TV’s face of ’87

Twenty years ago, one of the most popular faces to hit the local TV screen did not exactly conform to the usual standard of beauty set by Western society. But along with Toni Rose Gayda and Alice Dixson, Zorayda Sanchez became one of the faces of TV in 1987.

Middle of last week, I got a text message from Zorayda and she wanted to interview me regarding my immigrant status for Ang OFW Ngayon where she is one of the writers. Oh, so she now writes.

But as I later found out, she had always been a writer – even from way back. However, that’s getting ahead of the story. After 20 years, I thought it would be interesting to retrace the tale of this comedienne who made waves at a time when TV was going through re-birthing pains as a result of EDSA I.

In 1972, after finishing journalism at the University of Santo Tomas, Zorayda Sanchez worked for DZRH where she wrote scripts for drama programs.

When University of life was put up as one of Imelda Marcos’ passing fancies, however, Zorayda took on a regular writing job there and eventually joined its in-house theater group, Dulaang Bayan, where she was able to express her passion for her other interest – acting.

A few years later, their Dulaang Bayan director, Frank Rivera, decided to recruit some of his actors and introduced them to mainstream show business – specifically the movies. Zorayda’s first film was undeniably hot and sexy: the late Claudia Zobel’s Shame.

But I’ll never forget her in Working Girls as the office clerk making confetti (this was in the pre-EDSA days of the street parliamentarians) who makes a snide remark at Carmi Martin: "Hmp, ang pangit naman!" That was the character of Zorayda Sanchez speaking in the film.

By this time, she had given up her job at the University of Life where she received a salary of P1,500 a month. The movies – she figured – paid much better: P300 a day. For 10 days’ work, she easily brought home P3,000 that didn’t require her to be tied down to a desk from 8-5.

Zorayda went on playing bit roles in film after film until she found herself on the set of a movie being directed by Laurice Guillen. As fate would have it, the gag show Going Bananas was being put up by ABS-CBN and among its mainstays was Johnny Delgado.

One day, Johnny went to visit wife Laurice and saw Zorayda. He immediately recommended her to be part of Going Bananas where she was an instant hit among TV viewers.

She became so popular that she was even made to co-host with Edu Manzano (and along with Toni Rose Gayda and Aiza Seguerra) the first (and grandest) Star Awards for TV (produced by June Rufino) at the Araneta Coliseum.

Zorayda’s Going Bananas exposure definitely made her a star and finally she was given more substantial roles in comedy films.

Stardom, however, didn’t necessarily change her lifestyle. A native of Angono, Rizal, Zorayda continued taking public transportation getting to work and back home – yes, in Angono. For a while, her father was there to drive her to work in the family jeep (the owner type), but dear Dad had to leave for the US and she had to take the taxi from ABS-CBN to EDSA Crossing where she would get on a passenger jeepney bound for Angono.

Sure, her co-passengers recognized her as the comedienne from Going Bananas and they fussed over her especially in the beginning. But she didn’t drive and couldn’t afford even that time a personal driver to take her around.

Although she was a bona fide star, she didn’t have a manager and she always got the raw end of the deal in any transaction in show business.

Then in 1988, she met and fell in love with a screen stud and got pregnant. She gave birth to a daughter – Alexis Joyce – and had to slow down due to the demands of motherhood. (She lost touch with the father of her child after only a few years.)

Since taping for Going Bananas ended till the wee hours of the morning, there was always this sense of guilt about leaving behind her infant daughter at home. She quit television and returned to writing scripts for DZRH. Later, she wrote for one of the major dailies and is currently with Ang OFW Ngayon.

From time to time she would appear on TV and in the movies, but it was basically writing that was her preoccupation through the past several years. As a testimony to her success in showbiz, she has this 270 square meter lot in Angono to show.

At the moment, she still lives with her daughter in the family home put up for her and her siblings by their parents (now both deceased) in Angono. (The house was gutted by fire years ago, but has since been rebuilt). Alexis Joyce, turning 19 in June, is now a B.S. Biology major at the State University and has plans of proceeding to medicine proper after she is done with her undergraduate studies. Zorayda is mighty proud to say that she raised her daughter all by herself – although a sister based in the US had been of big help in the financial aspect.

Zorayda, of course, has fond memories of that time she was very active in showbiz. "But you know what," she tells me, "I didn’t feel I was popular that time. Maybe it was because I didn’t change my lifestyle."

But I wondered in my heart if she felt pain when she was mocked for her physical features and was the national butt of cruel jokes back then. (Woe to anyone named Zorayda that time – the name was associated with lack of physical beauty.)

"I am a writer and that helped me to become broad-minded," she tells me. "I figured then that that was only a character in a script. If I didn’t accept it, someone else would have taken it."

True – someone else could have grabbed the part. But whoever that was perhaps wouldn’t have made the same impact. Maybe she’s too modest to say it, but I believe that there can only be one Zorayda Sanchez – TV’s face of ’87.