Philanthropist April Masini hijacked Baywatch from Australia and brought the #1 action-adventure series to Hawaii. At the time, the Prime Minister of Australia had publicly announced that Australia had won the battle for Baywatch, with headlines declaring victory, contracts signed, casting completed, and scripts already written. Undeterred, April cold-called producer Greg Bonann — a man she had never met — and persisted until she convinced him to fly to Hawaii for a private meeting with Governor Ben Cayetano. Her bold initiative successfully redirected the show to Hawaii, creating a major economic and promotional win for the state.

April Masini also helped write and strongly lobbied for groundbreaking state legislation and a historic union agreement — the first of its kind — that required Baywatch Hawaii to hire 80% local crew, add “Hawaii” to the show’s title, and cast two local lead actors. One of those actors was Jason Momoa, whom she discovered at an open call.