Judy Ann pressured

Author: Mario E. Bautista
Column: Freehand

Judy Ann Santos says her OB-gyne told her she'll have difficulty conceiving a baby. "Kasi nga lagi akong pagod, puyat, walang pahinga, pressured," she says. "Basta kami ni Ryan, we just keep on trying kasi okay naman daw ako't walang diprensiya. Malay mo, baka maka-bull's eye rin. But as of now, matindi talaga ang schedules ko kasi may regular taping kami ng 'George and Cecil', tapos tuloy na 'yung bago kong Nurserye drama series sa ABS, then shooting pa ng 'Oh My Girl' sa Regal. Sabi, kailangang maghinay-hinay ako para makabuo kami, e hindi ko naman puedeng basta ibitin ang commitments ko. Hopefully, kapag natapos ang mga ito, maaayos din ang lahat, lalo't nakabili na kami ng bed na gusto namin. Ito kasi yung klase ng bed namin sa hotel namin in Boracay when we had our honeymoon. Talagang sobrang sarap ng tulog namin. "

But we heard she has other movies lined up for her, one with Sarah Geronimo for Viva and another one with Unitel to be directed by Marilou Diaz Abaya. "Well, I really hope matapos ko rin ang mga 'yun so I can rest and focus on having a baby, kasi ngayon, halos seven days a week ang trabaho ko. "

Has she considered artificial insemination? "No! Ano ba? Masyado naman advance 'yan, e sinabing okay naman daw ako mag-conceive, rest lang ang kailangan. OA naman kayo. "

She plays a big movie star in "Oh My Girl". Is it a role she can relate with? "Oh yes. But there's also a difference kasi she's an orphan na inampon lang ni Carmi Martin para mag-artista at parang sawa na siya until Ogie Alcasid came as a woman and became her confidante. Ako naman, hindi nagsasawa and I continue to feel the love of the people around me. "

YOUNG ACTRESS DATES GYM INSTRUCTOR
NOW that she's not doing anything at ABS-CBN, Valeen Montenegro is glad to be part of the cast of the Regal movie that Aljur Abrenica and Kris Bernal are now shooting on location in Bohol, tentatively titled "I'll Be Waiting for You". "I play Rubelyn, pinsan ni Kris na kinuha rin niya para maging wedding coordinator nila ni Baron Geisler na siyang nakatakdang pakasalan niya at the start of the movie," she says. "At least, hindi ako kontrabida rito kasi puro villain roles ang ginagawa ko sa ABS lately. "

She used to be paired with PBB's Aldred Gatchalian at ABS but their love team is no longer active. What happened? "I really don't know. We did 'Crazy for You' and 'Ysabella' on prime time, tapos hindi na kami nagkasama uli. But I'm happy na his performance daw in the movie 'Bente' is being praised. Mahusay naman talaga siyang artista. "

How does she feel now that it's rumored Aldred is secretly wooing Kris Bernal? "Totoo ba yan? Narinig ko na yan kaya lang hindi ko naman matanong si Kris kasi nahihiya ako. "

What about her, does she have a boyfriend? "Yes, may regular date ako, pero non-showbiz. He's a gym instructor. I'm also busy with my studies. Graduating ako next sem sa La Salle majoring in psychology. "

HEART, ECHO DATING AGAIN
IS it true that Heart Evangelista is now more chummy with ex-BF Jericho Rosales and they're even dating each other again? It's said that they see each other at their Christian church quite often and this led to their having dinner later and seeing a movie together. Jericho said their past relationship didn't really have a formal closure and now that they're talking again, they're on their way to peace and full healing.

Wonder how this will affect the coming reunion of Jericho with former sweetheart Kristine Hermosa in the new ABS-CBN soap "Dahil May Isang Ikaw". "It won't affect the show in any way," says one writer. "Common knowledge din namang may Oyo Sotto na si Kristine in real life kaya hindi na puedeng gamitin yung love is lovelier the second time around sa kanila ni Echo to help promote their new TV show. "

GMA NEEDS BETTER LEADING MEN
SOMEONE should tell GMA management that they should give their not-so-tall leading men co-actors who are not much taller than them. In "Ngayon at Kailanman", JC de Vera's best friend is Dion Ignacio. In "Rosalinda", Geoff Eigenmann's best friend is Gian Magdangal. JC and Geoff are about 5'7" or 5'8" while Dion and Gian are both six footers, so when they are in a scene together, JC and Geoff often look up (nakatingala) to Dion and Gian. They (Dennis Trillo included) should be given sidekicks who are just about the same height as them.

Someone comments that GMA needs more leading men. As of now, their top male leads are Richard Gutierrez and Dingdong Dantes, with Dennis tailing behind. Aljur Abrenica is their new young actor to watch. It's good they were able to revive the career of Mark Anthony Fernandez even if he's now married with kids. Their other male stars who are usually given second leads or villain roles (seldom lead roles) are Alfred Vargas, Mark Herras, Paolo Contis, and Polo Ravales. We can include ABS recruits Marvin Agustin and Patrick Garcia. They can also develop Dion Ignacio and Mike Tan, who both have the advantage of height. It's good they're now developing Survivor winner JC Tiuseco, who's also tall and who's turning out to be a quietly compelling actor in "Kung Aagawin Mo ang Lahat sa Akin".

EVA TELLS LIFE
STARTING this Thursday, SRO Cinemaserye will feature the true life story of Eva Castillo. Who's Eva? She's the contemporary of Regine Velasquez who used to beat her in amateur singing contests when they were much younger. Eva faded into oblivion while Regine hit it big as Asia's Songbird and also as an actress. When Regine did her recent birthday special, "Roots to Riches", she asked her staff to look for Eva, whose full first name is Minerva, and they found her living in dire poverty in Tondo, now the mother of seven kids. Through her exposure in the special, Eva got noticed by the public and she's now a regular in "SOP" and also sings every Thursday at Zirkoh.

We were able to talk to her at the SRO presscon and she will be played by three different actresses in the show: child star Renz Juan as a 9 year old, Glaiza de Castro as a teener, and Manilyn Reynes as she is now. Now 39 years old, Eva got pregnant when she was only 17 years old and gave birth to her first born when she was 18. Her seven kids have two different fathers but she's not married to any of them. They will be played in SRO by Dion Ignacio and Gerard Pizaras.

"Four of my kids stay with their paternal grandmother in Urdaneta, Pangasinan," she says. "Wala akong choice kasi I'm so poor and I cannot give everything they need.

Doon sila nag-aaral. My eldest child is now 21 at may anak na rin, 8 months old, kaya lola na ako. My youngest is 11. May isa akong anak, si Reyna who's named after Regine, mas maganda at mas mataas ang boses kaysa sa akin. Thanks to Regine, mas maganda na ngayon ang takbo ng buhay ko. Siya ang angel sent by God para tulungan ako. Kung magtutuloy-tuloy ito, hopefully, makukuha ko uli lahat ng mga anak ko para magkasama-sama kami uli rito sa Manila. "

At the presscon, Eva sang two songs, "Bakit Ako Mahihiya" and Shirley Bassey's "Never Never". She's really impressive. Glaiza and Manilyn will be lipsynching Eva's singing voice in their musical scenes. Her life story will be written by Robin Padilla's 'best friend,' Suzette Doctolero, and directed by Jun Lana. Regine is very much a part of Eva's story so she will be playing herself. It will run for four Thursdays. Don't miss its start this Thursday at 10:30 PM before "Saksi".

Source: People's Journal