Laughing at midnight All the Way

MANILA, Philippines - Three decades in the limelight has not dimmed the luster of born gentleman, Jojo Alejar, a rara avis in the jungle that is show business. He has successfully found his niche in the fickle pantheon that is entertainment with its cult of youth and beauty, using not only his debonair looks, but more his wit and perspicacity in an enduring late-night talk show that has slowly but surely metamorphosed in the midnight shift of a UHF channel, to a fledgeling network to a fast-rising empire. The revitalized show was retitled The Medyo Late Night Show with Jojo A All the Way with new partners. VP for marketing Teddy Pereña, a kapatid from UST’s Faculty of Arts and Letters where Jojo studied, promised: “We will live up to the name of this show that has made it  a household name — we will go all the way to entertain and educate the viewing public.”

The show, which is molded in the American genre popularized by Johnny Carson, David Letterman, Jay Leno and Conan O’Brien called Jojo A, All the Way is a tribute to this gem of a man, who traversed Kuya Germs’ bagets Neverland of That’s Entertainment and never looked back.

If names are oracles, his are well-chosen, as Alfredo Rizalito Alejar has proven with his distinguished career his Anglo-Saxon first name (which means wise counsel) and his patriotic second one (being born on the same day as the Pride of the Malay Race on June 19, 1966 in Manila, and come to think of it, sporting the same Victorian hair style). With older brother Toby becoming a heartthrob on silver screen, he had to work doubly hard to find his place in the sun. From dancing (he is the founding member of a dance group The Tigers) to acting (his filmography a string of youth-oriented sitcoms and movies) to hosting, his stride remains unbroken.

Thursdays, one finds him in his 18th Ave studio, where he tapes his Monday to Friday show from 4 p.m. to the wee hours. He starts with a prayer, invoking God for the well-being of all the people around him — guests and crew alike, a habit ingrained by his parents and Marist school mentors. His director, Bahjo Cabautan and staff plus interns are well-attuned to his well-organized schedule, ready with a small whiteboard where he scribbles last-minute adlibs and cues. He is thankfully systematic, minimizing the organized chaos in the set, as he deftly makes choices from his suits to his quips. Cool and collected, he never loses his poise, even with zany characters like Brod Pete, a.k.a. Isko Salvador, another fellow Artlets and Thomasian, barging in on his set with a dos por dos, shrieking like he would pummel him to kingdom come. After the first take, Jojo slouches in his swivel chair with a wide grin signifying that he is enjoying every moment of the caper.

His equanimity is refreshing, as he talks to his guests from all walks of life, with candor and respect — belying his good breeding and education. Be it a jeproks singer in a rock band, an honorable government functionary, or an academic stuff shirt, he treats his guests with a gentle grace that puts them at ease despite the bright lights and relentless cameras. “There’s always fun and precious revelations about everyone, ordinary people, businessmen, politicians…,” he said with a twinkle in his gwaping eyes.

An equally-famous comrade in trade and fellow Artlets and Thomasian, showbiz jongleur Butch Francisco, requested him to enumerate his 10 dream interviews and with his razor-sharp mind, randomly catalogued a gamut of local personalities: Former Pres. Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, BB Gandanghari, Dr. Vicki Belo, Willie Revillame, Fr. Suarez, lawyer Koko Pimentel, Vice Pres. Jejomar Binay, Pres. Noynoy Aquino, Manny Pangilinan and Rep. Bongbong Marcos. If for the latter, he asks about redemption of the family name, one can bet no offense will be taken, because he can dish the querry out with sense and sensibility and allow his subject time to respond with quiet dignity.

This elusive tact of diplomacy has imbued the show with a feel-good aura so that guests sit on his couch hoping to have a good time and bid farewell fulfilled. Perhaps it is Jojo’s training in political science at UST’s Faculty of Arts and Letters that has taken him to the right path in his people skills. One of his favorite teachers, Prof. Anita Penuliar-Garcia, fondly remembers “that handsome and charming sophomore in her Rm. 113 class in the ’90s, who made the girls swoon with his gyrating dance.” She wistfully reminisced on the student days of this boy she called “Mr. Simpatico” though, wishing he had more time for his academics, as he was simply too involved with his showbiz career. Hearing that he will be emceeing the university’s grand alumni dinner for the coming quadricentennial celebrations, Mam Nette, as Jojo calls her, was overjoyed. “Seeing and hearing him host professionally is just wonderful, and I must say he is very good at it — his spiels are well-researched and his jokes well-timed,” UST’s darling Student Welfare and Development Board head opined.

Though the road has not led to a career in law, he nevertheless put his liberal arts training to good use working as chief of staff for Parañaque Rep. Ed Zialcita in the halls of the legislative branch, where he met the love of his life — now Bangko Central officer, Anna Villapando Reyes. The two recently tied the knot in church having been wed civilly for quite a time, with their three offsprings Alfredo Alexander, Aurora Leticia and Alfredo Emmanuel in the entourage.

In a profession where icons like CNN’s Larry King has to make way for a more hard-hitting successor, he has crafted a way not to be irreverent and intrusive without being irrelevant and inept. This is a gift that Jojo has perfected with time and goodwill as he parries and fends over life’s twists and turns in the witching hours of midnight with his celebrity guests in his characteristic laughter that will surely bring him and his viewers to better places, all the way.