Herman Wedemeyer
No. 99, 87 | |
Baltimore Colts (AAFC ) | |
Career highlights and awards | |
---|---|
| |
Herman John Wedemeyer (May 20, 1924 – January 25, 1999) was an American actor, football player, and politician.[2] 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 Honolulu Police Department.
Sports career
Wedemeyer attended
Wedemeyer was Hawai'i's first consensus
Wedemeyer was a first-round draft choice of the Los Angeles Dons of the All-America Football Conference[5] 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
Government service
In 1968, Wedemeyer was elected to the Honolulu City Council as a Republican.[2] 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[6] 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.[citation needed]
Personal life
Herman Wedermeyer was the most famous football player in all of Hawaii - in the 4th quarter of a game in the stadium in Honolulu. On the kickoff, he was in the end zone and caught the ball. He bent over and put the football on top of his shoe and the opposing team thought he had downed the ball, but the referee saw he didn't. Thus, Wedermeyer put the ball under his arm and jogged 100 yards into the opposing end zone without anyone touching him. The referee declared a touchdown which won the game. Wedermeyer's brother was
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
- ^ "1947 Los Angeles Rams". databaseFootball.com. Archived from the original on January 4, 2010. Retrieved July 17, 2020.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link) - ^ a b Matsuoka, Brandon (26 January 1999). "Duke Wedemeyer Passes Away". Honolulu Advertiser. Archived from the original on 16 July 2011. Retrieved 24 May 2010.
- ISBN 978-0-9779143-7-1.
- ^ "Aloha to Squirmin' Herman, The Hula Hipped Hawaiian". Barracuda Magazine.
- ISBN 978-0-7864-3291-2.
- ISBN 978-0-7864-0171-0.