Harry Owens

American composer, bandleader and songwriter best known for his song "Sweet Leilani".
Born April 18, 1902 in O'Neill, Nebraska, USA.
Died December 12, 1986 in Eugene, Oregon, USA.
Owens was working the vaudeville circuit by age 14. He studied for a career in law, but then started a band in 1926. He became the music director of The Royal Hawaiian Hotel in 1934. Owens Oscar winning song "Sweet Leilani" was sung by Bing Crosby in the film Waikiki Wedding (1937). Owens wrote the song to celebrate the birth of his daughter Leilani.
1987: He was a posthumous winner of a Nā Hōkū Hanohano Lifetime Achievement Award under the auspices of the Hawaiʻi Academy of Recording Arts.