FREEHAND by Mario E. Bautista
AFTER 'HERE COMES the Bride' that raked in more than P130 million, all local films subsequently released did badly at the tills, like "Noy" and "Emir" (which is understandable as they don't have bankable big name stars). What's surprising is for "I'll Be There" to be a disappointment, earning less than P30 million in its first week run when it stars real life dad and daughter Gabby and KC Concepcion and shown as a special Father's Day presentation at that. KC's films with Richard Gutierrez did much better at the box office so this doesn't augur well for her comebacking dad. Would have it been wiser if both Gabby and KC did movies first with megastar Sharon Cuneta?
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HO-HUM. Why are we no longer surprised about the latest news on Kris Aquino having problems again with her marriage to ace cager James Yap? In her official statement at SNN, she talks about "the state of my marriage" and says her "sole priority is the well being of my sons, Josh and Bimby. It's my intention and prayer to make this period of our lives to be as free from trauma as possible." So what else is new? It seems to be just a recurring cycle for her and her relationships, past and present. Kris also admitted that after a spat with James, she left their home with her sons and are now in an undisclosed place. None of these things is surprising as it's all happened before. Kris confided to a friend that campaigning for her brother took a toll on her marriage. Well, it paid off. Noynoy is now the new president. But at what cost?
GMA-7 is very pleased with the high ratings that "Trudis Liit" is getting in its afternoon slot. Looks like they found a new child wonder in title-roler Jillian Ward. As a result of its good ratings last Monday, it served as a good pre-program for all other GMA afternoon shows that all rated higher than their rivals: "Basahang Ginto", "Wipeout", and "Take Me Out". They're hoping Jillian will attract more viewers who'll sympathize with her lovable character as Trudis to make the rating soar even higher. GMA is also jubilant that the ratings of "Langit sa Piling Mo" have also gone up and has beaten the competition several times. Now that the story gets more intriguing with new characters played by Daniel Matsunaga, Ryza Cenon and Jay Aquitania coming in, it's expected that more viewers will be hooked with the show.
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CONGRATS TO Bong Quintana, the amiable vice president and special events manager of the hugely successful talent stable, Backroom, which is home to stars like Ai Ai de las Alas, Gretchen Barretto, Erik Santos, and many more. He just took his oath of office recently as the newest member of the boar of trustees of Eulogio "Amang" Rodriguez Institute of Science and Technology (EARIST). Bong is concurrently the president of the EARIST Alumni Association that entitles him to a seat as board of trustees member. The oath-taking took place at the EARIST Board of Trustees Conference Room. Bong is now taking his masters degree in hospitality and tourism management/executive program at EARIST. This program is open to all academicians, industry practitioners and others who'd like to be part of the hospitality and tourism industry. For inquiries about this, call Dr. Noel Cabrera, their VP for academic affairs at 716-1105 or 0928-500-4157. The last time we saw Bong was at the La Carmela Hotel Resort of Boy So in Boracay that has excellent accommodation, food by the beach, affordable rates and polite personnel that it's no wonder it's always fully booked. We really enjoyed our stay there.
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TOMORROW will be the showdown in "Zooperstar" among three top pooches for the title of the first ever ZOOperstar. Hosted by Gelli de Belen, Julian Trono and Sabrina Man, the special guest judges are Enzo Pineda, Rocco Nacino and Steven Silva of Starstruck V who'll be dancing Usher's hit "OMG". The talented finalists are Red the Poodle who charms everyone with his dance numbers ranging from "Nobody" to the Hawaiian "Pearly Shells", Samboy the Asong Pinoy (Aspin) who shows askals can be as "astig" as pedigreed dogs by balancing on a tightrope, and Boomboom the Zesty Pup who wins viewers with his hilarious combination of tricks like dancing the tinikling. Who'll stand out and win the grand prize of P30,000. May the best dog win in the "Zooperstar" grand finals this Sunday at 9:30 PM after "AHA" on GMA-7.
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GMA ARTIST CENTER showed their support to "Endless Love" by requiring some of their talents to be at its special press preview at SM Megamall. Among those who attended were Starstruck V's Enzo Pineda, Rocco Nacino and Nina Kodaka. Like what we've reported before, many cast members of the show were from ABS. We told Nina Kodaka that she or any of her colleagues could have played the roles of the best friends of Dingdong or Marian in the show so they can have more exposure. She smiled wryly and sighed. "Basta kami po, heto, naghihintay pa rin ng assignment," she says. "Hintay na lang kami nang hintay."
AFTER 'HERE COMES the Bride' that raked in more than P130 million, all local films subsequently released did badly at the tills, like "Noy" and "Emir" (which is understandable as they don't have bankable big name stars). What's surprising is for "I'll Be There" to be a disappointment, earning less than P30 million in its first week run when it stars real life dad and daughter Gabby and KC Concepcion and shown as a special Father's Day presentation at that. KC's films with Richard Gutierrez did much better at the box office so this doesn't augur well for her comebacking dad. Would have it been wiser if both Gabby and KC did movies first with megastar Sharon Cuneta?
**********
HO-HUM. Why are we no longer surprised about the latest news on Kris Aquino having problems again with her marriage to ace cager James Yap? In her official statement at SNN, she talks about "the state of my marriage" and says her "sole priority is the well being of my sons, Josh and Bimby. It's my intention and prayer to make this period of our lives to be as free from trauma as possible." So what else is new? It seems to be just a recurring cycle for her and her relationships, past and present. Kris also admitted that after a spat with James, she left their home with her sons and are now in an undisclosed place. None of these things is surprising as it's all happened before. Kris confided to a friend that campaigning for her brother took a toll on her marriage. Well, it paid off. Noynoy is now the new president. But at what cost?
GMA-7 is very pleased with the high ratings that "Trudis Liit" is getting in its afternoon slot. Looks like they found a new child wonder in title-roler Jillian Ward. As a result of its good ratings last Monday, it served as a good pre-program for all other GMA afternoon shows that all rated higher than their rivals: "Basahang Ginto", "Wipeout", and "Take Me Out". They're hoping Jillian will attract more viewers who'll sympathize with her lovable character as Trudis to make the rating soar even higher. GMA is also jubilant that the ratings of "Langit sa Piling Mo" have also gone up and has beaten the competition several times. Now that the story gets more intriguing with new characters played by Daniel Matsunaga, Ryza Cenon and Jay Aquitania coming in, it's expected that more viewers will be hooked with the show.
**********
CONGRATS TO Bong Quintana, the amiable vice president and special events manager of the hugely successful talent stable, Backroom, which is home to stars like Ai Ai de las Alas, Gretchen Barretto, Erik Santos, and many more. He just took his oath of office recently as the newest member of the boar of trustees of Eulogio "Amang" Rodriguez Institute of Science and Technology (EARIST). Bong is concurrently the president of the EARIST Alumni Association that entitles him to a seat as board of trustees member. The oath-taking took place at the EARIST Board of Trustees Conference Room. Bong is now taking his masters degree in hospitality and tourism management/executive program at EARIST. This program is open to all academicians, industry practitioners and others who'd like to be part of the hospitality and tourism industry. For inquiries about this, call Dr. Noel Cabrera, their VP for academic affairs at 716-1105 or 0928-500-4157. The last time we saw Bong was at the La Carmela Hotel Resort of Boy So in Boracay that has excellent accommodation, food by the beach, affordable rates and polite personnel that it's no wonder it's always fully booked. We really enjoyed our stay there.
**********
TOMORROW will be the showdown in "Zooperstar" among three top pooches for the title of the first ever ZOOperstar. Hosted by Gelli de Belen, Julian Trono and Sabrina Man, the special guest judges are Enzo Pineda, Rocco Nacino and Steven Silva of Starstruck V who'll be dancing Usher's hit "OMG". The talented finalists are Red the Poodle who charms everyone with his dance numbers ranging from "Nobody" to the Hawaiian "Pearly Shells", Samboy the Asong Pinoy (Aspin) who shows askals can be as "astig" as pedigreed dogs by balancing on a tightrope, and Boomboom the Zesty Pup who wins viewers with his hilarious combination of tricks like dancing the tinikling. Who'll stand out and win the grand prize of P30,000. May the best dog win in the "Zooperstar" grand finals this Sunday at 9:30 PM after "AHA" on GMA-7.
**********
GMA ARTIST CENTER showed their support to "Endless Love" by requiring some of their talents to be at its special press preview at SM Megamall. Among those who attended were Starstruck V's Enzo Pineda, Rocco Nacino and Nina Kodaka. Like what we've reported before, many cast members of the show were from ABS. We told Nina Kodaka that she or any of her colleagues could have played the roles of the best friends of Dingdong or Marian in the show so they can have more exposure. She smiled wryly and sighed. "Basta kami po, heto, naghihintay pa rin ng assignment," she says. "Hintay na lang kami nang hintay."
