Happy birthday, Tita Susan!

Last Saturday, July 19, Mother Lily hosted an intimate dinner in Summer Palace at Shangri-La Edsa Plaza for the very well-loved Susan Roces.

There were less than 30 guests, mostly just the future cast members of Mano Po 2. Mama Nene Vera Perez, with her daughters Manay Ichu and Manay Gina were also present. Manay Gina was her usual thoughtful self. She came equipped with goodie bags for all the guests. Inside, we found fresh cherries and canisters of yummy Cadbury chocolates. We celebrate consecutive February birthdays, and Manay Gina also had a pretty, red beaded necklace with a big heart pendant for me, which she revealed that she herself designed and made!

Tita Susan was her perennially charming and gracious self. I was thrilled because she immediately wore the "Double Happiness" necklace I bought for her from Binky Ilusorio. I tried to stay true to the Chinese inspiration of Mano Po and chose a red coral and black onyx necklace for Tita Susan. It went perfectly with her red birthday outfit! She had already lost more than 10 pounds since our contract signing a month ago. Tita Susan revealed that she lessened her carbohydrate intake and increased her activities, particularly her gardening.

Tito Dolphy and Zsa Zsa were also there. Tito Dolphy looked exceptionally well turned out in his beautifully tailored black pinstriped suit. It is very hard to believe that he is celebrating his 75th birthday today. No other actor comes close to his sense of style and to his elegant way of putting his outfits together. It’s almost like he came straight out of the pages of GQ. He is the best when it comes to perfectly coordinating his suit with the right long- sleeved dress shirt and the complementary shoes and belt. He loves clothes and appreciates the fact that people want the stars they admire to really look like stars, and he never disappoints!

Tita Lolit Solis managed to "hold up" Zsazsing when she demanded that Zsazsing hand over her Louis Vuitton purse.

Poor Zsazsing had to transfer all her things into one of Manay Gina’s gift bags! For some strange reason, despite the fact that I am her favorite personality to pick on and torment on Star Talk, I had to acquiesce and give her a matching Louis Vuitton wallet to go with the purse from Zsazsing. Bambbi Fuentes takes care of Tita Lolit’s hair and make-up, and I sent through Hana, our shared make-up artist, the said wallet this past Tuesday.

It was great to see Tita Ethel Ramos at the dinner. She and Mother Lily had a "tampuhan" last year stemming from a Regal Babies pictorial for Yes magazine which Aga Muhlach, Tita Ethel’s ward was unable to attend. It was proof that all was well again between Mother Lily and her because she was there to complete the unbeatable triumvirate of Ricky Lo, Ronald Constantino, and Ethel Ramos. In all my years in show business, the three of them remain the most influential, the most effective and the most powerful group of scribes!

That is one of the things I’ve come to appreciate about the entertainment industry. Friendships really do become lifelong relationships regardless of the fishbowl existence and the tendency for "tampuhans" to be exacerbated by the intrigues. People often accuse showbiz people of being "plastic," but the longest lasting friendships and the most forgiving and accepting alliances I’ve seen have come from people in showbiz!

Tita Anabelle Rama and Tito Eddie Gutierrez were also present. Tito Eddie was the perfect gentleman when he teased Tita Anabelle and I during our many pictorial sessions. Her "tampo" with me seems to have finally abated, thank goodness.

The script of Mano Po 2 was almost complete according to our writer, Roy Iglesias. In fact there were less than a dozen sequences left in the final, Mother Lily-approved draft. I can’t wait to start filming, and for the sake of Tita Susan who gently reminded me that in the 1970s, the period of the film where I portray her character, women did not have flaming red hair like mine currently is. So by the time you read this my hair will be a less attention getting, more natural hued shade of medium brown!