He could be one of the most maligned and
misunderstood showbiz personality of his time.
Born of humble beginnings, Willie Revillame had a long, hard climb to
reach his current stature as a bankable star par excellence.
No matter what people may say about him
now, I will always remember him as a humble and soft-spoken person. At a time when we handled mall shows, Willie
was always our first preference as host despite his nondescript status. He always showed up at least one hour before
call time and immediately asked for the program flow. He would peep from backstage, size up the
crowd and create his opening spiels.
With the many shows he hosted for us, one
stand out in a most special way. This
was a mall show we organized for the Easter Sunday celebration. The variety show boasted of a very strong
line-up of the hottest stars of that time.
The show was scheduled to start at 3:00 in the afternoon; and, Willie
arrived at around 1:30 pm with Princess Punzalan in tow. Princess was then his girlfriend and a future
wife. An hour before the show was to
start, my beeper started ringing. Yes,
this was during the dark ages of beepers!
Messages came in from talent managers claiming that their stars were
stuck in the traffic coming down from Baguio.
Maybe sensing our discomfort and apprehension, Willie offered to call
for his friends. Who were we to refuse
such a generous offer!
To use up time that will allow his friends
to hurry over to the mall, Willie opened the show with a couple of song
numbers. Princess, who was not part of
the show, was urged to go onstage to sing with him to the thrill of the
audience. Soon, Willie’s good buddy,
Francis M showed up. Cesar M followed
and I can’t recall anymore if Aga M also made an appearance. These guys were not in the caliber of Richard
Gomez at that time but what the heck!
The crowd was screaming their heads off and that was good enough for
us.
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| Willie with Princess Punzalan and some other entertainers of the time |
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| Willie and Virna Lisa Loberiza-Mananzan |
It is, therefore, no wonder that I am one
of those who quietly but consistently defend Willie whenever he gets involved
in one controversy after another. Even
as he reaches the pinnacle of success, trouble seems to hound him which, I
believe, is a testament of his persistence and staying power.
Willie may no longer remember yours truly
but it is all right with me. Suffice it
to say that he has made my life easier at a time when stress was the name of
the game. We lost touch while in the
process of discussing plans for a television show for him and Francis M. It was not because of him but because I was
visited with numerous personal challenges!
Besides, to get to where he is today, he must have dealt with hundreds
of promoters, organizers, advertisers, producers etc. that to expect to be
remembered would just be ambitious!
I am
simply happy that Willie is where he is today; enjoying the trappings of
success – mansions, luxury cars, a building to his name, yatch, and even an
airplane. Now and then, though, I
whisper a silent prayer that he may soon find true joy and serenity in his
heart. Considering the number of people he has
helped, he deserves no less.
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