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For the past 21 years, The Filipino Express has provided the Filipino American community the best news, arts and entertainment coverage from around the United States and the Philippines.
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This website includes selected articles from this week's edition of the Filipino Express. Not all the stories published in the printed version appear on this site.
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It’s Over When The Sopranos Sing
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I AM a confessed Sopranos junkie. I have seen every episode that producer David Chase put out on television. I have all the DVDs as well. And this Sunday, June 10, everything ends. The Sopranos are finally singing their last aria. The final episode. The Jersey-based crime drama on HBO is perhaps the most successful TV series about the mafia. It has won numerous Emmy’s and became the best thing out of Jersey since Cinderella Man Jim Braddock. It became so big, that there are Sopranos tour buses in the New York City to visit the places in neighboring Jersey where Tony and his gang hang out: The very famous ‘Bada-Bing!’ night club, which is an actual night club in Lodi, NJ called Satin Dolls, ‘Satriale’s Pork Store’ and even ‘Pizzaland’ in North Arlington - the pizza store that appears on the show’s opening credits for just mere seconds. It wasn’t even used as a set. But according to the owner their popularity ballooned to enormous proportions and as a result, business is great! They get orders from as far as Anchorage and they do ship their pizzas there via Fed Ex! The Sopranos is such a great show and I feel low seeing it all end. Last Sunday’s episode is perhaps one of the best episodes in the show’s history. The long standing cold war between the New York family headed by Phil Leotardo finally moved on their Jersey counterparts, resulting in an all out war. The Sopranos decide to move first, but the hired guns fail on their attempt to silence the New York boss. Apparently Phil is in hiding after giving the order to his henchmen to eliminate the Sopranos. Tony Soprano’s main guys, Bobby Baccala and Silvio Dante are both clipped. (Baccala died on the spot, while Dante is said to be in critical condition after multiple gunshot wounds.) and Tony knows he’s next. In fact everything is crashing down on Tony. His sins are catching up on him. His years of therapy with Dr. Melfi ends on a sour note, his son AJ is still messed up, his daughter Maedow decides not to pursue medicine and his best buddy, Silvio is dying. It is so odd that we all know that Tony deserves all this after all that he’s done. Yet, there is that mysterious feeling of sympathy for his character in spite of all his wrong doings. We simply root for him no matter what. That is the charm of the series. It created conflicted characters and it brought these conflicts right into the viewer’s hearts. That’s why In the world of the Sopranos, the good guys - the FBI, law enforcement, are the bad guys. And the mafiosos are the heroes. You just can’t help but feel for these crooks and it’s weird. I remember right after watching a whole DVD of season 2, I went on an Italian food craze. All of a sudden, I was craving and eating capiccolas, maniccotis, calzones, Italian subs, zitti, pizzas and wine. I must have added 30 pounds into my already hefty built. But hey, at least I ate what the Sopranos ate. The last time I felt sad about a TV show’s end was when Six Feet Under ended its run in 2005, and I don’t see anything good lately on TV that would get me involved as much as these two shows did.
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DIANA Zubiri projects the beauty of a true Filipina—charming and delicate-looking. But she also exudes strong sex appeal.
The secret lies in her eyes, or maybe in her upper bumpers. Or maybe, it’s in the way she carries herself.
Wherever her sex appeal may emanate, Diana is undoubtedly one of the small wonders of showbusiness. In person, she looks like a typical pretty neighbor, but on screen, she comes altogether differently.
So people, especially men from Bongabon, Nueva Ecija where she and co-star Francine Prieto shot some delicate scenes for Seiko Films’ “Silip” with leading man, Polo Ravales, consider the chance of seeing her in the flesh an unforgettable experience.
Meanwhile, many were intrigued on how “Silip” would end after seeing the trailer but director Joel Lamangan won’t reveal how he resolved the issues among its characters. “Just watch it,” he advises. “One thing’s sure though, it is a movie that will give Diana a grab for the best actress in the next awards derbies next year.”(MNS)
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MANILA -- Sam Milby confessed that while he and Toni Gonzaga were doing the movie, “Close to You,” he felt an attraction to her.
But he was not able to act on that attraction because Toni, revealed Sam, intimidated him. Already a fast rising movie and TV star at that time, Sam admitted that it was a challenge going after the more popular Toni.
So, how’s his relationship with Toni now that he, too, has made a name for himself?
“Well, we are good friends, too,” Sam answered.
Are he and Anne on? Sam was asked.
“No,” Sam replied promptly. “We are just friends. “And as Anne has said, the reason we are mistaken for sweethearts is because we go out together often.”
Sam and Anne, both children of mixed marriages, have a lot in common. Their moms are Filipinos and their dads are foreigners. Sam’s dad is an American from Ohio, while Anne’s dad is an Australian lawyer. Sam and Anne were also both born abroad.
Anne was nine years old when she appeared in her first movie, “Enchanted Kingdom.” Sam is a product of the first season of “Pinoy Big Brother.”
Anne and Sam played lovers in the recently-concluded teleserye, “Maging Sino Ka Man,” on Channel 2. They appeared with another love team, that of John Lloyd Cruz and Bea Alonzo. (MNS)
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WHAT can Rica Peralejo say about his ex-BF’s short-lived marriage to Meryll Soriano? Did she have a feeling it really wouldn’t last very long? “No, I never expected na maghihiwalay sila agad,” she says.
“I’m the kind of person who thinks positively and I really felt sad for both of them when I learned about it, especially for the baby na hindi pa nga lumalabas, hiwalay na ang parents.
But let’s not be judgmental about it. I’m sure they’ll try their best to make the best out of the situation.”
What about Piolo Pascual’s reported courting of her? It’s said she only admitted that he indeed courted her after ABS-CBN reprimanded her for constantly denying this. “ABS didn’t have anything to do with that. I’m 25 years old and I won’t let anyone interfere with my personal life or dictate on me.
I say what I want to say. I don’t want to be dishonest. When writers asked me then, ang tanong nila is: nanliligaw ba sa’yo si Piolo? So I said no. Hindi ko na lang sinabing nanligaw siya kasi mahabang explanation pa. It’s our mutual decision that he stopped courting me as we both felt it’s not the best thing for both of us because we’re both so busy with so many other things.”
After “Palimos ng Pag-ibig”, she’s waiting for ABS-CBN to give her a new assignment. Meantime, she’s doing “Tiyanaks” for Regal. “This is my second film with Mother Lily after ‘Hari ng Sablay’. It’s a welcome breather for me dahil sunod-sunod na dramas ang ginawa ko sa ABS. Also, I welcome working with my co-stars in ‘Tiyanaks’ na puro taga-GMA 7, sina Mark Herras, Jennylyn Mercado, JC De Vera, and Ryan Yllana who’s a very funny guy even off cam.
My love interest is TJ Trinidad, pero hindi masyadong important ang love angle kasi the film concentrates on scaring the viewers. I saw the ‘Tiyanak’ of Janice de Belen in 1989. Seven years old pa lang ako noon and I was so scared. I didn’t know that 18 years later, I would be doing a new version. Iba ito kasi as the title indicates, hindi lang isa ang tiyanak kundi ‘Tiyanaks’. Tatlo sila, led by Nash Aguas and with Lotlot de Leon as their mysterious caretaker. The only girl is Mika de la Cruz, the kid sister of Angelika de la Cruz.
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