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Showing posts with label TV Host. Show all posts
Showing posts with label TV Host. Show all posts

Tuesday, September 6, 2011

Manny Pacquiao (Pacman)

Emmanuel Dapidran Pacquiao born December 17, 1978), also known as Manny Pacquiao, is a Filipino professional boxer and politician. He is an eight-division world champion, the first boxer in history to win ten world titles in eight different weight divisions. He is also the first boxer in history to win the lineal championship in four different weight classes. He was named "Fighter of the Decade" for the 2000's by the Boxing Writers Association of America (BWAA). He is also a three-time The Ring and BWAA "Fighter of the Year", winning the award in 2006, 2008, and 2009.

Currently, Pacquiao is the WBC Super Welterweight World Champion and WBO Welterweight World Champion (Super Champion). He is also currently rated as the "number one" pound-for-pound best boxer in the world by most sporting news and boxing websites, including The Ring, Sports Illustrated, ESPN, NBC Sports, Yahoo! Sports, Sporting Life and About.com.

Aside from boxing, Pacquiao has participated in acting, music recording, and politics. In May 2010, Pacquiao was elected to the House of Representatives in the 15th Congress of the Philippines, representing the province of Sarangani. He is the only active boxer to become a congressman in the Philippines.

Personal life


Pacquiao was born on December 17, 1978, in Kibawe, Bukidnon, Philippines. He is the son of Rosalio Pacquiao and Dionesia Dapidran-Pacquiao. His parents separated when he was in sixth grade, after his mother discovered that his father was living with another woman. He is the fourth among six siblings: Liza Silvestre-Onding and Domingo Silvestre (from first husband of his mother) and Isidra Pacquiao-Paglinawan, Alberto "Bobby" Pacquiao and Rogelio Pacquiao.

Pacquiao is married to Maria Geraldine "Jinkee" Jamora, and they have four children: Emmanuel Jr. "Jimuel", Michael, Princess, and Queen Elizabeth "Queenie". He resides in his hometown General Santos City, South Cotabato, Philippines. However, as a congressman of lone district of Sarangani, he is officially residing in Kiamba, Sarangani, the hometown of his wife.

Pacquiao is a devout Roman Catholic. Within the ring, he frequently makes the sign of the cross and every time he comes back from a successful fight abroad, he attends a thanksgiving Mass in Minor Basilica of the Black Nazarene in Quiapo, Manila to kneel and pray.

Pacquiao is also a military reservist with the rank of Sergeant Major for the 15th Ready Reserve Division of the Philippine Army. When younger he had considered becoming a soldier, and was enlisted in the military reserve force as an Army Private.
Education

Pacquiao completed his elementary education at Saavedra Saway Elementary School in General Santos City, but dropped out of high school due to extreme poverty. He left his home at age 14 because his mother, who had six children, was not making enough money to support her family.

In February 2007 he took, and passed, a high school equivalency exam making him eligible for college education. He was awarded with a high school diploma by the Department of Education. Pacquiao enrolled for a college degree in business management at Notre Dame of Dadiangas University (NDDU) in his hometown in General Santos City.

On February 18, 2009, Pacquiao was conferred the Honorary Degree of Doctor of Humanities (Honoris Causa) by Southwestern University (SWU) at the Waterfront Hotel and Casino in Lahug, Cebu City in recognition of his boxing achievements and humanitarian work.

In preparation for his career as a lawmaker in the House of Representatives, Pacquiao enrolled in the Certificate Course in Development, Legislation, and Governance at the Development Academy of the Philippines – Graduate School of Public and Development Management (DAP-GSPDM).

Amateur boxing career

At the age of 14, Pacquiao moved to Manila and lived, for a time, on the streets. He started boxing and made the Philippine national amateur boxing team where his room and board were paid for by the government. Pacquiao reportedly had an amateur record of 64 fights (60–4).

Professional boxing career

Early years at Light Flyweight division

In 1995, the death of a young aspiring boxer and close friend Eugene Barutag spurred the young Pacquiao to pursue a professional boxing career. Pacquiao started his professional boxing career when he was just 16 years of age, stood at 4'11'', and weighed 98 pounds (7 pounds under the minimumweight division). He admitted before American media that he put weights in his pockets to make the 105 pound weight limit. His early light flyweight division fights took place in small local venues and were shown on Vintage Sports' Blow by Blow, an evening boxing show. His professional debut was a four round bout against Edmund "Enting" Ignacio, on January 22, 1995, which Pacquiao won via decision, becoming an instant star of the program.

Pacquiao's weight increased from 106 to 113 pounds before losing in his 12th bout against Rustico Torrecampo via a third round knockout. Pacquiao failed to make the required weight, so he was forced to use heavier gloves than Torrecampo, thereby putting him at a disadvantage.

Flyweight division

Following the Torrecampo fight, Pacquiao continued undefeated for his next 15 fights. He went on another unbeaten run that saw him take on the vastly more experienced Chokchai Chockvivat in flyweight division. Pacquiao knocked out Chockvivat in the fifth round and took the Oriental and Pacific Boxing Federation (OPBF) Flyweight title. After one official defense and two non-title bouts, Pacquiao got his first opportunity to fight for a world title. Pacquiao captured the World Boxing Council (WBC) Flyweight World Title (his first major boxing world title as well as the flyweight lineal title) over Chatchai Sasakul by way of knockout in the eighth round. He defended the title successfully against Mexican Gabriel Mira via 4th round technical knockout. However, Pacquiao lost the title in his second defense against Medgoen Singsurat, also known as Medgoen 3K Battery, via a third round knockout. The bout was held in Nakhon Si Thammarat, Thailand. Singsurat got Pacquiao on the ropes and landed a flush straight right to the body coiling Pacquiao over and keeping him there. Technically, Pacquiao lost the belt at the scales, as he surpassed the weight limit of 112 pounds.

Super Bantamweight division

Following his loss to Singsurat, Pacquiao gained weight anew and skipped the super flyweight and bantamweight divisions. This time, Pacquiao went to super bantamweight or junior featherweight division of 122 pounds, where he picked up the WBC Super Bantamweight International Title. He defended this title five times before his chance for a world title fight came. Pacquiao's big break came on June 23, 2001, against former IBF World Super Bantamweight champion Lehlohonolo Ledwaba. Pacquiao stepped into the fight as a late replacement on two weeks' notice but won the fight by technical knockout and won the International Boxing Federation (IBF) Junior Featherweight World Title belt, his second major boxing world title. The bout was held at the MGM Grand Las Vegas, in Las Vegas, Nevada. Pacquiao went on to defend this title four times under head trainer Freddie Roach, owner of the famous Wild Card Gym in West Hollywood.

Featherweight division

On November 15, 2003, Pacquiao faced Marco Antonio Barrera at the Alamodome, San Antonio, Texas, in a fight that many consider to have defined his career. Pacquiao, who was fighting at featherweight for the first time, brought his power with him and defeated Barrera via technical knockout in the eleventh round and won The Ring Featherweight World Title (as well as the lineal featherweight champion), making him the first Filipino and Asian to become a three-division world champion, a fighter who won world titles in three different weight divisions. He defended the title twice before relinquishing it in 2005.

On November 24, 2003, the then Philippine President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo conferred on Pacquiao the Presidential Medal of Merit at the Ceremonial Hall of Malacañang Palace for his knockout victory over the best featherweight boxer of the world. The following day, the members of the House of Representatives of the Philippines presented the House Resolution No. 765, authored by the then House Speaker Jose De Venecia and Bukidnon Representative Juan Miguel Zubiri, which honored Pacquiao the Congressional Medal of Achievement for his exceptional achievements. Pacquiao is the first sportsman to receive such an honor from the House of Representatives.

Six months after the fight with Barrera, Pacquiao went on to challenge Juan Manuel Márquez, who at the time held both the World Boxing Association (WBA) and International Boxing Federation (IBF) Featherweight World Titles. The fight took place at the MGM Grand Las Vegas, on May 8, 2004, and after twelve rounds the bout was scored a draw, which proved to be a controversial decision that outraged both camps.

In the first round, Márquez was caught cold, as he was knocked down three times by Pacquiao. However, Márquez showed great heart to recover from the early knockdowns, and went on to win the majority of rounds thereafter. This was largely due to Márquez's counterpunch style, which he managed to effectively utilize against the aggressive style of Pacquiao. At the end of a very close fight, the final scores were 115–110 for Márquez, 115–110 for Pacquiao, and 113–113. One of the judges (who scored the bout 113–113) later admitted to making an error on the scorecards, because he had scored the first round as "10–7" in favor of Pacquiao instead of the standard "10–6" for a three-knockdown round. In fact, the fight should be scored as split decision in favor of Pacquiao. Consequently, both parties felt they had done enough to win the fight.

Super Featherweight division

On March 19, 2005, Pacquiao moved up in super featherweight or junior lightweight division of 130 pounds, in order to fight another Mexican legend and three-division world champion Érik Morales for vacant WBC International and IBA Super Featherweight Titles. The fight took place at the MGM Grand Las Vegas. In this fight, Pacquiao sustained a cut over his right eye from a from an accidental clash of heads in the fifth round. He lost the twelve round match by a unanimous decision from the judges. All three scorecards read 115–113 for Morales.]

On September 10, 2005, Manny Pacquiao fought Héctor Velázquez at Staples Center in Los Angeles, California. He knocked Velázquez out in six rounds to capture the WBC Super Featherweight International Title, which he went on to defend five times. On the same day, his rival, Érik Morales, fought Zahir Raheem and lost via unanimous decision.

Despite Morales's loss to Raheem. Pacquiao got matched up against Morales in a rematch which took place on January 21, 2006 at the Thomas and Mack Center in Las Vegas. During the fight, Morales escaped being knocked down twice, once in the second round by holding onto the ropes, and once in the sixth by falling on the referee. Pacquiao eventually knocked Morales out in the tenth, the first time Morales was knocked out in his boxing career.

On July 2, 2006, Pacquiao defended his WBC Super Featherweight International Title against Óscar Larios, a two-time super bantamweight champion, who had moved up two weight divisions to fight Pacquiao. Pacquiao won the fight via unanimous decision, knocking down Larios two times in the 12-round bout at the Araneta Coliseum in Quezon City, Philippines. The three judges scored the fight 117–110, 118–108, and 120–106 all for Pacquiao.

On July 3, 2006, the day after winning the fight against Larios, President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo personally bestowed the Order of Lakandula with the rank of "Champion for Life" (Kampeon Habambuhay) and the plaque of appreciation to Pacquiao in a simple ceremony at the Rizal Hall of Malacañang Palace.

Pacquiao and Morales fought a third time (with the series tied 1–1) on Nov. 18, 2006. Witnessed by a near record crowd of 18,276, the match saw Pacquiao defeat Morales via a third round knockout at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas. After the Pacquiao–Morales rubber match, Bob Arum, Pacquiao's main promoter, announced that Manny had returned his signing bonus back to Golden Boy Promotions, signaling intentions to stay with Top Rank. This prompted Golden Boy Promotions to sue Pacquiao over breach of contract.

After a failed promotional negotiation with Marco Antonio Barrera's camp, Bob Arum chose Jorge Solís as Pacquiao's next opponent among several fighters Arum offered as replacements. The bout was held in San Antonio, Texas, on April 14, 2007. In the sixth round, an accidental headbutt occurred, giving Pacquiao a cut under his left eyebrow. The fight ended in the eighth when Pacquiao knocked Solis down twice. Solis barely beat the count after the second knockdown, causing the referee to stop the fight and award Pacquiao a knockout win. The victory raised Pacquiao's win–loss–draw record to 44–3–2 with 34 knockouts. This also marked the end of Solis's undefeated streak.

On June 29, 2007, Top Rank and Golden Boy Promotions announced that they agreed to settle their lawsuit, meaning the long-awaited rematch with Marco Antonio Barrera would occur despite Pacquiao being the top-ranked contender for the super featherweight title of Juan Manuel Márquez. On October 6, 2007, Pacquiao defeated Barrera in their rematch via an easy unanimous decision. In the 11th round, Pacquiao's punch caused a deep cut below Barrera's right eye. Barrera retaliated with an illegal punch on the break that dazed Pacquiao but also resulted in a point deduction for Barrera. Two judges scored the bout 118–109, whereas the third scored it 115–112.

In The Ring Magazine, Pacquiao (45–3–2) remained at the top of the super featherweight division (130 pounds). He had been in the ratings for 108 weeks. On November 13, 2007, he was honored by the World Boxing Council as Emeritus Champion during its 45th Annual World Convention held at the Manila Hotel.

On November 20, 2007, José Nuñez, manager of WBO Super Featherweight champion Joan Guzmán, accused Pacquiao's handler Bob Arum of evading a match between the two boxers to protect Pacquiao. Guzmán went as far as to directly call out Pacquiao at the postfight press conference of the Pacquiao–Barrera rematch in front of a stunned crowd at the Mandalay Bay Events Center's media room in Las Vegas.

On March 15, 2008, in a rematch against Juan Manuel Márquez called "Unfinished Business", Pacquiao won via split decision. The fight was held at the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino in Las Vegas. With the victory, Pacquiao won the WBC Super Featherweight and The Ring Junior Lightweight World Titles (as well as the lineal junior lightweight title), making him the first Filipino and Asian to become a four-division world champion, a fighter who won world titles in four different weight divisions. The fight was a close hard fought battle, during which both fighters received cuts. Throughout the fight Márquez landed the most punches at a higher percentage; however, the decisive factor proved to be a third round knockdown, wherein Márquez was floored by a Pacquiao left hook. At the end of the fight, the judges' scores were 115–112 for Pacquiao, 115–112 for Márquez, and 114–113 for Pacquiao.

In the post-fight news conference, Márquez’s camp called for an immediate rematch. In addition, Richard Schaefer, Golden Boy Promotions CEO, offered a $6 million guarantee to Pacquiao for a rematch. However, Pacquiao ruled out a third clash with Márquez, saying, "I don't think so. This business is over." The reason that Pacquiao did not want a rematch was because he intended to move up to the lightweight division to challenge David Díaz, the reigning WBC Lightweight World Champion at that time. Díaz won a majority decision over Ramón Montano that night as an undercard of the "Unfinished Business" fight.

Lightweight division


On June 28, 2008, at the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino in Las Vegas, Pacquiao defeated David Díaz in lightweight division via ninth round knockout and won the WBC Lightweight World Title. With the victory, Pacquiao became the first and only Filipino and Asian to become a five-division world champion, a fighter who won world titles in five different weight divisions, and also became the first Filipino fighter to ever win a world title at lightweight. During the fight, which Pacquiao dominated, Díaz was cut badly on his right eye in the fourth round. After the bout, Díaz acknowledged Pacquiao's superior hand speed, stating "It was his speed. It was all his speed. I could see the punches perfectly, but he was just too fast."
Bob Arum reported that the fight had made 12.5 million dollars earning Díaz his best payday of 850,000 dollars, whilst Pacquiao earned at least 3 million dollars. Official records revealed an attendance of 8,362 (out of a maximum capacity of 12,000).


On August 7, 2008, the members of the House of Representatives of the Philippines issued a House Resolution, sponsored by South Cotabato Congresswoman Darlene Antonino-Custodio, which recognized Pacquiao as a "People’s Champ" — "for his achievements and in appreciation of the honor and inspiration he has been bringing... to the Filipino people." He received a plaque from the then House Speaker Prospero Nograles.

Welterweight division

On December 6, 2008, Pacquiao moved up to the welterweight division, in order to face the six-division world champion Oscar De La Hoya at the MGM Grand Las Vegas, in a fight called "The Dream Match". Presented by Golden Boy Promotions and Top Rank, the bout was scheduled as a twelve round, non-title fight contested at the 147 pound welterweight limit. Although Pacquiao went into the fight widely recognized as the leading pound-for-pound boxer in the world, some boxing pundits had speculated that 147 pounds could be too far above his natural weight against the larger De La Hoya. However, due to rehydration after the weigh in, De la Hoya came into the fight actually weighing less than Pacquiao, and close to 20 pounds under his usual fighting weight. Pacquiao dominated the fight, and after eight rounds De La Hoya's corner was forced to throw in the towel, awarding Pacquiao the win via technical knockout.

Pacquiao was ahead on all three judges' scorecards before the stoppage, with two judges scoring the fight at 80–71 and one scoring it at 79–72. Moreover, Pacquiao landed 224 out of 585 punches, whilst De La Hoya landed only 83 out of 402 punches. After the bout, trainer Freddie Roach stated "We knew we had him after the first round. He had no legs, he was hesitant and he was shot." The fight would be De La Hoya's last, as he announced his retirement from boxing shortly after.

Pacquiao received 15 to 30 million dollars (share of the pay-per-view), plus a guaranteed amount. Tickets reportedly sold out just hours after they went on sale. Moreover, the total gate revenue for the fight was said to be nearly 17 million dollars, making it the second largest gate revenue in boxing history.

On December 22, 2008, Pacquiao has been decorated with the Philippine Legion of Honor with the rank of "Officer" (Pinuno) in a ceremony marking the 73rd founding anniversary of the Armed Forces of the Philippines. As an army reservist, he was given recognition for bringing pride and honor to the country through his remarkable achievements in the ring.

Light Welterweight division


On May 2, 2009, Pacquiao fought at light welterweight or super lightweight division for the first time against Ricky Hatton at the MGM Grand Las Vegas, in a fight billed as "The Battle of the East and West". Pacquiao won the bout via knockout to claim the International Boxing Organization (IBO) Junior Welterweight and The Ring Junior Welterweight World Titles (as well as the lineal light welterweight title). In doing so, Pacquiao became the second man in boxing history to become a six-division world champion, a fighter who won world titles in six different weight divisions and the first man ever to win lineal world titles in four different weight classes.]

The fight was originally placed in jeopardy due to disputes with both camps over the fight purse money. Eventually, the money issue was settled and the fight went on as scheduled. HBO aired the contest.

Pacquiao started the fight strong, knocking down Hatton twice in the first round. A somewhat shaken Hatton beat the count, only to be saved by the bell seconds later. In the second round Hatton seemed to have recovered, as he stalked Pacquiao for most of the round. However, with less than ten seconds remaining in the second round, Hatton was knocked out cold by a sharp left hook, prompting the referee to award Pacquiao the win by knockout (at 2:59 of the round). The knockout won him the The Ring Magazine "Knockout of the Year" for 2009.

On November 14, 2009, Pacquiao defeated Miguel Cotto via technical knockout in the twelfth round, at the MGM Grand Las Vegas, in a fight billed as "Firepower". Although the bout was sanctioned as a world title fight in the welterweight division, where the weight limit is 147 pounds, Cotto agreed to fight at a catchweight of 145 pounds.

Pacquiao dominated the fight, knocking Cotto down in round three and round four, before the referee stopped the fight at 0:55 of round twelve. With this victory, Pacquiao took the World Boxing Organization (WBO) Welterweight World Title and WBO Super Champion belts, to become the first seven-division world champion, the first fighter in boxing history to win world titles in seven different weight divisions. Pacquiao also won the first and special WBC Diamond Championship belt. This belt was created as an honorary championship exclusively to award the winner of a historic fight between two high-profile boxers. After the fight, promoter Bob Arum stated "Pacquiao is the greatest boxer I've ever seen, and I've seen them all, including Ali, Hagler and Sugar Ray Leonard." Miguel Cotto said in a post fight interview: "Miguel Cotto comes to boxing to fight the biggest names, and Manny is one of the best boxers we have of all time." Cotto showed heart and fans regarded this as one of the year's best fights.

The fight generated 1.25 million buys and $70 million in domestic pay-per-view revenue, making it the most watched boxing event of 2009. Pacquiao earned around $22 million for his part in the fight, whilst Cotto earned around $12 million. Pacquiao–Cotto also generated a live gate of $8,847,550 from an official crowd of 15,930. On November 20, 2009, in a simple rites at the Quirino Grandstand, President Macapagal-Arroyo conferred Pacquiao the Order of Sikatuna with the rank of Datu (Grand Cross) with Gold distinction (Katangiang Ginto) which usually bestowed to foreign diplomats and heads of state. It was awarded to Pacquiao for winning his historical eight weight division world title.


Following the victory against Cotto, there was much public demand for a fight between the seven-division world champion Manny Pacquiao (the number 1 pound-for-pound boxer) and the five-division world champion Floyd Mayweather, Jr. (the number 2 and former number 1 pound-for-pound boxer). Pacquiao reportedly agreed to fight Mayweather on March 13, 2010, for a split of $50 million up front. And it was later agreed that the venue for the fight would be the MGM Grand Las Vegas. However, the bout was put in jeopardy due to disagreements about Olympic-style drug testing. The Mayweather camp wanted random blood testing by the United States Anti-Doping Agency, whereas Pacquiao refused to have any blood testing within 30 days from the fight, because he thought it would weaken him, but he was willing to have blood taken from him before the 30-day window as well as immediately after the fight. Freddie Roach, on the other hand, commented that he would not allow blood to be taken from Pacquiao one week before the fight. In an attempt to resolve their differences, the two camps went through a process of mediation before a retired judge. After the mediation process Mayweather agreed to a 14-day no blood testing window. However, Pacquiao refused and instead only agreed to a 24-day no blood testing window. Consequently, on January 7, 2010, Pacquiao's promoter Bob Arum declared that the fight was officially off.

Because of Pacquiao's reluctance to submit to random blood testing to the extent requested by Mayweather, and despite lack of evidence, the Mayweather camp repeated their suggestion that Pacquiao was using banned substances, which resulted in Pacquiao filing a lawsuit for defamation, seeking damages in excess of 75,000 dollars. The lawsuit cited accusations made by Floyd Mayweather, Jr., Floyd Mayweather Sr., Roger Mayweather, Oscar De La Hoya, and Golden Boy Promotions CEO Richard Schaefer.

After negotiations for the Mayweather fight fell through, other boxers were considered to replace Mayweather as Pacquiao's next opponent, including former light welterweight champion Paul Malignaggi, and WBA World Super Welterweight champion Yuri Foreman. However, Pacquiao chose to fight former IBF Welterweight World Champion Joshua Clottey instead.

On March 13, 2010, at the Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas, Pacquiao defeated Clottey via unanimous decision to retain his WBO Welterweight World Title belt. The judges scored the fight 120–108, 119–109 and 119–109, all in favor of Pacquiao. During the fight, Pacquiao threw a total of 1231 punches (a career high), but landed just 246, as most were blocked by Clottey's tight defense. On the other hand, Clottey threw a total of 399 punches, landing 108.

The fight was rewarded with a paid crowd of 36,371 and a gate of $6,359,985, according to post-fight tax reports filed with Texas boxing regulators. Counting complimentary tickets delivered to sponsors, media outlets and others, the Dallas fight attracted 41,843, well short of the 50,994 that was previously announced, but still an epic number for boxing. In addition, the bout drew 700,000 pay-per-view buys and earned $35.3 million in domestic revenue.

Manny Pacquiao was named as the Fighter of the Decade for years 2000–2009 by the Boxing Writers Association of America (BWAA). This award was presented by legendary boxer Joe Frazier, who was also a recipient of the award himself back in 1978 for defeating Muhammad Ali. Aside from this prestigious recognition, he was also named as the Sugar Ray Robinson Fighter of the Year for 2009, having received the same honor in 2006 and 2008. The awards ceremony was held at the Roosevelt Hotel in New York City on June 4, 2010.

After his victory over Clottey, Pacquiao was expected to return to boxing in late 2010 with a possible matchup against Floyd Mayweather Jr. It was later reported that Golden Boy Promotions CEO Richard Schaefer and Top Rank Chief Bob Arum worked out a '"Super Fight" between Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather Jr. However, complications arose when Mayweather requested Pacquiao undergo random blood and urine testing up until the fight day. Pacquiao responded that he would agree to undergo blood and urine testing up until 14 days before the fight (as requested by Mayweather in the first round of negotiations), stating that giving blood too close to the fight day would weaken him. On May 13, 2010, Pacquiao's promoter Bob Arum announced that he had penciled in November 13, 2010 as the date of Manny Pacquiao's next fight, possibly against Mayweather. However, the stumbling block over demands that Pacquiao submit to Olympic level random drug testing put the fight in jeopardy.

On June 12, 2010, the President of Golden Boy Promotions, Oscar De La Hoya, stated during an interview with a Spanish network that the deal for the fight was very close and the negotiation process has been very difficult. On June 30, 2010, Arum announced that the management of both sides had agreed to terms, that all points had been settled (including Pacquiao agreeing to submit to both blood and urine testing) and only the signature of Floyd Mayweather, Jr. was needed to seal the deal that could have earned both fighters at least $40 million each. Mayweather was then given a two-week deadline for the fight contract to be signed. Arum also announced that Pacquiao accepted the terms of the random drug testing, blood and urine, leading up to the fight.

On July 15, 2010, Bob Arum announced that Pacquiao's camp would give Mayweather until Friday midnight to sign the fight. The next day the Top Rank website embedded a countdown clock on their website with the heading "Money" Time: Mayweather's Decision. On July 17, 2010, Arum announced that there was no word from Mayweather's camp and the deal for a November 13, 2010 fight with Mayweather Jr. was not reached.

On July 19, 2010, Leonard Ellerbe, one of Floyd Mayweather Jr.'s closest advisers, denied that negotiations for a super fight between Mayweather and Pacquiao had ever taken place. Ellerbe stated that Bob Arum was not telling the truth. Bob Arum responded, questioning that if there was no negotiation, then who imposed the gag order (referring to a gag order about the negotiation allegedly imposed on both camps) and who could there be a gag order from if there were no negotiations. He also criticized Oscar De La Hoya and his Golden Boy Promotions CEO Richard Schaefer for denying that negotiations took place, when De La Hoya himself had previously stated that they were "very, very close in finalizing the contracts". Arum revealed that HBO Sports President Ross Greenburg acted as the mediator between Mayweather’s handlers and those of Pacquiao’s from Top Rank Promotions. On July 26, 2010, Ross Greenburg said in a statement that he has been negotiating with a representative from each side since May 2, 2010, carefully trying to put the fight together and he did in fact act as a go-between in negotiations with the two sides, but they were unable to come to an agreement. Floyd Mayweather Jr., after the second negotiation had been officially declared off, told the Associated Press that he had fought sixty days ago and that he was not interested in rushing into anything and was not really thinking about boxing at the moment.

Light Middleweight division

On July 23, 2010, Bob Arum announced that Pacquiao would fight Antonio Margarito on November 13, 2010. The fight for the vacant WBC Super Welterweight World Title gave Pacquiao the chance to win a world title in his eighth weight class, the light middleweight or super welterweight division. A catchweight of 150 pounds was established for the fight although the weight limit for the light middleweight division is 154 pounds. During the pre-fight, Pacquiao weighed in at a low 144.6 pounds, while Margarito weighed in at the limit of 150 pounds. Pacquiao said he was pleased with his weight because he loses too much speed when he gains pounds. During the fight itself, Pacquiao weighed 148 lbs, 17 pounds lighter than Margarito's 165.

Prior to the fight, Pacquiao's team demanded to the Texas officials to test Margarito for banned substances after a weight loss supplement, reportedly Hydroxycut, was found in his locker. It was stated that the officials would undergo testing for both boxers after the fight. In the fight, Pacquiao defeated Margarito via unanimous decision, using his superior handspeed and movement to win his 8th world title in as many divisions. In the penultimate round, Pacquiao implored referee Laurence Cole several times to stop the fight as Margarito had a swollen face and a large cut beneath the right eye, but the referee let the fight continue. Margarito had to be taken directly to the hospital after the fight, where it was discovered his orbital bone had been fractured; he had to undergo surgery. Because Pacquiao had no plans to defend the title he won against Margarito, the WBC Board of Governors voted to declare the title vacant.
Professional boxing record

52 Wins, 3 Losses, 2 Draws, 38 Knockouts

1995
01-22 -- Edmund Enting Ignacio, Mindoro Occidental, Philippines, W 4
03-18 -- Pinoy Montejo, Mindoro Occidental, Philippines, W 4
05-01 -- Rocky Palma, Cavite, Philippines, W 6
07-01 -- Dele Decierto, Mandaluyong, Philippines, TKO 2
08-03 -- Flash Simbajon, Mandaluyong, Philippines, W 6
09-16 -- Arman Rocil, Mandaluyong, Philippines, KO 3
10-07 -- Lolito Laroa, Makati, Philippines, W 8
10-21 -- Renato Mendones, Puerto Princesa, Philippines, TKO 2
11-11 -- Rodulfo Fernandez, Mandaluyong, Philippines, TKO 3
12-09 -- Rolando Tuyugon, Manila, Philippines, W 10

1996
01-13 -- Lito Torrejos, Paranaque City, Philippines, TKO 5
02-09 -- Rustico Torrecampo, Mandaluyong, Philippines, KO by 3
04-27 -- Marlon Carillo, Manila, Philippines, W 10
05-20 -- Jun Medina, Manila, Philippines, TKO 4
06-15 -- Bert Batiller, General Santos City, Philippines, TKO 4
07-27 -- Ippo Gala, Mandaluyong, Philippines, TKO 2
12-28 -- Sung-Yul Lee, Muntinlupa, Philippines, TKO 2

1997
03-08 -- Michael Luna, Muntinlupa, Philippines, KO 1
04-24 -- Wook-Ki Lee, Makati, Philippines, KO 1
05-30 -- Ariel Austria, Almendras, Philippines, TKO 6
06-26 -- Chokchai Chockvivat, Mandaluyong, Philippines, KO 5
09-13 -- Melvin Magramo, Cebu, Philippines, W 10
12-06 -- Panomdej Or Yuthanakorn, South Cotabato, Philippines, KO 1

1998
05-18 -- Shin Terao, Tokyo, Japan, TKO 1
12-04 -- Chartchai Sasakul, Bangkok, Thailand, TKO 8
(Won WBC Flyweight Title)

1999
02-20 -- Todd Makelin, Kidapawan, Philippines, TKO 3
04-24 -- Gabriel Mira, Quezon City, Philippines, KO 4
(Retained WBC Flyweight Title)
09-17 -- Medgoen Singsurat, Nakhon Si Thammarat, Thailand, KO by 3
(Pacquiao failed to make weight, lost WBC Flyweight title)
12-18 -- Reynante Jamili, Manila, Philippines, TKO 2

2000
03-04 -- Arnel Barotillo, Manila, Philippines, KO 4
06-28 -- Seung-Kon Chae, Manila, Philippines, TKO 1
10-14 -- Nedal Hussein, Antipolo City, Philippines, TKO 10

2001
02-24 -- Tetsutora Senrima, Manila, Philippines, TKO 5
04-28 -- Wethya Sakmuangklang, Kidapawan City, Philippines, TKO 6
06-23 -- Lehlohonolo Ledwaba, Las Vegas, NV, TKO 6
(Won IBF Super Bantamweight Title)
11-10 -- Agapito Sánchez, San Francisco, CA, Tech Draw 6
(For WBO Super Bantamweight Title)
(Retained IBF Super Bantamweight Title)

2002
06-08 -- Jorge Eliecer Julio, Memphis, TN, TKO 2
(Retained IBF Super Bantamweight Title)
10-26 -- Fahprakorb Rakkiatgym, Davao City, Philippines, KO 1
(Retained IBF Super Bantamweight Title)

2003
03-15 -- Serikzhan Yeshmangbetov, Manila, Philippines, TKO 5
07-26 -- Emmanuel Lucero, Los Angeles, CA, TKO 3
(Retained IBF Super Bantamweight Title)
11-15 -- Marco Antonio Barrera, San Antonio, TX, TKO 11

2004
05-08 -- Juan Manuel Marquez, Las Vegas, NV, D 12
(For WBC Featherweight Title)
(For IBF Featherweight Title)
12-11 -- Fahsan (3K Battery) Por Thawatchai, Rizal, Philippines, TKO 4

2005
03-19 -- Erik Morales, Las Vegas, NV, L 12
09-10 -- Hector Velazquez, Los Angeles, CA, TKO 6

2006
01-21 -- Erik Morales, Las Vegas, NV, TKO 10
07-02 -- Oscar Larios, Manila, Philippines, W 12
11-18 -- Erik Morales, Las Vegas, NV, KO 3

2007
04-14 -- Jorge Solis, San Antonio, TX, KO 8
10-06 -- Marco Antonio Barrera, Las Vegas, NV, W 12

2008
03-15 -- Juan Manuel Marquez, Las Vegas, NV, W 12
(Won WBC Super Featherweight Title)
06-28 -- David Diaz, Las Vegas, NV, TKO 9
(Won WBC Lightweight Title)
12-06 -- Oscar De La Hoya, Las Vegas, NV, TKO 8

2009
05-02 -- Ricky Hatton, Las Vegas, NV, KO 2
11-14 -- Miguel Cotto, Las Vegas, NV, TKO 12
(Won WBO Welterweight Title)

2010
03-13 -- Joshua Clottey, Arlington, TX, W 12
(Retained WBO Welterweight Title)
11-13 -- Antonio Margarito, Arlington, TX, W 12
(Won Vacant WBC Light Middleweight Title)    Professional boxing debut at Light Flyweight division.
Titles in boxing

Major World Titles:
    * WBC Flyweight World Champion (112 lbs)
    * IBF Junior Featherweight World Champion (122 lbs)
    * The Ring Featherweight World Champion (126 lbs)
    * WBC Super Featherweight World Champion (130 lbs)
    * The Ring Junior Lightweight World Champion (130 lbs)
    * WBC Lightweight World Champion (135 lbs)
    * The Ring Junior Welterweight World Champion (140 lbs)
    * WBO Welterweight World Champion (147 lbs)
    * WBC Super Welterweight World Champion (154 lbs)

Minor World Title:

    * IBO Junior Welterweight World Champion (140 lbs)

Lineal Championship Titles:

    * Lineal Flyweight World Champion (112 lbs)
    * Lineal Featherweight World Champion (126 lbs)
    * Lineal Super Featherweight World Champion (130 lbs)
    * Lineal Light Welterweight World Champion (140 lbs)

Regional/International Titles:

    * OPBF Flyweight Champion (112 lbs)
    * WBC Super Bantamweight International Champion (122 lbs)
    * WBC Super Featherweight International Champion (130 lbs)

Special Titles:

    * WBC Emeritus Champion
    * WBC Diamond Champion
    * WBO Super Champion

Acting Career

Pacquiao started his acting career as an extra in some local films and guest appearances on ABS-CBN shows.

In December 2005 Pacquiao took his first lead role in Violett Films' Lisensyadong Kamao (Licensed Fist). The movie is titled so because (according to director Tony Bernal), being a Boxer, Pacquiao is licensed to use his hands.

In 2008, Pacquiao starred with Ara Mina and Valerie Concepcion in Anak ng Kumander (Son of Commander). The movie was not a commercial success and was panned by critics
Pacquiao starred in the superhero/comedy film entitled Wapakman, which was released on December 25, 2009 as an entry to the 2009 Metro Manila Film Festival. Like his previous films Wapakman was not commercially successful.

Upon the expiration of his contract with ABS-CBN, Pacquiao signed with GMA Network as an actor in September 2007. On December 17, 2007, he taped his first episode of the networks infotainment show Pinoy Records. His other projects with the network included Totoy Bato and the sitcom Show Me Da Manny in which his mother, Dionesia, also appeared.

American actor Sylvester Stallone is reportedly in talks with Pacquiao over co-starring in one of Stallone's future films, which is in the planning stages. The film would be Pacquiao's Hollywood debut.

Filmography

2000     Di Ko Kayang Tanggapin     Dong   
2001     Mahal Kita... Kahit Sino Ka Pa!       
2001     Basagan ng Mukha     Dodong   
2005     Lisensyadong Kamao     Ambrosio "Bruce" Lerio   
2008     Anak ng Kumander     Kumander Idel     Writer/Producer
2008     Brown Soup Thing     Cousin Manny   
2008     Pangarap Kong Jackpot     Abel     segment "Sa Ngalan ng Busabos"
2009     Wapakman     Magno Meneses/Wapakman   
Year     Television Shows     Role     Other Notes
2004     Walang Bakas     Himself (uncredited)   
2004     No Fear: The Manny Pacquiao Story     Himself     Video documentary
2004     The People's Champion     Himself     Video documentary
2005     Kamao: Matira Ang Matibay     Himself – Host   
2005     Ok Fine Whatever     Himself – Guest   
2006     Ako ang Simula     Himself     TV documentary
2007     The Battle of Cebu: Moment of Truth     Himself – Crowd   
2009     Kababayan LA: Manny Pacquiao Specials     Himself   
2009     Pinoy Records     Himself – Host   
2009     Totoy Bato     Emmanuel   
2009     Show Me Da Manny     Manny Santos   
2009     Rome is Burning     Himself – Correspondent     Episode dated May 1
2009     Jimmy Kimmel Live     Himself – Guest     Episode dated November 3
2009     MMA H.E.A.T.     Himself     Episode dated November 12
2010     Jimmy Kimmel Live     Himself – Guest     Episode dated March 3
2010     HBO Boxing After Dark     Himself – Audience Member     Episode dated June 18
2010     ESPN Friday Night Fights     Himself     Episode dated July 2
2010     Jimmy Kimmel Live     Himself – Guest     Episode dated November 1
2010     60 Minutes     Himself – Guest      

Discography

Labels     Star Records
MCA Records
GMA Records

Associated acts: Lito Camo, Francis Magalona, Most of the Tagalog songs of Pacquiao were composed by Lito Camo. 

The following are the songs from Manny Pacquiao's albums:

    * Laban Nating Lahat Ito (2006) – under Star Records
          o "Bilog"
          o "Para Sa'Yo Ang Laban Na 'To"
          o "Pagsubok Lamang Yan"
          o "Byaheng Pag-asa"
          o "Ipakita Mo"
          o "Ikaw at Ako"
          o "Hindi Ko Kaya"
          o "Kanta Tayo"
          o "Champion Sa Kantahan"
          o "Laban Nating Lahat Ito" (feat Francis M.)

    * Pac-Man Punch (2007) – under MCA Records
          o "Pac-Man Punch" – Willie Wilcox feat. Nemesis Yankee and Manny Pacquiao
          o "Pac-Man Punch (R U Ready?)" – Willie Wilcox feat. Nemesis Yankee
          o "Pac-Man Punch (Knockout Remix)" – Willie Wilcox feat. Nemesis Yankee and Manny Pacquiao
          o "Pac-Man Punch (Minus One)"

    * Under GMA Records
          o "Lahing Pinoy"

Political career

Emmanuel D. Pacquiao

Member of the House of Representatives from Sarangani

Incumbent
Assumed office June 30, 2010
Preceded by     Erwin L. Chiongbian
Political party     Liberal Party (2007, 2010)
Kabalikat ng Malayang Pilipino (2008)
Nacionalista Party (2009–2010)
People's Champ Movement (2010)
Residence     Kiamba, Sarangani
Alma mater     Notre Dame of Dadiangas University
Profession     Professional Boxer, Actor
Religion     Roman Catholic
Website     www.congress.gov.ph

On February 12, 2007, Pacquiao officially announced that he would be running for a seat in the House of Representatives in the May 2007 legislative election as a candidate of the Liberal Party, aiming to represent the 1st District of South Cotabato. Pacquiao, who has been known to be supportive of the administration of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, said that he was persuaded to run by local officials of General Santos City, who hoped he would act as a bridge between their interests and the national government. Pacquiao was defeated in the election by incumbent Rep. Darlene Antonino-Custodio, who said, "More than anything, I think, people weren't prepared to lose him as their boxing icon".

In September 2008, Pacquiao was sworn in as member of Kabalikat ng Malayang Pilipino (KAMPI), a pro-administration political party.

On November 21, 2009, Pacquiao confirmed that he would run again for the congressional seat but this time in Sarangani province, the hometown of his wife Jinkee. He originally planned to run for congress under his own party, the People's Champ Movement, but has since joined the Nacionalista Party headed by Manny Villar. Villar said arrangements were made to accommodate Pacquiao’s People’s Champ Movement in a coalition with the Nacionalista Party for the May 2010 elections in Sarangani.

On May 13, 2010, Pacquiao was officially proclaimed congressman of the lone district of Sarangani. He scored a landslide victory over a wealthy and politically well-entrenched clan of the province. His triumph ended the reign of Chiongbian clan that has been in power for more than thirty years. Pacquiao got 120,052 votes while his political rival, Roy Chiongbian, got 60,899 votes.

On June 28, 2010, Pacquiao took his oath of office as congressman before Supreme Court Associate Justice Antonio T. Carpio in the Provincial Capitol of Sarangani in Municipality of Alabel. He announced that he will transfer to President-elect Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III's Liberal Party from Nacionalista Party as he wants to ensure the entry of more projects to his province.
In popular culture

A film based on Pacquiao's life, Pacquiao: The Movie, was released on June 21, 2006, featuring Filipino actor Jericho Rosales as Manny Pacquiao and was directed by Joel Lamangan. The film flopped at the box office, grossing a total of only P4,812,191 (approximately US$99,322), as confirmed by Lamangan.

Pacquiao is featured in the boxing video games Fight Night Round 2, Fight Night Round 3, Fight Night Round 4 and Fight Night Champion. EA Sports released a limited edition demo of Fight Night Round 4, featuring Pacquiao and Ricky Hatton prior to their May 2 fight.

Pacquiao became the first Filipino athlete to appear on a postage stamp.


Pacquiao became the first Filipino Olympic non-participant to be Team Philippines’ flag-bearer during the August 8 opening ceremonies of the 2008 Summer Olympics at the Beijing National Stadium. Swimmer Miguel Molina, 2005 Southeast Asian Games’ Best Male Athlete, yielded the honor to Pacquiao, upon the request of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo to the national sports officials on the Philippines at the 2008 Summer Olympics.

Pacquiao plays basketball as a cross-training to keep himself in shape. He is playing in the semi-professional basketball league, Liga Pilipinas, with the team he owns, the MP-Gensan Warriors. He made his debut in the Smart-Liga Pilipinas Conference II in January 16, 2009. He wears jersey number 17.

Pacquiao became an honorary member of Boston Celtics. The honorary membership was bestowed on him in a brief ceremony and he was presented with a replica of a green and white Celtics jersey bearing his name and number 1. As a measure of gratitude, Pacquiao delivered a stockpile of red autographed boxing gloves to TD Garden. On March 10, 2010, prior to the night's game with Memphis Grizzlies, many of the Celtics had a special motivational gift waiting for them in their lockers.

With his popularity, various business sectors have solicited Manny Pacquiao's help in endorsing their products through commercial advertisements in print and in broadcast media. These include detergents, medicines, foods, beverage, garments, telecommunications, and even a political ad for politicians during the 2007 and 2010 Philippine elections. His most acclaimed commercials yet were for Nike's "Fast Forward" campaign (alongside Tiger Woods, Kobe Bryant, Maria Sharapova, Roger Federer, Cristiano Ronaldo and Liu Xiang) and San Miguel Beer with Jet Li and Érik Morales.

Pacquiao has been included by Time Magazine as one of the world's most influential people for the year 2009, for his exploits in boxing and his influence among the Filipino people. Pacquiao was also included by Forbes Magazine in its annual Celebrity 100 list for the year 2009, joining Hollywood actress Angelina Jolie and fellow athletes Tiger Woods and Bryant. Forbes also listed Pacquiao as the World's 6th Highest Paid Athlete, with a total of 40 Million Dollars ($40,000,000.00) or 2 Billion Pesos (₱2,000,000,000.00) from the second half of 2008 to the first half of 2009. Tied with him on the sixth spot was the NBA player LeBron James and golfer Phil Mickelson. Pacquiao was again included in Forbes' list of Highest Paid Athletes from the second half of 2009 to the first half of 2010; he was ranked 8th with an income of $42 million. Pacquiao had also won the 2009 ESPY Awards for the Best Fighter category, beating fellow boxer Shane Mosley and Brazilian mixed martial arts fighters Lyoto Machida and Anderson Silva.

Pacquiao has also graced the cover of Time Magazine Asia for their November 16, 2009 issue. According to their five-page feature story, "(Pacquiao is) a fighter with enough charisma, intelligence and backstory to help rescue a sport lost in the labyrinth of pay-per-view. Global brands like Nike want him in their ads." They also added, "Pacquiao has a myth of origin equal to that of any Greek or Roman hero. He leaves the Philippines to make it even bigger, conquering the world again and again to bring back riches to his family and friends." He became the eighth Filipino to grace the cover of the prestigious magazine, after former Philippine presidents Manuel L. Quezon, Ramon Magsaysay, Ferdinand Marcos, Corazon Aquino, Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, Benigno Aquino III and Filipino actress and environmentalist Chin Chin Gutierrez. Pacquiao was also featured on the cover of Reader’s Digest Asia, where a seven-page story was written about the Filipino boxing superstar. The issue came out before Pacquiao’s epic match against De La Hoya on November 2008.
Recognitions

    * 2000–09 Boxing Writers Association of America Fighter of the Decade
    * 2000–09 Philippine Sportswriters Association Athlete of the Decade
    * 2000–09 HBO Fighter of the Decade
    * 2006, 2008, 2009 and 2010 Boxing Writers Association Fighter of the Year
    * 2006, 2008 and 2009 ESPN Fighter of the Year
    * 2006, 2008, 2009 and 2010 The Ring Fighter of the Year
    * 2001–2010 World Boxing Council Boxer of the Decade
    * 2002, 2003, 2004, 2006 and 2008 PSA Sportsman of the Year
    * 2003 Presidential Medal of Merit
    * 2003 and 2010 Congressional Medal of Achievement/Honor
    * 2006 Order of Lakandula with the rank of "Champion for Life" (Kampeon Habambuhay)
    * 2008 Philippine Legion of Honor with the rank of "Officer" (Pinuno)
    * 2008 University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) Honorary Award for Sports Excellence
    * 2008 Sports Illustrated Boxer of the Year
    * 2008 Yahoo! Sports Fighter of the Year
    * 2008 and 2009 The Ring No.1 Pound-for-Pound (year-end)
    * 2008 and 2009 TheSweetScience.com Boxer of the Year
    * 2008 and 2009 ESPN Star's Champion of Champions
    * 2008 and 2009 World Boxing Council Boxer of the Year
    * 2009 Ask Men Most Influential Men (ranked 24th)
    * 2009 ESPN Knockout of the Year (in Round 2 against Ricky Hatton)
    * 2009 ESPY Awards Best Fighter
    * 2009 Forbes Magazine World's Highest-Paid Athletes (ranked 6th)
    * 2009 Order of Sikatuna with the rank of Datu (Grand Cross with Gold Distinction)
    * 2009 Sports Illustrated Fighter of the Year
    * 2009 The Ring Knockout of the Year (in Round 2 against Ricky Hatton)
    * 2009 TIME 100 Most Influential People (Heroes and Icons Category)
    * 2009 TIME Asia Magazine cover for November 16, 2009 Issue
    * 2009 and 2010 Forbes Magazine Celebrity 100 (ranked 57th and 55th)
    * 2010 Bleacher Report Most Exciting Athletes of All Time (ranked 85th)
    * 2010 World Boxing Organization Fighter of the Year
    * 2010 Yahoo! Sports Boxing's Most Influential (ranked 25th)
On May 7, 2011, Pacquiao successfully defended his WBO World Welterweight title against three-division world champion Shane Mosley via lopsided unanimous decision at the MGM Grand Arena. 

Bob Arum talked about having Pacquiao's next bout at the MGM Grand on November 5, 2011 or across town at the Thomas and Mack Center on November 12, 2011. Arum listed Juan Manuel Marquez as the first choice and then mentioned Timothy Bradley and Zab Judah as other options.

Monday, June 8, 2009

Boy Abunda


Eugenio "Boy" Abunda, Jr. is a Filipino talk show personality who dubbed himself as "The King of Talk" in Philippine Showbiz.

He was born in Borongan City, Eastern Samar. When his father (Eugenio Abunda, Sr.) died, he dropped out of school and tried odd jobs to survive.

He later found a job in Metropolitan Theater as an assistant stage manager and became an assistant to Conching Sunico, the administrator of Metropolitan Theater who taught him about public relations. After two years, he put up his own PR company called Backroom, Inc.

Boy Abunda was also one of the pillars behind the early years of Probe.

While doing PR consulting jobs for GMA Network, a network executive at the time, suggested that he try television. Soon, he became one of the hosts of RSVP, a late night variety show co-hosted by Dawn Zulueta, and subsequently, Startalk, an entertainment talk show. In 1999, he subsequently moved to ABS-CBN where he currently hosts three shows: The Buzz, Private Conversations, and Boy & Kris.

Boy Abunda also produced an album titled "Melodic Conversations".

Controversies:

Boy Abunda is happily committed to his partner of twenty-four years, Bong Quintana, a former Philippine Airline steward employee.

Abunda was involved in a spat between Dr. Vicki Belo and Dr. Manny Calayan. Dr. Belo claimed that if you wanted to look like Piolo Pascual or Dingdong Dantes, you should go to Belo Medical Group and if you wanted to look like Boy Abunda, you should go to Calayan Surgi-Center.

TV Shows of Boy Abunda:

1. Showbiz News Ngayon (showbiz-lifestyle)(2009-, ABS-CBN)
2. Inside The Cinema (2008 Cinema One)
3. Volta "Ama" (2008, ABS-CBN)
4. Boy & Kris (2007-2009, ABS-CBN)
5. HomeBoy (2005-2007, ABS-CBN)
6. Kontrobersyal (2003-2006, ABS-CBN)
7. Private Conversations (2001-, ANC)
8. The Buzz (1999-, ABS-CBN)
9. Startalk (1995-1999, GMA)
10. Show & Tell (1992-1995, GMA)

Filmography:

* Naglalayag (2004)
* Volta (2004) .... Ama
* Volta (TV series) (2008) ....Ama


Talents:

* Ariel Rivera
* Gretchen Barretto
* Erik Santos
* Mariel Rodriguez
* Bianca Gonzalez
* Rufa Mae Quinto
* Dominic Ochoa
* Roxanne Barcelo (former)
* Ai Ai delas Alas
* Jobert Sucaldito
* Kyla (former)
* Danita Paner
* Drew Arellano
* Chase Tinio
* K Brosas
* The Company
* Kim Flores
* Frenchie Dy
* Gigi Javier
* Marge Sandoval
* Eileen Robles
* Nyoy Volante
* Pooh
* Ina Feleo
* Gladys Guevarra (former)
* Angelika dela Cruz (former)
* Regine Velasquez (former)
* Dessa (former)
* Calvin Millado (former)
* Dante Ponce (former)


Saturday, March 22, 2008

Vicente "Tito" C. Sotto III


Vicente "Tito" C. Sotto III (born August 24, 1948 in Manila, Philippines) is a former senator in the Philippines Congress. He served two terms in the Senate, from 1992 to 2004.

The brother of Marvic (Vic), Marcelino, and Val Sotto and a grandson and grandnephew of former Senators (Vicente Yap Sotto and Filemon Sotto).



Political Life:

Vice Mayor of Quezon City (1988-1992):

"Tito" entered politics in 1988, when he was elected Vice-Mayor of Quezon City. While Vice Mayor, he made drug eradication a priority; he was named National Vice-Chairman of the Citizen's Drugwatch, and was twice awarded the International Award of Honor by the International Narcotics Enforcement Officers Association. He also established the Vice-Mayors League of the Philippines and became its first President.

Senator (1992-1998):

Sotto was elected to the Senate in 1992, as part of the Ninth Congress, winning a total of 11,792,121 votes. During his first term, Senator Sotto served as Assistant Majority Floor Leader and Chairman of the Senate Committees on Local Government, Tourism, Youth and Sports Development, Illegal Drugs, and Rural Development. He was also a member of the Commission on Appointments.

Senator (1998-2004):

Sotto was reelected in 1998, with the highest vote total of any returning Senator. In his second term he was made Chairman of the Senate Committees on Public Services and the Senate Committee on Science and Technology and Vice-Chairman of the Senate Committee on Finance. During this period, he also served as Assistant Majority Leader (in the Eleventh Congress) and Minority Floor Leader (in the Twelfth). Sotto's term ended in 2004.

2007 Senatorial Candidate:

Tito Sotto run as a Senator again for the 2007 elections under the administration's Team Unity party. Despite his popularity to many Filipinos, Tito Sotto like most of TEAM Unity's Senatorial candidates suffered a defeat.

Acting career:

Prior to his entry into public service, Sotto was a composer, musician, actor, and television personality. Among his musical compositions is the "Magkaisa", considered the anthem of the 1986 EDSA Revolution. On television, Sotto co-hosted Eat Bulaga, which is the longest running program in Philippine history, and hosted Brigada Siete, a public affairs program. He is also an accomplished bowler, and was a member of the Philippine National Bowling Team.

Sotto is married to Helen Gamboa, a beauty titlist an actress, singer, and beauty pageant winner. They have four children, Romina, Diorella, Gian, and Ciara, and two grandsons, Romino and Victorio.

Filmography:

* Enteng Kabisote 3: Okay ka fairy ko... The legend goes on and on and on (2006) .... Nador
* I Have 3 Eggs (1990)
* Kabayo kids (1990) .... Pamboy/Orange Juice
* Crocodile Jones: The Son of Indiana Dundee (1990) .... Indiana Dundee
* Hotdog (1990) .... Juan
* Aso't pusa (1989)
* Si Malakas at si Maganda (1989)
* I Have Three Hands (1988)
* Shoot That Ball (1987)
* Ready, Aim, Fire (1987)
* Forward March (1987)
* Super wan, tu, tri (1986) (as TVJ)
* Working Boys (1986)
* Horsey-horsey, tigidig-tigidig (1986) .... Johnny
* Ma'am, May We Go Out? (1985)
* Mama Said, Papa Said, I Love You (1985)
* Ride on Baby (1985)
* Doctor, Doctor We Are Sick (1985)
* Naku ha! (1984) .... Aristotle Plato
* Give Me Five (1984) .... Kelly
* Goodah (1984)
* Pepe en Pilar (1984)
* Magtoning muna tayo (1981)
* Palpak Connections (1981)
* Iskul Bukol (1980)

TV Shows:

* Eat Bulaga (RPN 9, 1979-89, ABS-CBN, 1989-1995, GMA Network, 1995-present)
* Brigada Siete (GMA Network, 1994-2001)
* Eat Bulaga Holy Week Drama Specials (1979-present)
* Hapi House (IBC-13, 1986-88)
* Iskul Bukol (IBC 13, 1977-1987)
* Student Canteen (GMA Network, 1976-77)
* Discorama (GMA Network, 1975)
* Friends (MBS-4, 1974)

Sunday, March 16, 2008

Joey De Leon


José María Ramos de León, better known simply as Joey de Leon (born October 14, 1946) is a Filipino Comedian/TV host who is one of the popular hosts of the long-running noontime variety show Eat Bulaga! He is a member of the famous comedy trio Tito, Vic and Joey that has made several hit comedy movies and TV shows. Also known as a songwriter, Joey has penned some Filipino hit songs deemed as classics including "Ipagpatawad Mo" (Forgive Me), "Awitin Mo, Isasayaw Ko" (Sing and I Will Dance), "Boyfriend kong Baduy" (My Geeky Boyfriend), "Iskul Bukol" (School is Tough), and many more.

Pre-showbiz Life:

Joey spent his early childhood in Sampaloc, Manila with his mother. His father, Jose Suwani de Leon, never lived with them. Instead, the elder de Leon sent financial support (through his pension at USAFFE) to Joey's mother so that his son would be able to attend school.

Joey's early childhood ranged from the traumatic to comical moments. His most traumatic experience occurred at age 4 when he almost drowned during a family beach outing. Because of the incident, he developed a phobia for bodies of water. Among his funny childhood experiences were playing pranks on his female classmates when he was in Grade 4.

During his teen years, Joey and his mother lived with his mother's relatives. His aunt and his godmother shouldered his high school expenses. But when he took up architecture at National University, his father's pension at USAFFE completely covered his college fees. After two years, Joey quit architecture (because he wasn't keen on Math) and took several odd jobs. Soon after, upon the prodding of his cousin and best friend Freddie Villareal, they went to a radio station to meet up with Karina Afable but instead of meeting her, they chanced upon an audition for radio announcers. Joey wasn't interested at first but his cousin secretly enlisted his name at the auditions. Soon after, Joey was hired after passing the auditions.

Early Showbiz Exposure:

He started out his showbiz career in the 1960s as a radio DJ (disc jockey) for some of the top FM stations mostly owned by pre-martial law ABS-CBN. Some of his radio colleagues and contemporaries included the late Inday Badiday, Ike Lozada, Johnny de Leon (no relation) and Helen Vela. In a span of five years, he sat down on 12 FM stations while doing other jobs as gag writer and songwriter. His first big break on TV was IBC-13's gag show OK Lang which starred him alongside the Sotto brothers (Tito, Vic and Val), Ricky Manalo, Jr. and the APO Hiking Society.

Tito, Vic & Joey:

In 1975, Joey became a co-host of GMA-7's early afternoon variety show Discorama hosted by Bobby Ledesma (of Student Canteen fame). At that time, the show hardly had any viewers and ratings were bad. While Bobby was on vacation, he told Joey to take care of the show. Joey invited his former co-stars at OK Lang, brothers Tito, Vic and Val Sotto, to join him at Discorama. Only Tito and Vic accepted Joey's invitation. The newly-formed trio started to do comedy newscast segments interspersed with hilarious interpretations of Top 40 hit songs using made-up lyrics written by Joey. Thus the trio Tito, Vic and Joey was born. Discorama was given a new lease in life and was saved from the axe of GMA-7 executives. The new trio was also included in Bobby's noontime show Student Canteen and also released 12 Tough Hits albums based on their Discorama Tough Hits segment.

Although Tito, Vic and Joey started their trio via Discorama and Student Canteen, it was the sitcom Iskul Bukol that gave them nationwide fame as comedians. Soon after, other TV and movie producers came knocking on the trio's door. In 1979, Tito, Vic and Joey started hosting for the noontime show Eat Bulaga! which was pitted against the more established Student Canteen hosted by their former colleague (and now competitor) Bobby Ledesma. Not long after, Eat Bulaga! toppled Student Canteen in the ratings.
Joey as solo artist:

Although Joey continued to do movies alongside his showbiz team mates Tito and Vic, he started doing solo performances for other TV shows. He topbilled Joey and Son in the '80s, a sitcom on RPN-9 where he played father to a very young Ian Veneracion (who later metamorphosed into a teen heartthrob and action star in the '90s). He was also one of the gag performers on TODAS where his other co-stars included Jimmy Santos and Val Sotto. Other TV shows that Joey did as a solo host/comedian included Apple Pie, Patis, Atbp., The Sharon Cuneta Show, Let's Go Crazy and many more. Soon after, he was launched by Viva Films as a solo comedian in She-Man: Mistress of the Universe, a parody of the foreign animated series He-Man. The movie was a big hit, and Joey went on to do more movies alone, mostly with his favorite sidekick Rene Requiestas. He also tried his hand at directing movies like Romeo loves Juliet and Small, Medium, Large.

Joey topbilled movies that are mostly spoofs of foreign movies or takes at American and Filipino pop culture. When Starzan became a box-office hit in 1989, he did two more sequels on that same year with tremendous box-office results. Because of the phenomenal box-office standings of the 3 Starzan movies that he made, he was named Box-Office King for that year. He also earned the title Sequel King because most of his movies (Barbi, Elvis and James, Long Ranger en Tonton) each spawned sequels.

When Rene Requiestas went solo with his movie career (and later died in 1993), Joey concentrated on TV. He did several TV shows for major networks, mostly with GMA-7 and ABC-5. In 1995, Joey made a movie comeback via the comedy "Bangers" for Viva Films, which teamed him up with (the late) comic legend Chiquito and rapper/comedian Andrew E. This was later followed up by a series of comedy films that had him topbilled alongside other comedians like Leo Martinez (Pipti-pipti) and Dennis Padilla (Ang Tipo kong Lalake and Takot ako sa Darling Ko). However, with the Philippine movie industry slowly losing its grip on the audience, Joey decided to concentrate on TV again, although he still appears in movies every now and then. Currently he still hosts Eat Bulaga which is now the longest-running TV program in the Philippines, and appears in other shows like Mel and Joey, Startalk, Nuts Entertainment and just recently started a new show for ABC-5, Teka Mona, which replaced Wow Mali, his long-running TV show on the same network. Another show is in the works for Joey this time on GMA's sister station QTV 11. He started hosting "Takeshi's Castle" with Ryan Yllana. He is also the resident judge of the annual reality-based star search StarStruck and writes the entertainment column De Leon's Den once a week in the Philippine broadsheet Manila Bulletin.

In December 2006, Joey returned to recording with a novelty single he wrote entitled "Itaktak Mo" (Shake it off). Unlike most of his previously recorded songs where the melodies were based on past and contemporary hits, "Itaktak Mo" had a unique melody that can pass off as either a pop dance hit or a ballroom song. Seen by critics as his answer to the other wildly popular hit, "Boom Tarat Tarat" (written by Lito Camo and sung by Joey's rival host Willie Revillame), "Itaktak Mo" was softly launched on "Eat Bulaga" shortly before the Christmas season. On January 2007, the song was launched in Joey's album, "Joey to the World 2" and gained airplay in most FM stations in a short span of time. "Itaktak Mo" has also become part of "Eat Bulaga"'s segment "Taktak Mo o Tatakbo" that replaced "Laban o Bawi", and is also one of the official dances of the 4th batch of the reality talent search "Starstruck".

Suspension:

Joey has been suspended by the MTRCB (the Philippine censorship board) twice from hosting Eat Bulaga!. His first suspension was in 2003 for one month, after uttering a joke related to birds during the question and answer portion of the kiddie pageant That's My Boy.

His second suspension was in 2004 after uttering a Filipino slang word for fellatio during the TKO portion. The second suspension was supposedly for two months but after reportedly suffering from emotional and health problems brought about by the suspension, he was allowed by MTRCB to go back on the air after a month.

Since then, Joey has cleaned up his act although he still retains his 'pilyo' (naughty) ways when he makes people laugh with his jokes.

Personal Life:

Off camera, Joey is a doting husband to Eileen Macapagal, with whom he has three children, Jocas, Jako and Jio. He also has two children from actress Daria Ramirez: TV host/comedian Keempee de Leon and Cheenee de Leon. Joey has 4 grandchildren also, one from Keempee and 3 from Cheenee.
Trivia about Joey:

* Joey, along with Vic Sotto, actually had a movie entitled "Sam and Miguel". Interestingly enough, one of the antagonists of that movie was Willie Revillame, now known as a rival of Joey. Joey and Willie also appeared together in the movie "Barbi for President" where Willie played sidekick to Joey.

* Joey is an avowed collector of casino chips and Planet Hollywood T-shirts. He also collects different kinds of t-shirts that allude to US pop culture.

* Joey has appeared in a total of 52 TV shows either as a cast member or regular host. He also wrote in some of the TV shows that he joined (TODAS, Mixed Nuts, Wow Mali). His new gag show on ABC-5, Teka Mona, is his 53rd television show. He has also started his 54th television show on QTV-11 (GMA's sister station) entitled "Takeshi's Castle".

* Joey has a rare photographic memory.

* Joey also collects photos and other memorabilias from his past shows. In fact he has a rare ABS-CBN wall tile in his collection which he got when the old ABS-CBN building in Pasay was demolished. He also has a rare photo of an Eat Bulaga episode where he sang along with Tito, Vic and the APO Hiking Society when the latter trio guested in their show.

* In one survey conducted by TAPE during Eat Bulaga's early years regarding the perception of the public about its hosts, it was revealed that Tito was the serious type, Vic was the heartthrob, and Joey was the streetsmart. Up to this day, the Filipino's perception about the noontime trio has never changed.

* Joey De Leon, together with Vic and Tito Sotto, became special guests at Kapamilya, ABS-CBN at 50, the 50th year anniversary special of ABS-CBN. The trio made a special number together with the Philippine Comedy King Dolphy. Joey De Leon even made a joke during the special number, saying that he is a Kapamilya (even mentioning that he started at ABS-CBN during 1969), Tito is a Kapatilya, Vic is a Kaparilya (teasing Vic as the new Panchito during the translation segment of the number), and Dolphy is a Kapadilla (referring to real-life partner Zsa Zsa Padilla). It was aired last October 26, 2003. In November 30, 2004, Dolphy reciprocated the trio's guesting at ABS-CBN's 50th anniversary by guesting during the 25th anniversary of the trio's noontime show "Eat Bulaga".

* Joey's life story was shown on GMA-7's drama anthology "Magpakailanman" where his son Keempee de Leon portrayed him. The episode, entitled "Minsan may Isang Joey" (Once there was a Joey) it chronicled Joey's childhood and early adult years before he joined show business. It was shown on December 2005, as an anniversary presentation of the show. It actually took Joey some time to decide whether his life story would be shown or not, but he gave his nod to the project after the Magpakailanman staff gave in to his requests and conditions. That particular episode garnered a high rating of 34%, as against "Maalaala Mo Kaya" which only garnered 18%. "Minsan may Isang Joey" was replayed on May 2006, where it was pitted against "Maalaala Mo Kaya"'s final Thursday episode that had Christopher de Leon as guest star. "Magpakailanman" garnered a 17% rating as compared to MMK's 12%. Incidentally, Keempee also portrayed his father in "Maalaala Mo Kaya" when the ABS-CBN drama anthology featured the life story of the late Rene Requiestasin 2003.

* Joey's daughter Jocas (by second wife Eileen) graduated cum laude at Fordham University in New York City.

* Though highly regarded by the Philippine entertainment industry as one of the most respected comedians, Joey is also acknowledged as a starmaker, having discovered the untapped comedic talents of some bit actors and actresses who became his co-stars in most of his movies and TV shows. These actors and actresses became popular not long after. Among his discoveries were Jimmy Santos, Rene Requiestas (now deceased), Graaacia Cortez (who later became Samantha Lopez after she left "Eat Bulaga"), Mike "Pekto" Nacua and most recently, Alyssa Alano.

Friday, February 15, 2008

Kris Aquino


Kristina Bernadette Cojuangco Aquino-Yap (born February 14, 1971 in Quezon City) is a prominent television and movie personality in the Philippines.

She is the youngest of the five children of former President Corazon Aquino and former Senator Benigno Aquino, Jr., a popular opposition senator during the Ferdinand Marcos regime. The name of her siblings are Maria Elena, Aurora Corazon, Benigno III (Currently a senator from 2007 to 2013, former congressman of Tarlac), and Victoria Eliza.

In recent years, Aquino has been labeled the Philippines's "Queen of Talk," due to her success in hosting talk shows. She was crowned as the 2004 Box Office Queen for her hit movies such as Feng Shui and So... Happy Together.

In 2006, she regained the same Box Office title for her movie Sukob, which is said to be the highest-grossing Filipino film of the year.

Early Life:

In the infamous 1978 parliamentary elections where her father was a candidate, the seven-year-old Aquino wooed the crowds as a stand-in for her imprisoned father at campaign rallies. The young campaigner was featured on the front page of NYT and on Time Magazine. Aquino spent most of her elementary school days in the United States because the Aquino family was in exile. After the assassination of her father in 1983, Aquino returned to the Philippines and was a precocious presence in rallies against the Marcos regime. In an interview with the documentary Kontrobersyal, Congressman Teddy Locsin Jr. revealed that Ninoy Aquino named her youngest daughter Kris because she was born at the height of a major crisis.

After the 1986 revolution that removed President Ferdinand Marcos from power, the teenaged Kris stepped into the limelight, starting with guest spots on television dramas and comedies, as well as talk shows. Finally, she made her film debut with actor-comedian Rene Requiestas in the comedy Pido Dida. This movie was a blockbuster hit and made Kris the box office queen for that year.

Aquino afterwards had a commercially steady, though critically panned career and managed to score an acting nomination for The Fatima Buen Story. She starred in a film based on a true-life murder, the Vizconde Massacre. Its financial success and successive crime films of the same vein in which she starred in gained her the nickname "Massacre Queen" by newspaper critics.

Aquino studied High School at Colegio San Agustin, Makati and graduated from the Ateneo de Manila University in 1992 with a degree of Bachelor of Arts in English Literature.

Television Career:

Aquino started her career on TV at ABS-CBN. Being young then, she was the starrer of the short-lived comedy show Luv Ko Si Kris.

It was not until 1994, that she did Nandito Ako with action star Philip Salvador that started one of Aquino's very controversial love affairs. Aquino became pregnant and had a child, Joshua.

With her movie career slowing, Aquino shifted her sights on a television career as a talk show host launched through Kris produced by Viva Television on Channel 4 (at that time named PTV, this was transferred to GMA Network which has partnership with Viva and after Viva's contract with PTV ended). But it was in GMA Network showbiz oriented talk show Startalk where she co-hosted with Boy Abunda and Lolit Solis that her hosting capabilities were noticed.

After her GMA and Viva contracts expired, she went back to media conglomerate and GMA Network's rival ABS-CBN which noticed her undeniable hosting wit, offered her a contract and launched Today with Kris Aquino, one of the most successful talk shows of the 1990s. She started hosting The Buzz on 1999 together with close friend Boy Abunda. On year 2001, when game shows became very popular in the Philippines, ABS-CBN tapped her to host Game KNB? to compete against IBC-13's local franchises of The Weakest Link and Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?. In January 2003 to May 2004, she hosted yet another successful morning talk show that was supposed to last for 2 weeks but lasted for 16 months entitled Morning Girls with Kris and Korina alongside popular media personality Korina Sanchez. Not all of Aquino's television endeavors were hits; notable failures include Balitang Kris, which lasted for one season. For several years, she hosted The Buzz, a showbiz gossip/talk show with Boy Abunda and Cristy Fermin for the same network, as well as Pilipinas, Game KNB?, a game show which focuses on trivia. She officially left The Buzz and Pilipinas, Game KNB? after she gave birth to Baby James. According to her, she had to give up her hosting stint on the said shows to give more time to her baby. It was also assumed that she does not want to go back to The Buzz because she no longer wants to work with former co-host Cristy Fermin.

Aquino is the highest paid TV Host in the Philippines, thus, making her the 'Queen of Talk and Game Shows'. She is also one of the Filipino actresses who are sought after by companies for product endorsements. At present, she is an endorser for a popular corned beef brand as well as for San Miguel Corporation and Smart Communications. Her commercial for San Miguel became the most remembered television commercial and was said to have a 99 percent audience recall. She was paid a total of P20,000,000.00 for the endorsement. She also recently signed an endorsement contract with Facial Care Centre, a direct competitor of Belo Medical Group. Kris decided not to renew her contract with Belo Medical Group. It was uncertain as to whether her decision to transfer to Facial Care had something to do with the issue regarding James' alleged sexual encounter with a receptionist from Belo Medical Group.

Aquino was bestowed the title of "Commercial Princess of the Philippines". Said title was given to her for having numerous of TV and print appearances in Filipino media and for being one of the highest paid commercial endorsers in the Philippines, being at par with Sharon Cuneta.

She hosts the Philippine franchise of Deal or No Deal, which is part of ABS-CBN's primetime lineup. It ended its first season on February 23, 2007. The second season of the said game show started on June 11, 2007. She also hosts Boy & Kris, a morning talk show that replaced Homeboy, together with Boy Abunda, and Be Bench, a model search show together with Piolo Pascual. She is also expected to host Weekends with Kris, a lifestyle show. Nestor Torre, a known critic of the Philippine Entertainment industry, pointed out that Kris took a lot of risks when she chose to give up her two former shows. The critic pointed out that giving up The Buzz and Pilipinas, Game KNB? deprived her of the major exposure that those two popular shows afforded her. Torre also noted that it is much more difficult to successfully launch new shows than to resume hosting programs that are already popular.

Movie Career:

Aquino got her start in movies with the help of Regal Films, one of the oldest film outfits in the Philippines. Her early film includes the Pido Dida series, where she was paired with comedian Rene Requiestas and earned her first box-office queen award. She later on shifted into other roles, notably with massacre films such as The Vizconde Massacre, Myrna Diones Story, Elsa Castillo-Ang Katotohanan, and Humanda Ka Mayor. Despite her being a big draw in the box office, her acting skills were considered stiff and mechanical. She was dubbed then as "massacre queen" because of her portrayals in massacre movies which was the vogue during the time.

She first drew praise for her acting when she earned a nomination from the Gawad Urian award-giving body, composed of film critics, for the film The Fatima Buen Story. She eventually won a supporting actress award for the film Mano Po (2002 Regal Films), where she portrayed a weak-willed and submissive scion of a wealthy Filipino-Chinese clan. This was her comeback movie after her long layoff from movie acting.

But Aquino's most commercially-successful movies in her career are: Feng Shui, a Star Cinema production that featured Chinese influences and omen. Feng Shui, which was made during the wave of "Asian-style horror" flicks that spread throughout the continent since 2002's The Ring, made P180,218,395. It was the highest grossing Filipino movie of 2004, and the second most successful movie overall next to Spider-Man 2 which made over P225 million and earned Kris her second box office queen title. "Sukob," another horror thriller which she starred with Claudine Barretto in 2006, is the highest grossing Filipino film of all time surpassing Tanging Ina, Anak & her own starrer, Feng Shui.

Like anyone else, Aquino had her share of box-office bombs. Her 2003 movie with actor Robin Padilla, You and Me Against The World, flopped at the box-office right from the start. Made for P25,000,000 and released immediately after Aquino won acting awards (for her performance in 2002's Mano Po), You and Me Against The World made only P4,389,005. The film's producers lost an estimated P23,000,000, even with home videos accounted. Because You and Me Against The World failed to attract an audience, several movie theaters pulled the film out and replaced it with another film. Some theaters were reported to have done this on the movie's 2nd day of play.

Personal Life:

Aquino is known for her troublesome relationships. In the mid-1990s, she was involved with a Purefoods basketball player, Alvin Patrimonio, who was then married. In her relationship before Purefoods Chunkee Giants player James Yap, she was involved with then Parañaque mayor (ex PBA basketball player and actor/tv host Joey Marquez), who she later split with in a tumultuous ending, alleging that Marquez pointed a gun at her face, and gave her a venereal disease. She made her admission in an exclusive tell all interview by former co-host Korina Sanchez on the ABS-CBN newscast TV Patrol. Such admission became the highest-rating news segment in the history of Philippine newscast that even those in the workplaces paused from their work to hear Aquino's' story. Aquino filed charges of grave threat, illegal possession of firearms, grave coercion and less serious physical injuries against Marquez, but the former eventually dropped charges against the latter.

She is now married to PBA 2006 MVP superstar James Yap of Purefoods. They had their civil marriage in July 2005. The following year, she announced on The Buzz that she was pregnant. In early 2007, their marriage was rocked by the revelation of a former receptionist from Belo Medical Group named Hope Centeno that she had a relationship with James, which he vehemently denied in an interview with Korina Sanchez.

On April 19, 2007, she gave birth to her first son by Yap on 5:52pm (UTC +8) in Makati Medical Center in Makati City. The baby boy's real name is James A. Yap, Jr. but is affectionately known as "Baby James". She also had a relationship with actor Philip Salvador to whom she had a son named Joshua. Aquino also released her first album, entitled "Songs of Love and Healing", which contains inspirational songs from various artists. The album turned Double Platinum in just 8 months. Also, Aquino release again a new album titled "Love and Inspiration", that features again some of previous various artist. The album turned Gold in only 2 weeks. The both albums are produced by Universal Records Philippines.

Kris is known for causing enormous suffering to the contestants who appear on her game shows. She once asked a young man when he opened his Christmas presents: before or after the holiday. He replied that since he was agnostic, his family did not observe Christmas. Kris screamed at him and said he should be ashamed of himself for not believing in God. She then expressed her wish that he lose the game, which he then did. When she asked a woman what she did for a living, and heard "Late Night Call Center Representative," Kris said, "Is that why you're so fat and pimply?"

Business Ventures:

Being successful in her TV and movie career, Aquino ventured into several businesses. She owns Lena Restaurant in partnership with several celebrities, and Roberto Antonio, an upscale flower shop in partnership with Boy Abunda. She established a boutique ad agency in partnership with Boy Abunda but also including Nonon del Carmen and Agnes Maranan, and have decided to call it MAD (an acronym for their surnames, Maranan Abunda Aquino del Carmen).