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celebrityworld The Asian Jour nal SF MAGAZINE - January 29, 2016
celebrity world
International Broadway star Lea Salonga heads February birthday celebrants
By Ferdie Villar INTERNATIONALLY known Filipina stage actress and singer Lea Salonga heads the list of prominent personalities celebrating their birthday this February. Lea will celebrate her birthday on Monday, February 22. Lea is most known for her role of Kim in the highly successful musical, “Miss Saigon,” for which she won the Olivier, Tony, Drama Desk, Outer Critics and Theatre World awards. She is the first Filipino artist to sign with international record label – Atlantic Records – in 1993. She is also the first Philippine-based artist to have received a major album release and distribution deal in the United States (the second being Charice Pempengco with her 2010 album, Charice), and one of the bestselling Filipino artists of all time, having sold over five million copies of her albums worldwide. Lea was the first Asian actress to play the roles of Eponine and Fantine in the famed musical “Les Miserables” on Broadway. She portrayed both roles on the musical’s 10th and 25th anniversary show in London respectively. She also provided the singing voice of two official Disney princesses: Jasmine in “Aladdin” (1992) and Fa Mulan in “Mulan” (1998) and “Mulan II” (2004). Lea was named a Disney Legend in 2011 for her work with The Walt Disney Company. The daughter of Feliciano Genuino Salonga and Ligaya Alcantara Imutan, Lea spent the first six years of her childhood in Angeles City before moving to Manila. Her brother, Gerard, is now an orchestral conductor and musical director. Other personalities celebrating their birthday this February are: February 1 - Fashion stylist, hairdresser and designer Fanny Serrano; February 2 - Kaiser Hospital in South San Francisco nurse Alma Bernabe Roxas; February 3 - ABS-CBN 2 Managing Director for Star Cinema Malou Santos; February 4 - ABS-CBN 2 Senior Vice President and Star Magic Talent Manager Johnny Manahan;
Religious and community leader Bernadette Munoz Roco (far right), who is also the Administrator of the Roco Medical Clinic, will celebrate her birthday on February 27. Mrs. Roco is shown with her husband, Dr. Carmelo Lim Roco and Superstar Nora Aunor.
sa every project, sa every show na ginagawa ko, nandoon pa rin yung pressure na kailangang it’s better than my last work. I take it that, as a teen actress and a former child star, you’ve had and will always have a bigger share of grown-up problems than most of us. Plus, you have to constantly stay pretty. How do you cope with, say, Metro Manila traffic, given your ultra-fast-paced lifestyle? ’Wag kang magpaapekto sa stress. Sobrang stressful ng pagiging actress — maingay at mabilis ang lahat — pero ang secret dun ay dapat diyan ka lang, kalmahin mo ang sarili mo, planuhin mo kung paano mo magagawa ang schedule for the day, and you’ll get through it. I know you get this a lot, but we’re going to ask this anyway just to get your final word on it. How would you describe your relationship with your peers, Liza and Nadine? What can you say about the apparent rivalry among the three of you and among your respective fan bases? We all work for the same station, so I don’t think dapat lagyan ng malice o kulay. Kaming tatlo, we’re very okay. Wala naman talagang isyu sa amin, it’s just that ibang tao lang siguro ang gumagawa. And haters? Can you give us tips on shaking them off? Walang artistang walang hater. Ganun naman, eh. It comes with the package. Just ignore them. It’s the best revenge. Kapag hindi mo sila pinansin, wala silang makukuha sa ‘yo. Moviegoers were abuzz recently about the controversy that was the MMFF. From where you’re sitting, if
LuzViMin of the Bay Area President Ora Seyler will celebrate her birthday with family and close friends on February 6.
International artist Lea Salonga, the only Filipina who has received the Disney Legends award, heads the list of prominent personalities celebrating their birthdays this February. Ms. Salonga is shown in photo with beauty impresario Ferdie Villar, taken during her recent visit in the Bay Area last year.
Daly City Vice Mayor David Canepa was among the attendees during the grand fiesta of Jesus of Black Nazarene held at the residence of beauty impresario Ferdie Villar last January 9. In photo are (L-R) Rev. Fr. Abraham Alonzo who officiated the Holy Mass, Daly City Vice Mayor Canepa, Lilly Smith, Ferdie Villar and San Francisco Supervisor Jane Kim. February 5 - Concert King Martin Nievera, and Daly City community leader Mario Panoringan; February 6 - LuzViMin of the Bay Area President Ora Seyler, veteran actor Eddie Gutierrez, and entertainment producer/veteran actress Daisy Romualdez; February 7 - Former Mr. RPUSA Willard Torres of Hayward; February 8 - Philippine President Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III, and Dr. John Gabordo of Gilroy;
Kathryn Bernardo:‘We ... From Page SF3
Dr. Narciso “Tito” Yusi, a dentist and singing tenor, will celebrate his birthday on February 27.
you could change a few things about the current entertainment landscape, what would they be? Bigyan ng chance ang lahat ng tao, hindi lang yung dahil mas kilala ang isang tao o kaya related siya kanino man. Sana the entertainment industry would open more doors for these people na talented pero hindi nabibigyan ng opportunities. What’s your dream role? Like, what would be the wildest project you’d do if you had anything to choose from? Action! I’d like to take on action roles. Yun yung gusto ko kasi nakapag-drama na ako, romcom, horror, so yun na lang ang kulang. I’ve personally been meaning to ask a young public figure about this. In recent years, we millennials have been obsessing about having a generational identity. Do you think we really need to hail someone to be the “voice” of this generation? I think aside from having someone speak for us, we need someone to give us a wakeup call. Kasi iba na talaga ang generation natin. We’re very advanced because of technology at dahil sa lahat ng nakikita natin ngayon. Sometimes it’s good. Sometimes kailangan lang nating matutunan kung paano i-balance ang lahat para hindi tayo maging pabigat o masabihang spoiled at entitled, at ma-prove na kaya nating makatulong especially with the many resources we have nowadays. What’s in store for Kathryn Bernardo in 2016? Well, right now I’m still doing “Pangako Sa ‘Yo.“ After that, I’ll be working on a movie with DJ. Yun ang abangan niyo. Surprise na ang iba.
Malou Santos, ABS-CBN 2 Managing Director of Star Cinema, will celebrate her birthday on February 3.
February 9 - GMA 7 actress Heart Evangelista, and actor/ dancer John Prats; February 10 - Ballroom dancer Jose “Joe” de Guzan, San Francisco tailor Gil Rivera, and former medical assistant Ricky Umali; February 11 - GMA 7 multi-awarded actress Lovi Poe, and actress/TV host Jackielou Blanco; February 12 - Retired engineer from Concord Manny Sarmiento; February 13 – Daly City real
Former fashion model and movie actress Glenda Kennedy will celebrate her birthday on February 18.
estate broker Carmelita “Lita” Celimen; February 14 - Queen of All Media Kris Aquino, Mr. Total Entertainer Rico J. Puno, actress Roxanne Guinoo; February 15 - PBA cager James Yap; February 17 - Showtime TV host Anne Curtis; February 18 - Hollywood stage actress and model Glenda Kennedy, and TV host Bernadette Sembrano; February 20 - ABS-CBN 2 actress Cristine Reyes;
Actress and “Showtime” TV host Anne Curtis will be celebrating her birthday on February 17.
February 21 - Fil-Am business executive Sean Rennock; February 22 - TV5 Vice President for Entertainment Wilma Galvante; February 23 - Real estate agent Ramon “Monching” Bunag, Magandang Pilipina writer Joey Panlilio; February 25 - Asia’s fashion czar Jose “Pitoy” Moreno; February 26 - Actress Assunta de Rossi, veteran actress Chanda Romero, and equestrienne Mikee Cojuangco-Jaworski;
February 27 - International recording star Josh Groban, well-liked dentist and singing tenor Dr. Narciso “Tito” Yusi, community and religious leader and Roco Medical Clinic administrator and civic leader Bernadette Munoz Roco, and Navy pilot Michael Back; February 29 - San Francisco community leader Jun Jun Villegas. To all celebrants, happy birthday and to all my readers, advanced Happy Valentine’s Day.
Boss Vic Del Rosario: Stars are born and made by Bayani San
Diego Jr.
Inquirer
DOES the country need yet another singing competition? TV5 apparently believes so and recently launched “Born to be a Star,” its newest reality talent tilt and latest collaboration with Viva big boss, Vic del Rosario, who now serves as the Kapatid network’s chief strategist. Del Rosario, who has been in the business of discovering, developing and managing stars for five decades, vows that he will personally handle the career of the eventual winner of the tilt, which premieres on Feb. 6. “The problem with the other contests was that the winners were not given proper followup projects or the right recording or album after the show,” he told the Inquirer. He cited as example Sarah Geronimo, winner of the Vivaproduced singing contest, “Star for a Night,” in 2003. “We immediately gave her a single, ‘Forever is Not Enough,’ which became a hit,” he recalled. Sustaining the gains from a talent-show triumph is crucial, he
explained. “The struggle doesn’t end with winning—that is only the beginning of an aspirant’s journey to superstardom.” More than the P1-million prize money, the show’s winner will benefit from his extensive experience in the music industry, Del Rosario said. “I will do everything to make the show’s winner a success.” (The winner will receive a P1-million contract from Viva and TV5 and P1-million real estate property, too.) A dozen years after discovering Geronimo, Del Rosario feels the time is right to look for another multimedia superstar. Del Rosario, who is credited for helping Sharon Cuneta achieve megastardom in the 1980s, enumerated the traits he’s looking for in a possible winner. “On top of the list is talent, of course. A close second is charisma—that doesn’t mean that the contestant has to be extremely good-looking, though,” he clarified. “Sometimes, the X factor comes out once they’re already in the contest and after they’ve undergone a makeover.” Some contestants aren’t that
Regine Velasquez
Sarah Geronimo
competent in the beginning, he pointed out, “but they eventually improve as the contest goes on.” Youth is another prime consideration. Young people can still be trained and developed, he said. “We are looking for a singing star that today’s youth can idolize.” He noted that, apart from the age limit, the show is open to everyone: rich or poor, citybred or from the provinces—and whatever the sexual orientation. Although the show’s title asserts that stars are “born,”
Del Rosario insists that they can also be “manufactured.” “Take a look at K-Pop stars. In South Korea, stars are mass-produced. It helps to reinvent stars, to maximize their assets and get rid of their weaknesses,” he said. Even after 50 years in show business, he remains gung ho in his search for a multimedia sensation. He said, “I am still looking for the next big star who will follow in the footsteps of Nora, Sharon, Regine and Sarah. The search still excites me!”
Claudine returns to the teleserye and... From Page SF2 talaga mag-artista and I’m really grateful na lahat naman ng pinangarap ko na abot ko. Pero I can say na teleserye talaga ang forte ko at kahit noon minsanminsan lang ako sa pelikula,” Claudine explained. “Mas mahirap gawin ang teleserye dahil mas maraming sequences, dapat mabilis ka kumilos, dapat na-memorize mo agad ang lines mo. But dito talaga na hahasa ang acting mo, and mas challenging siya kaya
masaya po talaga ako to be back here,” she added. Claudine is further overwhelmed by a stellar cast assembled for her return to the teleserye in Cesar Montano, Diether Ocampo, Ruffa Gutterez, Diether Ocampo, Dindi Gallardo, Samantha Lopez, Bernard Palanca, and Meg Imperial. “In this business, you cannot call yourself an fulfilled actress if you haven’t worked with Cesar Montano,” she enthused. “And as for Diet, alam n’yo naming la-
hat that we’ve worked so many times before so balik trabaho lang kami.” Perhaps another reason why the controversial actress is back on track is that she is also in better terms with ex-husband Raymart Santiago, with whom she had a highly publicized separation and continuing spats. “Raymart and are very good friends now, and we’re really trying to be good parents. Nagfail na po kami as husband and wife, so we don’t want to fail
as parents naman,” Claudine explained. “So napagusapan muna namin na i-stop muna lahat ng mga kaso and mag-coparenting na lang kami sa pagpapalaki sa mga anak namin.” As they say, a good family life—no matter how unconventional it may be—is always the foundation for all other aspects of one’s life. With Claudine’s revelations, Philippine showbiz’ erstwhile Optimum Star, may just be starting her climb to the top once again. The TV adaptation of Danny Zialcita’s “Bakit Manipis ang Ulap” will soon air on TV5.