Gloria Romero, Mel Tiangco, Nova Villa, Eddie Garcia get special lifetime achievement citations in Golden Screen TV Awards

 CEBU, Philippines - Aside from giving awards in 51 categories, the Entertainment Press Society’s Golden Screen TV Awards is also handing special lifetime achievement citations to four personalities who are tops in their respective fields.

The Golden Screen TV Awards is giving the Helen Vela Lifetime Achievement Award for Drama to ageless movie queen Miss Gloria Romero; the Helen Vela Lifetime Achievement Award for Comedy to veteran comedienne Miss Nova Villa; and the Helen Vela Lifetime Achievement Award for News Broadcast to Miss Mel Tiangco.

A new award is likewise being given this year – Dolphy Lifetime Achievement Award: Ulirang Alagad ng Sining – named in honor of the dear departed comedy king Dolphy – to Mr. Eddie Garcia, the accomplished actor and director who embodies the qualities of professionalism.

Ms. Gloria Romero started her career at the age of 19 in Sampaguita Pictures. Some of her memorable movies were “Dalagang Ilocana” and “Tanging Yaman” for which she won best actress awards at FAMAS. Her career spans 60 years.

After a long run as a movie star she also appeared on TV. She is best remembered for her role television sitcom Palibhasa Lalaki as the drunkard Tita Minerva, and other sitcom such as “Richard Loves Lucy” and “Ok Fine! Whatever.” After having been with ABS-CBN for quite a number of years, she transferred to GMA 7 where she did the teleserye “Munting Heredera.” She is now playing the lead role in “Forever” with Heart Evangelista and Geoff Eigenmann.

Miss Nova Villa started in showbiz at the age of 16. It was the famed comedienne Chichay who helped her start a career in showbiz. She became a lone star at FPJ Productions.

Tita Nova is known for her sitcom Chicks to Chicks where she played wife to former basketball player Freddie Webb. “Chicks to Chicks” was one of the top-rating programs during its time. Aside from this, she played opposite comedy king Dolphy in “Home Along Da Riles” on ABS-CBN which ran for a good number of years. Among her most recent programs on TV were “My Beloved” and “Tweets for My Sweet” (for which she is nominated for Outstanding Performance by A Supporting Actress in a Comedy or Gag Show).  She won several acting awards as a comedienne and she relishes the idea that she is being given a chance to do some dramatic roles this time.

Ms. Mel Tiangco or Tita Mel started her career as a broadcaster in RPN 9 where she did the newscast for NewsWatch. She also became the host of Helpline also for Channel 9. In 1983, she joined City2 Balita of BBC (Bohol Broadcasting Company). She joined ABS-CBN in 1986 where she became the newscaster of Balita Ngayon.  A year later, she became one of the anchors of TV Patrol, the new flagship news program of ABS-CBN that time. She also became one of the hosts of “Mel and Jay” for ABS-CBN as well.

It was in1995 when Tita Mel transferred to GMA 7 after she was suspended by ABS-CBN for appearing in a commercial. It was a no-no for ABS-CBN news anchors to appear in advertisements. Tita moved to GMA 7 where she was warmly welcomed. She became one of the news anchors of Saksi and hosted the talk show “Partners: Mel and Jay.”

She also became the news anchor of “Frontpage” and was given the chance to host the weekly drama anthology “Magpakailanman” (which had been revived). She also hosted the show “Mel & Joey” with Joey de Leon. Tita Mel is currently co-anchor of GMA Network’s evening newscast “24 Oras” with Mike Enriquez.

She is also involved in philanthropic work as the Executive Vice President of the GMA Kapuso Foundation, the network’s socio-civic arm.

At his age, although many are guessing as to what really his real age is, Eddie Garcia is looked up to by his peers in the industry, both young and old alike. The durable actor-director has defied time. The actor is the epitome of professionalism – he comes to the set on time, he knows his lines, carries his own wardrobe (he doesn’t have an alalay). And he is a delight on the set, as attested by his co-actors.

Tito Eddie started his career as a movie star in 1946 when he appeared in the costume movie Siete Infantes de Lara. His career as an actor spans 67 years and is marked by numerous awards. He is the only person in the Philippines to be a Hall of Fame inductee of the FAMAS in three categories: Best Actor, Best Supporting Actor and Best Director.

As a TV star, he is best remembered for the role of Leandro Montemayor, the fictional Philippine President in the television drama series “Kung Mawawala Ka” from GMA 7. That series gave him his first Best Actor in A Drama Series award in the Star Awards in 2002.

He is also known for portraying various roles either the main villain or the lead or supporting character. He is also known for his trademark humorous lines which he says mostly in action films or comedy films.

He was chosen to be the first recipient of the Dolphy Lifetime Achievement Award because Tito Eddie embodies or represents the qualities that the late comedy possesses during his lifetime – professional, dignified, and respectable.

He does every job well, whether it’s a lead, support or guest role. “It’s a job, you should always do it well,” he would often say in interviews. He has no plans of retiring yet. “What will I do when I retire? I will just get bored. I will be in the industry as long as it needs me. If not, then that’s the time to say goodbye.”

Despite his success, Tito Eddie has remained level-headed, with his feet firmly on the ground.

For all his accomplishments, the Entertainment Press Society is presenting him the Dolphy Lifetime Achievement Award - Ulirang Alagad ng Sining in recognition of his expertise and excellence.