My TV On-Cam Moments: How I Became an 80s Teleserye Star
"'Nay, 'Tay... ARTISTA NA AKO!" ("Mom, Dad... I'm now an actor!")
Amusing line you'll often hear from someone who's having his 15 minutes of fame on television. Funny how some people think just being on TV makes one an actor or a celebrity. Me? Well I've had my own share of "fame" - maybe a bit more than 15 minutes by after this coming Sunday. See, I've been on these shows:
- Bubog sa Puso, ABS-CBN Channel 2, 1989
- Eat Bulaga, "On the Spot Jackpot", GMA Channel 7, 15 October 2009 episode
- Rated K, "Iba Rin" series, ABS-CBN Channel 2, 06 August 2017 episode
ABS-CBN was then known as "The Star Network", and I wanted to be a star, and had one foot in (or was it just a toe?).
How I Became an 80s Teleserye Star
This was more than thirty years back - ancient history! - and my memories are a bit hazy. But now that Congress has "killed" the franchise of ABS-CBN, my story can be told.
It must have been summer and I must have been looking for a part-time job or at least some income. That was the time when one would browse through the wanted ads on the Manila Bulletin's Classified Ads, and if you wanted the most number of ads you bought the broadsheet on weekends.
In those days, if you were looking for a job, you buy a Sunday Bulletin with their thick Classified Ads section. This is a Monday edition, on December 4, 1989.
I recall seeing an ad for a waiter that said they'd train you then hire you. It sounded interesting, but the training would have cost me a fortune. Now why on earth would I look for a job where I needed to shell out money first? I mean, that's the exact reason one would go job hunting, right? I had no money!
There was a time I applied to become a "Management Trainee" and underwent training for the job. I actually completed it and was, in fact, a favorite in the class. Right after the training, I had to come up with a list of relatives who would be interested to buy household cleaning products.
The supervisor assigned to me said I needed to experience selling the products, and she would accompany me when I decided on the first target. She noticed that I hesitated, so we momentarily sat in the food court of the four-year old SM City North EDSA. I was trying to choose between my Auntie Virgie (later our wedding Ninang) and Auntie Lita (today better known as Tita Jules). But I was on the verge of tears, thinking, "Do I really want to do this?"
No, I did not.
SM City North Edsa was THE mall back then. I have a gazillion stories about the place, and looking for a job is one of them.
But there was this one ad that seemed promising. An agency was looking for people who would undergo an acting workshop and maybe get them into showbiz. I went and lots of people were there, all wanting a shot at becoming an actor. Ah, this will be my break - I used to just watch talent-less people on that entertainment show, thinking, "I can do better than that!"
Of course, we know that Kuya Germs' That's Entertainment was really a hands-on acting workshop and, to be fair, produced the likes of Piolo Pascual, Lea Salonga, Francis Magalona, Judy Ann Santos, Ian Veneracion, and yorme Isko Moreno.
In 1989, teens Sharmaine Arnaiz, Almira Muhlach, Jaypee de Guzman, Jeffrey Santos, and others joined That's Entertainment. That was also the year Eat Bulaga moved from RPN Channel 9 to ABS-CBN, Student Canteen hopped from GMA 7 to RPN 9, and Okay Ka, Fairy Ko transferred from IBC 13 to Channel 2.
That's Entertainment was the on-cam TV workshop for teens under the wings of the Master Showman, German "Kuya Germs" Moreno. The show had a set of aspiring talents for each weekday, and this video shows the Friday Edition.
Anyhow, I went to try out for the acting workshop, and surprised myself by being chosen for it. The workshop itself is now but a blur in my mind, but very soon after it was finished some of us got a callback: We were going to play bit parts in a teleserye (TV soap opera)!
It was called Bubog Sa Puso (literally, Broken Glass Bits in the Heart), a new drama series on ABS-CBN Channel 2. I recall doing two scenes: one in a classroom and another on the stairs. I was one of the students, and the teacher was making an announcement, some good news like we all passed the exam. The challenge was to appear really ecstatic, with high fives all around. The scene on the stairs involved some movement, we were going down the stairs and the professor was on his way up. We would meet on the landing, and a short conversation ensued.
I'm not sure when we got our pay, but I recall it being 30 pesos for an extra who did two scenes. The daily minimum wage in Metro Manila then was 89 pesos, so you know right away it was a low-budget production. In fact, the show did not last more than a year. But I know at least one person watched it.
1989 was the year Eat Bulaga transferred from RPN 9 to ABS-CBN. This was their 10th anniversary OBB.
My mother had a friend, Mareng Sonia (that's Aling Sonia to me), and they had a sari-sari store (a micro grocery store, usually part of a house, and usually a means to augment the family income - or to many the actual primary income). I used to buy at the store, and often the house-help was the one manning it.
One day, it was Mommy who went to the store. The house-help excitedly told her that she'd seen me on TV! I mean, nobody even in my own family knew about my gig. Not sure why, but my main goal then was just to earn a few bucks.
So how did I become a teleserye star during the 80s? Of course, I did not. Heck, I did not even get to see myself on TV.
Years later, I would come to the conclusion that just like you don't need to excel to be elected to public office, you don't need talent to become an actor. The world repudiates real artists like me and Vincent Van Gogh.
Or maybe I'm just bitter? Whatever.
NEXT IN THIS SERIES:
How a Reluctant TV Game Show Contestant Won 10,000 Pesos
Eat Bulaga at the Broadway studio in 2009
Comments
Post a Comment