Ruffa invited to the 43rd Grammy Awards Feb. 21 - FUNFARE by Ricardo F. Lo

It’s final: Ruffa Gutierrez is flying home this weekend to again host the Bb. Pilipinas (2001) Pageant at the Araneta Coliseum on Saturday, Feb. 24, covered live by GMA (starting at 8 p.m.), the same show she has been hosting these past years, two years ago with a newcomer named Paolo Bediones as one of her co-hosts (that Bb. Pilipinas show "made" Paolo who later confessed that it had been his long-cherished dream to host such an event) and last year with Dingdong Dantes who got an unanimous approval for his hosting prowess.

It was also on the same show last year when – remember? – KC Montero introduced one of the judges as Mrs. Marilou Magseysey (instead of Magsaysay), an honest mistake that cost KC all chances of being invited to co-host the same or similar shows ever again.

This year, who will Ruffa help discover as a TV host? (Sorry, Paolo Bediones fans, Paolo can’t act as co-host even if he wants to because it’s Sunsilk which is among the Bb. Pilipinas sponsors and not Rejoice which is the shampoo Paolo is endorsing.)

Before coming home, Ruffa will attend the 43rd Grammy Awards on Wednesday, Feb. 21, at the Staples Center in L.A. as guest of Century Productions. The Grammys will be televised live by CBS at 5 p.m. (L.A. time). If you’re a cable subscriber, keep surfing; you might be lucky enough to catch it.

Ruffa is expected to rub elbows with such celebrities (who will be performing) as Madonna, N’SYNC, Christina Aguilera, Faith Hill, U2, Destiny’s Child, Eminem, Dolly Parton and Elton John, along with such others (who will act as presentors) as Andy Garcia, Kevin James, Toni Braxton, Aerosmith, Kid Rock, Carlos Santana, Ery Kah Badu and Ray Romano.

Appearance at the Grammys are by invitation only. Ruffa is attending with several key executives of Century Productions not only the awards ceremonies but various pre-Grammy and post-Grammy parties. It’s the second time for Ruffa to be invited to the Grammys.

Right after the Bb. Pilipinas Pageant, Ruffa will fly back to the States to cover the US Comedy Arts Festival, sponsored by HBO, from Feb. 28 to March 4 in Aspen, Colorado.

Friends again

When Lorna Tolentino and Fanny Serrano kissed and made up last Monday night at Sugi Restaurant (Greenhills), it wasn’t at all, uh, "politically motivated," but it was definitely "politically correct" because, as you know, it’s election time once again (welcome to the circus!).

But a Funfare DPA insists that Lorna and Fanny’s brief "cold war" was, that’s right, "politically motivated" because the EDSA People Power II sort of started it. The DPA didn’t elaborate, except to say that Fanny was at EDSA screaming "Erap resign!" but Lorna, an Erap sympathizer like husband Rudy Fernandez, was home. How Fanny wandered into the opposite side of the political fence, he also being a friend once upon a time of former Presidential Daughter-in-Law Precy Vitug (wife of San Juan Mayor Jinggoy Estrada), is a long story in itself that requires no retelling in this corner.

Anyway, that Sugi "reconciliation" was duly recorded for posterity. It was set up by the "protagonist’s" mutual friends Lyn Cruz (wife of Tirso Cruz III who’s running for Vice Mayor in Las Piñas), April Cezar (wife of incumbent San Juan Vice Mayor Philip Cezar), Amy Austria, Isabel Rivas, Telly Garcia and Elena Orosa.

Before that Monday night, according to the Funfare DPA, Lorna and Fanny had already exchanged kilometric letters in which they poured out all their feelings for – and against? – each other, so by the time they met in the flesh, there was no more need for any recrimination. There was just a lot of wordless hugging and speechless, tearful smiling. You know how things go in showbiz... Besides, the people involved are all Christians and they’re expected to act accordingly.

Now, when will Fanny reconcile with Precy Vitug-Estrada? Who will make the first move? Can Precy forget the pain Fanny caused her (again, no more need for elaboration here) and forgive Fanny and let bygones be bygones?

Raise the roof and praise the Lord!

Jake airs side

Several issues ago, Funfare mentioned a verbal encounter between Jake Roxas and fellow moviegoers at the Glorietta while they were watching the Michael Douglas movie Wonder Boys.

According to the DPA account, Jake felt "paranoid" when the group seated behind him started laughing and making snide remarks about Nora Aunor being baduy (yuck!) when a brief pro-Erap plug was flashed on screen.

Funfare got Jake’s side at the recent launching of Digitation, The Hand Book of Life by Rannie Raymundo who is, not many people know, Jake’s cousin.

"I wasn’t paranoid at all," said Jake. "I was just offended by the noisy group’s negative remarks about Nora Aunor. Siempre, artista rin ako kaya na-offend ako. I quietly looked back at them for them to stop it already and they must have taken it as an offense.

"When the trailer of Robert Downey, Jr.’s movie was shown, nagsimula na naman sila mag-comment, one of them saying, ‘A, wala nang career ’yan (referring to Downey who’s in the process of kicking a bad drug habit), katulad ni Jake Roxas.’ Now, who wouldn’t be offended by a remark like that? Binastos nila ako!"

Having heard both sides, Funfare declares Jake "not guilty" as charged.

If I chance upon that ill-mannered, uncouth group, I promise Jake I’ll stuff their dirty mouths with cottonballs soaked in alcohol. Promise!