What really happened to Martin in Las Vegas

To put it bluntly, it was a disaster.

No, I don’t mean the show; I’m referring to the planning. You know, some well-laid plans go and that’s what happened to Martin Nievera’s widely-publicized concert series at the Steve Wyrick Entertainment Complex of the Planet Hollywood Hotel in Las Vegas.

These past few days, you must have been hearing rumors that, 1) start of the concert series was delayed by three months, 2) the producer ran out of money and Martin has lost contact with him, and 3) Martin is digging into his own pocket (and that of his beloved Katrina Ojeda) and has taken over as producer.

Sadly, the answer to all three questions is a defeaning YES!!!

In an exclusive phone interview with Funfare, Martin confirmed the rumors, saying he has never felt so low in his whole life.

"I was looking forward to the concert series as everybody knew," said Martin, "so when things didn’t turn out right I felt like the world had caved in on me."

The producer, a Filipino, is a first-timer in the trade and, although he meant well, didn’t really know the ins and outs of it, according to Funfare’s other informers.

Scheduled for a Dec. 31 opening last year, the concert series was kicked off only last month.

Here’s what Martin has to say:

Please tell everyone that, yes, it’s true that I have been performing here in Las Vegas for nothing. No money, no pay. I haven’t been paid for more than a month. Also, all the promo materials — ads, cab billboards and posters, etc. — have been taken down because they, too, haven’t been paid by the "producer" (Quotation marks supplied by Martin. — RFL). I have sold a car and all my branded watches in order to pay my band and the production staff just to keep the show going, with the hope of getting paid one day soon or being discovered by another producer or investor, so we can be paid and do the show with zero stress and more security.

I believe in the show enough to do what I am doing. I pray that the situation will improve soon. I will not let a small thing like money get in the way of my dream. My sacrifice is in the spirit of representing my country well, meaning I am after a dream that will take us all to the next level of showing the world what Filipino talent is made of.

There are even nights when I help the production staff clear the stage to make way for the next act just to keep the production people’s morale alive. I will continue to do this until things improve or until I run out of things to sell, whichever comes first.

Sad, sad, sad!

I do hope that another producer/investor will come to Martin’s rescue and not let such a huge talent go to waste.

(Note: According to Joji Dingcong, Martin’s manager, it’s not true that Martin has sold his house to defray production expenses. "No," said Joji, "things haven’t gone that bad." Yet.)

Beauties all in a row

1. Ram Sagad, 21, is one of the Top 12 (male) candidates in the 2007 Century Tuna Superbods Beach Fest contest (grand finals will be on Saturday, April 28). Raised in Manila, Sam stands 6’3" and weighs 180 lbs. He’s a varsity player (small forward) of San Sebastian College’s Golden Studs. Chinito, classy and a cutie, Sam considers himself a rookie when it comes to modeling. Standing side by side with title-holders like 26-year-old Jerome Ortiz (Mossimo Bikini Summit 2006 winner), 22-year-old Rafael Kiefer (2003 Best Model of the Year Competition winner) and 23-year-old Joevince Canizares (a model for six years and current Penshoppe endorser), Ram feels like a rookie who just got lucky. But who knows, he just might run away with the title.

2. Krystle Ann Gonzales Dizon (candidate No. 18), 19, is one of the hopefuls in the 2007 Miss Philippines-Earth pageant, the winner of which will be picked on Sunday, April 29, at the UP Theater (aired live by ABS-CBN which is one of the search’s sponsors). Discovered by the Bradford Adkins (president of Adkins Multi-Media Concepts, LLC, who also discovered Ginger Conejero, last year’s Miss Philippines-Air, or first runner-up in the Miss Philippines-Earth pageant), Krystle is a medical student who works at the Kaiser Permanente Hospital in Walnut Creek, California, as a medical assisting intern. Born in Hayward, California, and raised in Brentwood, also in California, she’s the eldest of the five children of Gerdinand and Marlene Dizon, both from Pampanga.

3. Back for a brief visit is Travis Kraft who represented the USA in the just-concluced 2007 Mr. World contest held in Sanya, China. If he looks familiar, it’s because he’s the same guy in that Canadian Club billboard on one side of SM North EDSA. Anywhere he goes, people call him Superman and even Superman director Bryan Singer reportedly commented, "You really look like Superman!," during a Halloween party in Hollywood. When Travis was given a Y Idol Award on Studio 23’s Y Speak last year, host Ryan Agoncillo remarked, "Uy, Superman speaks Filipino!" Travis speaks a tolerable Tagalog. He’s being managed by Imabelle (telephone 0915-5758120).

Manny Villar’s heartwarming ad

One of the most heartwarming political ads is that of Senate President Manny Villar (who’s running for re-election), showing his 83-year-old Nanay Curing tending the modest grocery store beside her home in Las Pinas City.

The story told in the ad is true. Nanay Curing’s family earned a living by farming and fishing in Orani, Bataan, until a fire razed the town to the ground, forcing Nanay Curing’s family to move to Tondo, Manila, where she took odd jobs (sewing and washing clothes), and where she met and married Manuel Villar Sr. of Iloilo.

Through sipag at tiyaga (which has become Manny Villar’s "battle cry"), Nanay Curing acquired her first stall in Divisoria where she sold seafood for more than 30 years, with her children (one of them Manny) as helpers. To make a long story short, Nanay Curing turned her seafood business into a veritable huge enterprise. The rest is history.

I’m sure that the ad never fails to touch people (this one included) who are likewise close to their mothers (and, I guess, even those who are not).

(E-mail reactions at [email protected])