Yes, it’s true: Billy ford Crawford has written a a song for Britney Spears who’s supposed to include it in her next album which is taking time off the launching pad because Britney is taking her own sweet time, preoccupied with, among other headline-making (mis-)adventures, bar-hopping.
“If she still doesn’t start recording six months after I submitted the song, I can take the song back and offer it to other producers,” said Billy who flew in from the US last Thursday to launch the dance-search show Move! The Billy Crawford’s Search for Pinoy Dancers on GMA 7.
Billy is also set to release his autobiography which he talked about during Funfare’s one-on-one with him during his last homecoming during the holiday season last year.
“It’s bound to be a controversial book,” warned Billy who, as everybody knows by now, is a pop superstar in Europe but is, sad to say, not as big in his own country. How ironic, ‘no?
Chapters to look forward to are those about Mandy Moore who was Billy’s girlfriend (their romance fizzled out after their careers led them in opposite directions); about KC Concepcion whom Billy met in Paris (where KC is finishing her studies) and who almost became his girlfriend; and about his younger years in New York where he landed in prison after he got involved in a racial-slur incident.
“No,” said Billy, laughing, “I won’t elaborate on those chapters; I want everybody to buy the book and find out for themselves.”
What Billy would rather talk about is his concert on Aug. 4 at the Araneta Coliseum for which the GMA dance search was put up as part of the network’s 57th anniversary celebration. Starting on June 10, a Sunday, after S.O.P., Move! The Billy Crawford’s Search for Pinoy Dancers is looking for six best Pinoy dancers (from a field of 24) who will act as Billy’s back-up during his Big Dome show and who will receive cash prizes plus a management contract with GMA Network.
At last Thursday night’s press launch at the Music Museum, Billy gave the movie press a sample of his nimble feet that have made him a sensation all over Europe, moving about on stage with rhythmic grace and, take note, singing at the same time without catching his breath even if he was suffering from jet lag.
Viewers will have a chance to witness the daily performances of the 24 dance idols, aged 16 to 26, who will be housed under one roof for five straight weeks, where cameras will capture their every move, conflict, struggle and endeavor.
The dance idols will also undergo rigid training and a series of intense workshops under the supervision of Billy’s world-renowned French choreographer Maryss (from Paris) who flew in with Billy.
Live feed from the “dance house” will be aired daily in a five-minute segment of Sis.
There will be eliminations every week based on the viewers’ text votes and the dance gurus’ scores until only the six “best of the best” remain.
While here, Billy is also promoting Swatch Watch of which he’s the newest endorser.
More newsmaking Pinoy stars abroad
1. Joanna Bacalso
Here’s a letter from my friend Bob Zozobrado who’s on vacation in New York:
Remember the 100 percent-Filipina Hollywood actress Joanna Bacalso who starred opposite Cuba Gooding in Snow Dogs about two years ago? Well, she’s actually the daughter of my very good friend, Judith Nacua-Bacalso.
Judith and I were classmates since elementary school at the Cebu Normal School, and spent high school and college together at the University of San Carlos. After graduating from our Pre-Med course in San Carlos, we both went on to regular medical school at the Cebu Institute of Medicine.
Other interests lured me away from medical school, but Judith continued on to become a doctor and eventually settled in Toronto. Although we went our separate ways, we were still in touch especially because I was also friends with her sisters, and she became close friends with my elder sister in Toronto.
In fact, one of the reasons why I came to New York this time was the reunion with my elementary school classmates, including Judith, held last Sunday here in the city. After 48 years, we decided to see each other again.
Anyway, during the reunion, Judith shared with me news about the latest projects of Joanna.
After an absence otwo years during which time she gave birth, Joanna is doing another major Hollywood movie. She is in the Caribbean shooting the movie and is the leading lady of gorgeous hunk Antonio Sabato. The still untitled movie also stars James Brolin.
Just a couple of weeks ago, Joanna invited Judith to the Caribbean for a few days to watch the filming. In fact, Judith was telling me how kilig she was while conversing with Brolin (whom she finds extremely good-looking) during breaks in the shooting. Brolin’s wife, Barbra Streisand, also visited during the location shooting but Judith had already taken the flight back to Toronto by then.
Judith also gushed with pride and excitement as she told me that the rest of Joanna’s family are also in the limelight—her husband and two sons are in this month’s issue of GQ (Gentleman’s Quarterly) magazine.
2. Vanessa Minnillo
Yes, the Pinay-looking pretty, smart girl who co-hosted last week’s Miss Universe pageant with Latin star Mario Lopez is half-Filipina. She’s none other than Vanessa Minnillo, former Miss Teen USA, who will be seen in a cameo role in Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer which opens in the Philippines on June 13.
The big news (in America, at least) is that Vanessa and her boyfriend, the Nick Lachey, ex-husband of Jessica Simpson (who’s now dating John Mayer), have decided to live together in, according to a cover story in Us magazine, a $5.5-M, two-bedroom condo in the Atelier highrise in New York City, equipped with a yoga center and a basketball court. When in the West Coast, the couple stays in Lachey’s $5-M, four-bedroom mansion with a pool and city views.
The romance might lead to the altar, as the Us story suggests.
Quote-unquote: Well, (Vanessa) may not be a relationship expert, but the Philippines native (who, on April 25, announced her exit as a host of MTV’s Total Request Live) has mesmerized one of Hollywood’s hottest bachelors — and, say those close to the couple, has the once-heartbroken hunk considering another try at marriage.
Vanessa first met Lachey, who was with Simpson at that time, while hosting a Super Bowl episode of Total Request Live in Houston, Texas, in Feb. 2004. Vanessa was born in Subic, Zambales.
Fr. Joey Faller’s healing schedule
Here’s Fr. Joey Faller’s healing schedule for June:
• June 3 – 8 a.m. at NBN Channel 4; and 9:30 a.m. in SM North Edsa;
• June 4 – 9:30 a.m. at Kamay Ni Hesus in Lucban, Quezon;
• June 5 – 4 p.m. at Puso Ni Hesus in San Antonio, Quezon;
• June 6 – 9 a.m. at SM Makati; and 12 noon at SM Megamall;
• June 7 – 9 a.m. at St. Nicholas, Cabanatuan City; and 6 p.m. at Gapan, Nueva Ecija;
• June 8 – 5 p.m., St. Francis of Assisi, Sariaya, Quezon;
• June 9 – 9:30 a.m. at Kamay Ni Hesus, Lucban, Quezon;
• June 10 – 9:30 a.m. at SM Bacoor, Cavite;
• June 11 – 9:30 a.m., Kamay Ni Hesus Lucban, Quezon;
• June 15 – 9 a.m. in Lusakan, Tiaong, Quezon;
• June 16 – 9:30 a.m., Kamay Ni Hesus, Lucban, Quezon;
• June 17 – 8 a.m. at NBN Channel 4;
• June 18 – 9:30 a.m., Kamay Ni Hesus Lucban, Quezon;
• June 19 – 6:30 p.m. at SM Megamall, Birthday Healing Mass;
• June 22 – 12 noon at Export Bank; and 6 p.m. at the Metropolitan Hospital, Sta. Cruz, Manila;
• June 23 – 9:30 a.m., Kamay Ni Hesus Lucban, Quezon;
• June 24 – 9:30 a.m. at SM Bacoor, Cavite;
• June 25 – 9:30 a.m. Kamay Ni Hesus, Lucban, Quezon; and
• June 30 – 9:30 a.m. Kamay Ni Hesus, Lucban, Quezon.
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