|
Movie
Premiere Fundraiser
|
|
Movie
Premier A Success
by Mark Anthony Hipolito Arriving home from the movie premiere held last Saturday, 23 Nov 2002, I was rushed to the hospital by my sweetheart due to acute abdominal pains. Turns out I had acute gastro-enteritis and am still under observation for possible appendicitis. Well, I'm back home and raring to report on the event. The core group arrived at the theatre at around 1:00pm (all wearing black core group t-shirts c/o Anna Punzalan) to set up the streamers, booths, seating reservations and PA system. Everything was in place when I arrived from my class (estudyante lamang po, hindi titser) at around 5:00pm. Streamers were all over the place and a big, beautiful crowd had formed outside the theatre with more people coming in. All 550 tickets (see attached) were sold out and some were still scouting for extras. People made beelines to the booths serving free ice tea, lemonade, ice cream, coffee (all from Nestle) and cheese sticks from Tia Maria. Eye drops from Pfizer (booth manned by two gorgeous-looking young ladies) and t-shirts from Petrolino were also given away. I was pleasantly surprised to finally see Ronaldo Macaraig, after months of coaxing to attend our meetings. Roland Luna was also there and assisted the group in the preparations. Batch mates whom I saw or ran into were Nen Herrera, Eliza Fojas, Marla Brotamonte, Elyssis De Asis, Peddy Malit, Arnold Cubangbang, Barney Ursua, Ramon Masa, Georgina Mueco, Lutgarda Sarao, Flerida Poe, Lenny Tiongco, Cecilia Nicanor and Nancy Guevara. I got a nudge from my two partners in crime - Rey (Ogalino) and Butch (delos Reyes) - eyeing a beautiful lady who turned out to be Olivia Bernardo who was there with her husband (hehehe...). Then came Peddy (Malit) asking about another lovely lady who turned out to be Pinky Gueco. Anna (Punzalan - core group) had several heads turning as well when she arrived at around 6:30pm. I also got nudges from guys eyeing Sweetie (Gardiner - core group) flashing her sweet smile. Marami pa pero no more space. No wonder guys from other batches would love changing places with us, what with our bevy of good-looking batch mates (politically correct term for babes) - possibly the most number in the history of SAS (touche! love your own...). Enough with our girl-watching... Batch '77, whose core group was instrumental in providing the place and contacts for the event, was represented by Jimmy Dizon, Al Rosal (who introduced me to his lovely wife), Lynn Betia, Ed Sarao, Ana Hernandez-Llamzon, Bobbit Juico, Nonette Faner, Lulu Aluquin, Leo Baqui-Antero, Marilou Turingan, Ed Alvarez, Emil Gutierez and Jowin Trinidad. Members of other batches present were Maridi Tria Tirona (my high school crush - you'll be surprised at how many they are, most notably VSJ - most of you know who she is, and our very own - Ama A.), Verna Taay, Bobby Roz, Jean Serviento, Edgar Gardiner and Melissa Casaul. Cocktails (w/ lechon) were served at 6:00pm. The opening ceremony got underway by 7:00pm hosted by Maan (Obille - movie premiere sub-committee chairperson) and BJ (Funk). Onet (Limchoc) delivered the opening remarks followed by the introduction of the core group members. Raffle prizes from Nestle, Petrolino, Ambi Pur, Mead Johnson, Red Ribbon, The Spa at RCBC Plaza (1-month membership worth Php5,000.00) and 357 Boracay (c/o Al Rosal - 3 days 2 nights accommodations) were given away. I was passing by Lenny Tiongco's seat when I overheard her say that she's going to win the Spa certificate and guess what? She did! It seems the deluge of lovely faces and gorgeous bodies would never end that night. And then we were treated to a surprise number by 10 stunning Bond girls (all protégées of Sweetie Gardiner) dressed in bright-red, tight-fitting overalls with plunging necklines, who brought the house down by dancing to the theme of "Die Another Day" by Madonna under the direction of Sonny Villamayor. Thought that was the end of it? Wait till you've seen the movie and feasted (your eyes) on Halle Berry (as Jinx) in her orange two-piece drop-dead swimsuit, while rising like Venus on a-half-shell off a Cuban beach. Add to that the elegant but deadly charm of Rosamund Pike (as Miranda Frost). Whew! 'Twas a sensory overload indeed. Say no more! Now you know why I was hospitalized for the first time in my life... But it was definitely worth it. We were congratulated by no less than the owner of Louie's for staging the best movie premiere in the history of the theatre. We didn't know why but we surmised it could have been due to the organized way the event was handled (booths, posters, streamers, extra chairs, etc.) and the number of sponsors we were able to get. Everything was set up hours before the premiere with no hitches whatsoever. More congratulations flew left and right before, during and after the event. After the screening, pictures were taken with the Bond Girls and the core group lingered and gave each other a pat in the back for another hour. No one had the energy to celebrate and it was decided to "Celebrate Another Day". We would like to express our heartfelt gratitude to all those who supported us in this endeavor particularly to our presentors, major sponsors, donors, our batch mates abroad, all those who sold and bought the tickets, Onet's staff whom we now consider and call our "batch mates", the SASAA, Batch '77 core group and other batches. It was a collective and dedicated effort indeed on the part of our core group that made this event a resounding success. However, certain individuals should be commended for their extraordinary efforts. It was Maan (Obille), tireless chair of the movie premiere sub-committee, who took charge of all the arrangements and legwork, ably assisted (one way or another) by the rest of the core group in scouting for sponsors, selling tickets, dealing (and fighting) with Warner Bros and Louie's THX, layout of streamers, auditioning of Bond Girls (you know who you are), payments collection, program preparation, soliciting for raffle prizes, TV and radio announcements, etc. No one can match the dedicated and exemplary efforts done by our overall chairman, Onet (Limchoc), whose steady and resolute leadership has guided us through the past several months. Thank you, sir! Without you things would have been a lot more difficult, if not impossible. What's next? We're in the process of wrapping up the layout of our souvenir program to be submitted to our printer next week. Weekly rehearsals are being conducted for the reunion presentation which will be participated in by members of batch '60s, '70s, '80s and '90s. All those interested in participating may contact Sweetie (Gardiner) via email sweetie_461@yahoo.com. We're going full-swing in our efforts to locate other batch mates, teachers and administrators by next week. There's some apprehension that the 350 tickets (see attached) allocated for the grand reunion night will soon be sold out so reserve your tickets now. Price of each ticket is Php350.00 inclusive of food, drinks, raffle, music, dance, nostalgia and fun! Our next major event is the Grand Alumni Homecoming which will be held on 04 January 2003 at the Dusit Hotel Nikko. I can't wait to see our ladies in their evening gowns. Those who attended the movie premiere are just the tip of the iceberg. We will definitely see more of them (excuse the pun) during the grand reunion. Huwag sana akong maospital ulit pagkatapos. See you there!!! Mark Hipolito |
 |
 |
||
 |
 |
||
 |
 |
||
 |
 |
||
 |
 |
||
|
|
Email us your
photos
Click Here
1968-1978