John Prats still can’t believe it

This one is really funny and scary at the same time.

In an Italian restaurant, a mayor of a Metro Manila city and his beautiful date were having a private and quiet dinner. The mayor ordered sea bass while his date, a sexy movie star had Angus steak, well done. They were in a corner table, holding hands, under, on top and beside the table. They were like prom dates who sneaked out of the party to enjoy each other’s company. They looked at each other like John Prats and Heart Evangelista in First Romance. They whispered and giggled like Pepe and Pilar. The movie star was so carried away that at one point she was on the floor, under the chair of the mayor laughing, screaming and weeping at the joke of the mayor that she probably did not even understand. The movie star by then had eight glasses of Robert Mondavi Red wine. There weren’t too many people in the fine-dining restaurant as it is quite expensive, almost exclusive. But in another corner of the restaurant was another pair who was morbidly quiet. The pair barely spoke. They barely ate their expensive, imported steak they ordered medium rare which must have been deliciously bloody. From where they were, they could hear the wild, boisterous laughter of the inebriated mayor and movie star. Dinner for the speechless pair was over. They paid the bill but could not stand up to leave the place. They were waiting for the mayor and the movie star to leave the place and there was no other way to get out of the restaurant without having to pass by the mayor’s table.

But why was the silent pair trying to avoid the noisy pair? Because the silent pair was the mayor’s live-in girlfriend while her date was the ex-boyfriend of the movie star who was the mayor’s date. It was almost midnight when the mayor and movie star left the fine- dining restaurant in wild abandon, drunk and clueless that there were two people who froze in fear and disgust because they could not move out of their table which became a veritable cage for four hours. But can you imagine if they actually found out that all of them were there? Oh my God!

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On the last shooting day of My First Romance, hundreds of extras were hired by Star Cinema for the movie’s prom scene. They were starting to get restless. The production crew of Star Cinema was meticulously transforming a simple function room into a dainty prom place.

Then, the film’s star John Prats arrived in jeans and white shirt. As if in slow motion, people turned quiet and all eyes were transfixed at John who was oblivious to the admiring stares. He hugged director John-D Lazatin, his screen partner Heart Evangelista and the other stars of the movie, Maui David, Sara Perez Tagle and Ate Glow. On his way to the artists’ area, numerous extras whipped out their cameras and asked him if they could have photos with him. John gamely posed and signed autographs. Production people had to literally pull him out of the mob so that shooting could start. And all throughout the scenario, John never lost that smile.

"I’m still overwhelmed when people recognize me," John said in between takes. "Being nice to people who admire me is the least that I can do to repay them for all the support they have given me through the years."

And this support from his fans has been evidently displayed as First Romance, a twinbill movie which also stars John Lloyd Cruz and Bea Alonzo is a certified blockbuster. It is still showing in Metro Manila and around the country. "I’m nervous and very excited about this movie," ends John. "I still can’t believe that I’m now starring in a movie. Ang hirap ng feeling but at the same time, you couldn’t help but thank God for this wonderful blessing."

We Love Kids

The country’s top stars graced the 45th anniversary of RFM Corp. held recently at the NBC Tent. Aga Muhalach, Ai-Ai de las Alas and Maricel Laxa, all RFM endorsers, were present. Maricel Soriano had a special video taped message. RFM top gun Joey Concepcion welcomed close to 1,300 guests composed of distributors, dealers and RFM friends. Everyone enjoyed the fabulous show that featured Gary Valenciano, Kyla, the Sex Bomb Dancers and of course, the RFM celebrity endorsers.

Today at 45 years, RFM stands strongly with an array of powerful brands for the consumer market. In all its enterprise-rebuilding efforts, RFM has rediscovered the basic theme that has run through many years of developing products for the Filipino consumers: its concern for the well-being of children. RFM has not only been making food and beverage products that children enjoy, or sponsoring youth-oriented sports events and social developments programs. RFM has been building a core Filipino value: love for kids.

As conceptualized by RFM president and CEO Joey Concepcion, the RFM theme is now RFM: We Love Kids. He explains that "for a long time, our tag-line was ‘RFM: Raising the Quality of Food for the Filipino.’ It is a good commitment, but I had always been looking for something with a more personal and meaningful connection. Thinking about what RFM has really been doing for people led me to see that its real focus has really been on kids–what they need, what they want, that they enjoy."

At RFM, "We Love Kids" is first of all a commitment to quality in all the products we produce," continues Joey, himself a family man with four children. "It is also a commitment to innovate our products in a way that will make children healthier and happier. Even in our ads, we feature endorsers who can serve as good role models for kids." RFM’s commitments outside the business have also leaned towards the well-being and development of children. The company continues to be the major proponent in the annual search for the Ten Outstanding Students of the Philippines (TOSP) as well as the outreach programs of the Laura Vicuna Foundation for Street Children. In sports, RFM is well-known for its support of basketball clinics and other training programs for children.