FPJ sends ‘feelers’ to Susan

And finally, Susan Roces went back to full-time acting – comedy acting, that is – last Thursday afternoon when she started taping for the pilot episode of the ABS-CBN sitcom John En Shirley which reunited her with fellow Sampaguitan Dolphy with whom she did the comedy Boksingera Daw, her first-starring picture, back in the late ’50s.

As The STAR "scoop" reported, John En Shirley, produced by Kitchie Benedicto and directed by Bert de Leon, is inspired by but not really a sequel to the long-running ’70s sitcom John en Marsha where Dolphy played John Puruntong (after which his over-sized shorts was named) and the late Nida Blanca as his wife Marsha. Then a child actress, Maricel Soriano played the couple’s daughter Shirley.

In the new ABS-CBN sitcom, Dolphy and Maricel again play John and Shirley respectively, while Susan plays the new character Encarnacion, thus the "En" in the title.

During the story conference last Monday, July 10, Susan said she got a "feeler" (paramdam) from her late husband, Fernando Poe Jr.

"On my way to ABS-CBN," Susan told The STAR, "I saw a little boy selling sampaguita. I told my driver to run after the boy but the boy disappeared into a corner. Before the traffic light turned green, another little boy selling sampaguita approached us and I bought a bunch worth P100 and hung them on the rearview mirror. I knew it was Ronnie (FPJ) making paramdam because he was fond of buying sampaguita from street vendors when he passed by them."

Then, on Thursday afternoon as soon as she left their house in Greenhills, San Juan, Metro Manila, Susan saw the man running after her, carrying the picture that was supposed to be installed in FPJ’s tomb at the North Cemetery.

"He caught up with me," said Susan, "and he gave me the picture. Instead asking him to leave the picture in my house, I decided to bring it with me in the car. I told myself, ‘Kasama ko si Ronnie.’ It was too much of a coincidence. The man could have called me up first but he did not. He just showed up as if out of the blue."

Halfway to ABS-CBN for the shooting, Susan asked her driver to turn the radio on and guess what song the station was playing – yes, My Funny Valentine, which was FPJ’s favorite song.

"I could feel Ronnie’s presence that whole day," Susan insisted. "I knew that it was his way of telling me to go ahead and do what would make me happy. I knew that he’s happy with my decision to go back to (acting)."

On the other hand, according to Susan, those "feelers" could also be FPJ’s way of requesting those he left behind to let him rest in peace.

"I have accepted the reality of Ronnie’s death and I am moving on," said Susan. "I’m sure that Ronnie is also happy where he is."

As Encarnacion in John En Marsha, Susan returns to comedy-acting, her forte, after many years. Among her last comedy movies was Mahal, Ginagabi Ka Na Naman (inspired by an Imelda Papin song) with FPJ as leading man.

"I felt like a newcomer," said Susan, visibly (only slightly) nervous when her first scene with Dolphy and Maricel was shot. "Nanibago ako."

John En Shirley will premiere on the night of July 29, Saturday, a day after Susan’s 65th birthday on July 28 which also happens to be The STAR’s 20th anniversary.