Measuring beauties in the ’70s

In 1975, Rod Reyes published Ginoo, a magazine labeled as "the Filipino men’s magazine." Featured were several male personalities who, according to Rod, were in a position to choose the 10 most beautiful women in the Philippines. Among the male judges were Dolphy, Nestor Torre, then Philippine Constabulary Maj. Gen. Fidel V. Ramos, Auggie Cordero, Redentor Romero, Robert Jaworski, Dante Silverio, Jose Joya, Teodoro Valencia, Pitoy Moreno, to name some. "Most of the judges’ wives found the idea non-threatening. Other wives were amused knowing they came first anyway. So who were their husbands’ choices?"

Rod said some men went into a trance-like state and couldn’t answer. Sec. Joe Aspiras took 10 days to decide. Some men, when asked for 10 names, came up with only three. Eventually, 120 names were included on the list. Some of the "chosen ones" were famous women, while others were unknown. But all of them were admired.

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Rod’s survey came in two parts. The first part involved men, most of them his staff, who had a much better chance to meet the women in person because of the nature of their jobs. Rod derived sadistic fun from seeing a surprised respondent turn pale and become profusely apologetic, saying, "Sorry, the wife wouldn’t understand." For the other part, he commissioned Core Ad to do a class-based survey involving 200 respondents representing the cross section of the rest of the men. Unlike the respondents in the first part, whose ages were from the mid-30s upwards, those in the second part were evenly distributed in the 18 to 60 age range coming from Tondo, Binondo, San Nicolas, Malate, Pandacan, Paco, Sta. Cruz, Sampaloc, Sta. Ana, San Miguel, Quezon City, Pasay City, Parañaque, Makati, Las Piñas, Pasig, Marikina, Navotas, Malabon, San Juan, Mandaluyong (Rizal), Caloocan City and Valenzuela (Bulacan).

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In the survey results, there were "three mother-and-daughter choices: Mrs. Pilar Zaragosa and Charina, Mrs. Carmen Guerrero Nakpil and Gemma Cruz Araneta, and Mrs. Imelda Marcos and Irene (at 13, hardly a woman, but considering her popularity in the survey we have decided to count her in)."

One hundred and twenty names came up, mainly high-society personalities, movie and television stars, beauty-contest winners and models.

The overall rankings had Imelda Romualdez Marcos (a runaway winner) topping the list followed by Chiqui Brosas (that year’s Miss Philippines winner), this columnist, Pilar Pilapil, Marianne de la Riva, and Gloria Diaz. The seventh place was shared by Gretchen Cojuangco, Margie Moran and Boots Anson Roa. Gemma Cruz-Araneta, Toni Serrano-Parsons, Ping Valencia-Rogoff and Diana Jeanne Lopez were on eighth place; Elvira Manahan and Chona Kasten on ninth; and Aurora Pijuan-Manotoc, Hilda Koronel, Marilen Ojeda, Charina Zaragosa and Amalia Fuentes on 10th.

The relative unknowns included Joy Conde, Herminia Layug, Deborah Enriquez, Marietta Guerrero, Toni Rose Gayda, Nellie Gonzales, Mrs. Zaragosa, Lourdes Uy Periquet, Cheloy Limcauco Dans, Angelina Montilla Mata, Mayen Carmona, Rose Rodriguez, Ines Panapul, Josephine Hilado Guevarra, Ria Sison, Wanda, Tina Monasterio, Mary Alice Espiritu-Lacson, and Dr. Gloria Punzalan.

The youngest choice was Jackie Lou Blanco, Pilita Corrales’ daughter who was then only 11.

It’s difficult measuring beauty, Rod. What a colossal feat that was.