|
Friday, October 08, 2004
70's entertainment
By Rene Lizada
Papa's Table
IT CAME from nowhere. As I stepped outside the shower I found myself singing the theme song of a hit Filipino TV show in 70's, D Sensations. And I guess only those who were alive in the 70's know what I am talking about. The song goes something like, "Dee Sensations, Dee Sensations, this is where the action is so come and join the fun." And as I went out of the toilet, I asked Chona if she remembered the song. She gave me a strange look because after all it was early in the morning and here I was singing D Sensations.
But I was not done.
I asked if she remembered the matinee idols of the 70's. Out of the blue she rattled the names of Dondon Nakar, Walter Navarro and Romy Mallari. I stopped for a moment because I wanted to recall the faces of those people. If I remember it right, Dondon had hair that covered his ears, moreno and that his la loves was Winnie Santos. That is all I remember about him while Walter Navarro was meztiso and had sideburns. Romy Mallari? Well I would not know. I would not recognize him even if he screamed at me. But that got me going and I started to remember other names. There was Victor Wood and his famous "Sweet Caroline" where he sang the infamous "tatsing you, tatsing me...."
And who could forget Eddie Peregrina and his almost straining voice dishing out "Two lovely flowers, one is the red, the other white."
When I got to the office, there was a lull before the madness and I texted some of my friends who I knew would know about the 70's. I asked Milet and her husband Mateo if they could recall some other stars. Mateo did not answer because he might be too busy and besides if you are at work, why bother with inane questions. But Milet answered right away. Perhaps it is an easy week for her. And when she replied, I got an avalanche of names and even television shows.
She mentioned Perla Adea. Hmm, I think she was the one with her hair pinned at the back. (You ancient people out there can correct me anytime!) She had wide eyes I think. She also sang. Then I saw the name Arnold Gamboa. Arnold who? I have no idea on what he looks like.
Of course when she texted Guy and Pip I knew in an instant who they were. In case you don't, Guy and Pip are Nora and Tirso. And if there is one thing I remember about Nora it is not Himala but that Guy and Pip song sang with so much saccharine, Tell Nora I Love Her. Those black and white films of Guy and Pip were really a staple dish for those who hungered for romance in the 70's.
There is this particular scene seared in my mind where Nora was on a hammock and Tirso was singing to her. Wow! I wonder what Guy and Pip think when they see that now. They were such a big hit then. But if memory serves me right, it was no all rosy for them because Pip had a rival in the person of Manny de Leon. But somehow the love team of Guy and Pip flourished.
But they were not the only ones. Of course there was the other love team of Vilma and Edgar. The only thing I remember about Ate Vi was her singing, "Kissing in the park, hugging in the lane..." which would have been a little difficult for Ate Vi because Bobot as Edgar was affectionately called was rather chubby. But they were a hot item before that Philippine society was hopelessly divided between Guy and Pip and Vi and Bobot. But I could not care less because I was not really interested in those love teams. Being a teenager I was more interested in the likes of Stella Suarez, Merlie Fernandez, Alona Alegre, Divina Valencia and of course the well endowed, Rosanna Ortiz. Hmmm. Those names, those names.
In case you are wondering who the heck these women are, well they were the "bomba" queens of the 70's. No they were not suicide bombers but were sexy stars that created havoc among our hormones. These were the hot babes, the fantasies of our generation. And we all watched them in magnificent large theatres as there were no tapes, no vcds and dvds in those times. We would skip classes just to watch the biological gifts of these women.
These anatomical films were called singit because that was what they were literally. When we enter the darkened arenas of the flesh there was always another movie being shown but suddenly when the coast was clear, the singit would flash on the screen and there would be total silence. Juvenile fun.
Some friends also texted me and mentioned Alice Zerrudo. For the life of me I do not know who she is. Can someone enlighten me on this matter. Who is Alice Zerrudo and what is her claim to fame? And here is a bit of trivia for everyone, do you know the name of the doll of Guy and Pip? Email me if you do.
And then there were other names like Ramon Zamora. He used to ape Bruce Lee in those crazy kung fu films he did. He was funny but it was his murder of the German language that really made him famous. He created a character that resembled Hitler and that was his trademark.
The 70's also had its version of the secret agent, Tony Falcon alias agent X-44. This spy was played by Tony Ferrer. He used to get all the bad guys and all the voluptuous women. I wondered how he did because he really had a weird hairstyle. And then there was this television show that I watched which was called "Code Name Apollo" which starred Charlie Davao and someone I forgot.
And then there was this radio show, which I followed or some reason or another. It was called Diego Salvador. And before that show was another drama called Maria Flor de Luna. But that is another article.
(October 8, 2004 issue)
Write letter to the editor.Click here.
Join the Sun.Star message board.Click here. |
|
[return to top]
[home]
[network page]
|
LOCAL NEWS
BUSINESS
OPINION
SPORTS
LIFESTYLE
FEATURE
SUPERBALITA
WEEKEND
|
