Andy Bumatai

Andrew Jackson Bumatai (born December 24, 1953) is an American comedian and actor from Hawaii. He is of Native Hawaiian, Filipino, French and German ancestry.[1]

Andrew Jackson Bumatai
BornDecember 24th, 1953
Germany
OccupationComedian, actor
RelativesRay Bumatai (older brother)

Early life

Bumatai was born in Germany to a German mother and an American military father. He lived in San Francisco for much of his childhood and moved to Kalihi at the age of 13. After a year in Kalihi, he and family then moved to Waianae.[2]

In 11th grade, Bumatai dropped out of Waianae High School and worked odd jobs. He eventually became a successful salesman by his early 20s. Later on, he decided to become a stand-up comedian as there was a shortage of them in Hawaii.[2]

Bumatai began his career by searching for venues to perform at. He initially struggled finding work as venues generally preferred musical entertainers over comedic ones. He eventually was hired and started opening for popular Hawaiian comedian Frank De Lima and soon found himself replacing the late Rap Reiplinger in Booga Booga, Hawaii's seminal sketch comedy group. He went on to perform stand up comedy extensively on the mainland and in Hawaii.

Career

Bumatai recorded a number of comedy albums. His first won a Hoku award for "Most Promising Artist" and he went on to win three more for "Best Comedy Performance."

Bumatai also created a number of TV specials for Hawaii's KGMB-TV, notably High School Daze and All in the Ohana. He and his brother, Ray Bumatai also created a show titled BumaVision for Hawaii's OC16 network. Nationally, he was featured on Raven and has had roles on North Shore and Baywatch among others. Bumatai also co-starred in a 1997 pilot for a new Hawaii Five-O series,[3] which never made it to air.

Not coincidentally, Bumatai's character's name in Steven Cannell productions (Raven, Five-O, Marker) is always the same: Danny Kahala.

Bumatai is currently executive producer of Nighttime Productions, and produces and stars in his own Hawaii-based online talk show, The Andy Bumatai Show.

He is also the host of Toolin' Around, a series on motorbikes, and The Daily Pidgin, a show that talks about the Hawaiian Pidgin language and local Hawaii customs.[4] Both of these are uploaded on his YouTube channel.

Works credited, stage appearances, and filmography
List of Bumatai's credits[5]
Years Active Title Role Notes
1990 - 1995 Opened for Tom Jones, Kenny Loggins, Natalie Cole, Lionel Richie, Paul Anka,

Kool & the Gang, Charlie Daniels

 Stand-up comedy / Opener
1990 - 1995 Punchline (San Francisco, CA), Comedy & Magic Club (Hermosa Beach, CA),

Rooster T. Feathers (Sunnyvale, CA),The Ice House (Pasadena, CA),

The Comedy Store, Main Room (La Jolla, CA), Various others

 Headliner
1993 Whoopie Golberg's Comedy Tonight
1994 Rosie O'Donnell's Comedy Show
1995 Pat Morita's Triple Crown of Comedy (Showtime Special)
1992 - 1993 Raven, Season 12
1994 - 1995 Marker, Season 13
1980 School Daze Comedy Special
1981 All in the Ohana Comedy Special
2006 - 2008 NightTime with Andy Bumatai Host
2012 - 2014 In the Car Host
2014 - 2016 Toolin' Around Host Hawai'i TV
2015 - Present Toolin' Around Producer, Host YouTube
2016 - Present The Daily Pidgin Producer, Host YouTube

References
  1. "Andy Bumatai". IMDb. Retrieved 2021-02-02.
  2. "Celebrating Andy Bumatai, Hawaii's first stand-up comic". KHON2. 2019-12-25. Retrieved 2021-02-02.
  3. Ryan, Tim (April 3, 1997). "Familiar faces of 'Five-O' strengthen Hawaii roots". Honolulu Star-Bulletin. Retrieved 30 April 2019.
  4. May 25, Jeanne Cooper on; PM, 2019 at 3:38 (2019-05-25). "Hawaii's iconic comedian Andy Bumatai to go "Toolin' Around" after S.F. gala". Hawaii Insider. Retrieved 2021-02-02.
  5. "About". andybumatai. Retrieved 2020-01-02.
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