Lovable like your own mom

I didn’t know that there was an 84-year-old TV host until Monday night when I was invited to the presscon for Mommy Elvie at 18, described as a docu-reality-comedy TV series which airs on the GMA News TV Channel 10:30 to 11 a.m. starting this Saturday, March 12.

I didn’t also know that before Mommy Elvie at 18, there was a show called Mommy Elvie’s Problematic Show which used to air on TFC (The Filipino Channel). I may be among the last to know so I will make sure that I catch the show Saturdays. I’m sure that it will be interesting and entertaining judging from what I learned about the octogenarian host during the presscon.

She’s none other than Elvie Villasanta, mother of Ariel Villasanta (of the Ariel and Maverick duo) who co-hosts the show. Mommy Elvie, the aunt of Joey de Leon (his mother is Mommy Elvie’s sister), is lovable like your own mom or grandmom. She’s very funny, very witty and very positive about life, unaffected by the lump (benign, thank God!) in her breast.

“She has an innate comedic timing to make you fall off your seat,” said Aleah Aliporo-Eugenio who conceptualized and co-directs the show, with Ariel also as producer and co-director. “The show will change the docu-reality-comedy genre. Watch it and see for yourself.”

Excerpts of the show were shown at the presscon and I must say that Mommy Elvie is a joy to watch. In one scene, she’s shown blowing bubbles and Ariel accidentally hits her (very gently, though) on the forehead when he tries to burst a bubble with a stuffed toy.

“Gusto ko siya gantihan,” recalled Mommy Elvie, “and I did it in our next scene together.”

I also learned that Mommy Elvie has so many fans that when she signs autographs during mall tours, she does it using a rubber stamp with her personal signature etched on it.

“Daig ko si Ariel (her only child),” she boasted. “Mas marami akong fans kaysa kanya.”

 At 84, Mommy Elvie still has a photographic memory. Direk Aleah recounted that she accompanied Mommy Elvie to a bookstore where they bought a map on which were listed all the countries and their capitals.

To test Mommy Elvie’s memory, direk Aleah requested the press to mention a country and Mommy Elvie mentioned what the capital is. She got a perfect score!

For the Mommy Elvie at 18 (produced by AVP and RedAnts Media, Inc.) premiere on Saturday, Mommy Elvie as a debutante will reveal her bucket list of 18, to wit: 1) Peace in our country, 2) Food for the hungry, 3)Homes for the homeless, 4) Jobs for the jobless, 5) Good career and stable future for her son Ariel (Married to Cristina Decena, a name that should ring a bell among showbiz-watchers. — RFL), 6) A TV show, 7) An ice-cream commercial, 8)A movie, 9) Meet Pres. Noynoy Aquino (“Binata siya at biyuda naman ako,” said Mommy Elvie, adding, “Joke only!”), 10) To star or work with Dolphy (Also an octogenarian. — RFL), 11) To travel and see the world, 12) Visit a radio station, 13) Good health for everyone, 14) To be able to walk without her cane, 15) To be able to dance the cha-cha, boogie and tango again, 16) Eat everything she wants, 17) See the most beautiful sunrise, and 18) To live longer and take care of Ariel.

The show’s theme song sounds like a lullaby. It will not only remind you of your own mom and grandmom, it will make you love them all the more. It will also make you cry and make you run to your mom and give her a loving hug. It says in part: Mami-miss mo ako kapag wala na ako… 

Better to watch Mommy Elvie at 18 with your mom beside you.

Will Thia Megia stay as AI finalist?

As she faces another challenge in tonight’s edition of American Idol (6 o’clock on GMA News TV) as one of the Top 13, Fil-Am Thia Megia thanks her kababayan for their support in her Twitter Account, saying, “Maraming-maraming salamat sa tulong ninyo!”

The 12 other contenders will likewise perform live and then they will return for the “results night” on Friday, March 11.

Fil-Am Thia Megia, 16, one of the Top 13 American Idol contenderts

Thia has caught the attention and admiration of both the judges (Jennifer Lopez, Randy Jackson Steven Tyler) and televiewers with her singing style that is compared to that of Michael Jackson.

Thia, whose full name is Thialorei Lising Megia, is said to be the youngest Top 13 qualifier ever as AI lowered the age limit this year to 15. She was 15 when she wowed the judges during the Milwaukee auditions with her version of Adele’s Chasing Pavements. The Mountain House, California, resident couldn’t wait for the California auditions so she traveled all the way to Milwaukee to get her golden ticket.

Then she continued her winning run throughout Hollywood Week, Vegas Week and the Top 24 Sing-Off. Her version of Irene Cara’s Out Here on My Own – which began with dim lights and Thia singing a capella – was one of the highlights of the girls Top 13 performance night.

Born in Hayward, California, to US immigrants from Pampanga, Thia began singing at a very young age. She plays musical instruments and chooses her own songs for the competition. Thia, in a previous interview, has mentioned that her idols include Kapuso star Regine Velasquez and Charice. She is friends with Charice whom she met in 2009 when they both performed at the David Foster and Friends show in California.

Thia will be facing tough competition from the other Top 13 finalists: Casey Abrams, 20, from Illinois; James Durbin, 22, from Santa Cruz, California; Stefano Langone, 21, from Kent, Washington; Jacob Lusk, 23, from Compton, California; Scotty McCreery, 17, from Garner, North Carolina; and Paul McDonald, 26, from Alabama; Naima Adedapo, 26, from Wisconsin; Lauren Alaina, 16, from Georgia; Haley Reinhart, 20, from Illinois; Ashthon Jones, 24, from Goergia; Karen Rodriguez, 21, from New York; and Pia Toscano, 22, from Howard Beach, New York.

Briefly noted

• Even if he’s sometimes seen with Isabel Oli (photo), the last time was during his birthday party last Feb. 15, James Yap (photo) insists that they are only friends and not more than that, owing to their being both Bisaya. Isabel is Cebuana and James is Ilonggo (from Negros). “I don’t have a girlfriend,” James told Funfare. “It’s not that easy to go into a relationship after what I have just gone through.” And especially not while the annulment case between him and estranged wife Kris Aquino is pending. Will James admit “something” as soon as the court reaches a decision? Stand by.

•  After he “killed” Rustom Padilla (left), Bibi Gandanghari (right) shocked everybody when he surfaced as a she, completed rounds of interviews and appeared on TV. And then, she disappeared again. There are all sorts of speculations. Is she undergoing a sex change? Nobody knows. There’s a guess that Bibi is writing a bare-all/tell-all book that, once published, will send greater shock waves through the industry and, possibly, spawn lawsuits. But lawsuits are the least of Bibi’s worries. “He has proofs, he’s complete with details of his dangerous liaisons,” said somebody close to Bibi. If ever, that book would be a best-seller.

•  Corrections: From reader John John Periquet of Marilao, Bulacan: A Funfare reader said that the longest-running song is Ava Da Vida by Jimi Hendrix. Maybe he was referring to In Da Ga Da Da Vida by the group Iron Butterfly. You may also check out Rare Earth’s version of Get Ready which I think is much longer…From reader “Jessie”: In a recent item about CSI (Las Vegas), you referred to George Eads as Nick Stoves. Actually, Nick Stoves is the name of George’s character in the TV series.

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Two new Kapuso sign exclusive contracts

Isabelle Diaz (top, second from right) and Andrea Torres (above, second from right) signed exclusive contracts with GMA Network the other day. With Isabelle are (from left) Leo Dominguez (her manager), GMA chairman & CEO lawyer Felipe L. Gozon and GMA Films president Annette Gozon-Abrogar. The GMA executives are also shown with Andrea together with Jojo Oconer, All Access to Artists president. Isabelle is the daughter of Gloria Diaz and Bong Daza. She will take her bow in the GMA musical-variety show Party Pilipinas; and will also be in the cast of Manny Pacquiao’s upcoming show. Meanwhile, Andrea will appear in GMA’s forthcoming shows. She was part of the youth-oriented show Ka-Blog and has starred in movies like Shake, Rattle & Roll and You Are My Everything.

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