Darlene Yoshimoto

American singer from Honolulu.
Born October 20, 1943 in Honolulu, Hawaii, USA.
Died September 6, 1998 in Richfield, Utah, USA (hit by a car while trying to help a family who were in an accident).
Yoshimoto started out performing doo-wop and early R&B. She later changed her name to "Masako" and branched out into jazz and easy listening.
Her singing career took off at the age of 16 when she won a "Show of Stars" contest in 1960. She had already recorded tunes with The Jokers, a local group that also featured Teddy Chinen (a.k.a. Teddy Tanaka). She had an uncredited role in Elvis Presley's Girls! Girls! Girls! 1962.
Yoshimoto performed regularly at the Hilton Hawaiian Village, Royal Hawaiian Hotel, & Kuilima Resort (now called Turtle Bay).
She co-founded Meadows Private School in Summerlin, Nevada.