"He was humble and mild-mannered," Pitoy tells Funfare in an exclusive interview. "And very good-looking, tall and handsome like a movie star."
Jennings was into his early 30s when he and Pitoy met in Manila. He had a Barong Tagalog made by Pitoy who never expected that that simple Barong would serve as the key to a friendship that would last for years, never mind if the two guys were thousands of miles away. The Vietnam War had just ended at that time and Jennings, who was starting his career as TV reporter, was in Manila as a war correspondent to interview American troops.
"He stayed for two months at the Hyatt on Roxas Boulevard and he had breakfast with me almost every day at my atelier," recalls Pitoy who has met dignitaries from all parts of the world. "He was a respectable man, talagang kagalang-galang."
It was Pitoy who introduced Jennings to former President Ferdinand Marcos and the First Lady, Imelda Marcos, Pitoy’s personal friends, before a press conference held in Malacañang.
"Before he left," says Pitoy, "he ordered several Barong from me. Even after he left, he kept in touch. He wrote me letters from wherever his assignment was – in Iran, Beirut, London or the Middle East. He met his first wife in London. I could say that I saw him rise in his career."
During the 1986 People Power Revolt, Jennings arrived in Manila and the first person whom he called was Pitoy. Jennings had told Lupita Kashiwahara, "I’m going to Manila and I want to see only three people – President Marcos, Cory Aquino and Pitoy Moreno."
Jennings stayed at the Manila Hotel. He called Pitoy and said, "I want to have lunch with you – only you and me."
At lunch, Jennings asked Pitoy what really happened to Ninoy and who was responsible. All Pitoy could say was, "Ninoy was a good friend. President Marcos is a brod and so is Sen. Doy Laurel."
Born in Toronto on July 29, 1938, Jennings was the son of Charles Jennings, a leading journalist at the Canadian Broadcasting Corp. and a TV correspondent in Canada. Described by Agence France as "a good-looking man with a sharp wit," Jennings at 26 became the ABC evening news anchor in 1965 but due to stiff competition from other networks vis-a-vis ratings and his "Canadian English," he was temporarily replaced in 1968, only to bounce back undaunted.
His "keen news judgment" and "congenial and matter-of-fact style" propelled him to, so to speak, TV-journalism stardom. He stayed with ABC for more than 40 years, more than 20 of them as anchor of World News Tonight. In April, he announced on ABC News that he had lung cancer.
Asked if he saw Jennings smoke, Pitoy thinks awhile and says, "Very seldom."
The Agence France dispatch said Jennings quit smoking in 1988 but had a relapse in the aftermath of the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks when he admitted he needed something to alleviate tension that came with his job.
In May, according to Pitoy, Jennings called him long-distance and broke the sad news to him.
"But I hope to beat it," Pitoy quoted Jennings as saying. "I will beat cancer."
He did not.
The last time Pitoy saw Jennings was in 1998 when he put up a fashion show in Washington and New York. Pitoy invited Jennings to the show but he couldn’t make it due to a previous commitment. Instead, he invited Pitoy and his models to lunch at ABC where they also met Jennings’ wife.
"I will miss the man," says Pitoy.
What does he remember Jennings for?
"His humility."
(E-mail reactions at rickylo@philstar.net.ph)