There he goes again. Hawaii’s Barack Obama made headlines with word he will deliver his acceptance speech at the Denver Democratic Convention not within the convention hall itself, but rather at the 75,000-seat Mile High Stadium, home to the Denver Broncos.

Commentators say he is emulating John Kennedy, who also packed a stadium for his acceptance speech in Los Angeles in 1960. That’s probably the case. Or maybe its because Obama has been drawing such huge crowds recently that his team realized they had a magnificent photo op on their hands if they played it right.

Or maybe it’s because Obama remembers a bit of Hawaii political history from the time he was a high school student and the 1978 campaign for governor was underway. The Democratic Primary featuring a head-to-head battle between George Ariyoshi (who won) and Honolulu Mayor Frank Fasi.

A highlight of that campaign was the audacious decision by campaign strategist Bob Oshiro to hold a late-primary rally at Aloha Stadium, which can seat 50,000 people. This was a high-stakes gamble, not least because of the logistics involved. But what if the event didn’t draw a full crowd? Ariyoshi would have looked mighty lonely speaking to a half-empty stadium.

As it turned out, the lure of free bento box lunches for 50,000 (prepared by volunteers) plus an unparalleled lineup of entertainment arranged by Larry Mehau made the event a huge success. It was the largest political gathering ever in Hawaii and it hasn’t been duplicated since.

Now, if Obama decides he can make time to come home to Hawaii (and who knows?) might we see a repeat of history being made with another rally at the Stadium, this time not for governor, but for a presidential candidate? Hmmmm?

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