KINABUKASAN SOCIETY

Towards Unity and Service

"CARAMOANONS" invade SHOWBIZ

by: KSEAN Antonio H. Co.

We were quite amused a few years back when we first heard of two showbiz personalities paired as a loveteam. I thought it was just a coincidence that a certain actor was named Jestoni ALARCON and his screen partner, as Rita AVILA. It gave me an instant recall that those family names are basically known in the neighborhood in our hometown, Caramoan, Camarines Sur. In fact, you can find in most cases the abodes of the AVILAs and ALARCONs are just adjacent and/or facing each other.

Then came another set of showbiz stars whose names again sound familiar and can be found probably on in Caramoan. Such names may be present in other places but in scarce proportion and more likely they are immigrants from the same Caramoan origin. Lo and behold! the names of Gardo VERSOZA and Ricardo CEPEDA are generically known as Caramoanons. I am convinced this time that it is by no means this is another coincidence the way these unique screen names are appearing in a series.

I then have a strong feeling that this naming game is a handiwork of a townmate of ours and he must be wielding great influence in showbiz circles to be able to float an identity and making it popular, too.

Nobody would have noticed this naming trend, not even Gardo, Jestoni, Rita and Ricardo, that their names are forming a pattern. But it will not escape the curiosity of every Caramoanon who is particularly conscious of its own people in the locality who are generally interrelated by consanguinity up to this time.

We should appreciate and be proud of this townmate of ours (whoever he is) for having made a subtle statement across our consciousness that there is a Caramoanon out there in show business who is making a name, literally and figuratively.

I hope our presumed "showbiz townmate" will read this piece, and in reaction, he might dutifully give us an exclusive entertainment by christening his next generation of stars with surnames such as, BREIS, HUIT, BERJA, AZAÑA and other prominent names in his memory. We can only surmise that this "Showbiz insider of ours" might be just expressing wittingly his pride of our hometown and its people.

About the Author:

Ksean Antonio H. Co was a COCOFED Scholar. He graduated B.S. in Agricultural Engineering from Central Luzon State University, Nueva Ecija, Philippines. He was the Area Sales Manager of TRAMAT Mercantile, Inc. and is now managing his own business, KANVAR ENTERPRISES. He can be contacted at Tel. No. 0063-2-832-1236.