Mr. "Tiny Bubbles" is no more.

Don Ho

Don Ho, Hawaii's most popular entertainer who rode the success of his hit song "Tiny Bubbles" to international fame, died Saturday of a heart attack. He was 76.

Known as the "King of Waikiki," Ho died at a Honolulu medical center, Michael Lynch, investigator at the office of the Honolulu medical examiner, told the Associated Press. Ho had a history of heart problems and had a much-publicized experimental stem cell procedure in Thailand in 2005 to strengthen his heart. His health improved markedly and he returned to doing shows at a Waikiki hotel twice a week.

The son of bar owners, Ho started singing in a famous Waikiki lounge in the 1960s. By 1966, his fame had spread to the US mainland after he performed in Los Angeles' Coconut Grove and recorded the hit song "Tiny Bubbles." Ho performed his final show last Thursday night in Waikiki.

Ho often insisted his successful career was an accident, laughing, "I had no intention of being an entertainer. I just played songs I liked from the radio, and pretty soon the place was jammed."

Before singing full time, Ho joined the US Air Force, piloting transport planes between Hickam Air Force Base in Honolulu and Tokyo. He later became a television star too, hosting the The Don Ho Show from 1976 to 1977.

Ho is survived by his wife, Haumea, and 10 children, including Hoku, who sometimes performed with her father.