Getting better and better through the years

Now on its fifth season, All About You already had the pleasure and distinction of having featured five women of style (and substance, too): Lucy Torres-Gomez, Dawn Zulueta, Mikee Cojuangco, Miriam Quiambao and now, Lorna Tolentino. Going over the list, I am pleased to say that I am extremely fond of each one of them.

Lucy Torres I will never forget because she gave her first interview in my farewell episode in Showbiz Lingo (Feb. 15, 1998) and that really hit the top of the ratings chart. Lucy is actually very likable. With a lovely face like that, you expect her to be snooty. But no, she is one of the nicest people I’ve met in this life. And yes, she is very intelligent, too and I always look forward to reading her column in this paper every Sunday (Her writing is breezy, easy reading, unpretentious and definitely no-nonsense.)

Dawn Zulueta I also like because she is always warm and cheerful every time I see her. And yes, she is one of my favorite actresses. In fact, when she was still playing a supporting part in Kasalanan Bang Sambahin Ka?, I already saw a great potential in her. It is her performance in Hihintayin Kita sa Langit, however, that I like best.

Mikee Cojuangco is also a very, very nice person. When she was more active in show business, I never heard anyone complain about her. A gracious woman, all my encounters with her (usually on-cam interviews) were always very pleasant.

I also have a soft spot in my heart for Miriam Quiambao because her first long on-camera conversation when she returned to Manila after her first-runner up finish in the Miss Universe pageant in Trinidad & Tobago was with me. (Strictly speaking, however, her first interview after the contest was with Korina Sanchez who met up with her in New York just a week or so after the competition.)

But among the women who had anchored All About You, I have to admit I am closest to Lorna Tolentino and I’d like to say that she is perfect in a lifestyle show like All About You – and this I state, not necessarily because she is my friend. Lorna, you see, is a woman of great accomplishment and this is the kind of image that has to be projected by the host of All About You.

As an actress, we don’t need to talk about Lorna’s achievements anymore because everyone in this country already knows her being a Grand-slam Queen. (she swept the awards race in 1992 for Narito ang Puso Ko and has won various other trophies for films like Maging Akin Ka Lamang, Luksong Tinik and Abakada Ina.)

As a woman of style, she is a perennial Star of the Night winner in most awards night presentations and is always on the best-dressed list. (She is unequaled in this category.)

As a television host, she is spontaneous and articulate. For this, she has to thank the late Inday Badiday for having given her the chance to host from time to time the public service-entertainment show Eye-to-Eye (usually when Inday was sick or traveling abroad). As host of awards programs, Lorna is also much sought-after not only because she lends glamour to the show, but also keeps things organized within the show. (She is a very disciplined host who listens and follows instructions). By the way, Lorna also sings (she once did a wonderful opening number for the Miss Young International beauty pageant when it was held here many years ago) and dances – in spite of her scoliosis.

More importantly, Lorna Tolentino is successful as a wife (to Rudy Fernandez, of course), as a mother and as a homemaker.

Lorna surely will be the first to admit that her marriage to Rudy is not perfect. But the fact that they‘ve been married to each other for two decades is an accomplishment especially in this profession where temptation to go astray is all over the place.

As a mother, she is very close to children Ralph and Renz and even to stepson Mark Anthony. In fact, it always warms my heart whenever she would go up on stage to accept another one of her many acting trophies and she would offer it to her husband and kids and say, "Sa aking asawa at aking mga anak na sina Ralph, Renz at Mark..."

As a homemaker, you may not believe this, but Ms. Best Actress actually cooks and there was a time, in fact, when she and Kris Aquino used to swap pasta recipes. Also, you should try visiting the Fernandez White Plains home because everything there is always in order. (Lorna, however, says that the place is due for another facelift.)

But the most admirable trait about Lorna Tolentino is her maturity. In any aspect, she gets better and better through the years. As an actress, she developed her craft through the years. As a person, her interaction with other people have also tremendously improved and this she attributes to the influence of her husband who taught her how to deal better with co-workers, fans and even the press.

Spiritually, she says that she is still working on this aspect, but knowing her, she’ll get there – surely in God’s perfect time.

At this point, I’m sure that you are already convinced Lorna Tolentino is indeed perfect as host of All About You.

All About You isn’t really just all about style. It is also about a woman’s growth, development and maturity and all these I believe Lorna T. embodies.