Pinky Amador’s great expectations

After Baby, Tessie, Beth and Malou (or Marilou), another nickname that has gained popularity among Filipino girls over the past decades is Pinky. Pinky, however, is a nickname that is not easy to get away with. Somehow, you expect a girl nicknamed Pinky to be quite pretty and to have, at least, nice pinkish skin.

And for reasons I can’t explain, I seem to notice that all the girls I know who are nicknamed Pinky are really quite attractive. In fact, a lot of them ended up in the limelight: Pinky de Leon, former Miss World fourth runner-up Pinky Amabuyok, Pinky Marquez, Pinky Webb, former sex siren Pinky Suarez and – if you were a youngster in the mid-’70s who liked watching Tagalog movies on TV, you would surely be familiar with Pinky Montilla, whose one and only movie, Super Girl, was replayed practically every day on the small screen.

I also seem to notice that most of the girls nicknamed Pinky I know are very nice and friendly. For instance, I’m quite fond of Pinky de Leon, whose Christian name is Eleanor. I respect her as a person and admire her for being such a fine actress. In the same breath, I also like very much Pinky Marquez (she’s Paz in her official documents), who later also became one of the dearest friends of my sister.

Lately, I’ve been getting to know better another Pinky – Pinky Amador. Pilar Cristina in her birth certificate, Amador is just like the other girls named Pinky I know: warm friendly and very accommodating.

I have to admit though that I found her to be quite intimidating in the beginning – maybe because of her strong mestiza features. It was only later – when I realized that she cusses and swears in Pilipino like a stevedore – that I became comfortable with her.

A descendant of President Manuel Roxas, Pinky belongs to a family of lawyers and artists. Her late father once served as the legal counsel for Vicor and Viva Films, while her Aunt Bibot is the Zeneida Amador of Repertory Philippines.

In the beginning, however, her family didn’t expect her to join the performing arts. While in grade school (at St. Joseph’s College), her aunt Bibot once asked her if she wanted to join the Repertory Philippines production of The Sound of Music. But to her family’s frustration, she turned out to be too shy to even say yes or no – to her own aunt at that.

In high school, however, she started working for Repertory Philippines – not as an actress, but as a stagehand. Surrounded by performing artists, she eventually realized that acting had always been in her blood and later on agreed to join the cast of The Visit – with minimal lines though.

Later, when the Repertory people were about to mount the production of I Want to Be in Pictures, they realized that they couldn’t get the right person for the female lead role. Juno Henares was busy trying out mainstream showbiz, while Enchang Agudo was pregnant. Somebody in Repertory then suggested: "Why not Pinky Amador? She can act." No, that wasn’t Bibot. She didn’t want to be accused of nepotism. Pinky got the part nevertheless and was directed by her aunt.

Training under Zeneida Amador had its pluses and minuses. Getting screamed at by Bibot was certainly not a very pleasant experience – and Pinky went through that. Never mind if she was the Bibot’s favorite niece. But the training she got from her aunt was something she would never exchange for anything else in the world.

While appearing regularly in Repertory Philippines productions, Pinky managed to finish her mass communication course at Assumption. In between, she also did television, hosting the variety show Patok na Patok with Ariel Ureta.

After doing endless ingénue roles in Rep and winning two Aliw Awards for Best Actress, she decided to join the movies upon her father’s prodding. "Sige, mag-showbiz ka na," her father told her.

Pinky would be the first to admit that her father’s friendship with Vic del Rosario was what got her to Viva Films. But then, once she was on the set, she was on her own.

For her first movie, she helped make life miserable for heroine Dina Bonnevie in the blockbuster hit Magdusa Ka. She later made a string of movies for Viva until she decided to pursue her MA – actually a scholarship grant courtesy of the British Council – at the Bristol Old Vic Theater School in England. From there, she auditioned for Miss Saigon and stayed there for another two years and a half.

Back in Manila, she resumed her showbiz career – doing movies, television and, from time to time, theater. Starting tomorrow, Nov. 22 and next weekend (Nov. 29 & 30) at the Music Museum, Pinky will be doing the Tagalog version of the Vagina Monologues along with Gina Alajar and Angelu de Leon.

Almost a full-time job is her stint as a member of the MTRCB – which she insists is no walk in the park. "With this job, you pass judgment on the works of producers who hire you, writers you know and directors you work with. You can get blacklisted if you don’t give the producers the rating they want. But that’s how things are – you just don’t allow yourself to get swayed," points out Pinky.

Mainstream show business has actually brought Pinky a lot of fulfillment, but – along with it – some frustrations. To begin with, she has yet to find a movie role that will satisfy her, "a part that is really thorough." I point out to her the part she played in Sana Pagibig Na, where she was Nida Blanca’s headstrong daughter. This role won for her a Best Supporting Actress nomination from the Gawad Urian. For a while there, she agrees with me, until she realizes that while the role was good, it was a bit too short to satisfy her as an actress.

Oh, well. One thing I forgot to tell you about the girls named Pinky I know: They all set very high standards for themselves. And Pinky Amador is no exception.