Heart Evangelista couldn't believe her good fortune

plus: No truth to Manny Pacquiao-Krista Ranillo rumor; Nicole Kidman hits Hollywood for portraying women as sex objects

 Actor and film producer Ronnie Ricketts has been officially named as the new chairman of the Optical Media Board. Ronnie replaces fellow actor and TV host Edu Manzano who has again thrown his hat into the political ring.

We hope Ronnie all the best at the helm of OMB. Running after video pirates, the main function of the board, is no walk in the park. When Edu headed the agency, receiving death threats and facing angry DVD and VCD vendors were among the occupational hazards.

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With “Ruffa and Ai” taking a final bow, Annabelle Rama hopes she would be seeing her daughter more often.

Annabelle said Ruffa will take a well-deserved hiatus after more than a year on ABS-CBN’s daily morning show. The usually feisty Annabelle softened into a doting mother, complaining that she doesn’t see much of her children anymore.

She let on that Ruffa is fond of giving her expensive bags as gifts that Ruffa eventually borrows and ends up using herself.

Son Richard also gifted her with an Audi car that Flawless had paid him as its endorser. But since she never drove the car, Annabelle gave it to husband Eddie Gutierrez.

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So is there really something going on between Krista Ranillo and Manny Pacquiao?

You could write off that rumor as false, according to my source. The buzz spread after Krista’s dad Matt Ranillo III accompanied his daughter to Baguio where Pacman was training for his fight with Miguel Angel Cotto next month. Matt was said to be making sure that the People’s Champ won’t make a move for Krista.

That’s not the story at all, my source says. The truth is Matt is looking for a chance to talk to Pacquiao about something else. It turns out that Matt is running as a candidate in next year’s elections, and is wooing Pacquiao for support.

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Heart Evangelista couldn’t believe her good fortune. First, she won the FAMAS best actress trophy. And then she gets to join her screen idols like Sharon Cuneta in “Mano Po 6.” 

Heart said she thought she had only a slim chance at clinching the FAMAS trophy, which she won for her role in the indie movie, “Ay Ayeng.” She didn’t even attend the awards night. “I had wanted to attend, just so I could wear a gown, you see,” she narrated at her victory party last week. “But I had a taping the following day and had to sleep early.”

It was her publicist Jun Lalin who relayed the news about the award to Heart’s mom. At first, the actress’ mother thought Lalin was pulling her leg. “So my mom told my dad. And they woke me up. ‘We have bad news,’ they said, and I got really nervous. I thought someone had died or something.”

“When they told me I won as best actress, I jumped with joy and screamed.”

The following day, at the taping of “Full House” Heart’s manager Annabelle Rama brought the FAMAS trophy and presented it to her.

“Ay Ayeng” was filmed two years ago, at a time when Heart’s career was in a free fall. That was also the time she and Jericho Rosales began to have problems in their relationship.

Heart is also excited about “Mano Po 6,” an all-star offering by Regal Films for the Metro Manila Film Festival. Some of the movie’s scenes will be shot in Beijing, China.

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Hooray for Nicole Kidman!

The Australian actress has stood up for women’s rights, chastising Hollywood for portraying women as sex objects.

Testifying last week at a US House of Representatives hearing, the Oscar winner said she believes there are films from Hollywood that probably contributed to violence against women.

Kidman said she does not accept roles that demean women. “I can't be responsible for all of Hollywood, but I can certainly be responsible for my own career,” said the actress, who testified at the hearing as a goodwill ambassador for the UN Development Fund for Women.