2011 12/14-12/20

MANILA MAIL COMMUNITY

Vice Ganda, Derek Ramsay, Jimmy Santos, DJ Durano, Nikki Valdez, Ricky Rivero & Kean Cipiriano headline "Praybeyt Benjamin." Their movie just toppled "No Other Woman" as the highest-grossing Filipino movie of all time.

Vice Ganda as “Praybeyt Benjamin” invades U.S. theatres

RP’s highest grossing film of all time finally showing in 9 U.S. cities this December

TV5, dubbed the most exciting network, recently launched "Krismas Mas Mas Masaya," their Christmas Station ID featuring Sharon Cuneta, Aga Muhlach, Vic Sotto, Joey de Leon, Ryan Agoncillo, Ruffa Gutierrez, Mariel Rodriguez, Shalani Soledad, Edu Manzano, Willie Revillame, Nora Aunor and Dolphy, among others, together in a holiday greeting intended for the entire Filipino "kapatids."

Alexandra Drechsler, 15, had her first recital at Seasons MarketPlace in Milpitas, CA last Saturday as proud parents - Elizabeth & Ralph watch. Alexandra sang "Love Story" byTaylor Swift.

The Candy Factory Studio opens at 3680 Edison Way, Fremont, CA to serve models, actors, singers, performers, corporate executives, photographers & the general public for your various photography needs. Photo shows Jinggo Montenejo (center), Resident Professional Photographer & Co-Owner as he gets hands-on attending to clients, even on weekends. Email inquiries to

info@thecandyfactorystudio.com or visit www.TheCandyFactoryStudio.com

Justin Magbanua, right, Owner of Best Senior Companions celebrated his company's '70's-themed Christmas Party last Saturday night in San Leandro, CA.

Lourdes M. Evangelista-Castro

July 23, 1926 - December 3, 2011

Lourdes Castro, a rare and great hero, lived an extraordinary life. She was a pioneering “veterana” of World War II, and a quiet warrior as well as a civil rights activist. She was a successful entrepreneur, devoted wife, and matriarch of the Castro clan. She was buried on December 12, 2011 in San Jose, CA.

Robin Lim (her mother is a Filipina; she was raised in the Philippines; but she lives in Bali) is this year's CNN Hero of the Year. She delivers babies to poor mothers in Indonesia.

Philippine Institute of Certified Public Accountants (PICPA) Silicon Valley Chapter Induction of Officers held at Grosvenor Hotel last December 3,2011 by Commissioner Fred Perez of the City and County of San Francisco. (L-R) Rey Eugenio-Adviser; Marianne Suriaga-Director; Joey Kimpo-President; Cristina Torio-VP-Finance; Al Ocampo-VP-Membership; Romeo Rodriguez-Auditor; Oscar Amaya, Information Officer; Virgilio Soto-Director. Other officers not pictured are Bradford Adkins-VP Professional Development; Richard Lao-Director; Lilia Yalong-Director.

‘Praybeyt Benjamin’ invades mainstream US Cinemas

(Thanks to ‘No Other Woman’, doors are now wide open for Filipino movies to screen in US Theaters!)

NOW SHOWING IN THE CITY

I went to see ‘Praybeyt Benjamin’ at Century 25 Theaters in Union City last Sunday with close friends (yes, we paid for our own tickets!) and was pleasantly surprised to see that the place is almost full at the 4:55PM screening. There were lines also forming for the next one which is at 7:30PM and I have to double-check that the group is really watching “Praybeyt Benjamin” and not a mainstream Hollywood movie.

“No Other Woman” was such a huge hit in the US a month or two ago that theater circuits are now knocking on the doors of TFC & Star Cinema (who co-produced, promoted and released the movie in the US) for their next movie(s). It wasn’t like that before (they just won’t show any Filipino movie), I was informed by some insiders.

Just when film critics and moviegoers were saying that it would be very difficult to top the six-week box office gross earnings of the Star Cinema-Viva Films produced romance-drama “No Other Woman” which reached P278 million in the Philippines, then came the surprise record-setting performance of the two film outfits’ action-comedy, Praybeyt Benjamin.

The laugh-a-minute movie trip starring today’s hottest Philippine comic act, Vice Ganda, and equally sizzling male lead star Derek Ramsay, has already broken all movie ticket sales records in the Philippines, reaching over P320 million in just 20 days, making it the highest grossing Filipino film of all time.

The US commercial run of “Praybeyt Benjamin” started strong last December 9 in the following cities: Aiea, HI; Las Vegas, NV; Cerritos, Orange, North Hollywood and San Diego in Southern California; and Union City, Milpitas and San Bruno in San Francisco Bay Area.

“This has been an exciting last quarter for Filipino films,” said Kerwin Du, TFC’s Head of Theatricals. “We had back-to-back box-office successes with ‘No Other Woman’ and ‘A Mother’s Story’ here in the U.S., exceeding all expectations. With Praybeyt Benjamin, many are predicting a three-peat in the making. For us at TFC, we just want to continue providing our kapamilya with the best in Filipino entertainment at the movies, especially during the most cheerful season of all.”

Vice Ganda is Benjamin “Benjie” Santos VIII, deemed a disgrace by his military general grandfather (played by Eddie Garcia) to their clan of heroic warriors and soldiers because… well, they asked so they’re told – yes, he’s gay.

But Benjie is happy as he is and as a teacher of cultural dances in a public school. He is loved and accepted by his family. But then the country is attacked by terrorists and goes under civil war. Military service becomes mandatory as many are vanquished or have fallen captives, including Benjie’s grandfather. Benjie fears for his father (played by Jimmy Santos) whose health is deteriorating, so he secretly enlists himself in the military. Unfortunately, he finds himself in a platoon of misfits that is fortunately (for Benjie) being headed by hunky commander Brandon Estolas (Derek Ramsay) for whom Benjie falls head over heels.

Will Benjie of the warrior Santos clan be able to muster all his masculine strength and save his grandpa and the rest of his war-torn country for freedom, justice, equality and a possible future with dashing Brandon?

Joining Vice, Derek, Eddie and Jimmy is an accomplished, versatile cast composed by Nikki Valdez, DJ Durano, Vandolph Quizon, Carlos Agassi, Dennis Padilla and Kean Cipriano, among others. At the helm is comedy genius Wenn V. Deramas of “Tanging Ina” film series fame.

You can still catch Vice Ganda, Derek Ramsay and the hilarious cast of Praybeyt Benjamin on these dates in the following cities and theatres:

December 9-15

LOS ANGELES-CERRITOS

Cerritos Stadium Cinema

12761 Towne Center Drive

Cerritos, CA 90701

LOS ANGELES-ORANGE

Orange Stadium Promenade

1701 W. Katella Avenue

Orange, CA 92868

LOS ANGELES-NORTH HOLLYWOOD

Century 8

12827 Victory Boulevard

North Hollywood, CA 91606

SAN DIEGO

UA Horton Plaza

475 Horton Plaza

San Diego, CA 92101

SAN FRANCISCO-UNION CITY

Century 25

32100 Union Landing

Union City, CA 94587

SAN FRANCISCO-MILPITAS

1010 Great Mall Drive

Milpitas, CA 95035

SAN FRANCISCO-SAN BRUNO

Century at Tanforan

1188 El Camino Real

San Bruno, CA 94066

LAS VEGAS

Regal Village Square Stadium

9400 W. Sahara Avenue

Las Vegas, NV 89058

HAWAII

Pearlridge West Theatres

98-1005 Moanaluna Road

Aiea, HI 96701

For more information, please visit www.abs-cbnglobalmovies.com. Check also the trailer at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rjuQj8CkRLc

SEEN IN THE CITY

PICPA New Set of Officers

The Philippine Institute of Certified Public Accountants (PICPA), the National Association of CPAs in the Philippines - SILICON VALLEY CHAPTER, an affiliate of PICPA International & an accredited chapter of PICPA National Office, just announced their new set of officers, as follows:

JOEY KIMPO

President

CRISTINA TORIO

Vice President for Finance, and

Chief Financial Officer

BRADFORD ADKINS

Vice President for

Professional Development & Research

AL OCAMPO 111

Vice President for

Membership Development

GABRIEL GARCIA

Secretary

OSCAR AMAYA

Information Technology Officer

GENE ALMERIDO

Public Relations Officer

ROMEO RODRIGUEZ

Auditor

LILIA YALONG

Director - Government Service

RICHARD LAO

Director – Commerce & Industry

MARIANNE SURIAGA

Director – Community Service

VIRGILIO SOTO

Director – Public Practice

VICTORINO FRIAS

Director –Education

REY EUGENIO

Presidential Adviser

Briefs & Shorts

Consulate’s on a holiday, too!

Yep, it’s the season for holidays and the Philippine Consulate General in San Francisco will be closed on the following dates in observance of Philippine and United States special days:

Philippine Institute of Certified Public Accountants (PICPA), the National Association of CPAs in the Philippines - SILICON VALLEY CHAPTER”An affiliate of PICPA International An accredited chapter of PICPA National Office

Monday, 26 December 2011 – Christmas Day (US)

Friday, 30 December 2011 – Dr. Jose Rizal Day (PH)

Regular consular service hours will resume on the next working day following each holiday.

For emergency cases requiring assistance from the Consulate during the holidays, please contact the Help Desk at telephone number (415) 269-2090. Cultural, Community Relations and Public Information (CCPI) Section, Philippine Consulate General, San Francisco, 447 Sutter Street, 6th Floor, San Francisco, CA 94108 USA

Tel. No.: (415) 433-6666 ext. 313; Fax No.: (415) 421-2641; Email:cultural@philippinessanfrancisco.org; Website: http://www.philippinessanfrancisco.org

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

Every baby's first breath on Earth could be one of peace and love. Every mother should be healthy and strong. Every birth could be safe and loving. But our world is not there yet," this year’s CNN Hero of the Year, Mother Robin Lim said during "CNN Heroes: An All-Star Tribute," which took place at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles and recognized Lim and the other top 10 CNN Heroes of 2011. This year’s CNN Hero of theYear is another one with Filipino roots (after Efren “Kariton Classroom” Penaflorida) – Robin Lim (her mother is a Filipina).,

This article also appears online at www.FilAmnation.com and http://sites.google.com/site/adkinsmmcevents/Home/ with readership in 152 countries now (& still counting!) according to the latest Google Analytics report.

Do you have any personal or community events you want announced or published? Just email them to bradford_adkins@yahoo.com

Follow me on Twitter (www.twitter.com/bradford_adkins)

TV5 Christmas station ID “Krismas Mas Mas Masaya” gathers Philippine TV’s brightest stars to promote joy and unity this season

In a rare show of force, Philippine TV’s biggest and brightest stars—Megastar Sharon Cuneta, Comedy King Dolphy, Aga Muhlach, Alice Dixson, Edu Manzano, Joey de Leon, Vic Sotto, power couple Lucy and Richard Gomez, Ruffa Gutierrez, Ryan Agoncillo, Willie Revillame and Superstar Nora Aunor—lead TV5’s growing family to appear in its Christmas station ID to foster joy and unity among Kapatids across the country this season. Singing the “Krismas Mas Mas Masaya” jingle is TV5’s newest Kapatid, Sharon Cuneta, whose infectious cheerful energy complements the music video’s overall message.

The Christmas station ID featured the Megastar bringing the Christmas spirit straight to the doorstep of a lonely child played by Bangis lead child actor Eboy. From then on, a whole new perspective of bringing joy and sharing presents among Kapatids realizes what the essence of Christmas should really be to everyone.

Adding glitz to the all-star season station ID is this generation’s up-and-coming stars, TV5’s young brood of talents— Alex Gonzaga, Arci Munoz, Danita Paner, JC De Vera, Kean Cipriano, Nadine Samonte and Oyo Sotto with some Talent5 (TV5’s talent management and development arm) artists led by Eula Caballero and Ritz Azul.

The men and women of NEWS5 (TV5’s news and information division) bannered by its head Luchi Cruz-Valdes, anchors Cheryl Cosim, Paolo Bediones, Amelyn Veloso, Martin Andanar, Cherie Mercado, Jove Francisco, Maricel Halili, Atty. Mike Templo, and Tulfo brothers Erwin, Raffy and Ben and other NEWS5 personalities also grace the station ID to send the message of joy and unity across.

Local football superstars James and Phil Younghusband, who just recently signed up as football ambassadors of TV5’s sports block AKTV, join the station ID helmed by Raul Jorolan.

Heralding the Christmas spirit are personalities who are part of the Kapatid Network’s current roster of entertainment programs including Face to Face, Asian TV Awards-nominated Lokomoko and Talentadong Pinoy, Glamorosa, PS I Love You, Celebrity Samurai, Wil Time Bigtime, and the stars of TV5’s upcoming shows including Extreme Makeover Home Edition Philippines, Felina and Valiente.

Meanwhile, at the recently concluded Christmas party of the Kapatid Network for the members of the entertainment press, TV5 First Vice President for Entertainment Perci Intalan revealed the direction of TV5 in 2012 where big-budgeted reality programs are already being lined up, including the Philippine version of Extreme Makeover Home Edition hosted by Paolo Bediones with design team composed of Tessa Prieto-Valdes, Divine Lee, Marilyn Montenegro and Tristan Jovellana; The Biggest Game Show in the World-Asia to be hosted by Richard Gomez; Dancing Nation, Kanta Pilipinas and Temptation Island.

Catch “Krismas Mas Mas Masaya” on KapatidTV5 or log on to www.kapatidtv.com

TV5 revamps online network portal

TV5 formally launches its revamped website and unveils a richer online experience from the Kapatid Network.

In the new www.TV5.com.ph, visitors gain access to all the program information, schedules and links to microsites, Facebook pages and Youtube videos using a sleeker and more intuitive design. Fans can keep abreast with the latest updates and announcements in the “What’s New?” section, peruse the photo gallery or watch teasers and highlights of TV5 shows.

Keeping every Kapatid in the loop are two special sections: TV5 Live and TV5 Rewind. TV5 Live enables the user to watch shows, anniversary specials, press conferences and other events online in real-time. Previous webcasts include Wil Time BigTime’s first year anniversary and the recent MVP Ball called “Christmas with a Hundred Stars”.

For those who missed special events, TV5 Rewind uploads replays of selected show clips and exclusive events. Featured at the moment is Manny V. Pangilinan’s much-lauded speech at the recently held 22nd Philippine Ad Congress.

Although packed with content, the portal is not just limited to entertainment. It also gathers relevant news articles from InterAksyon and sports features from InterAKTV for a well-rounded user experience. Visitors can even listen to the live stream of 92.3 News FM using the built-in Radyo5 widget. Currently under beta testing, TV5’s home on the web is bound to get better and provide more exciting innovations in the coming weeks.

As MVP himself said in his Ad Congress speech, “the digital tsunami is coming” so watch out for the next wave from TV5!