Willie & Liz friends again — at last!

Curtain-raisers:

• Yes, former Pres. Cory Aquino did play on her daughter’s game show, Deal Or No Deal, last Saturday on Kris’ birthday episode airing on Valentine’s Day. After the taping, Tita Cory sent this text message to Kris: Thanks for the exciting experience. I’ sure Our Lady of Fatima has something better in store for me and for you and for all of us. More power to D or ND and may you have great blessings on your birthday (Feb. 14). And how much did Tita Cory take home? Find out on Feb. 14. (Clue: Just enough to treat her grandson Joshua, Kris’ son, to a snack at McDo.)

• As if the campaign trail is not over-crowded with showbiz candidates, two more are joining the circus, er, May elections. They are Nonoy Zuniga who’s running for councilor in Makati City with the ticket of Sen. Lito Lapid who’s daring to "collide" with incumbent Makati Mayor Jojo Binay; and Isabel Granada who’s being wooed to run for cogressman of Angeles City where her husband, incumbent councilor Geryk Genaskey, is planning to run for vice mayor. By the way, Isabel is reviving her dormant career with a movie entitled Xenda for an independent company, with Paolo Ballesteros as leading man and Sean Lims as director. An endorser of the YSA Skin Care, she’s also producing an album with Chuckie Dreyfus who started as a child star and grew up to become Isabel’s loveteam-mate.

• Tintin Bersola’s second children’s book, The Basura Monster, will be out soon. It’s timely because our world is now confronted by global warming. Tintin’s first (bilingual) book, released last year, aimed to teach children to love and proect Mother Earth through "RRR" – Recycle, Reuse and Reduce.

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It’s confirmed: Estranged couple Willie Revillame and Liz Almoro did meet out of court, behind closed doors, last Saturday to thresh out kinks in their marriage that hit the rocks – and resulted in a court case – after only more than a year.

That’s why, if you watched Willie’s ABS-CBN noontime show Wowowee last Saturday, you must have noticed that Willie was in a buoyant mood, hinting that "something positive" was going to happen that same evening.

The meeting, held somewhere in Alabang, was reported as a "scoop" by Funfare last Saturday. Aside from Willie and Liz, only their lawyers were present – celebrity lawyer Katrina Legarda (for Liz) and Dexter Licuanan (for Willie).

"Willie and Liz have decided to be friends again for the sake of their son, Juan Emmanuel (Juamee for short)," the two lawyers told Funfare. That’s the official statement, brief and direct to the point.

It doesn’t mean, though, that Willie and Liz have agreed to live together again. They’ll only be friends, that’s all, and the reconciliation will not affect the annulment case between them. Willie now enjoys visitation rights to Juamee whom he hasn’t seen since September last year when Liz left their conjugal home in Ayala Heights, in Quezon City, the same house from which Willie was "evicted" on the strength of a court order, forcing him to use one of ABS-CBN’s dressing rooms as temporary "home."

Besides having the announcement of the reconciliation published only in The STAR, the un-couple and their lawyers have also agreed on a "vow of silence," meaning you won’t be hearing any exchange of heated words between Willie and Liz.

"We’re also appealing to people around them to avoid making any (inflammatory) statements," said Katrina.

Willie and Liz have come face-to-face in court after their bitter separation, with the very public encounters marked by stolen, hostile glances at each other. But on last Saturday’s meeting, the two were "civil" toward each other. No, they didn’t hug nor kissed; neither did they say "Hi!" to each other. The meeting was "friendly."

After the meeting, Liz fetched Juamee so the boy could see his father. Henceforth, Willie will be visiting Juamee at home (of Liz’s parents where mother and son have been staying since the infamous breakup).

There. All’s well that ends well.

A heartless hatchet act

Thursday (Jan. 31) last week, ABS-CBN’s PR Girl Maloli Espinosa (ex-Manalastas) hosted a "farewell lunch" at Annabel’s Restaurant on Tomas Morato Ave, Quezon City, for entertainment editors (this one included) of various publications. It was a tearful goodbye. It was Maloli’s last day at ABS-CBN because she was quitting to run for congressman in her native Masbate in this May’s elections. It was Leah Salterio, one of her two assistants (the other was Peachy Guioguio), who helped arrange that "farewell lunch."

Guess what bad news reached us barely three hours later – yes, Maloli fired Leah and Peachy for whatever violations of company rules. That fast. That cruel. That cold. That heartless. That Maloli!

She could have been more humane by asking, or forcing, Leah and Peachy to tender courtesy resignations. Instead, she executed her last official act as ABS-CBN PR by dropping the guillotine on the two poor ladies who, like Maloli, have children to feed. Maloli is far luckier because she comes from well-to-do families and she can live comfortably without working.

Maloli was leaving ABS-CBN with a trail of ill feelings in the hearts of many people in the industry, making most of those at the "farewell lunch" (this one included) wonder if what she shed was were all crocodile tears.

Among the reasons cited by Maloli was Leah and Peachy’s receiving checks from The STAR in payment for their articles. Maloli has been telling people, including editors of another broadsheet she treated to a dinner, that she was able to get "xeroxed copies" of the checks from The STAR and used them to pin the two employees down. Maloli called it "double compensation." When asked by the editors how Leah was, Maloli reportedly boasted, "I fired her yesterday. I gave her only one hour to clear her desk."

I want everybody to know that the The STAR has nothing to do with the "firing" of Leah and Peachy and that it’s not The STAR’s policy to issue "xeroxed copies" of checks or any other confidential document.

To make one thing clear: Just like other ABS-CBN (or other station’s) talents writing for The STAR, Leah and Peachy are paid an honorarium for specially-assigned articles but not, I repeat not, for the usual ABS-CBN press releases. Not only that. Leah and Peachy were writing exclusively about stars of ABS-CBN and its sister company, Star Cinema. Is this any case of "double" or "selective" standard?

That part of the controversial "firing" cleared, I wish Maloli all the luck in her bid political bid. But if this is the way she treats her subordinates, I shudder to think what kind of congresswoman she will be. I started looking at her differently after last Thursday’s incident. I wouldn’t for the life me work with a "boss" like Maloli. I felt really bad that I had to partake of a lunch (even if somebody only shared with me her order of nilagang salmon) where the host didn’t give the slightest inkling (Maloli was seated opposite Leah with a wide smile) what axe she was going to wield barely three hours later. Patricia nearly loses baby, own life I’m giving Edmund Silvestre, news editor of the New York-based The Filipino Reporter, the following space for an exclusive story:

Patricia Javier and her newborn son nearly died during a pre-dawn labor on Wednesday, Jan. 30, at a birthing center in San Diego, California.

Patricia who, along with husband Dr. Robert Walcher, opted for a "more natural birth experience" at a birthing center as opposed to hospital delivery, suffered excessive blood loss during the six-hour labor, while her son’s breathing stopped briefly after the baby came out with the umbilical cord wrapped around his neck.

Patricia’s mother, Jennete Canlapan, who was by her side along with Rob, said Patricia was crying and in extreme pain as she watched the midwives and nurses resuscitate the baby whose color was then turning blue. The center personnel were quick to call a 911 ambulance that rushed Patricia and the baby to Mercy Scripps Hospital which is only a few blocks away, Patricia’s mom said.

The baby is still in the ICU as of Friday evening and is still under observation, while Patricia – who received a five-unit blood transfusion – has been moved to the recovery room where she monitors the baby’s condition. She was scheduled to be released over the weekend.

"Doctors said had the birthing center personnel wasted time before calling 911, there could have been tragic results," said Mrs. Canlapan. "The blood was all over and we thought we would lose my daughter and my grandson. Talagang nag 50-50 sila, according to the doctors. I kept telling Gen (Patricia’s nickname; real name is Genesis Canlapan), ‘Kaya mo ‘yan.’ I told her, ‘Lakasan mo ang loob mo for the baby.’ Rob was also crying throughout the ordeal. Sino ba naman ang hindi maiiyak kung mawawala both your wife and son."

Mrs. Canlapan said they are not blaming the birthing center for what happened. "As far as we know, what happened was an isolated case; it was something beyond their control like ‘yung profuse bleeding at ‘yung pagkabuhol ng cord sa bata," she explained. We’re thankful na they were very professional and called 911 right away instead of pretending that everything was under control."

The family’s only hope is that the incident won’t cause any defect or damage to the baby who will be baptized as Robert Douglas Walcher IV.

"Ang guwapo-guwapo ng apo ko," Mrs. Canlapan said. "God is good to us."

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