Herman John Wedemeyer (May 20, 1924 – January 25, 1999) was an American actor,

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

player, and

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, a ...

. He is best known for portraying Sergeant/Detective "Duke" Lukela on the crime drama ''

Hawaii Five-O Hawaii Five-O or Hawaii Five-0 may refer to: * ''Hawaii Five-0'' (2010 TV series), an American action police procedural television series * ''Hawaii Five-O'' (1968 TV series), an American police procedural drama series produced by CBS Productio ...

'' (1972–1980). He also appeared on the first episode of ''Hawaii Five-O'' as Lt. Balta of

Honolulu Police Department The Honolulu Police Department (HPD) is the principal law enforcement agency of the City and County of Honolulu, Hawaii, headquartered in the Alapa'i Police Headquarters in Honolulu CDP. Officially recognized as a part of the government of the ...

Sports career

Wedemeyer attended St. Louis School in Honolulu and was a standout in both football and baseball. Wedemeyer, a halfback, played

college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States. Unlike most ...

for the St. Mary's College Galloping Gaels in

Moraga, CA Moraga is a List of municipalities in California, town in Contra Costa County, California, Contra Costa County, California, in the San Francisco Bay Area. The town is named in honor of Joaquín Moraga, member of the famed Californio family. As ...

. In 1945, he finished fourth in the

Heisman Trophy The Heisman Memorial Trophy (usually known colloquially as the Heisman Trophy or The Heisman) is awarded annually to the most outstanding player in college football. Winners epitomize great ability combined with diligence, perseverance, and hard ...

voting, and he was inducted into the

College Football Hall of Fame The College Football Hall of Fame is a hall of fame and interactive attraction devoted to college football. The National Football Foundation (NFF) founded the Hall in 1951 to immortalize the players and coaches of college football that were vote ...

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 The Los Angeles Dons were an American football team in the newly formed football league the All-America Football Conference (AAFC) from 1946 to 1949, and played their home games in the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. The Dons were the first profes ...

of the

All-America Football Conference The All-America Football Conference (AAFC) was a professional American football league that challenged the established National Football League (NFL) from 1946 to 1949. One of the NFL's most formidable challengers, the AAFC attracted many of the ...

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 The Baltimore Colts were a professional American football team that played in Baltimore from its founding in 1953 to 1984. The team now plays in Indianapolis, as the Indianapolis Colts. The team was named for Baltimore's history of horse breed ...

, 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 Honolulu City Council is the legislature of the City and County of Honolulu, the capital and largest city in Hawai'i, the fiftieth state in the United States. The City and County of Honolulu is a municipal corporation that manages government asp ...

as a

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...

. In 1970, he was elected to the

Hawaii House of Representatives The Hawaii House of Representatives is the lower house of the Hawaii State Legislature. Pursuant to Article III, Section 3 of the Constitution of Hawaii, amended during the 1978 constitutional convention, the House of Representatives consis ...

as a

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

, winning re-election in 1972.

''Hawaii Five-O''

Wedemeyer played Edward D. "Duke" Lukela on ''

'' 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

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 refree saw he didn't. Thus, Wedermeyer put the ball under his arm and jog 100 yards into the opposing end zone without anyone touching him. The refree declared a touchdown which won the game. Wedermeyer's brother was Charlie Wedemeyer, a former Michigan State football player who, after being diagnosed with

Lou Gehrig's disease Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also known as motor neuron disease (MND) or Lou Gehrig's disease, is a neurodegenerative disease that results in the progressive loss of motor neurons that control voluntary muscles. ALS is the most com ...

, continued to teach and coach football at

Los Gatos High School Los Gatos High School (LGHS) is a high school in Los Gatos, California. It was founded in 1908 and is part of the Los Gatos-Saratoga Joint Union High School District, which in 2021 was ranked the best high school district in Caliifornia The sch ...

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

Filmography

*''

'' (1968–1980) - Det. Duke Lukela *''

The Hawaiians Hawaiians are the indigenous people of the Hawaiian Islands. Hawaiians or The Hawaiians may also refer to: * The Hawaiians (WFL), a football team in the World Football League from 1974 to 1975 * The Hawaiians (film), ''The Hawaiians'' (film), a 1 ...

'' (1970) - Fire Chief (uncredited) *''

Magnum, P.I. ''Magnum, P.I.'' is an American crime drama television series starring Tom Selleck as Thomas Magnum, a private investigator (P.I.) living on Oahu, Hawaii. The series ran from December 11, 1980 to May 8, 1988 during its first-run broadcast on ...

'' (1981) - Coroner *'' Hawaii Five-O (1998 TV pilot)'' (1998) - Duke (final film role)

References

External links

Hawaii Sports Hall of Fame Profile
*

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wedemeyer, Herman 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 American politicians Players of American football from Honolulu American athlete-politicians Native Hawaiian male actors