Around The Islands
Feature Profile
Frank De Lima: Ethnically Challenged
by Mike Yoshiura
In the sultry, often-drab world we live in, many would agree that the ability to create laughter is a gift; a gift Frank De Lima has been sharing with audiences of all ages for over 31 years now. But, just because it was his destiny to someday reach the plateau of king of ethnic comedy, that doesn't mean he hasn't faced his share of challenges along the way.
You could say that De Lima's fate was sealed at birth. As a toddler, he would mimic the flat-toned Japanese voices broadcasted on KOHO Radio, to the delight of his first audience, babysitters Mr. and Mrs. Yoneshige. When he turned three-years-old, Mrs. Lee from down the street took over the babysitting duties. As Mrs. Lee and her aunt, Mrs. Lum, talked story, the future entertainer would impersonate the Chinese voices he heard broadcasted over the airwaves. Even if he couldn't speak any languages, he was already en route to mastering his ethnic impersonations.
The native of Pauoa recalls garnishing cardboard boxes and dressing up in blankets and old rags to perform his rendition of the traditional Chinese lion dance for family and friends. Picture a trimmer, more youthful De Lima boogying to the beat, as his friends banged on pots and pans with a wooden-mixing spoon. "Mrs. Yoneshige gave me a quarter and I thought it was so funny, but when I did the dance for my sister and her friends I got one slap. I learned you can't always be performing, telling a joke, or singing a song. There is always a when, where, why, how, and to whom," said Frank De Lima, who is an ethnic mixture of Portuguese, Hawaiian, Irish, Scottish, English, Spanish, French, and Chinese.
Even though De Lima has been performing his comedy act since the age of 10, his future in the entertainment industry hasn't always been this cut and dried. Once he graduated from Damien High School, De Lima decided to pursue the priesthood. After eight years in the seminary, he was ordained a Deacon in 1974. "I knew it was my destiny to be an entertainer because many are called and few are chosen [to the priesthood]. And, at the time, there were about 50 places in Waikiki that an entertainer could work."
But that would all change the day of September 11, 2001; about 25 years after De Lima started his professional career in the local entertainment industry. "In 2001, things got tough in Waikiki. All the shows stopped after 9/11, and I was already out of work for two years at the time."
Luckily De Lima had other outlets in which to share his gift. For almost a quarter century now, he has been reaching out to Hawaii's youth using his Frank De Lima Student Enrichment Program. Performing for a younger audience meant that De Lima had to avoid the ethnic jokes that he became famous for. "The younger generation has a different outlook on entertainment. My shows are based on plantation humor, and the younger generation may not understand some of my jokes," says De Lima with a straight face. "Negative stereotypes come from how you were brought up, and today people don't have the same tolerance. In every ethnic group the majority can laugh at themselves. It's the minority that take it out of context."
De Lima visits close to 150 elementary and intermediate schools a year. He speaks to kids about the importance of reading, studying, laughing, and family, and he even preaches the importance of keeping up with the current events. "You can't be a comedian if you don't know what's going on in the world around you. You have to keep up with what's happening."
In recent years, De Lima has poked fun at his own issues with weight and his undying love for malasadas. His song "Malasadaville" is dedicated to his battle with diabetes and his continuing struggle to lose weight. Malasadas are a sugar-encrusted Portuguese doughnut, made popular when the Portuguese immigrants came to Hawaii to work on the plantations in the late 1800's. Malasadas are De Lima's favorite treat, and he even makes the sweets using his Portuguese mother's recipe.
He has yet to squeeze himself into that XL shirt presented to him by the students at Aina Haina School, but in the span of five years he's dropped from 320 to 220 pounds. "I want to tell them my story. I accept the fact that I'm fat and it doesn't bother me when people call me fat. As a comedian you have to be able to look in the mirror and laugh at yourself," says the singer-comedian, as he quotes the old adage that laughter is the best medicine. "You don't see kids with a lot of stress because they are always laughing."
After well over 5,000 professional shows, local audiences recognize De Lima as the king of ethnic comedy here in the State of Hawaii. Local comedy has evolved over time, but De Lima's philosophy on laughter remains the same. "Laughter is about being comfortable with who you are."
