Herman Wedemeyer
 Wedemeyer, circa 1945 | |||||||||||||
| No. 99, 87 | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Position | Back | ||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||
| Born | May 20, 1924 Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S. | ||||||||||||
| Died | January 25, 1999 (aged 74) Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S. | ||||||||||||
| Listed height | 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) | ||||||||||||
| Listed weight | 178 lb (81 kg) | ||||||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||||||
| High school | Saint Louis (Honolulu) | ||||||||||||
| College | Saint Mary's (CA) (1943, 1945-1947) | ||||||||||||
| NFL draft | 1947: 1st round, 9th overall pick | ||||||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||||||
* Offseason or practice squad member only | |||||||||||||
| Awards and highlights | |||||||||||||
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| Career AAFC statistics | |||||||||||||
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Herman John Wedemeyer (May 20, 1924 – January 25, 1999) was an American actor, football player, and politician.[1]
He is best known for portraying Sergeant/Detective "Duke" Lukela on the crime drama Hawaii Five-O (1972–1980). He also appeared on the first episode of Hawaii Five-O as Lt. Balta of the Honolulu Police Department.
Sports career
Wedemeyer attended St. Louis School in Honolulu and was a standout in both football and baseball.[2] Wedemeyer, a halfback, played college football for the St. Mary's College Galloping Gaels in Moraga, California. In 1945, he finished fourth in the Heisman Trophy[3] voting, and he was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1979.
Wedemeyer was Hawai'i's first consensus All-American football player. He bore the colorful nicknames "Squirmin' Herman", "The Flyin' Hawaiian", "The Hawaiian Centipede", and "The Hula-Hipped Hawaiian".
Wedemeyer was a first-round draft choice of the Los Angeles Dons of the All-America Football Conference[4] in 1948.
Despite leading the AAFC in punt return yardage that year, he was waived by the Dons. He was then signed by the AAFC Baltimore Colts, with whom he played in 1949 before retiring from professional sports for good.
Government service
In 1968, Wedemeyer was elected to the Honolulu City Council as a Republican.[1] In 1970, he was elected to the Hawaii House of Representatives as a Democrat, winning re-election in 1972. He served as the chairman of the Committee on Tourism.
Hawaii Five-O
Wedemeyer played Edward D. "Duke" Lukela[5] on Hawaii Five-O from 1971 to 1980, appearing in 143 episodes. Lukela was originally a uniformed HPD sergeant, but he later joined the Five-O squad as a detective.
Personal life
Wedermeyer's brother was Charlie Wedemeyer, a former Michigan State football player who, after being diagnosed with Lou Gehrig's disease, continued to teach and coach football at Los Gatos High School in Los Gatos, California.[6][7] Charlie was the subject of a television drama called Quiet Victory: The Charlie Wedemeyer Story[8] and the PBS documentary "One More Season".[9]
Filmography
- Hawaii Five-O (1968–1980) - Det. Duke Lukela
- The Hawaiians (1970) - Fire Chief (uncredited)
- Magnum, P.I. (1981) - Coroner
- Hawaii Five-O (1998 TV pilot) (1998) - Duke (final film role)
References
- 1 2 Matsuoka, Brandon (January 26, 1999). "Duke Wedemeyer Passes Away". Honolulu Advertiser. Archived from the original on July 16, 2011. Retrieved May 24, 2010.
- ↑ Suehiro, Arthur (2008). "Football Fever". Honolulu Stadium: Where Hawaii Played. Watermark Publishing. ISBN 978-0-9779143-7-1. Archived from the original on July 16, 2011. Retrieved May 24, 2010.
- ↑ "Aloha to Squirmin' Herman, The Hula Hipped Hawaiian". Barracuda Magazine. Archived from the original on December 2, 2013.
- ↑ Franks, Joel S (2008). Asian Pacific Americans and Baseball: A History. McFarland. p. 84. ISBN 978-0-7864-3291-2.
- ↑ Rhodes, Karen (1997). Booking Hawaii Five-O : An Episode Guide and Critical History of the 1968-1980 Television Detective Series. McFarland & Company. p. 110. ISBN 978-0-7864-0171-0.
- ↑ Rogers, Thomas (January 7, 1986). "SCOUTING; Show of Courage By the Coach". The New York Times. Retrieved July 15, 2026.
- ↑ Knight, Dennis; Almond, Elliott; Emmons, Mark (June 3, 2010). "Coach Charlie Wedemeyer was a national inspiration". The Mercury News. Archived from the original on April 29, 2017. Retrieved July 15, 2026.
- ↑ Terry, Clifford (December 26, 1988). "A Strong Performance Makes 'Wedemeyer Story'". Chicago Tribune. ProQuest 282518583. Retrieved July 15, 2026.
- ↑ Peterson, Judy (June 14, 2010). "Charlie Wedemeyer was more than just a coach, so much more". The Mercury News. Retrieved July 15, 2026.
External links
- Hawaii Sports Hall of Fame Profile Archived December 29, 2021, at the Wayback Machine
- Herman Wedemeyer at IMDb
- Herman Wedemeyer Fan Home Page Archived September 16, 2008, at the Wayback Machine
- 1924 births
- 1999 deaths
- All-American college football players
- Male actors from Honolulu
- American football running backs
- Los Angeles Dons players
- Baltimore Colts (1947–1950) players
- College Football Hall of Fame inductees
- Male actors from Hawaii
- Members of the Hawaii House of Representatives
- 20th-century American male actors
- 20th-century members of the Hawaii State Legislature
- Players of American football from Honolulu
- American athlete-politicians
- Native Hawaiian male actors
- Native Hawaiian politicians
- Saint Louis School alumni