Cebu movies circa 1939

This columnist thought all along that Cebu (or Visayan) movies started in the early ’50s, with such stars as Gloria Sevilla, Mat Ranillo, Virgie Postigo (Lorna Mirasol), Caridad Sanchez, Editha Clomera, Romy Kintanar and Arturo de Castille. It turned out Cebu movies dated back much earlier, 1939, when the first Visayan movie was produced, Bertoldo-Balodoy.

Cebu-based films did not last long, but in the ’70s there were attempts to revive them. Such popular names as Eddie Gutierrez, Gina Pareño, Chanda Romero and Ernie Garcia appeared in Visayan films. But as in the ’30s and ’50s, they proved to be short-lived.

Remember When? reprints en toto an article on Cebu movies which came out in the December 1939 issue of Literary Song-Movie, penned by Joe A. Bautista. — RKC

Cebu invades the movies By Joe A. Bautista

Good news to seven million Visayan-speaking movie fans all over the Commonwealth is the establishment of the first and only talking picture company south of Manila, known as Estudios Americo-Filipinas, with its large, modern studios located at picturesque Lahug Hills, the San Juan Heights of prosperous Cebu City.

After more than a year of tedious preparations, this pioneer, ambitious film-producing institution in the Southland is now ready, willing and able to exhibit its debut production, Bertoldo Balodoy, sometime this month. The inaugural gala premiere is scheduled at one of Cebu’s 15 up-to-date theatres — that is, if the Philippine Board of Movie Censorship gives its final OK to the much-awaited picture.

The producer, Dr. Virgilio Gonzales (brother of president Bienvenido Gonzales of the University of the Philippines) and the director of the film, Pio Kabahar, are highly confident of the box-office success of their P10,000 maiden production, what with the thousands of enthusiastic “cinemaddicts” from the Visayas and Mindanao that are expected to preview the first Visayan all-talking, all-singing super production. The picture would certainly make screen history in the Visayan-speaking sector of the archipelago.

Kisses, Laughs — No Tears

Bertoldo Balodoy is a romantic musical comedy in the widely-spoken Cebuano lingo. It stars for the first time the celebrated “dictator of Cebu comedians,” Piux Kabahar, who is also the author and director of the photodrama. Co-starred with Kabahar are three of Cebu’s most promising screen stars: Linda Ollada, Ipyon Lorma and Ben Abeda.

The unique story of Bertoldo Balodoy swings about the streamlined romance and hilarious adventures of love-sick Filipino Siamese twins, Bertoldo (played by Ben Abeda) and Balodoy (Piux Kabahar) who do a lot of tricks at the expense of Cupid and put an end to their adventures and misadventures by marrying two pretty sister-heiresses, Bining and Daringding (played by Lindi and Ipyon Lorma, respectively). From the opening shot to the final fade-out, Bertoldo Balodoy is humor-packed and alive with good clean fun, tense with dramatic action, devoid of tears and sentimentalism and crammed with real, honest-to-goodness kissing scenes.

Why the first full-length Visayan film has to be made a comedy is explained by the fact that Visayans, generally speaking, have a very sharp sense of humor.

Cebu’s Glamour Girls

The birth of the movies in Cebu has led to the discovery of several glamour girls for the local screen. Handsome playboys have also been spotted by the casting director and talent scouts of the Estudios Americo-Filipinas. A long line of movie applicants jam the studio offices every day. They come from almost all points of the Visayas and Mindanao each one ambitious of becoming a movie star.

Tall, winsome and romantic Linda Ollada is one of the most glamorous leading ladies of Cebu’s cinemadom today. Only 19, Linda is an accomplished actress who made her dramatic start on the stage. She is 5’3” and a fine singer, too. Linda’s real name is Crescenciana Ollada. She is dubbed as “Lucita Goyena of Cebu” because of her fair resemblance to the popular X Otic Films celebrity.

Another glamour girl of Cebu screenland is lovely, photogenic, dark-eyed Aileen Oria, cousin of the well-known Singing Sweetheart of the Philippines, Elsa Oria. Pretty Aileen is only 17 years old, stands 5’2” on the “hoofs,” speaks fluent Spanish, English and Visayan. Gifted with fair dramatic ability, Aileen may yet steal the show from her famous cousin in Manila.

Cebu is also proud of its Oomph Girl, Olga Garriga, a pretty mestiza who will soon star in a forthcoming dramatic picture of the E-A-F. Olga is also young in years, but she has shown her acting talent many times in the past. She had appeared as a supporting player in several Tagalog films but decided to go back to Cebu to star in Visayan films.

Known as the Singing Sweetheart of Cebu is charming, silver-voiced Doray Silloria, otherwise dubbed as “the woman who could sing like a canary.” She is a veteran actress of the stage. Miss Fely Vallejo, who had heard her sing in Cebu once, commented that Doray has a marvelous natural voice.

Such accomplished actresses from the stage as Conching Maningo, Intang Navarro, Oding Alburo, Ipyon Lorm, Laliang Hernandez and Ipyon Cananea are now displaying their histrionic wares before the cameras down at the Americo-Filipinas studios, perhaps inspired by the thought of showing the Tagalog movie public that the Visayas also has a score of screen luminaries that could put Cebu on the movie map.