ASD icon blue inverse lighter

ASD Staff

Daily Smile

[{"type":"text","text":"Never doubt the wrestling skills of a duck..."}]

Smile 26 9 24

<title>Daily Smile: Thursday, Sept. 24, 2026</title>

Never doubt the wrestling skills of a duck...

Daily Smile: Thursday, Sept. 24, 2026

 Never doubt the wrestling skills of a duck...

Katie Helland Headshot

Katie Helland

Arts & Entertainment

Hawai‘i History

 is usually associated with drawings of buildings. But this week, some of his sketches of tropical fish and trinkets from his travels around the world are up for sale through Oʻahu Auctions.

Called the Father of Hawaiian Modernism, he is known for his buildings across the state. Over 60 years, he created 

more than 1,000 projects across the Islands

“It is an amazing, really once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to obtain these things,” David Brandt, 

president of Oʻahu Auctions, told Aloha State Daily. “It's going to be really interesting to see where they go. I can imagine these sketches will be framed and in boardrooms and buildings that he designed and things like that.”

Ossipoff’s career included work at the Pacific Club, Outrigger Canoe Club, Hawaiʻi Preparatory Academy, Waikīkī Aquarium, the Thurston Memorial Chapel at Punahou Schools, the 

, the Daniel K. Honolulu International Airport, and the Kahului Airport, among other projects. He was also the talent behind the 

Liljestrand House on the slopes of Mount Tantalus

, which is open for public tours, as well as the 

, his personal retreat in the Waiʻanae mountains, and the 

He died in 1998. Now, 28 years later, some of the architect’s sketches and personal items are up for auction. The online auction starts closing at 7 p.m. on Thursday Nov. 19, though bids may extend past that time if there is competition.

Ossipoff was raised in Japan, educated in Berkeley, California, and then moved to Hawaiʻi in the early 1930s. He believed those in his profession had to know human nature and must be “a bit of a sociologist, lawyer and psychologist,” according to 

“One thing to say is this definitely attracts interest from around the world,” Brandt

 said. “There's a lot of Mainland interest. There's people registered from Berkeley. There's definitely a lot of architects from around the world: Japan, Korea, Europe. It’s global interest, and of course, here.”

Among the items in this auction are sketches of tropical fish, including front and profile views of: Humuhumunukunukuāpuaʻa, Umaumalei, Angel Fish, and more, which the family believes were part of his work on the Waikīkī Aquarium.

Ossipoff originally traveled to Honolulu to visit a college roommate and then took a position with famed Hawaiʻi architect 

, who is known for his work on a number of buildings in town, including Honolulu Hale, the flagship location of the Hawaiʻi State Library, the Alexander & Baldwin building, and more.

In the 1960s, Ossipoff spearheaded a “war on ugliness” 

 against Hawaiʻi architecture that was insensitive to landscapes and the climate, according to the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa’s Hamilton Library. Friends called him “charming” and “cantankerous,” according to library records.

“I was just amazed to look through this and get a glimpse into this amazing architect that has shaped Hawaiʻi and did these sketches,” Brandt

 said. “Just to kind of see what his thoughts were behind it, and especially those fish. It just never occurred to me that somebody who would be designing the Waikīkī Aquarium would take the time to sketch fish and think about how fish are going to look in the aquarium as you're designing that. I just thought that was neat. And then, he went to Berkeley and sketched that, and I thought that was pretty cool.”

The auction lot also includes pottery from the Late Qing Dynasty, as well as vintage statehood-era Hawaiʻi newspapers, and a German tea set from the late 20th Century, among other items.

“And then all those small items, those treasures, were things that they collected from traveling all around the world,” 

 said. “All of those just are such interesting objects that have their own story to tell.”

There is also a family Christmas card and an illustrated invitation to dinner from 

. A 15% buyer’s premium is added to bids, plus the 4.712% general excise tax. 

10 Ossipoff Humuhumunukunukuapuaa reef fish sketch

<title>Vladimir Ossipoff sketches up for auction</title>

The original drawings of the architect behind buildings such as the Pacific Club, Outrigger Canoe Club, Hawaiʻi Preparatory Academy, Waikīkī Aquarium and more are up for auction this month.

Vladimir Ossipoff sketches up for auction

WEB square crop Hayley Lehman Headshot RGZ1636

Haley Lehman

Government & Politics

Crime & Courts

A Honolulu Fire Department battalion chief and the City of Honolulu face a civil lawsuit from a woman who alleges she was assaulted at the department headquarters in February 2025.

According to the complaint filed on Oct. 28, the woman identified as Jane Doe was working at the Honolulu Fire Department headquarters when Battalion Chief Blake Takahashi texted her at 4:53 p.m. on Feb. 14, 2025, and asked her to stop by his office. He reportedly gave her alcohol and made sexual advances.

Takahashi is accused of sexually assaulting the woman in his office. Takahashi remains on paid administrative leave, according to HFD Public Information Officer Jacob Pekelo. Pekelo declined to comment on pending litigation.

Battalion chiefs at HFD earn between $139,752 to $160,908, according to the City and County of Honolulu 

Takahashi has worked for the City and County of Honolulu for more than 24 years and serves as a 

 in 2024 for his work leading the department’s training programs and developing the department’s Mentorship Program for recruits.

The lawsuit filed by Woodruff Soldner, Nicole Kalakau and Rafael Renteria of Leavitt, Yamane & Soldner alleges that the city and its fire department “failed to keep its employees safe from Battalion Chief Blake Takahashi’s predation — resulting in a sexual assault in the workplace.” 

Takahashi turned himself in at the Honolulu Police Department on Feb. 18, 2025, and was released later that same afternoon pending investigation, the 

A woman obtained a temporary restraining order against Takahashi in 2025 in connection with the allegation, according to court filings.

Lance Aquino, a spokesperson for HPD, told Aloha State Daily that the case was 

“thoroughly investigated by HPD.” According to Aquino, the Department of the Prosecuting Attorney declined to charge Takahashi on Dec. 17, 2025.

The attorneys representing the woman argue that the Department of the Prosecuting Attorney had an “obvious conflict of interest” and 

a motivation to protect itself from liability, according to the complaint.

Kalakau, one of the woman's attorneys, told ASD by email Tuesday that a civil lawsuit was the "only path left to accountability" after 20 months without answers. She said that the woman immediately reported the assault to HFD and reported it to HPD the next day, but HFD's internal investigation has been silent since then.

hat silence is part of why she's here," Kalakau said. "She's lost faith in how the City handles complaints, and we have reason to believe this isn't the first time HFD, with help from other City agencies, has buried misconduct. Battalion Chief Takahashi's past misconduct, and HFD's failure to act on it, set the stage for what happened to Jane Doe."

The woman “suffered severe physical injury, psychological trauma, emotional distress and economic loss,” because of the alleged sexual assault, the lawsuit states. Kalakau said that the woman wants "transparency, accountability, and real change at HFD and the City."

We expect firefighters to be heroes. We're going to root out the ones who aren't, and the ones who protect those few bad apples. We hope the heroes at HFD will stand with us. This isn't just about Jane Doe. It's about clearing out a toxic culture that has no place at HFD or anywhere in the City and County of Honolulu."

The case was assigned to Judge Shirley Kawamura and court dates have not yet been set.

Daily Smile: Thursday, Sept. 24, 2026

ASD Staff

Reporter

More in Daily Smile

Daily Smile: Saturday, Nov. 7, 2026

Daily Smile: Friday, Nov. 6, 2026

Daily Smile: Thursday, Nov. 5, 2026

Daily Smile: Wednesday, Nov. 4, 2026

Most read

Daily Smile: Thursday, Sept. 24, 2026

Authors

ASD Staff

Reporter

More in Daily Smile

Daily Smile: Saturday, Nov. 7, 2026

Daily Smile: Friday, Nov. 6, 2026

Daily Smile: Thursday, Nov. 5, 2026

Daily Smile: Wednesday, Nov. 4, 2026

Most read