Ariel Ureta: No need to relive past glories

Unless we are mistaken, the last time we met Ariel Ureta was back in the late ’90s when he was co-host of our popular talent Dawn Zulueta in RSVP on GMA Network. And the last we heard of him was when he married Boots Anson-Roa’s niece, a girl 11 years his junior.

These were the thoughts running in our mind upon seeing Ariel again at the media call of the Viva movie Of All The Things headlined by Aga Muhlach and Regine Velasquez. As the supporting cast of John Lapus as Regine’s gay driver alalay, and Jojo Alejar who has the hots for Regine had the audience in stitches, we found Ariel strangely quiet. Where was Mr. Funny Man, the life of the party? Had the years changed him all that much?

At a sit down, Ariel admitted life was indeed quieter since he married and since his career went on a plateau. At the height of his career, Ariel said, he was like a magician that everything he touched turned into gold. He spoke of Zoom, Zoom, Superman (1973) and Si Popeye at Iba Pa (1974), two movies that had Ishmael Bernal at the helm, together with Elwood Perez and Joey Gosiengfiao co-directing. “I gave him freedom to improvise on the set. In Popeye, he suggested wearing bakya with his cowboy costume. That was clever, considering the contextual definition of ‘bakya’ in those days,” recalls Elwood.

Ariel (with Umagang Kay Ganda co-host Winnie Cordero) recognizes the power of television today

 We ask how many shows he was doing at his peak and he said about 14 shows. On TV alone, we had listed down Stop, Look and Listen with Maritess and Tina Revilla on ABS-CBN, replaced by Twelve O’Clock High, which transferred to GMA with Tina where it became Ariel con Tina. It was around this time also that a joke from Ariel went viral although there still was no Internet at the time, and quickly spread as rumor. Supposedly, Ariel made a joke out of the Martial Law slogan “Sa ikauunlad ng bayan, disiplina ang kailangan” turning it into “Sa ikauunlad ng bayan, bisikleta ang kailangan” for which Ariel had to circle around Camp Crame for hours on a bike as punishment. “Of course, it never happened,”Ariel insisted to this day, maintaining he had good relations with the Marcoses, and even co-hosted a show Metro Magazine with Imee Marcos at the time.

When ABS-CBN was padlocked by martial law, Ariel moved to Channel 7 with Noontime Matinee, the weekly Ariel & Co. after Six on BBC 2; Patok na Patok on Channel 4; For the Boys on Channel 13; George and Cecil with Tessie Tomas; and RSVP with Dawn on Channel 7. Obviously, Ariel was King of the airwaves. Niño Muhlach at two was discovered on one of his shows. It appeared to us that Ariel then, is Vice Ganda now, although Vice is champion of the gay sector, while Ariel was proponent of the babaero lifestyle.

As we tackle his days as womanizer, Ariel’s ears perk up, and he excitedly spoke of the days when he not only pursued women but they also pursued him. He said his requirement was that they be beautiful and he collected the best looking stars and beauty queens. Of course, he spent all his earnings on them which was a lot at the time. It was important that his trophy girlfriend would be well-dressed, happy and cared for. There were times when he would discover that a girl he fancied was already taken by another babaero. He would willingly give way. There were many other beauties in the market.

The time came, however, when love would strike him and he pursued and won this young girl whom he married and to whom he has been faithful, changing his lifestyle completely.

 He directed sitcoms, appeared in movies, hosted beauty pageants but it just wasn’t the same. When Ariel appeared in Kimmy Dora and its sequel Kimmy Dora and the Temple of Kiyeme as father to Kimmy and Dora, the landscape began to warm up. He returned to DZMM radio with Todo-Todo, Walang Preno with Winnie Cordero, and in June was given a segment in Umagang Kay Ganda, Sabi ni Mister, Sabi ni Misis with Winnie.

 Suddenly, friends were greeting him for his return to TV. Such is the power of the medium, he told us. No matter that he now gives fatherly advice, Ariel feels he is truly back. There is no need to live in the past.

(E-mail me at [email protected].)