What made Joey return to Wow Mali!

Because the gag show’s “best of” episodes is being replayed on TV5 week after week, not many people realized that Wow Mali! formally wound up in 2006.

But on Sunday, Feb. 22, 6 p.m. on TV5, the show will be back totally re-charged, still with Joey de Leon, the Master Prankster, as host.

“I named only one condition for me to return to the show,” said Joey, “and that is, that it must have something new.”

Wow Mali! is the longest-running show on TV5 (formerly ABC 5). It started in 1996 and has since been imitated but never equaled.

With Joey himself contributing wacky ideas, the show has added to its “good time” episodes more ribticklers, including the Parlor Game portion in which the contestants are parloristas (gay owners of beauty parlors) debating right inside their place of work such “earth-shaking” issues as Should the name of the Philippines be changed?...Should the design of the Philippine flag be changed?...If reincarnated, kaninong katawan ng artistang lalaki mo gusto ma-reincarnate?

On the show’s second month, the “debate” will cover people on the street. with Joey himself as moderator.

“That’s another change,” Joey pointed out. “Before, all I did was the intro of the gags. Now, I do field work. Before, the pranks were limited to Metro Manila. Now, we go nationwide.”

For the premier episode and the succeeding ones, the prank show covers the Bicol Region, Pampanga, the northern provinces and Quezon Province. The classic celebrity set-up pins down TV5’s Midnight DJ Oyo Sotto as the pilot-episode victim whose leg gets pulled off by his Tito Joey.

Very interesting is the translation portion in which Joey picks the respondents at random on the streets. Try translating Ang babaeng hinugot sa aking tadyang. Or Don’t touch me!

With Wow Mali!, Joey is the most visible figure on Philippine television. Monday through Friday, he co-hosts Eat, Bulaga! (which is marking its 30th anniversary this year); Saturdays, aside from Bulaga! he co-hosts Startalk; and Sundays, he has three shows, Mel & Joey, Wow Mali! and a new one also on GMA. He’s the only TV host who has appeared in all stations (except the government-run NBN Channel 4, namely Channels 2, 3, 5, 7, 9 and 13) and the only columnist who has written for three broadsheets (from Inquirer to Bulletin and now The STAR).

Charice is World Vision’s new sponsor

Did you know that more than 9,000 Filipino children are being sent by kind-hearted people to school?

“That’s the immediate goal of World Vision,” said Karen Davila, one of those behind the child-focused organization which has launched a campaign to send those 9,000 children to school this year. “We want every Pinoy — students, businessmen, parents, young professionals and even children — to catch our vision and help a needy child.”

The latest addition to the growing list of child sponsors (including Sam Milby, Nikki Gil, Christian Bautista, Sam Concepcion and Miriam Quiambao) is none other than Charice who is now sending seven-year-old Nica of Cavite to school through World Vision’s Child Sponsorship Program.

“I’ve been blessed,” said Charice. “I want to share my blessings with poor children. I know how they feel dahil naranasan ko rin naman ang kahirapan.”

According to Karen, Charice met Nica and her mom Annie during their photo shoot.

“Study hard,” Charice advised Nica. “It’s for your own good, for your own future.”

At present, over 16,000 people locally have caught the vision and are sending around 23,000 children to school in 34 provinces across the country.

“Each year,” added Karen, “more and more children are dropping out of school due to poverty.”

It takes very little to help sponsor a child, only P600 a month which is much, much less than the cost of two P300 pre-paid loads.

Have a heart. Call 372-7777 for more information, or log on to www.worldvision.org.ph.

“Your P600 will go a long way in helping a poor child have a better future,” assured Karen.

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