Discovered by Bob Hope at Don The Beachcombers who took Apaka to Hollywood to become a regular on his show.
Born in Honolulu, Alfred Apaka became known as the "golden voice of hawaii" with his baritone voice and strikingly handsome good looks. His father, Alfred A. Apaka, and his Aunt, Lydia Aholo, who was Queen Lilioukalani daughter were talented musicians in their own right, as well as Apaka's son, Alfred Jr. In the 1940's, his first professional gig was as the new lead singer in the Monarch Room at The Royal Hawaiian Hotel under bandleader Don McDiarmid Sr. That led him to travel to New York where he performed in the Hawaiian Room at the Hotel Lexington with fellow Hawaiian musician, Ray Kinney.
After returning to Honolulu he once again performed at the Royal Hawaiian and then with the Moana Serenaders at the Moana Surfrider Hotel. He also became a regular on the popular hawaiian radio station "Hawaii Calls". The rest is history when he met Bob Hope.
He would again return to Hawaii where he would perform at the Hawaiian Village "Tapa Room" from 1955-1960, until his untimely death at the age of 40 of a heart attack...."the day the music died."
His statue remains at the now called Hilton Hawaiian Village to commemorate his everlasting popularity.
