After the dramatic coronation of the 2015 Miss Universe and PLDT Home DSL .jpg)
ambassadress Pia Wurtzbach in Las Vegas, the whole nation is, indeed, very excited about the homecoming of the most talked about beauty queen today.
Wurtzbach bested 79 women from various parts of the globe to claim the country’s third Miss Universe title. She follows in the footsteps of Gloria Diaz, who won in 1969, and Margie Moran, who brought home the crown in 1973.
“We are among the millions of Filipinos who are very excited to welcome home our very own PLDT Home DSL ambassadress and now Miss Universe Pia Wurtzbach.” PLDT VP and Home marketing director Gary Dujali said.
Wurtzbach was joined by fellow beauty queens Bb. Pilipinas International Janicel Lubina, Bb. Pilipinas Supranational Rogelie Catacutan, Bb. Pilipinas Intercontinenal Christi Lynn McGarry, Bb. Pilipinas Tourism Ann Lorraine Colis and first and second runners-up Hannah Ruth Lulu Sison and Kimverlyn Suiza in a courtesy call right after the conclusion of the 2015 Bb. Pilipinas pageant at the PLDT headquarters in Makati City.
“I’m happy to be part of the PLDT Home family,” Wurtzbach said during the courtesy call. “I share the same values with the brand and I’d like to use my influence to infuse family bonding. Sharing my time with my family is the most important for me as it strengthens my connections with them. “
“Just like Pia, we want to help build strong bonds among family members with our number-one broadband brand Home DSL. She has been with us throughout the year as we aggressively went around the country bringing the family-sized broadband connection of Home DSL to more Filipino homes nationwide,” Dujali added.
In 2014, Bb. Pilipinas Universe MJ Lastimosa also traveled nationwide to promote the benefits of having a strong and reliable family-sized connection of Home DSL. The brand is expected to not only bring beauty queens but more inspiring personalities across the nation as it continues to bring their services closer to more Filipino homes.”
Wurtzbach is set to come home to the Philippines on Jan. 23 with a scheduled visit to PLDT headquarters within her stay. For more details, check out pldthome.com.
WHAT IS WILLIE DOING?
Advanced 55th birthday greetings to Willie Revillame on Jan. 27!
After insider information that Willie’s Wowowin will go daily starting mid-February, he happily bid goodbye on Sunday in a farewell show. Tracing his career in GMA-7 and his suceessful return last year, he went through the game show’s highlights to show how well-received it is without stating any trouble. Yes, just like that, without hinting what his future plans are.
With the buzz that GMA-7 is tring to find a suitable weekday slot for Willie’s game show, Buzzstation thinks he will return with a daily show in mid-February as this column had buzzblasted.
HOW WILL THE OSCARS DO DAMAGE CONTROL? This year’s Academy Awards set for Feb. 28 is facing an Afro-American boycott threat for the first time in many years for its all-white slate of major nominees for the second year in a row.
Spike Lee posted on his Instagram account: “We cannot support it and [I] mean no disrespect... But, how is it possible for the second consecutive year, all 20 contenders under the acting category are white? And let’s not even get into the other branches,” Lee wrote on Instagram. “Forty white actors in two years and no flava at all. We can’t act?! WTF!!’
Then Jada Pinkett Smith whose husband, Will Smith, starred in Concussion, said she would not be attending it. The two prominent African-Americans announced that they will boycott this year’s Oscars over a lack of diversity among nominees.
But not Chris Rock, who is hosting the red carpet event. He is not backing out despite the buzz he’s under great pressure from the black community to quit. They think such an action would greatly help initiate progress on the issue.
AN OFFER FROM THE GODFATHER YOU CANNOT REFUSE. Like Francis Ford Coppola’s Apocalypse Now was re-released into Apocalypse Now Redux to include edited scenes, The Godfather and The Godfather II had been combined and will air as The Godfather Epic on HBO throughout the month. It is also available on-demand and via HBO Go.
Never-before-seen scenes will be added for a total airing time of seven-and-a-half hours. It will combine both award-winning films cut together chronologically with additional footage left out of the theatrical screenings. The Godfather Epic is available uncensored and without TVCs.
MMFF EXECOM’S VESTED INTEREST GROUPS. A meeting called by the 2015 Metro Manila Film Festival Executive Committee (execom) finally revealed its composition.
According to Boots Anson-Roa, who is an execom member in her capacity as head of the Movie Workers’ Welfare Foundation (an MMFF beneficiary), members were producers Marichu Maceda and Jesse Ejercito, distributor Dominic Du, filmmaker Mark Meily, Quezon City Mayor Herbert Bautista, Sen. Grace Poe, Movie and Television Review and Classification Board chair Toto Villareal, Christiana Caparas of SM Cinemas, Marcus Ng of Metro Manila Theaters Association, Tito Cruz of the Bureau of Broadcast Services, Mio Chiongson of the advertising industry, Wilson Tieng of Solar Entertainment, and Jag Garcia of DLSU-College of Saint Benilde and Rowena Reyes-Capulong of Far Eastern University.
Buzzstation’s analysis of the Honor Thy Father brouhaha — that the execommembers were “vested interests” — proved correct. The term is defined as stakeholders who are “either directly or indirectly involved with the movie industry.” They are considered resigned as their tenure ends at the end of the year, but are subject to reappointment.
It is also not clear if Du represents the Motion Picture Anti-Film Piracy Council, which is still an existent organization as he is listed as a “distributor,” meaning he represents Axinite Digicinema.
It also revealed that the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority, which spearheads the MMFF, was no longer represented in the ExeCom. It is not clear when this took effect as the last MMFF, chairman Emerson Carlos was still its head. In fact, it appeared without a head during the time of the meeting and Roa as interim head.
Reading the names of members reveals that some of them are not actively involved in execom affairs but were likely represented.
For one the execom must be more transparent about its membership and activities so it will not be trated with suspicion. The MMFF board of jurors must also be revealed during the awards night for greater credibility.