Herman Wedemeyer

Herman John Wedemeyer (May 20, 1924 – January 25, 1999) was an American actor, football player, and politician.

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. 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 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 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. 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. Charlie was the subject of a television drama called Quiet Victory: The Charlie Wedemeyer Story and the PBS documentary "One More Season".

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)