Rustom's secret finally revealed

At last the secret is out. What had been a persistent rumor has finally been confirmed. Rustom, former actor, brother of action star Robin Padilla, and ex-husband of actress Carmina Villaroel, has stepped out of the closet on primetime television.

That was quite an episode of the Pinoy Big Brother CelebrityEdition Wednesday night. There was Rustom Padilla, in a huddle with fellow housemate Keanna Reeves, revealing to her that he was gay.

At last the secret is out. What had been a persistent rumor has finally been confirmed. Rustom, former actor, brother of action star Robin Padilla, ex-husband of actress Carmina Villaroel, has stepped out of the closet on primetime television.

Rustom also revealed that when he was a child, he was punished every time he wore a dress or acted effeminately. "It's difficult when people find out I'm gay," he said, so he tried to hide it.

His outlook changed after a trip to the United States, where gays are widely accepted and their rights protected. He decided to be honest about his sexual preference.

The showbiz grapevine had long been abuzz with reports about Rustom being gay. It was supposedly the reason why he and Carmina broke up. And how did Robin take his brother's revelation? "It took courage (to admit he's gay). I admire him for it," Robin said.

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Sarah Geronimo was so overwhelmed by the reception she received when she and Mark Bautista performed in Zamboanga recently. Sarah's mother said the venue, Summit Center Zamboanga, which seats almost 13,000 people, was as big as the Araneta Coliseum, and it was packed.

The huge crowd, however, is not surprising. Sarah always packs them in. That's how hot she's become. She and Mark had just come from a successful concert in Taiwan. They were also a smash hit in Japan. The two are booked for several concerts in the US this year.

Things have come together career-wise for Sarah. Aside from singing engagements, she's also made it big as a TV entertainer. Little Big Star, which she hosts, enjoys constantly high ratings there are now Cebu and Davao editions of the show. She's also doing Bituing Walang Ningning and has just wrapped up an episode of Your Song.

"I can't thank everybody enough for the many blessings that have been showered on me," she said.

One such bounty is the Guillermo Mendoza Memorial Award as Female Recording Star of the Year she will receive during the Box-Office Entertainment Awards at the RCBC Plaza on March 19.

I do believe she deserves the prestigious award, considering her string of hit songs and her wildly successful concert at the Araneta Coliseum recently.

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"King Kong" is big in China. In fact, it is the most successful imported film in that country for the past five years. The epic about an oversized ape falling in love with an aspiring actress had generated $12 million in Chinese theaters since its release on January 12.

In contrast, "Pearl Harbor," released in 2001, grossed $13 million. The all-time box office record for imported films in China belongs to Titanic, which earned $40 million. Chinese moviegoers love foreign films almost as much as they do local ones.

One movie they will not be able to see, however, is the acclaimed "Memoirs of a Geisha." The Beijing government banned the movie, which stars Chinese actresses playing the roles of the traditional Japanese entertainers, for fear that it might rekindle old resentments in China, which was occupied by Japanese troops during World War II.

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The 5,798 members of the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences had until last Wednesday to vote for this year's Oscar winners. The votes will be counted by a six-man team closeted in a secret location. They should have finished tabulation by last Friday and will have placed the names of the winners in the envelopes that will be opened onstage.

Awards night is Sunday (Monday morning in the Philippines) in Hollywood's Kodak Theater. The top bet to run away with the major prizes is Ang Lee's "Brokeback Mountain," a story of two cowboys falling in love with each other.

"Brokeback" has eight nominations, including best picture, best director, best actor, best supporting actor and best supporting actress.

Expected to challenge "Brokeback" for best picture are "Crash," "Capote," "Good Night, and Good Luck," and "Munich."