Mark, Jennylyn ‘lovey dovey’ in NY

Curtain-raisers:

• First, some "Hoy, Guessing!" items:

1. A member of the clan confirmed that the parents of a young actress are "mad at her" because she has become very stubborn (read: "uncontrollable") after she fell in love with an actor who is an unwed father. The actress now lives in her own condo unit and therefore, said the clan member, "she’s free to anything – just anything! Sabagay, nasa edad na siya." The actor is said to be an "expert" in handling women that’s why the actress is forever having a "Cloud 9" feeling (read: "euphoric").

2. Could it be true that a bold starlet (she never quite made it despite her effort at "reinventing" her looks) has found (true?) love in the person of a female singer? The female-bonders are both in the States where they are chasing the success that has proven elusive back home.

3. In showbiz, the louder the denial, the more you should suspect that there’s some truth to the rumor. Remember what Shakepeare wrote in one of his plays, The lady doth protest too much? A case in point is a cute TV star who has been denying to death that she’s the new apple of the eye of a suave (read: "suwabe") TV host-actor. So are the pieces of expensive jewelry the TV host-actor is showering her with merely, uh, tokens of friendship?

• If you want more of similar "Hoy, Guessing!" items, tune in to Wow, ang Showbiz on RMN-DZXL, 10:30 a.m. to 12 noon Monday thru Friday, hosted by Ogie "Miss M" Diaz with Fernan "Miss F" de Guzman and Leizl "Miss L" Salgado. I have fun trying to guess the "blind items" (which the trio dish out with glee, spilling the "clues" with breathless giggles) while stuck in the mid-morning traffic from Fairview, Quezon City, to wherever the lunch presscon is for the day. If you want to connect with the three hosts, here’s their website: www.rmn.ph, and click "listen live." If the the program’as voice-over sounds familiar it’s because he’s none other than Ricky "Gandang Ricky" Reyes.

• Because it was taking time on the launching pad, Star Cinema’s comedy entitled Flores de Mala has been beaten to the draw by Regal Films’ Manay Po. Both comedies feature three gays as main characters. In the Star Cinema movie, Vilma Santos is supposed to play the mother of three gays.

* * *

On the home front, the "drama" of Mark Herras and Jennylyn Mercado is that they are "off" after a ho-hum ritual of breaking up and making up and breaking up and... oh, well!

But in The Big Apple where they are shooting I Luv New York, a new GMA teleserye also starring Marvin Agustin and Jolina Magdangal, Mark and Jennylyn’s "drama" is something else.

According to the Funfare DPA who frequents the Perlas ng Silangan restaurant on Roosevelt Avenue in Queens, New York, owned by Nel Castellvi (nephew of former actor Romano Castellvi, whom I met two years ago when the The Champions had a concert in New Jersey), Mark and Jennylyn act as if they’re still "on."

"The GMA stars and crew often take their meals at Perlas ng Silangan," said the DPA who drew from Nel the following "revealing" observations. "I want to make it clear that Nel is clueless about Mark and Jennylyn, or that Mark and Jennylyn were ever sweethearts and are reported in Manila to have broken up."

According to Nel, Mark and Jennylyn are very close and very sweet to each other – lovey-dovey pa nga daw.

When I asked Nel if he saw signs that the relationship of the two young stars has fizzled out, Nel (who now knows better) said, "Anong break? They are always together, always seated beside each other and are always holding hands. They never separate from each other, lagi silang magkadikit. But there’s nothing wrong kung sila talagang dalawa. Bagay sila."

Nel also observed that the two seemed to be "inspired."

"They are nice, mababait sila," said Nel. "They even entertained their fans."

The DPA said that the shoot will wind up on April 26. Jasmine Trias, who was in New York for a concert with the South Border, did a "guest" scene for the teleserye, 60 percent of which was shot in New York and the rest in Manila.

I Luv New York reunites Marvin Agustin and Jolina Magdangal who have been separated for several years. Marvin has twin love children with his non-showbiz girlfriend while Jolina is going steady with lawyer Bebong Muñoz who is based in Missouri.

What keeps Cheloy young and radiant

Former Ginebra Girl (years ago) Cheloy Ignacio, the "ex" of a semi-retired actor’s father (whose name Cheloy would rather not mention), is the brains behind the Quickmelt Ensaymada (served with meals on PAL flights and sold at the airport as pasalubong for family and friends abroad).

But it’s not the ensaymada that keeps Cheloy young and radiant, although, she said, "Running the business energizes me." Cheloy’s beauty "secret" was revealed during a recent mini-presscon and it’s none other than the Terra Natural Soap which is a novelty product that whitens a woman’s skin because, according to its manufacturer, Terra Natural Resources (which also manufactures and markets, among other beauty products Nutrafit, the one often plugged by Dr. Gary Sy in his radio programs), "it’s enriched with anti-oxidants and natural minerals that rejuvenates and moisturizes the skin."

"I endorse only products that I use and believe in," said Cheloy, 47 but doesn’t look it, who was chosen as 2006 Miss Spa Fitness (Libis branch, Quezon City). "Terra Natural Soap has more than 20 variants. (For information, call Terra Natural Resources at 687-1121 or 0917-622-4516)."

Speaking of Nutrafit, it is an all-natural and all-power slimming supplement from Bolink Pharma, made of natural herbs and ingredients concocted together not only to help you lose weight but also gives you the energy boost you need to help keep the weight off through regular exercise. (I quote that from the brochure.)

Curious? Try Terra Natural Soap and Nutrafit.

Oops!

No, it’s not not a cable car (as Funfare wrongly mentioned) but a train that goes around the Hong Kong Disneyland for a quick tour.

Reader Nikki Roque is asking if the HK$295 (each, for adults) and HK$210 (for kids) are good for weekdays. The answer is yes. No, it doesn’t include the train fare.

Yes, Nikki, you have to wake up early to catch the first train to Disneyland if you’re booked at a hotel in the Kowloon side. The Star Ferry ride to Central (Hong Kong side) costs HK$1.70 (each, for adults one way) and HK$1.30 (each, for kids also one way). The round-trip ticket to and from Disneyland is HK$30 each for adults and HK$12 each for kids.

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