KAUAI, HAWAII – Dec. 1, 2015 (Gephardt Daily) — Joshua ‘Li’iBoy’ Shintani, best known for his cameo in the 2001 comedy “Shallow Hal,” has died at the age of 32.
TMZ is reporting, Joshua’s mother says she took him to an emergency room early last week on Kauai, and doctors discovered he was battling an advanced case of pneumonia. Joshua died on Wednesday.
Shintani had became a local legend in his native Hawaii after landing the memorable scene with Jack Black where Joshua strummed a ukulele and played, “Never Forget Where I’m From.”
He got the part when co-director Peter Farrelly was on vacation in Hawaii and discovered Joshua, a high school senior at the time, strumming his uke outside a public library. Farrelly signed him up for the movie on the spot.
‘Hal’ was the only movie Joshua ever did.
A rep for the Farrelly brothers said Joshua, “had a soul that glowed like a lighthouse. We feel honored to have known him.”
