Bebong mum on break-up

More than a week after his break-up with Jolina Magdangal hit movie headlines, Bebong Muñoz has opted to keep mum on the matter. Bebong, a lawyer, flew to the States for a vacation (to, ehem, mend a broken heart?) toward the end of last year when Jolina gently informed her parents that she and Bebong have decided to end their six-year romance on Dec. 28 when she followed the family to their resthouse in Tagaytay. (Jolina’s Jun Magdangal said it was six and not eight years according to some reports)

I texted Bebong for comment and he texted back: It appears like Jolina has chosen to remain silent and protect her privacy. I support her decision and I hope that you don’t mind if I do the same. Thank you for the importance and support you’ve been giving us.

As Funfare reported last week, no “third party” (despite the nasty rumors) is involved in the break-up which, unlike other showbiz break-ups, was devoid of controversy. Somebody told Funfare about a “probable cause” but that has to remain confidential until verified.

Both Bebong and Jolina are hurting from the break-up. While Beb ong (who’s coming back on Jan. 19) is not showing it...yet...Jolina was near tears in yesterday’s S.O.P. when she sang the Joey Albert original song Tell Me (written for Joey by ex-boyfriend Louie Ocampo right after they called it quits; both are happily married to other partners and have beautiful children).

Listen to the “meaningful” lyrics that seem to speak of Jolina’s current state of the heart:

There are nights when I can’t help but cry,

And I wonder why you had to leave me.

Why did it have to end so soon?

When you said that you would never leave me.

Chorus:

Tell me, where did I go wrong?

What did I do to make you

Change your mind completely?

When I thought this love would never end,

But if this love is not ours to have

I’ll let it go with your goodbye.

Now, you wonder: Who said goodbye first? Was it Bebong? Or was it Jolina? Did Jolina choose that song to reveal something she or Bebong refuses to articulate?

But since they didn’t exchange harsh words, and neither did they blame each other and nor did they put each otherdown...their break-up being the most quiet ever...is there any chance for Jolina and Bebong to get back together again?

As the song commands, tell me...

What you will see through the butas on the wall

Don’t expect to find anything “artistic” in Butas, a low-budget indie film directed for Leo Films by Bong Ramos whose first work, Haw-Ang (Before Harvest), graded “B” by the Cinema Evaluation Board (CEB) and endorsed by the Department of Education, Culture and Sports (DepEd), won the Best Feature Film and Best Cinematography awards at the Accolade Film Festival in California in addition to nominations from local award-giving bodies.

Maybe because it’s a skin flick, those behind Butas subtitled it “Loopholes” to stop especially the dirty-minded from interpreting butas as meaning, you know, something else (an intimate body part, etc.).

Except for Allen Dizon (as a cop who can’t satisfy his wife) who keeps his word never to go bold again, the film’s other stars are daring in their love scenes, with Gwen Garci as the unfaithful wife and newcomer Marco Morales also as a cop (“with a dark motive”) making love all over an abandoned building. Of course, they do so in the nude.

Allen’s manager Dennis Evangelista warned those present before the preview held at the UP Videotheque: “Be alert. Marco shows frontal nudity 12 times. At hindi rin nagpahuli si Gwen.”

There are, as the title must have unwittingly implies, many loopholes in the script (find out for yourselves; the movie is showing at Robinsons’ “art theaters” starting on Jan. 15), but who cares about consistency and logic when you’re watching a film as though from, yes, a peephole like what Allen’s character does as he monitors the illicit lovers before the...kill?

I won’t advise either Dr. Vicki Belo or her ex(?)-lover Dr. Hayden Kho to watch Butas. In the movie, Marco surreptitiously records his love-making with Gwen and sells the sex video. I don’t think Vicki or Hayden will like what happens to Marco’s character in the end.

Moral of the “potholed” indie? (To men): Resist the temptation to secretly videotape your bedroom activity with your partner. (And to women): Check every and cranny of the room before you shed even a stitch.

Charice to perform at People Asia gala

Yes, Charice is going to Washington D.C. to sing at US President-elect Barack Obama’s inaugural on Jan. 20. But before that, she will regale her own countrymen with a performance on Jan. 15 at the Sofitel Philippine Plaza in a formal gala marking People Asia magazine’s ninth anniversary. It was reportedly Oprah Winfrey, said to be Charice’s manager, who got Charice included in the list of artists performing at the historic event. Oprah is close to the Obamas. She campaigned for Barack in last year’s US election.

Charice is one of People Asia’s “People of the Year 2008” awardees, the youngest ever to receive the prestigious award.

To quote from the magazine’s special anniversary issue, “Charice is the only Filipino who has guested on Oprah, Ellen and Good Morning America. She is also the only Filipino to have sung a duet with Celine Dion and among the few to have shared the stage with Andrea Bocelli, Josh Groban, Alicia Keys and David Archuleta, among others.”

The other “People of the Year” awardees are the “Megastar” Sharon Cuneta, veteran actress and PNRC governor Rosa Rosal, Vice President Noli de Castro, US Ambassador Kristie Kenney, Sen. Manny Villar, Go Negosyo’s Joey Concepcion, Makati Mayor Jejomar Binay, fashion designer Rajo Laurel, Kuok Group CEO Andy Bautista, real estate magnate and special envoy Ambassador Joey Antonio and Virlanie Foundation Inc. founder Dominique Lemay. Former President Corazon Aquino is the magazine’s first special awardee.  

To be hosted by the inimitable Johnny Litton and the bubbly Champagne Morales, this “strictly-by-invitation-only” formal event is expected to draw the leading lights of society, business, politics and show business.

This red-letter event is being presented by Stargate Media Corp. in cooperation with HSBC, Volvo, Thai Airways, Dockers San Francisco, Ever Bilena Gandang Pinay, International Container Terminal Services, Inc., Eurocopter, Margarita King, Havaianas and The Philippine STAR.

Search is on for Bb. Pilipinas 2009

Bb. Pilipinas has become synonymous to “beauty for a cause.” The biggest beauty pageant in the country is a continuing project of Binibining Pilipinas Charities, Incorporated (BPCI), a non-stock, non-profit organization founded by its chair, Stella Márquez de Araneta. The pageant was envisioned as a prestigious fund-raising activity for projects that would benefit orphans, indigent families and other less fortunate members of Philippine society.

Young Filipinas are given the opportunity to be carriers of the humanitarian missions that make up BPCI’s primary goals. Its role in uplifting less fortunate fellow Filipinos through economic support generated from corporate sponsorships and other benefactors is the very reason for BPCI’s existence and relevance as an institution with compassion and significance.

To date, the organization has produced several International winners including Gloria Diaz, Miss Universe 1969; Margie Moran, Miss Universe 1973; Miriam Quiambao, 1999 Miss Universe first runner-up; Aurora Pijuan, Miss International 1970; Melanie Marquez, Miss International 1979; Ruffa Gutierrez, Miss World 2nd Princess 1993; and Precious Lara Quigaman, Miss International 2005.

Bb. Pilipinas 2009 formally opens its application process for aspiring beauty queens. The contestants must be single ladies from 17 to 25 years old of Filipino citizenship, with a minimum of 5’5” in height, at least a high school graduate, and with good moral character. Application forms can now be downloaded from the Bb. Pilipinas website (www.bbpilipinas.com). Filled-out forms can be faxed to (632) 911-27-71 or delivered personally to the BPCI Secretariat.

Prospective candidates are required to submit the following along with their application forms: NSO certified copy of birth certificate, certified true copy of high school/college diploma, Philippine passport (if any), close-up and full-body color photos. Aspirants who are 17 years of age should include a written consent from parents along with their application forms to be able to meet the requirements.

 Qualified candidates will be informed of pre-screening schedules. For more details about the Bb. Pilipinas Pageant, log on to www.bbpilipinas.com.

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