GMA-7 cancels Mel and Joey show

The production staff of "Mel and Joey," the eight-year-old program early Sunday evening talk show on GMA 7, cried buckets of tears after they were informed that last July 6 would be their last taping day.

Apparently, the show was axed unceremon-iously by GMA as the entire staff was caught by surprise. It was like their heads were chopped off.

Even Ms. Mel Tiangco, the host of the long-running show, could not hold back her tears, as the axe fell on the long-running Sunday talk show on the Kapuso network.

That the staff was caught by surprise was an understatement. Mel and Joey is an award-winning program, rates well and is loaded with commercials. So it really came as a surprise that it was cancelled.

If we recall, when Tita Mel transferred to GMA from ABS-CBN (with her former co-host Jay Sonza), she was given the early evening slot every Sunday via the show Partners: Mel and Jay. Before they switched networks, Mel and Jay were also doing a Sunday talk show at ABS-CBN.

When Jay (Sonza) bowed out of the program, Joey de Leon became the co-host, hence the title Mel and Joey.

It would be hard to speculate as to why GMA 7 axed Mel and Joey. As the saying goes, if it ainít broken, why fix it. Could it be possible that GMA wants to have a "new" show on the timeslot of Mel and Joey so they gave the show the thumbs down mark to accommodate another program?

It is also possible that the new show that GMA 7 is planning to replace Mel and Joey would not necessarily feature Mel and Joey as front liners.

We tried to get the side of Louie Ignacio, the director of the show, but he had not been answering his phone. Neither is he responding to text messages.

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Actor-comedian-tv host John "Sweet" Lapus is happy with the box-office success of Temptation Island. In fact, Regal Entertainment and GMA Films held a victory party last Friday (July 8) to celebrate the good showing of the Chris Martinez film.

The remake of the late Joey Gosiengfiao made P6 million on its first day which warmed the hearts of the producers.

According to Sweet, despite all the hardships the whole cast and crew encountered, it was all worth it as the movie also got good reviews from the critics.

Now heís looking forward to his launching film under Viva Films to be direted by Wenn V. Deramas.

"Worth it naman kasi nakita ko na, I am so proud to be part of this cast and Iím so proud of my friend, Direk Chris Martinez, ang husay-husay niya. Even all the cast members, ang galing-galing nilang lahat," said Sweet who is hoping to get the nod of critics for his performance in Temptation Island.

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Singer-performer Kris Lawrence didnít know how to react when his manager Arnold Vegafria told him to join the audition of the musical play Sweet Charity, to be staged this August.

"I didnít know what to say. Parang gusto kong bago akong gawin. Thatís the main reason why I accepted this role but other than that, I felt I wasnít ready for something like this," the Party Pilipinas mainstay said.

"You know, if my craft is hot, this is cold. They are changing my singing style. They are changing my dancing style and acting is a whole new frontier for me so parang this is all new territory but at the end of the day, itís for artistís growth. Itís another point on my resumÈ, you know. It keeps my life exciting."

However, Kris also expressed interest to join another musical play in the future if thereís a new ofer. Even if heís not yet that confident as a performer (being a first-timer in theatre), what is important is that heís enjoying his stint so far, which he believes is very important.

He is also looking forward to the opening night of Sweet Charity but he admits having the jitters as he is both scared and nervous as to how he would fare.

"I am hoping for the best but I am not expecting for the worst either. But I am really scared," said Kris.

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The 7101 Music Nation recently launched the 2nd Elements National Singing-Songwriting Camp which is the brainchild of Maestro Ryan Cayabyab, businessman Julio D. Sy and music lover Twinky Lagdameo.

Their goal is to put up a platform that would gather Filipino artists and musicians, and to promote sharing of ideas to uplift Filipino musicality and artistry.

The national singing-songwriting camp is open to all aspiring singers 18 to 25, and to aspiring songwriters ages 18 to 35, who are citizens and residents of the Philippines.

Thirty singers and 30 songwriters will be accepted to the camp to be held at Dumaguete, Negros Oriental from Nov. 6 to Nov. 10.