it into an LLC. But some things will never change–the jam production headquarters is still in Kalaheo and the Tateishis are just up the road. In fact, Fay, Ryoichi's granddaughter, regularly consults with the firm.

Fun for the Frugal

1970

In 1970, Hawaii Business reported on InterIsland Resorts' Islander Inn in Kona and Island Holiday's Beachboy hotel on Kauai, two accommodations designed to lodge even the most budget-conscious traveler. Each passing for a "luxury resort" with "tastefully decorated grounds" and a "spectacular white sand beach," the Islander and Beachboy's modest pricing of around $18 a night was a deal. In order to offer such rates, both vacation spots staffed minimal personnel and eliminated typical hotel features, such as elevators (first-floor rooms were reserved for the elderly or handicapped) and room service. Stall showers substituted for bathtubs and visitors could opt to bunk with other travelers. Today, depending on availability, one-and two-bedroom units at the Kauai Beachboy, now the Kauai Coast Resort, range from $195 to $400 a night. The Kona Islander Inn, still striving for affordability, offers condominium units at a moderate price of $69.95 to $99.95 a night.

1975

Compute This
Forget your BlackBerry or Sidekick, in our October 1975 issue we found a Hopaco Stationers' ad for its latest in high-tech gadgets, a pocket calculator. The HP-65 claimed to be the world's first computerized pocket calculator. With three trig modes, a 100-step memory and conversion capabilities, the "small scientific miracle" claimed to "solve financial, engineering, scientific, navigational and other problems" of the mid- '70s.

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