MANILA, Philippines?When most people turn 40, they mark the important date with a big party or trip abroad. Julius Babao has another, less self-celebrating take on the key occasion.
He shares: ?I will be holding an art auction for the benefit of Gawad Kalinga on Sunday, July 20, as my 40th birthday project. It will benefit 30 poor families of Bagong Silang, Caloocan City. Funds raised from this project, which has 126 participating artists, will be used for the construction of 30 houses for our GK beneficiaries.?
Isn?t that a great way to turn 40? Even better, Julius isn?t pulling it off all by his lonesome: He?s involved his wife, Tintin Bersola, and his many artist-friends?among them art greats, Bencab, Ramon Orlina and Malang?so they too will reap the psychic and spiritual benefits from their exciting ?interaction? for others.
We hope, of course, that you will help assure the success of Julius? great project by attending the exhibit-auction tomorrow at Pinto Gallery, Silangan Gardens, Antipolo City. For details, call 697-1015, or e-mail babaojulius@yahoo.com.
Happy birthday, Julius! May more of us learn to think, feel and act for others the way you do.
TV treats
Television has become so excessively ?commercial? of late that upbeat viewing experiences aren?t all that easy to come by on its so-called boob-tube. That?s why we?re especially happy to occasionally view winning TV treats that help make up for the lazy or irresponsible productions that pass for entertainment on the small screen:
Let?s cite something some people may think comes out of left field: Every Sunday noon on their GMA-7 show, Ogie Alcasid and Janno Gibbs come up with spoof lyrics about a currently hot topic?and quite often, their spoof number is hilariously effective! They do it just for a lark, but some of their spoof lyrics are breezily witty and make viewers laugh most heartily.
Yes, they?re sometimes awkward or trying hard, but satirical writing is never easy, so we choose to focus on their more effective bits, and applaud them for being more witty and clever than many of their colleagues in comedy.
Ogie and Janno?s most successful spoof was on plastic surgery. Its lyrics were so witty that we hope they put the number on YouTube, so more viewers can enjoy it.
In time, they could also come out with a musical-comedy album featuring their most effective satirical song renditions.
?Storyline?
Also a positive and different kind of viewing experience is ?Storyline,? ABS-CBN?s new docu-magazine show. What?s different about it is its bracing confidence in its viewers? intelligence. ?Hey, that?s new, right?
The show?s enlightened view of its viewers? ability to appreciate its stories without having to be hit on the head with them is evident in the fact that its stories pretty much tell themselves, without the usual narrators and other ?clarifying? elements that are generally employed by similar productions.
Thus, we recently saw and heard a couple talking about illness, a troubled marriage and other travails without having to answer anybody else?s questions. They used their own words to tell their story, and the direct, personal approach was truly welcome.
Even better, they detailed their problems without going melodramatic and mawkishly emotional, and that enlightened approach was even more welcome, because some documentary productions dote on excessively pathetic and even bathetic treatment, the ?better? to touch viewers? hearts.
?Storyline? shows how exploitative this approach can be. It really is far better to let the featured individuals calmly and insightfully speak for themselves, because they know their life stories best.
