What’s Alice up to?

Curtain-raisers:

• Oops! No. l: The adviser of La Consolacion College’s high school class of ’56 (celebrating its golden jubilee this weekend, with Susan Roces among the members) is Priscilla (not Adela as mentioned in yesterday’s Funfare) Dingcong. Also, the title of the Gil Portes movie is High School Scandal and not High School Life (theme song of the movie sung by Sharon Cuneta).

• Oops! No. 2: Left out in the list of stars with eyes on next year’s elections was incumbent Quezon City Councilor Aiko Melendez (photo) who’s nursing her and husband Martin Jickain’s month-old first-born. I should say that Aiko is winnable based on her consistently good performance in her past two terms. As a Quezon City resident, I will again vote for her.

• Oops! No. 3: Dennis Padilla is an incumbent councilor of Caloocan City and not its mayor (who is Enrico Echiverri against whom Nadia Montenegro is running in next year’s elections). Other stars being wooed to run are Ogie Alcasid (for mayor of Taal, Batangas), Ricky Reyes vs. Ai-Ai delas Alas (for Mayor of Calatagan, Batangas), Lindsay Custodio-Platon (for mayor of Tanauan, Batangas) and Christopher de Leon (for mayor of Lobo, Batangas). A Funfare informer said that incumbent Laguna Board Member Marco Sison might run for Vice Governor; while incumbent Batangas Board Member Marc Leviste (who’s in the cast of the GMA fantaserye Atlantica) is running for reelection. Of course, presuming that there will be elections in May 2007.

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On Sunday, Alice Dixson is leaving after more than three weeks here, purposely to sort out the papers of the family home which she and her mother are selling.

"I just realized how painful it is to sell a house you grew up in," said Alice who has been based these past few years in Vancouver with husband Ronnie Miranda. "Our house holds precious memories," added Alice, tears welling in her eyes. "It has been regularly renovated through the years and, in fact, we have converted the place into a three-door apartment. But still, the memories are there. Part of me doesn’t want to let go of the house because it feels like discarding those beautiful memories but we really have no choice."

With her siblings also now residing abroad, Alice came home to help her widowed mother dispose of the property after Alice’s American father died last January. Alice’s mother is migrating to the US.

"My father was a sailor, he loved the sea," said Alice, "so, as per his last wish, we scattered his ashes in the Manila Bay. But to please our mom, we also buried the urn with some of the ashes in the cemetery."

So does it mean goodbye to showbiz for Alice (who was last seen in as a "guest" in the Vic Sotto Metro Filmfest starrer Enteng Kabisote and, before that, in a GMA teleserye)?

Not really. The good news is that Alice might be back in a few weeks to finalize negotiations for a movie. After Funfare came out with an item about her recent homecoming, Alice got an offer for a soap from ABS-CBN.

"But then," said Alice, "tempting though the offer was, I had to say no because that would have made me stay longer. You see, I have to attend to important matters in Vancouver."

Life as Mrs. Ronnie Miranda is hardly boring as what some people might suspect.

"Do I miss showbiz?" Alice asked. "If you mean the tsismis and the intrigues, my answer is no. But if you mean the acting part, my answer is yes."

Before flying back to Canada, Alice will first proceed to Florida and learn from her sister the tricks of a business she plans to put up in Vancouver.

"I’m also helping my sister run her real-estate there," said Alice.

The Balikbayan who came to stay

If you’ve seen the indie movie Jupit (currently showing in SM digital cinemas, grossing an impressive P1.5 million on opening day last Wednesday), you must have wondered who the newcomer leading man is who speaks straight Tagalog without an American twang. He’s none other than Tim Espinoza, a discovery of Bambbi Fuentes. Tim is a Balikbayan who has decided to stay.

Tim, 19, was born and grew up in San Diego, California, the youngest of the three children of a Kapampangan couple. He studied at the University City High School (also in San Diego) where he was active in plays and other school presentations.

When he came home last year (his first homecoming ever), Tim wanted to apply as a dancer with the Bayanihan but he ended up as the No. 13 member of the D’FreeMales Dancers which is managed by Bambbi (a friend of Tim’s aunt).

When Bambbi learned that director-producer Alvin Reyes Fortuno was looking for a new face as main character of Jupit, he recommended Tim who turned out to be just perfect for the role of the Balikbayan neighbor of a parlorista (played by Ate Gay). Written by Frank Millari and Michelle Ramos, Jupit (slang for gupit) chronicles the lives of hairstylists.

"How did I find my first movie-acting experience?" asked Tim (whose surname is Bundalian; Espinoza is his middle name) without an American twang. "Great! I’m already looking forward to my next movie."

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