 Hi, I'm Rusty Kamori, and this is Beyond the Lines. I was the head coach for the Punahou Boys Varsity Tennis Team for 22 years, and we're fortunate to win 22 consecutive state championships. My book Beyond the Lines is about leadership, creating a superior culture of excellence, and finding greatness, which is what this show is all about. And we are broadcasting live from the beautiful Think Tech Hawaii TV studio in the Pioneer Plaza in downtown Honolulu. My special guest today has and continues to be a legendary journalist in Hawaii for decades. She is Pamela Young, and today we are going beyond Mixed Plate. Pamela. Hey. So good to see you. Thank you for inviting me to your favorite beach. Yes, yes. I forgot to bring my son. It's a beautiful day. It is. It is. Pamela, we have so much to talk about. I want to first start by asking you about your early years growing up. Well, my family grew up in Palama, Kaliki, and then later on moved to Kameki. I am the youngest of three girls. And I had a pretty happy and inspirational childhood. So what schools did you attend? I went to Likileki, Liliu Kalani, which doesn't exist anymore, and then Kalani. I am a product of public school. I went public. And then what what colleges did you attend? I went to San Francisco State. You age for one year and then transferred to San Francisco State and then stayed there for my master's. And I did my TA work at Berkeley before I settled in San Francisco and stayed there for 13 years. Pamela, I have to ask you, what was the first job that you ever had in your life? My first job probably traumatized me for the rest of my life. I was the Easter Bunny at the McInerney store in Kameki. It's not there anymore. But I would dress up in this huge bunny suit and the kids would come and sit in my lap, those that weren't screaming in terror. But it was a fun job and that's where I learned to, I guess, to greet the public. So you traumatized the kids? I hope I didn't. I hope they're all OK in getting therapy. So your mom, you said you have you and two other sisters. And your mom, I have a picture of you and your mom. What kind of person is your mom? My mom was very hardworking. She had two jobs, supported two families, my dad's family and also her own family. I was the youngest of three girls. And what really shaped our family more than anything, I think, is that my middle sister was born blind. And when you have a disabled person in your family, that changes the dynamic and everyone switches their roles. So I roomed with her, so I knew that my role was to support her. She was four years older and back then they didn't have a lot of braille books. So I read a lot of her lessons to her. So I was reading four years above my grade, which was not a big thing for me then. It was just something that I had to do, but I think it really helped me in my schooling and my understanding of where we are in life and what the possibilities are. What else did you learn from your sister? Well, she taught me the classics. She went to a different school on Diamond Head School for the Deaf and Blind, where she was taught that you have no limits. And so she taught that to me. And so she taught me how to love opera, how to love art, how to read the classics. So I was reading Dostoevsky in the sixth grade, which was not a big deal. You just did it. And also when she learned a foreign language, I had to learn the foreign language because I had to teach it to her. So a lot of my schooling was due to her. Let's talk about your longtime husband, Gary Sprinkle. How did you guys meet? Well, I was working in San Francisco in television. And when I decided to move back to Hawaii, a good friend of ours, Grant Kanchik, who was a cameraman at Channel 9, I was working on a documentary. And he had never done that before, so he called me and said, can you take a look at the video? Can you see how we might be able to do something? So I was a co-producer with him, and I was at the station every night. And Gary was there every night. And we would go out together in a group. And then after a while, it was just two of us going out. And it stuck. Well, you guys are perfect soulmates. Why do you guys get along so great together for all these decades? I think because we work at it. And it's a rare thing for somebody in the same industry, especially television, because you're dealing with some pretty heavy egos and stress. But I think we know how to support each other. And whenever he was out on a project, I would know how to support him. And he is especially very supportive of me now that I'm still doing these shows. After he retired from television, he learned how to be a photographer. So he does a lot of my shooting. He's my chief engineer and my editor. And so we're still working together. And we still have questions about who's really the boss on a project. But I think we've worked it out after 35 years. So we know how to communicate. And that's the best thing, just how to communicate with each other. You guys are fantastic. You guys make such a great team. Now, after you graduated college, you spent time working in San Francisco? Yes, actually, it's funny. In high school, I knew I was going to be a journalist. But when I went to college, and this was in the late 60s, I decided I wanted to be a dancer. This is what I was going to do for love. I was going to be a dancer. And my parents were very, it's like, what? How can you make money from it? But I did that. And I got a master's degree there, because my plan was to dance professionally and then teach in college. And then when I did get my master's, and I was offered a job to teach in college, I don't want to do this anymore. And it just so happened, an opening was at KPIX, the CBS affiliate in San Francisco. So I auditioned, and I got in. I was back into journalism, and everything started rolling again. And it was just this natural transition. And then when you came back to Hawaii, you started your journalism TV career at Channel 2? At Channel 2, but I was a crime reporter. Really? You know, I think every good journalist has to start off as a general assignment. We're doing a little bit of everything and being versatile in all of them. But it was really our news director, Wally Zimmerman, who had just made Joe Moore the anchor, the news anchor. And he wanted to sort of how you build an offense around the quarterback. He wanted to build the team around Joe. So he asked Ray Lovell and me to come up with signature feature series. So that's how Mixed Plate and Ray Lovell's Journal came about. To be at the end of the show, something light and something that Joe could comment on. Interesting hearing the beginnings. I mean, that's like the beginnings of Joe Moore as well. Yes, I mean, it was perfect chemistry. Yeah. And then you spent a lot of years at KITV. Tell me about those years. Again, we were hired by Wally Zimmerman. And by then, I think Mixed Plate was already a brand. And so that's what I was hired to do. To do that on the news and also to do specials. And then when Gary came on board, we were hired to anchor the five o'clock news. You and Gary, you guys co-anchored for many, many years. Almost two decades. So how, I mean, how was that anchoring with your husband? You know, people keep saying, how can you stand to work together and be together for all that? And it's not so. We would come to work in the same car. He'd go do his thing. I would do my thing. And we wouldn't see each other until maybe half an hour before the show. Then we'd do the show and then leave in the same car. So that was basically. So we weren't really in each other's pockets for all that time. I think we just assumed that that's you guys were. No, because we had a lot of work to do. Because back then, anchors also did a lot of reporting. And we also did our separate shows. So we were very busy. Once we got into the office, we were in our different zones. OK, got it. So Pamela, I heard. I heard that Jason Momoa and Rihanna were like super, super excited to meet you. Oh, of course they were. No, I interviewed Rihanna once and I doubted she knows my name anymore. Jason, I've known since he was 19. And he's I was good friends with his Hanai dads. So I've seen him from teenager to the success that he is today. And he's been a lot of fun to be around. I heard Rihanna wanted to do a duet with you. I doubt it. I would have been flattered to do it, but she was very sweet. A lot of people have a preconception of their image, but she was very sweet and actually kind of shy. And you know, when she came to Hawaii for a concert, I went. It was a fantastic concert. Loved Rihanna. Yeah. OK. So most recently you just came back from France because you have an upcoming mixed plate. Tell me about your your France trip. Well, since we did a pro harbor special a few years ago, I kept in touch with some of the veterans. And so I found out about this event. It's the 75th anniversary of the Battle of Brouillere and the rescue of the loss of Italian two very important events in the Nisei French campaign. So France wanted to do this huge thing because very few of the veterans are still alive. So they did ceremonies in Brouillere to honor the Nisei and their family. So that's something that we wanted to do for these veterans and to also help some of their ancestors know more about what they did because the Nisei came back a lot of them just didn't want to talk about it. That's not it's not the Japanese way. I want to talk about negative things. You don't want to relive the horrors of the war. So they didn't say anything. So a lot of the people we traveled with their children and their grandchildren wanted to go back to hear these stories that the French people still talk about today. They had no problem sharing their experiences. And it's in their school books. They they teach their children this and their grandchildren. So you say the word Nisei in France. You know exactly what you're talking about. And it's just so heartwarming to see how they embrace all of us that have come. And they're so grateful because as one of them said, you know, Liberté is the first word in their motto. And they said Nisei gave us that Liberté. Wow. And my friend Guillaume Amon was with you on that trip. And his wife Teresa and his wife's grandfather is buried at Epinal and we were there when she visited the grave for the first time. So it was very emotional for everyone. It's going to be a part of our Pearl Harbor Week events that will air on December 5th. Great. Well, totally looking forward to that. I mean, you've done so many mixed plate episodes. I mean, how many years has mixed plate been going on for this year? We're celebrating the 35th anniversary. Wow. So out of all of the mixed plate episodes that you've done, what's one of your highlights of doing those shows? You know, there's so many. I'd like to think it's always going to be the next one. Yeah. But I do remember doing the canonizations of Father Damien and Mother Marianne. And and actually the year before we did a separate trip where I had an audience with John Paul II before he was made a saint. Wow. And that was that was something I'll always remember because it wasn't in a group. It was face to face. And he was so kind. And I'll always remember that as a highlight. One of my friends, Glenn Maderos. I mean, everybody loves Glenn Maderos. Have you did you ever travel with Glenn? I went to Spain with him on one of his first tours when there were all these Spanish girls crowding around and he was a huge star back then. I mean, he still is in our eyes. Oh, yeah. But yeah, I mean, they were we had to run from from the bus to because they were girls trying to grab his clothes, his hair. It was a remarkable event, a remarkable time in his life. And we were happy that we were there to record it. Awesome. Pamela, we're going to take a quick break. And when we come back, we're going to continue going beyond mixed plate. Hey, great. You are watching Beyond the Lines on Think Tech, Hawaii with my special guest Pamela Young. We will be back in a quick minute. Thanks to our Think Tech underwriters and grand tours. The Atherton Family Foundation. Carol Mon Lee and the Friends of Think Tech. The Center for Microbial Oceanography, Research and Education. Collateral Analytics. The Cook Foundation. Duane Kurisu. The Hawaii Council of Associations of Apartment Owners. Hawaii Energy. The Hawaii Energy Policy Forum. Hawaiian Electric Company. Integrated Security Technologies. Galen Ho of BAE Systems. Kamehameha Schools. M.W. Group Limited. The Schuyler Family Foundation. The Sydney Stern Memorial Trust. Polo Foundation. Yuriko J. Sugimura. Thanks so much to you all. Welcome back to Beyond the Lines on Think Tech, Hawaii. My special guest today has and continues to be a legendary journalist in Hawaii for decades. She is Pamela Young and today we are going beyond McSplain. Pamela, in my book Beyond the Lines, I talk a lot about creating a superior culture of excellence, discipline, details, and you definitely go beyond the lines and you have that superior culture. Thank you. Tell me about your culture of excellence. Well, I never really thought of it that way. You know, I live from project to project and I do have an M.O. That as soon as I know that I'm going to be doing something, I just immerse myself. I read everything that I can. If I'm going to a country, I try to learn the language. I try to interview everybody locally that I can and I try to block out what I'm going to do. Outline everything because once you travel, you don't have the opportunity to go back if you missed something. So you've got to get it the first time. So preparation is a huge thing. But yeah, I pretty much make it my life for that time and drives my husband crazy. But that's kind of the way that you have to do it. Yeah. Well, you know, you've done so many amazing episodes and it's how do you keep outdoing what you've done? I mean, how do you do that? You know, I never really think of it that way. I think what's changed in the past few years, you know, in the beginning, you try to establish yourself and your brand. And so you put your name out there and you do a lot of uppers where you stand up in front of a camera and you know, so that people know you and they recognize you and so you're basically selling yourself as a product. Now I'm more interested in the story to tell and that's how I pretty much choose the projects that if it's a good story. And really, once the story is there, it kind of unfolds and you don't really have to try to outdo yourself. It just presents itself and I've been so lucky to get the subject matter and the help and God's blessings and everything kind of falls into place so that you can do the best that you can do. Well, you work so hard. I mean, that's why you get lucky because you work so hard. You create your luck. Well, I think if you just open the channels and let people know that you're open to new ideas and the thing is, I really can't take credit for a lot of this because I can't do it without help and other people know it feels commitment to it and their artistry. If I'm working with a cameraman or a graphic artist, this is a team thing. You don't do it by yourself. So a lot of it is luck. For sure. Okay. And team, yes. And teamwork. Now, Pamela, if your life was a movie, what would the title be? Well, let me see. Besides speed, speed too. Well, I've actually been asked to write a book about some of my experiences. And so I thought, okay, a good title would be Triple Fire. And you've had Alice. Alice Enoy. So in astrology, I'm a triple fire in areas such as Leo. And that amounts to a lot of energy. And I don't think I could do anything without that energy. Growing up, people with that much fire get into trouble because they don't know where, unfortunately, I had dance. Yeah. And now that's, I channel that into my project. So it'd be Triple Fire. I love hearing that. So you, because you need to be doing, you need to be doing something all the time, is that really it? I think creative people need a creative outlet. Whether it's doing a show or cooking a meal or just doing your hair. You know, you need to be creating. Otherwise, a part of you tribbles up. Yeah. So yeah, I need these little projects to keep that energy going and to keep it circulating. Got it. So what would you say is a valuable lesson you learned in your life? I learned that I couldn't, I wouldn't be where I am without the help of others. When I started off in San Francisco, which is a very competitive market, I did not get any help from women and minorities. And that shocked me coming from Hawaii where everyone is so aloha, that people felt that I was competition and it was disheartening, but I also got a lot of mentorship. So I decided then, if I continued in this industry, I was gonna help people. Women and anybody coming in. So I did have a mentorship program for a while with kids from UH and Shamanad and HPU. So anyone who does ask, I'm there for them. And I never think of anyone younger as competition. So I wanna think the things you have to learn if you're going to be a decent human being. And as the, I'm the VP, the local VP for the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences, I encourage people to enter the Emmys. And I tell them how I enter and the process because when they win, Hawaii wins. And that's my goal. So yeah, you have to, any success that you gotta push it on, you gotta, you have to pay it forward and make sure other people gain the insight because we've all gone through the trials. We've all learned valuable lessons and you need to share that. I love hearing that you're mentoring so many people from all different stations. But they gotta ask. There's so many people who don't wanna ask because you know the shame and local style, you know? And, or they think that there are, you know, motives, ulterior motives, but you know, they just have to ask. That's all. And you're so cool. You're such a nice person. Oh, that's so nice. Thank you. You are. Pamela. It's part of my legendary style, you know. You are legendary. So Pamela, what's the best advice you've ever received in your life? Well, I think my husband constantly advises me to take it easy and to smell the roses because I think anyone who is excessive about it, you know, you've got your blinders on and you forget to see the other things along the way. And when you're on a job, especially in a foreign country, you don't really take the time to enjoy what's there because you're looking through the lens of a camera or you're looking through an outline of what's gonna go in the show, what can I do. And you know, you really do have to take the time to enjoy life. Yeah, because you've traveled to so many countries and everybody just assumes that you're having the greatest time doing all of these shows, but... I do, but at the same time, it's like, it's different when you're working there and there are also some parts of travel that I don't include. If I go to a third-world country, I don't do things about how poor people are. I mean, I may touch upon that as part of their spiritual growth, but I don't focus on the controversial subjects because that's not what Mixplay is all about. It's about people enjoying joy and living through their culture and just enjoying life. And so that's what Mixplay is all about. And so, you know, I try not to do the negative thing. What's a fear of yours? I think, you know, in this age and time, I fear that people will forget the reason that we need to love each other. I just see so much hate and fear and division in life. And it's taking over a lot of aspects of life. It's like us and them. And that unity isn't there anymore. And I know I'm thinking very broad terms, but that's the fear I have that times are changing and not necessarily for good. And we just have to remember, love each other. Love that. What's the biggest adversities or biggest challenges that you had to overcome in your own life? Well, I think the shock, the culture shock of moving to the mainland and realizing not everybody lives the aloha spirit and having to adjust to that. And, you know, it either buries you or you overcome it. And so I've had to do that in work. And so I've had to adjust my dealings, you know, in my life now to embrace that, to make sure that aloha is always there. Yeah, got it. What's something about yourself that you would like to improve on? Let's see. Let's see, well, it's been 20 years and then maybe a couple inches on my waistline. I wish that I could embrace a little more rest time and not be so focused on the work. I mean, I know that's a good thing, but it would be, I'd love to spend more time with my granddaughter. So yeah, like, Gary's always telling me he's off on the throttle. So that's what I'd like to do. What's a future goal of yours? Well, I'm hoping that more stories will come to me that mean something. I love doing mixed plate. And that's, you know, that's a fun time. But this whole France experience has taught me that I have a wonderful platform being on television as you do. And that is to validate people. And once you stop validating yourself, then you can focus on bringing other people's message and other people's story who don't have the luxury of having this voice. So I'm hoping that those stories will come to me and that they'll mean something to people. Well, I found all of your mixed plate episodes very educational, very meaningful. And I like hearing that you want to go deeper and deeper in the future. I think especially now when people are suspicious and so xenophobic, I want to bring different cultures, different religions, different belief systems into the airwaves because we need that. I'm going to look forward to that. And Pamela, I want to thank you for joining me on the show today. Thank you. Can I get my swimsuit out now? Yeah. Diamond? Thank you so much, Pamela. So much fun with you. Thank you, Rusty. And thank you for watching Beyond the Lines on Think Tech Hawaii. For more information, please visit RustyKamori.com. And my book is available on Amazon and Barnes and Noble. I hope that Pamela and I will inspire you to create your own superior culture of excellence and to find your greatness and help others find theirs. Aloha.