MANILA, Philippines – A tearful German Moreno publicly expressed gratitude for his good friend Nora Aunor at the recent 25th Star Awards.
“Ito ang babaeng malawak na ang aming pinagsamahan," Moreno began his introduction of
Aunor on Nov. 22 at the Newport Performing Arts Theater in Resorts World Manila.
Among the special citations given by Philippine Movie Press Club (PMPC) to honor the industry luminaries was the Longest-Running Musical Variety Show Award, which went to “Superstar,” a show co-hosted by Aunor and Moreno in RPN-9 that spanned 22 years.
An emotional Moreno continued by recounting an incident that happened years back that solidified his love for the Superstar. According to Moreno, he can still recall that as part of “Superstar” he was able to receive two letters from the RPN-9 management.
The first he said contained best wishes for commendable ratings received by the show and the steady support of the advertisers. The second was a letter informing him that they are terminating his services from the program.
"Can you imagine ang experience ko sa show?" he said disbelievingly to the crowd.
"Pero ipinagtanggol ako ng babaeng ito. Hindi siya pumayag,” declared Kuya Germs.
"'Hindi puwedeng mawala sa tabi ko si Kuya Germs...'" he said, quoting Aunor.
The Master Star Builder awardee concluded, "'Yun ang isang bagay na hindi ko makakalimutan sa kanya.”
A flood of awards
Since her comeback in the country, Aunor has been showered with awards.
Prior to Star Awards' recognition, the Superstar has received honors from the PMPC Star Awards for Music; recognized as one of the Icons of Original Pilipino Music (OPM); and was among the Lifetime Achievement Awardees in the 13th Cinemanila International Filmfest.
At the CinemaOne Originals Independent Film Festival, Aunor was given the Honorary Originals of Philippine Cinema Award. She is slated to receive a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Filipino Academy of Movie Arts and Sciences (FAMAS) this December.
Overwhelmed with the high-honors given to her by the industry, she said, "Hindi ko ini-expect, kasi nu'ng araw, wala akong feeling na magkakaroon ng ganito. Basta, ginagawa ko lang ang trabaho ko."
In a report by PEP on Nov. 24 the celebrated star added, "Masayang-masaya po ako ngayon. Halos lahat ng award-giving bodies, ang mga ibinibigay sa akin, mga lifetime achievement awards. At parang ngayon lang nangyari 'yon.
"First time kong makaranas ng halos lahat nga puro lifetime achievement awards. At isang napakalaking karangalan para sa akin iyon," said she.
Grateful to her fans
Since the '60s, Aunor has been nothing but grateful to her ever-supportive and passionate fans, collectively known as the Noranians.
"Kulang ang pasasalamat, kahit ilang pasasalamat ang gawin ko, kulang pa 'yan.
"Kung hindi dahil sa kanila, na [mula] noon hanggang ngayon, talagang nandiyan pa rin sila [patuloy ang pagsuporta],” she enthused.
"Hindi ko rin nga in-expect, na pag-uwi ko rito last August 2011, kung gaano naman naging kasaya rin ang mga fans, ang kanilang pagmamahal at pagkasabik," added the Superstar.
In parting she said, "Sa mga pagkukulang ko po sa inyo, humihingi po ako ng pang-unawa... ng mahabang pang-unawa, mahal na mahal ko po kayong lahat!"
Nora vs. Charo?
Still stunned with the unexpected downpour of blessings and recognitions, one of the brightest TV5 talent quipped, "Sa tagal ko na rin sa show business, bale naramdaman ko lang 'yong sincerity ng lahat ng mga boss, 'yong maganda nilang pakikisama, at 'yong kanilang pagpapakita sa kanilang mga artista na talagang inaalagaan nila."
Speaking of TV5, a separate PEP report noted that there seems to be an ongoing silent rift between the “Sa Ngalan ng Ina” lead star and the ABS-CBN president and host-actress Charo Santos-Concio. It has been reported that Aunor deliberately avoided the “Maaalala Mo Kaya” host at the recent Philippine Advertising Congress in Camarines Sur.
The said tiff between the two industry veterans purportedly stemmed from Aunor's words in a magazine feature wherein she lamented her frustration about the heads of the Kapamilya network including Santos-Concio’s sister, Malou Santos, due to her “unpleasant working experiences” with the network in the '90s.
The Kapamilya station, through its Entertainment Head Linggit Tan, issued a statement to the magazine YES!, published in the same issue.
In the statement, Tan said that Aunor’s “Star Drama Theater” stint, which was supposedly for one season running for 13 weeks, “had to be cut short because of her unprofessional working habits.”
She likewise pointed out that Aunor exhibited the same behavior when she did the 2002 teleserye “Bituin” with Cherie Gil, Carol Banawa and Desiree Del Valle.
“For a soap to work, it has to be consistent in terms of quality, acting, production timetable... But the working habits of Nora, naulit-ulit...” said Tan.
Tan also said that “certain quarters representing her (Aunor)” had “talks” with ABS-CBN “prior to her much-talked about return to the Philippines."
"They came to us! In all fairness to the network, we never entertained any of those offers. It's to our detriment naman to say hindi siya interesado sa amin. We didn't respond to those feelers. It's not her option to choose us...” she added.
Despite the apparent bad blood between the Superstar and ABS-CBN, Tan concluded the statement with, “we wish her well.” bit of advice helps.
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