First, there was Vera Isberto and Jao Mapa, followed by Dolor Guevarra and Wowie de Guzman, and then by Shirley Kuan and Geneva Cruz. And a few other cases of managers and talents breaking up under not-so-friendly circumstances.
It's always the case in showbiz. When a talent feels (often wrongly) that he/she can stand on his/her own two feet and manage his/her own career (not knowing how hard a job it is), the first person he/she gets rid of is his/her, yes, manager. "Nanghihinayang na sa komisyon na ibinibigay niya sa manager," is how a disgruntlled manager aptly puts it. "(The talent) suddenly becomes greedy, dazzled by the color of money."
Don't look now but a very popular manager (actually more popular as a singer -- of international stature, I may hasten to add) and her talent have just parted ways, not totally though but only partially. It's a painful parting for the singer-manager (especially) because it was she who groomed the singer, clothed her, sheltered her, brought her back from a hard life in the States to the Philippines where she embarked on a singing career and became successful -- all because of the singer-manager's efforts.
"The singer-manager treated her talent like her own daughter," the Funfare DPA said, "so what happened really hurt her (the singer-manager)."
The talent bided her time, telling the singer-manager about her plan (to just make the singer-manager her "booker" and no longer a full-time manager, thus reducing the commission from 20 percent to 10 percent) only after she packed her things, moved out of the singer-manager's house into the one she has just bought (or is renting).
Oh, well, in the showbiz vocabulary, utang na loob (debt of gratitude) is almost non-existent, is it?
The singer-manager felt so bad that she went abroad to cool off.
Next case, please?
I never knew what a devoted family man Michael V. is until I read Rina Jimenez-David's cover story on Michael V. and his family (wife Carol and children Milo and Yanni) in the latest issue of Parents magazine (every parent should subscribe to it).
On TV, we see Michael V. clowning around as Bitoy (taken from the TV monicker of the late Bentot who happened to be one of Michael V.'s favorite comedians) in the GMA 7 gag show Bubble Gang (aside from Bilib Ka Ba and Oops, a local spin-off of Candid Camera, which Michael V. is directing), so our idea of him is fixed on his being a funnyman who seems to care nothing else in the world but tickle your and my funnybone.
Rina mentioned in her story that when Carol was still working as PAL international flight attendant (she and Michael V. met and fell in love at the Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila where they both studied), she would sometimes be away from home for as long as 11 days so Michael V. had to act both as father and mother, driving back and forth between their home in Cavite and wherever his shootings/tapings were.
"At that time," Michael V. told Rina, "si Milo pa lang ang anak namin. No matter how late it was or how tired I was, I made it a point to be home because I thought it was important for Milo to wake up in the morning and find one of his parents home."
Michael V. and Carol nearly lost Milo who developed a lung ailment shortly after his birth. His lungs were filling up with water and he had to be placed in an incubator for 10 days. "Kaya," said Michael V., "I can forgive Milo, or Yanni, for any offense they commit. Imagine," Michael V. added, his eyes taking on a sad look (according to Rina), "you enter the hospital, there's the two of you, you have this incredible baby. But then pag-alis ninyo sa hospital, kayong dalawa pa rin."
Now that Carol has quit her flying job and adjusted to being plain housewife, Michael V. can focus his attention on his work, but always with half of his mind left at home.
Anyway, after reading Rina's article, I started looking at Michael V. from another point of view, no longer as just a devil-may-care comedian but as a responsible husband and father.
Meanwhile, here's Funfare's international correspondent Ferdinand Lapuz's latest report:
Sa Paraiso ni Efren has been officially invited to the Turin Gay and Lesbian International Film Festival in Italy from April 13 to 19. It will be shown in the International Competition Section for feature films. Pila Balde's subtitled print will be very busy come first week of April. It will fly from Singapore to the Houston International Film Festival (April 1 to 16). Then it's off to Munich, Germany, come June. Toro has also been officially invited last week to the Montreal World Film Festival this August. One of Montreal's programmers had a chance to watch Toro in Berlin.
Alliance Releasing's Showcase Television Network is buying more Filipino films for Canadian Television (English Canada only). Aside from Regal's Pila Balde and Curacha, Alliance is also interested to buy ReynaFilms' Tatlo, Abot Kamay ang Pangarap and Ligaya ang Itawag mo sa Akin, and Star Cinema's Ang Lalake sa Buhay ni Selya. All were written by Bibeth Orteza and directed by Carlitos Siguion-Reyna. If you still remember, in my September 23 article to you, I mentioned that the Siguion-Reynas were in discussion with Alliance for their films. Showcase had requested more tapes for other Filipino movies they want to consider for telecast.
All the efforts of Filipino movie producers, directors, writers and actors for global exposure is slowly coming to reality. I hope they will strive harder to achieve their goal for international recognition.