The Trouble with Luis A.

The trouble with Luis Alandy is the same as the trouble with angels. He is too good to be true, free from any controversy or any tsismis.

He has been in showbiz for more than six years and you haven’t heard or read his name being dragged into a mess, have you? No love child, no whisper about him being the boy toy of a filthy-rich gay or a matron, no nothing.

"I’m not a good copy for gossip columns, ‘no?" Luis broke into a killer smile as he settled on a chair at the penthouse of the Century Imperial Palace Suites (Timog-Morato Rotunda, Quezon City) where the pictorial and this Conversation were held. "They can scratch and scratch but they won’t find anything ‘blind-itemable’ about me."

Unless his low-key two-year romance which ended last year is good enough (hmmmm, not quite!). Or his blossoming romance with Desiree del Valle who hit the movie headlines several weeks ago after she broke up with her lesbian lover who claimed that they got married in Las Vegas. Hmmmm, try again! Even his surname is so "un-showbiz," isn’t it?

Luis (full name: Daniel Luis Alandy) has been keeping a low profile and that’s how he wants things to be – low-key and low profile. He’s so well-mannered and so refined that he might as well belong to a seminary and not to the jungle world of showbiz. How he keeps his slate squeaky clean is – don’t you think? – an "achievement" in itself.

And that’s the "trouble" with Luis: He doesn’t create any "trouble" at all, so he isn’t talked about. But it’s okay, he said. "Better not to be talked about than being talked about in a bad light."

But he just might be (talked about, that is) – soon.

After parading in boxer shorts at the recent Bench Understatement show at the Araneta Coliseum, Luis is appearing as one of the "penis" characters in All About Men: Penis Talks, scripted by Ricky Lee and directed by Joel Lamangan, slated at the Music Museum on Oct. 2, 3, 15 and 16, the male counterpart of the hit "woman empowerment" play Vagina Monologues.

That just might be the "highlight" of Luis’ career which started six years ago at GMA (as member of that station’s Artist Center), briefly interrupted when he took a six-month respite in the States, and resumed two years ago when he resurfaced at ABS-CBN (in such soaps as Pangako Sa’yo, Sa Dulo ng Walang Hanggan and Sana’y Wala Nang Wakas). He has done four movies, Love Txt and May Pagibig Pa Kaya? with Judy Ann Santos, the Maricel Soriano starrer Mila and Keka.

In Penis Talks, Luis does a sketch of Batang Paslit, a boy sexually molested by his own father, and Military Victim, an activist beaten up and battered black and blue by the military.

"How much flesh will I bare in Penis Talks? I’m not sure yet but we’ve been told that some of us might have to wear a thong. I might be one of them."

Now, will Penis Talks serve as the trajectory that will help Luis finally soar?

It seems that you haven’t learned how to go with the flow of showbiz. I mean, you aren’t as showbiz as you are expected to be.

"Maybe I just happen to be the type of person who keeps his private life private. But you’re right, hindi pa ako masyadong showbiz."

You seem to be so overprotective of your private life. Are you hiding anything?

"No. I’m not hiding anything. I just want a quiet life."

In short, you’re very wholesome. No issues, no controversies. Very wholesome.

"I’m comfortable with the way I am. When they asked me to do the Bench Understatement show, I said, ‘Okay lang.’ But I didn’t wear a thong, just boxer shorts. Before, they were asking me to do sexy movies but I said, ‘I’m not ready.’ Now, I want to try anything. Anyway, I’m 24 already."

You’re so prim and proper. Is what we see what we get?

"That’s how I was brought up."

What kind of upbringing did you have?

"I’ve been brought up the Methodist way. Very Christian. I grew up in Antipolo, so I’m basically a country boy."

Does being a Methodist prevent you from taking liquor or smoking?

"Not really. I don’t drink not because I’m a Methodist but because I’m allergic to alcohol. But I do drink – a little – on some occasions. I never drink to death. I don’t smoke."

Are all members of the family Methodist?

"I have three brothers and a sister. Some of them are practising Catholics. But we’ve all been brought up the Methodist way."

Does your being a Methodist affect your choice of roles? Like, do you avoid playing bad-guy roles?

"I don’t think so. Acting is a job I have to do. It’s all role-playing. I want to be an actor, not a star. It sounds like a cliché but it’s true. I mean it. That’s why I try to play any role given to me as well as I can. I put my heart in my work. I do what the director tells me to do."

Does being a Methodist affect your lifestyle?

"Not really. Di naman sila sobrang strict."

For example, bawal ba sa mga Methodist ang pre-marital sex?

"Not that I know of. I’m not preaching, ’no, but things like pre-marital sex is a matter of choice. If you’re in a relationship and you love the person..."

Besides Tin Arnaldo and now Desiree del Valle, you haven’t really been romantically linked to other showbiz girls. Are you doing it deliberately?

"No. I just don’t talk about it."

Why did you break up with Tin (last year, after going steady for two years and a half)? Was there any third party?

"No, there was none. I guess things just didn’t work out. Something went wrong... one thing led to another, so... It just didn’t work."

Did you live together?

"No, we didn’t."

And now, you’re with Desiree (after her break-up with a lesbian). Is it a gimmick or is it for real?

"No, it’s not a gimmick. Ask people who know me and they’ll tell you that I’m not the type who would go into a relationship at parang wala lang. I really love Des."

Regardless of her past?

"Regardless of anything. I’m open-minded. If I love the person, I take her for what she is. Past is past; I dwell on the present."

Do you think she’s a lesbian?

"No. I don’t think so. Babaing-babae siya."

How can you tell?

"I can. She’s really a complete woman. Very sweet. Very lovely. A woman in every way."

You should know. Are you picky with women?

"Am I picky with women? Not at all. I’m easy to please. But if you ask me if I have an ideal woman, I’ll tell you, ‘No, I don’t have any.’ If you keep on looking for that ideal woman, you’ll never find her. Just wait and she’ll come without you looking for her."

What’s the first thing that you notice in a woman?

"Her totality. But I have to talk to her to really get to know her. You can never tell. Some pretty girls are not okay once they open their mouth, right?"

Before Tin and Desiree, how many girlfriends have you had?

"None."

Meaning, you’re a late-bloomer?

"No naman. I did go out on dates, I just enjoyed my life, but I never went steady with any girl until Tin came along. I was involved with sports, too."

It’s a good thing that you’re finally emerging from your cocoon, coming out of your shell. On the Bench Understatement show, you bared yourself, even only from the waist up, in boxer shorts. How did you prepare for the show?

"I worked out. The other guys on the show were all muscular, mga muscle men, so nakakahiya naman if I wasn’t in good shape."

And now, Penis Talks.

"It was the producer, Manny Valera, who asked me if I wanted to be on the show when I met him at the mall. He told me that Joel Lamangan was directing the show, so I told my manager (June Torrejon) about it. Why not, di ba? It’s a good show directed by a respected director."

How are you preparing for Penis Talks?

"I’m working out double time. I have to shed some more weight. I used to weigh 160 lbs. Now, 150 na lang. I guess 140 lbs. is just right for my height (5’8")."

How much of your body are you baring?

"I don’t know yet. Not much, I hope. I’m still not comfortable baring my body before an audience. But I’ll get by."

Could you tell us a bit about your childhood?

"As a kid, I wanted to be a basketball player. Oops! Kulang sa height. I took up B.S. Psychology in college (San Sebastian). I also dreamed of putting up a restaurant because I love to cook. I wanted to be a chef. I learned the art of cooking from my uncle who runs his own restaurant in the States. But then, I was diverted to showbiz.Did you say in a past interview that Romeo Vasquez (Ricardo Sumilang in real life) is your relative?

"A distant relative. Lolo ko yata siya. Or tito ko. He’s from Tayabas, Quezon, and so are we."

For a while, you stayed in the US...

"...I stayed in California for six months. That was after I quit GMA. At that time, parang I lost hope na in showbiz. I wanted to finish my studies; I still have two semesters to go. I had been in showbiz for two years and yet, I felt like I wasn’t really into it. Mas maganda siguro kung tatapusin ko ang pag-aaral ko. I was at the crossroads. But I guess God really wants me to be in showbiz. I was praying for a sign and I got it."

What sign?

"Well, I was praying for a call and I got it when I came back from the States – the call from ABS-CBN. Out of the blue."

* * *

E-mail reactions at: [email protected]