The Kahoona (sometimes the Great Kahoona) is a character created by
Frederick Kohner
Friedrich Kohner (September 25, 1905 – July 7, 1986), credited professionally as Frederick Kohner, was an Austrian-born novelist and screenwriter, both in Germany and the U.S.
He is best known for having created the " Gidget" novels, which in ...
in his 1957 novel, ''
Gidget, the Little Girl with Big Ideas''. As "Kahuna", the character appears in the 1959 film ''
Gidget'' and in some of the television work involving the
Gidget character.
In the novels
Gidget describes the Kahoona's first appearance:
Just then the bamboo curtain to the hut was drawn open and this bum came out. What I mean, he wasn't a bum, but then he wasn't exactly the kind of guy that would drive a girl mad with desire either. He was on the oldish side—around the end of the twenties or so. You got the impression he had just got up or something. Of course all the surfers in enclosure wore only shorts or Hawaiian-print bathing trunks but this superannuated Huckleberry Finn had on a pair of jeans that were cut off just beneath the knees and looked more like an old rag bleached by the sun. He was a real tall guy with legs of unbelievable length. Jeez, he was tanned. You've never laid your eyes on a tan like that. Like one of those suntan oil ads you see in magazines—only more so. He had a beard growth of at least three days and he stood there and scratched his stubble and had this kind of empty gaze like he was full of booze.
There was something about the way the other guys greeted him that told me he was a real hotshot.[''Gidget'' (2001) by Frederick Kohner, Berkley Publishing Group, New York, NY (first edition 1957)]
Gidget and the Kahoona introduce themselves thus:
”Come along, kid,” he said. “What's your name?”
”It's Franzie,” I said. “From Franziska. It's a German name. After my grandmother.”
”Mine is Cass,” he said, real friendly, “from Cassius. After nobody.”
The Kahoona is a principal character in this novel and its immediate sequel, ''Cher Papa'', alternately Gidget's friend, role model and potential love interest. He does not address or refer to Gidget by her titular nickname, but calls her Franzie or Angel. In the second novel, it is revealed that his last name is Jason, and that he served in the
Korean War
The Korean War (25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953) was an armed conflict on the Korean Peninsula fought between North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea; DPRK) and South Korea (Republic of Korea; ROK) and their allies. North Korea was s ...
. In this novel Gidget becomes deeply infatuated with him. He does not appear in the subsequent novels, but is occasionally mentioned in passing, for example in the
novelization
A novelization (or novelisation) is a derivative novel that adapts the story of a work created for another medium, such as a film, TV series, stage play, comic book, or video game. Film novelizations were particularly popular before the advent ...
''Gidget Goes Hawaiian'':
"My friend the great Kahoona once told me that the sea is where we came in, and the sea is where we go out. We have crawled out of the sea and one day we're going to crawl back into it. That solution of salt is in our blood."[''Gidget Goes Hawaiian'' (1961) by Frederick Kohner, Bantam Books, New York, NY]
In film
In the 1959 film ''
Gidget'',
Cliff Robertson
Clifford Parker Robertson III (September 9, 1923 – September 10, 2011) was an American actor whose career in film and television spanned over six decades. Robertson portrayed a young John F. Kennedy in the 1963 film ''PT 109 (film), PT 109'', a ...
portrays the character (now spelled ''Kahuna''); in this film his proper name is Burt Vail. Kahuna does not appear in ''
Gidget Goes Hawaiian
''Gidget Goes Hawaiian'' is a 1961 American romantic comedy musical film starring James Darren, Michael Callan and Deborah Walley. Released by Columbia Pictures, the film is a sequel to the 1959 Sandra Dee beach film vehicle '' Gidget''. Dee ...
'' or ''
Gidget Goes to Rome
''Gidget Goes to Rome'' is a 1963 Columbia Pictures Eastmancolor romantic comedy film starring Cindy Carol as the archetypal high school teen surfer girl originally portrayed by Sandra Dee in the 1959 film '' Gidget''. The film is the third of ...
''.
In television
In the television sitcom ''
Gidget'', (episode three, ''The Great Kahuna''), he is portrayed by
Martin Milner
Martin Sam Milner (December 28, 1931 – September 6, 2015) was an American actor and radio host. He is best known for his performances on two television series: '' Route 66'', which aired on CBS from 1960 to 1964, and '' Adam-12'', which ...
, and the character's proper name is Cassius Kopp.
[''Gidget: The Complete Series'' (2006). VD set New York: Sony Pictures.] Kahuna does not appear in ''
Gidget Grows Up'' or ''
Gidget Gets Married'', but he is portrayed by
Don Stroud in ''
Gidget's Summer Reunion
''Gidget's Summer Reunion'' is a 1985 American made-for-television adventure comedy-drama film produced by Columbia Pictures Television that aired in syndication on June 1, 1985. It was written by Robert Blees and George Zateslo, directed by Bru ...
'' and ''
The New Gidget''.
References
External links
{{Gidget
Characters in American novels of the 20th century
Fictional surfers
Gidget
Comedy film characters
Sitcom characters
Male characters in literature
Male characters in film
Male characters in television
Literary characters introduced in 1957