Carlo J.’s smash-hit Komiks Karavan marches on!

Walang karugtong, walang wakas?

That was what his fans and followers were asking when Carlo J. Caparas, crowned Komiks King at the peak of the komiks industry, simply disappeared from the komiks scene, leaving 36 running serials (among his more than 800 novels and stories) hanging. Yes, walang karugtong, walang wakas. No continuation, no ending.

But since komiks is where his heart is, Carlo J. keeps coming back to it, never mind if he and his wife, Donna Villa, have branched out to making movies (their "massacre" films were such hits that they set a trend, didn’t they?) and, sometimes, to the real-estate business.

"I just can’t turn my back on the industry that I love and that made me what I am today," said Carlo J.

So, to pump much-needed blood to the ailing komiks industry (on which Funfare reported several issues ago), Carlo J. and Donna have decided to organize a Komiks Karavan together with Cecille Guidote-Alvarez (of the National Commission for Culture and the Arts), Ricardo Nolasco (chairman of the Komisyon ng Wikang Pambansa) and Joe Lad Santos (KWB commissioner and founder of the Philippine Komiks Institute).

To drumbeat the start of the Komiks Karavan, the Golden Couple (as what Carlo J. and Donna are called, after their Golden Lions Films) and company conducted a free script-writing seminar in Valenzuela, Bulacan, last March 23.

"It was a huge success," said Donna. "Teachers and students attended the four-hour seminar."

Donna was so touched and so carried away by the enthusiastic response that she rewarded the attendees with cash (totalling six figures?). Funfare gathered that the couple also shelled out a huge amount for the winners of the writing and illustration contest of komiks stories about environment and the natural resources, held at the National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA) building in Intramuros, Manila, recently.

"With the Komiks Karavan," said Carlo J., "we hope to enliven the industry by attracting and encouraging aspiring komiks writers and illustrators. We will continue to go around the country giving seminars and workshops. There are thousands of talents waiting to be tapped."

Donna added that the komiks movement has the full support of Pres. Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.

"Last Feb. 28," Donna recalled, PGMA led the awarding of presidential medals of merit to komiks legends, held in Malacañang. The affair galvanized the komiks industry and united komiks greats."

The Komiks Karavan marches on. For all you know, its next stop might be the place near you, or the place you are in.

As they say in komiks parlance, abangan ang susunod na kabanata.

That’s who Maricel’s sitcom husband is

Funfare readers have been asking who Richie Macapagal is, who plays Maricel Soriano’s husband on the ABS-CBN sitcom John En Shirley (with Dolphy and Susan Roces).

Here are a few facts about Richie:

His full name is Rodolfo P. Macapagal II, 35, happily married with three children.

He finished grade school at Ateneo de Manila, high school at UST and college (B.S. Psychology) also at UST.

He started doing commercials at 17. Among his credits include PLDT, Citibank, Selecta Ice Cream, San Miguel, Nescafé, Jollibee, Chowking, Goldilock’s, Carnation Evap, Magnolia Chicken, Coke, NLEX, Gold Eagle, Chippy and Mr. Chips. His print ads include those for Sun Cellular, Globe, Selecta Ice Cream, Poten-Cee, C.O.D. and Artikels.

He works as a brand manager for a golf company.

His hobbies are playing golf, eating out, having a massage, watching TV and working out at the gym.

He reads golf magazines and enjoys ’80s music.

Favorite movies: Happy Gilmore, Tin Cup, As Good As It Gets, Rudy, Heat and Italian Job.

Favorite TV shows: The Golf Channel, 24, UFC, Discovery Channel, National Geographic, Crime/Suspense and, of course, John En Shirley.

Reader’s reaction

From Lani Philips (no address given), reacting to a What’s Up? item about why people say, "God bless you!" when you sneeze (because your heart daw stops for a millisecond when you do):

From straightdope.com, this is what it says:

"The custom of saying ‘God bless you’ after a sneeze begun literally as a blessing. Pope Gregory the Great (540-604 AD) ascended to the Papacy just in time for the start of the plague (his successor succumbed to it). Gregory (who also invented the ever-popular Gregorian chant) called for litanies, processions and unceasing prayer for God’s help and intercession. Columns marched through the streets chanting, ‘Kyrie Eleison’ (Greek for ‘Lord have mercy’). When someone sneezed, they were immediately blessed (‘God bless you!’) in the hope that they would not subsequently develop the plague. All that prayer apparently worked, judging by how quickly the plague of 590 AD diminished. We know today, of course, that when you sneeze, your heart doesn’t stop, nor will your eyes pop out if you can keep them open, nor does your soul get expelled. What does get expelled are hundreds upon thousands of microscopic germs. The current advice when you sneeze is to cover your mouth with your arm rather than your hand. That way, all those germs won’t be on your hands when you touch the countless things you’re going to touch in the course of the day."

Also, as posted by Tom Wilson, M.D./PhD, Pathology, Div. of Molecular Oncology, Washington University School of Medicine on madsci.com: "No, your heart does not stop when you sneeze.  From my perspective, it is hard to even imagine what this would mean. A sneeze itself is really a very brief event, occurring in a shorter time than a heartbeat.  Of course, there is the building up to the sneeze (the "ah" of the "ah-chooing"), but the heart certainly does not stop beating because of this ah-ing.  Check your pulse next time to prove this to yourself." I hope this helps clarify things.

* * *

E-mail reactions at [email protected]