50 years of endless fun

On his honeymoon night, he was dubbing for a film, a raket he was committed to do. At 3 a.m., he went home and noticed that the lights of their house was on and what did he see? His wife, sitting on a chair, with a basinful of water in front of her, full of hundreds and hundreds of moths.

While waiting for the newly married Frankie, his wife Patria patiently waited for him – in the company of moths. And in their 46 years of marriage, Frankie Evangelista, (Ka Kiko to all of us) says his wife has been most patient, most understanding of his job as a broadcaster that has brutal and punishing schedules.

Frankie Evangelista is an icon in the broadcast industry. Yet he has the temper and passion of a fledgling, bright-eyed upstart. He says, he’s often asked how he managed to work successfully in media for 50 years. "I didn’t work. I simply had fun," he would tell people. He quotes Bob Dylan who said that "when you wake up in the morning – and sleep at night, then in between you do what you love – then that is success." Ka Kiko makes one of the most complicated jobs simple and quite frankly – this is tough in any network in a country where egos and tempers fly like misguided deadly missiles. In a job where people grapple with egos and ratings, Ka Kiko decided to have fun and stayed 50 years and still counting.

In 1953, Ka Kiko started on radio as a deejay, playing songs of The Platters. "Nobody cared about news those days. It was given 15 minutes in the afternoon and another 15 minutes in the evening. It was not even on primetime. You listened to radio because you wanted to be entertained or you wanted to escape. You listened to The Platters for entertainment – while you listened to the soap operas to be able to escape!"

He also became executive producer of some entertainment shows and became part of the middle management of a network. At one point, he was playing the vampire in Gabi ng Lagim, who at 8 p.m. was being killed by a sharp, wooden cross, with blood flowing out of his chest. At 9 p.m., this vampire would do the newscast. And even before radio, before the entertainment shows he produced or acted in, long before being a newscaster, he was a theater actor at the FEU, under the tutelage of the legendary Sarah Joaquin. "She taught us how to project our voices. Even our aside should be heard by people at the back of the theater."

Ka Kiko went through his career diligently, without the affectations of a broadcast superstar. Most of the time, he was at the right place at the right time from his first radio show to TV Patrol and to the shows he does today. And in his journey, he always brought along a good, kind heart.

He broke into a hearty laughter when asked why not one of his three children went into broadcasting. "They’re into Banking and Finance." Then he continued to tell the story about how one day he finished his work early. (An ordinary day would have him leave the house while the children were still asleep and would arrive late when the children have retired). So he arrived home at 3 p.m. His eldest son stared at him, not knowing how to react. Perhaps not knowing who he was. Ka Kiko said that particular moment reminded him that he had to spend more quality time with the children.

Does he have plans to enter politics? Emphatically, he said no. "I can do more by doing what I do. Politics is a dirty world." "No more coups. Please," he blurted out in the middle of our Private Conversation. Would you endorse anybody for the presidency today? "No," he curtly replied.

Should broadcasters make a stand? Should they take sides? "Of course," Ka Kiko replied. Especially in shows where you can editorialize or opinionate. But when you read the news, you read it clearly so people are informed.

What if you are averse to the news you are reading? I probed. "You have to do your job. But there was a time when I didn’t like what I was reading. I raised my eyebrow," he joked.

Have you been ‘bribed’? "Some tried – but I would refuse to accept the envelope. I would take the news release and would tell them that I can’t promise to air the news item but will try if it’s worthy to be aired."

It’s been a long time since Ka Kiko was paid P120. But money has never been an issue. As I talked to the most respected broadcaster in the country, you know that there was no price for the smile, for the dignity, or for the contentment of this man.

In Private Conversations with Boy Abunda last week, I didn’t dare ask him how old he was. It was enough to feel the vigor and zest of an 18-year-old young man and the wisdom of a wise prophet.

And people like Ka Kiko don’t grow old. They just become more seasoned – more experienced. And amazingly more humble.

But I did dare ask him, when was the last time he felt sexy – "two hours ago" — he quipped.

And given the chance to meet Jose Pidal face to face, what would you do?

"I’ll get his autograph!"

And he broke into mischievous laughter that had so much heart. He probably thought his old legendary teacher, Sarah Joaquin was at the back of the theater watching. Proudly.