LUNA AWARDS SIDELIGHTS
By Alex J. Socorro



PROLOGUE: The meeting of the FAP Board of Governors was ongoing with focus on the Lifetime Achievement Award. At the closing of the nominations, an animated deliberation ensued. The top two nominations went to Ramon Revilla and Pablo S. Gomez. Coincidentally, Pablo Gomez was in the meeting by virtue of his being a governor of the FAP Board. Director William Mayo, who pushed for the nomination of Pablo Gomez, could only shake his head because the always humble komiks writer seemed to be rooting for Ramon Revilla. And so the story goes that Ramon Revilla and Pablo Gomez were both named as Lifetime Achievers.

Lifetime Achievement awardee Pablo S. Gomez with FAP Chairman Atty. Espiridion D. Laxa

The program started after more than an hour behind schedule due to the sprinkling arrival of the celebrities. Blame the traffic in the Ayala underpass caused by buses picking up passengers before the Magallanes flyover. Nevertheless, the wait was worth it. Aside from the celebrated red carpet welcome, the Filipiniana theme was matched with a calesa ride to the reception area where John Lapus was lurking for an ambush interview.

On the red carpet, John Lapus in his ambush interview with two young actresses

In contrast at the exit area, Morly Aliño of DZRH was full throttle with his guts in ambushing the celebrities. But before Morly could scalp his prey, there was Nelson Canlas of GMA7 with his camera crew. During lulls, when there were no celebrities around to tinker with, Nelson was seen to be rehearsing his line, a set of different questions for each celebrity. Talk of being prepared. But surprisingly, his opening spiel was always, “Sino ang gumawa ng gown mo?”

The FAP Secratariat, all in their Saturday evening’s best.

Earlier in the evening, Ana Fajardo of the FAP secretariat was peeved by a caller who was inquiring for an advanced feedback. “Nakakainis,” blurted Ana. The caller, from a TV station, was insinuating that results were already at hand even before the scheduled announcement. For the information of everyone, only the staff of Villarey and Associates, the FAP auditor, knew of the list of winners.

Mother Lily, the unofficial matriarch of the movie industry, was about to leave when the winner for the Best Screenplay was announced. She had to hurry back to the stage to receive the statuette in Allan Tajimo’s stead, the writer of Blue Moon. After a while, Mother Lily was again preparing to leave but her flight was again aborted when Joel Lamangan was proclaimed the Best Director. And to cap her night, Mother Lily gladly received the statuette for Blue Moon which was voted the Best Film.

Maribel Lopez with Susan Henson, who came out from a long hibernation.

Spotted in the Maharlika Hall was long-missed Susan Henson dining with her friends. Still with the pretty face and admirable figure, Susan is still at par with her bosom friend Maribel Lopez in terms of celebrity image. Although not too keen for a comeback, Susan intimated that she is willing to face the camera again if given a good offer. A mother role, perhaps? Susan giggled while nodding.

The dining area in the Maharlika hall was filled by celebrities, guild members and some fans who were able to get past the reception security. There was a band which provided good but quite loud music that somehow won over the conversations. Although the menu was simple, the diners enjoyed the late dinner hosted by Harlene and Romnick.

Couple Harlene and Romnick of Eight Elephants Productions, the producer of the successful 24th Luna Awards at the Casino Filipino, Parañaque.

EPILOGUE: The 24th Luna Awards was a success in terms of warmth and camaraderie. Even the fans were accorded special treatment by waiving the seat number system hence some ordinary mortals were able to seat beside their favorite celebrities. Adding spice to the announcement of the nominees, each received a mini statuette aside from the nomination certificate. FAP Director General Leo G. Martinez was all praises for the efforts of Harlene Bautista and Romnick Sarmenta, the couple who produced the awards night via their Eight Elephants Productions. The affair was shown on RPN-9 on a delayed telecast basis that started at 9:30 pm.

Comments to this article can be sent to ajsocorro@yahoo.com