Tuesday, November 26, 2013

Most Iconic Photos from the 40's, 50's & 60's

Here now are some of the most iconic photos from the 40's, 50's and 60's that left an indelible mark for humanity



World's Most Famous Blonde

The indelible image of Marilyn Monroe smiling as her skirt blows from a blast from the subway vent was shot during the filming of The Seven Year Itch. 

Though it is now etched as an iconic photograph, at the time it infuriated her then husband, Joe DiMaggio, and the couple divorced shortly after.


Battle of Iwo Jima

A Pulitzer prize winning photo, this image by Joe Rosenthal shows U.S Marines patriotically raising the flag on top of Mount Suribachi during the Battle of Iwo Jima in WW2. 

Half of the men depicted in the picture died in battle.


World's First Computer

The images of the first computer debuted in February 1946 when the device comprised 18,000 vacuum tubes, many wires and 170,000 watts of power and filled a 1,500 square foot room.

First 3D Film, 1952

Snapped for LIFE magazine, this December 1952 photograph shows the advancement in cinematic technology with American audiences enjoying the opening night of the first full-length American 3-D feature film, Bwana Devil.

Albert Einstein With His Tongue Out, 1951

Arthur Sasse was a lucky man to have captured such a genius in a moment of pure silliness. The picture was snapped during Einstein’s 72nd birthday, where the mastermind, tired of smiling for the cameras, gave this insightful pose instead.

Burning Monk, 1963

Malcolm W. Browne captured this image of the Vietnamese monk, Thich Quang Duc, who set himself on fire to protest the Diem regime’s ruthless persecution of Buddhists. The image, needless to say, captured the “hearts and minds” of millions world-over.


Guerrillero Heroico, 1960
Che Guevara



“Guerrillero Heroico” or “Heroic Guerrilla Fighter” is one of the most popular and stylized pictures of all time. 

Taken by Alberto Korda on March 5, the image is of the Marxist revolutionary Che Guevara at a memorial service for victims of La Coubre explosion. 

It is often considered as the most famous image in the world and certainly lionized Guevara’s person as it is the most reproduced image in photography.


One Small Step for Man
A Giant Leap for Mankind

Neil “That’s one small step for man” Armstrong snapped this image of fellow astronaut Buzz Aldrin during their jaunt on the moon. 

The image became a symbol of American innovation and dedication and one of the lasting iconic photos of the 1960s.



Monday, November 25, 2013

Cannes Filmfest Best Director Reunites With His Pinay Yaya

Anthony Chen displays his Camera D'Or award
The 66th Cannes Film Festival in May. (Reuters)

I got an invite to watch the Philippine premiere of Iloilo The Movie.

I was immediately drawn to it not only because it is being buzzed as the film to beat in next year's Oscars for Best Foreign Film but also because it reminded me of my wonderful one year stay in Iloilo City.


It was in Iloilo City where I became an FM radio disc jockey/ newscaster and learned to speak impeccable Ilonggo. Anyway, more of my Iloilo City sojourn in an upcoming feature 

Here's the article written by Nestor P. Burgos Jr. of Inquirer Visayas:

Teresita Sajonia left Singapore 16 years ago as a nanny but returned to the city-state in August a celebrity.

On Aug. 24, Sajonia attended the gala premier at Marina Bay Sands Theater of the award-winning movie “Ilo Ilo,” a film inspired by her eight-year employment and relationship with a Singaporean family.

“Ilo Ilo,” which won the Camera d’Or (best first feature film award) in the prestigious Cannes Film Festival in May, was written and directed by Anthony Chen, 29, the eldest of three boys Sajonia took care of from 1988 to 1997.

“I’m very happy that they remembered the years we were together and that this was made into a movie,” Sajonia, 55, a native of San Miguel town in Iloilo province after which the movie was titled.

Auntie Terry on her way to attend the movie premiere
 
With Sajonia as guests of honor were Singaporean President Tony Tan Keng Yam, his wife, Mary Chee Bee Kiang, and Lawrence Wong, acting minister for culture, community and youth.

Sajonia was accompanied by her partner, Juan Taguibe.

The audience gave “Ilo Ilo” a standing ovation, captured on a video posted on its official page on Facebook.

After its screening in Singapore, the film is expected to be shown in the Philippines. It stars Filipino actor Angeli Bayani, who plays the role of Sajonia.

SINGAPORE EXPERIENCE  

REUNITED: Anthony & Christopher with Auntie Terry
 
The youngest of six children and a midwifery graduate who failed to pass the board examination, Sajonia went to Singapore in 1986 because she could not find a job in Iloilo.

She first worked as a domestic helper. After her contract expired, she went to work for the Chen family in 1988. She sent part of her earnings to her own family in Iloilo.

Aside from doing household chores, Sajonia took care of her employers’ three children—Anthony, Justin and Christopher. She was closest to the youngest, Christopher, who was only a month old when she started to work for the family.

The children learned their first English words from “Auntie Terry,” as they called Sajonia. She also made them listen to her cassette collections of “Miss Saigon” and “Les Miserables.”

At the height of the Asian financial crisis in 1997, Sajonia returned home after her fourth two-year contract with the Chens had expired.

She also thought she was ill, only to learn later that she was experiencing menopausal symptoms.

Sajonia returned to farming and raising chickens in San Miguel, 14 kilometers southwest of Iloilo City.

For 13 years now, she has been living with Taguibe, 65, in their house in Sitio Onas in Barangay Santa Cruz, 5 kilometers from the town proper.

The Chens and Sajonia lost contact for 16 years. She wrote to the family once but she did not know that her letter never reached them because they had moved to a new place. But she kept pictures of her former wards.

“Ilo Ilo,” which has been screened in various international film festivals, led to the reunion of Sajonia and the three Singaporean children, now all grown up.

SEARCH FOR AUNTIE TERRY

After his film had won the Cannes festival, he decided to find his former nanny. He traveled to the Philippines and in June, he met public relations consultant Charles Lim, a Cebu-based Singaporean and chief executive officer of Selrahco Management and Consultancy Services, who offered to help him.

Lim requested media outlets in Iloilo to help trace Sajonia. But without her complete name and address, and only with photos taken when she was still in Singapore, the search took weeks.

“We do not have a television and our radio station is not working well,” Sajonia said.

In July, a nephew of Sajonia in Australia recognized her picture in a Facebook post of radio station Bombo Radyo. He contacted a cousin in Iloilo who, in turn, informed Sajonia about the search for her.

“When I learned that someone from Singapore was looking for me, I was concerned that I might have done something wrong and that they would arrest me,” Sajonia said.

TEARFUL REUNION

After 16 Years: Terry Reunites with Chris Her Favorite
 
But on July 22, Anthony and Christopher Chen quietly arrived in Iloilo City and on the next day paid a surprise visit to their Auntie Terry at her home in San Miguel.

At first, she did not recognize Anthony. “Who are you?” she asked him. But she recognized the now 24-year-old Christopher whom she last saw when he was 8.

“I embraced them and cried a little,” she told the Inquirer.

The brothers took their former nanny and Taguibe to Iloilo City to shop and stay overnight in a hotel before they returned to Singapore on July 24.

Anthony said his family was overjoyed when they learned about the reunion.

“My family and I are completely overwhelmed by the goodwill coming from Iloilo and the Philippines in finding Auntie Terry. We honestly did not expect to hear any news so soon,” he said in a statement.

“‘Ilo Ilo’ is a story about love, family and relationships, and we could never have imagined that a little film like this could reach out to connect and reconnect with those ties that we thought were long lost,” the filmmaker said.

Sajonia said she had always considered her former wards her children, having none of her own. “I’m happy that they grew up well,” she said.

THE HAND THAT ROCKS THE CRADLE RULES THE WORLD

Sunday, November 24, 2013

2013 Miss Universe Highlights

The 2013 Miss Universe Pageant has been concluded in a fast- paced two hour spectacle held at the Crocus City Hall, Moscow, Russia



It was in fact too fast that certain segments were cut short. Even the awarding of Miss Photogenic and Miss Congeniality was not shown on live TV to make way for legendary rock icon Steven Tyler to perform live

PAGEANT HOSTS: Thomas Roberts & Melanie Brown
Thomas Roberts, anchor of (“MSNBC Live”) and Melanie Brown, best known to audiences as Mel B (“America’s Got Talent”), co-hosted the pageant and proved to be a perfect match with their engaging and quick- witted repartee. Jeannie Mai, recognized for her fashion segments on NBC’s “Today,” served as commentator.




TOP 16 ANNOUNCEMENT

After all 86 girls had introduced themselves, the cut to the Top 16 immediately followed. First to be called was COSTA RICA then followed by UKRAINE, CHINA, ECUADOR, GREAT BRITAIN, INDONESIA, VENEZUELA, DOMINICAN REPUBLIC, PUERTO RICO, SPAIN, USA, NICARAGUA, SWITZERLAND, INDIA, BRAZIL and finally the PHILIPPINES


SHOCKING EXCLUSIONS

Perceived frontrunners and heavy favorites like Israel, France, Czech Republic, Bolivia and my favorite candidate Paulina Krupinska of Poland didn't make it. 

Miss Poland: What Went Wrong?
There was a momentary chorus of boos when the hometown girl Miss Russia Elmira Abdrazakova didn't advance either. 

It was a shutout for the girls from Africa as not even one made it. 

There were pleasant surprises though like the inclusion of Ecuador, Costa Rica and Nicaragua

The last to be called and revealed to be the Peopl'es Choice for garnering the highest internet votes was Miss Philippines Ariella Arida. 

SWIMSUIT COMPETITION

Up next was the Swimsuit Competition sponsored by Yamamay Swimwear.

The segment opened up with the 70 non- semifinalists gyrating and undulating onstage with Panic @ The Disco who provided the musical backdrop






Top 16 in Yamamay Swimwear
Photo Credit: Tom's Miss U Mania
Miss Philippines is Best in Swimsuit

Miss Philippines Ariella Arida garnered the highest score in the Swimsuit Competition thus becoming the first Filipina to win this competition. 

Historically speaking, swimsuits have always been the Waterloo for many of our candidates in the Miss Universe pageant so this is a big achievement for Ara already.

For more of the swimsuit competition photos, just click the link

THE TOP TEN

From 16 semifinalists, the girls were trimmed down to the Top Ten based on their swimsuit competition composite scores

They were called in random order:  

First to be called was SPAIN followed by the PHILIPPINES, GREAT BRITAIN, INDIA, BRAZIL, USA, UKRAINE, ECUADOR, VENEZUELA and DOMINICAN REPUBLIC



Venezuela reacts after being called the 9th Semifinalist
It was shocking that Miss Puerto Rico Monic Perez didn't get the call

EVENING GOWN COMPETITION:

Miss Universe Evening Gown Competition
Photo Credits: Tom's Miss U Mania
The standouts were Venezuela who showed off her elegance, class & confidence, Spain who was such an ethereal vision in white and Great Britain who wowed everyone with her fiery red gown that showcased her buffed figure

For more of the evening gown competition photos, just click the link


FINAL FIVE

First to be called was ECUADOR who made history by becoming the first from her country to make the Top Five. She was followed by BRAZIL, SPAIN, PHILIPPINES and finally, VENEZUELA 





It's interesting to note that for the first time since 2007 when the scoring system was reinstated, scores from the Swimsuit & Evening Gown Competitions were averaged.

Miss Ukraine and Miss Great Britain would have advanced instead of Miss Philippines and Miss Brazil if the only basis for selecting the Top Five was the evening gown scores. 

Ariella who ranked 9th among the Top Ten in the Evening Gown Competition was saved because of her strong Swimsuit Competition scores

FINAL QUESTION AND ANSWER

Ecuador's question came from judge Philip Kirkorov, "What would happen to the world if we could no longer use the internet?"
Ecuador replied, "Thank you very much for the question. Zdrastvooyte, Russia! I believe that computers themselves as one of the technologies nowadays. It has got its advantages and disadvantages and one of the disadvantages is that we are no longer as close together with our families.

I would like to use this moment to tell the teenagers and everybody that we should use the methodology of computers and Internet in a positive way. It is never too late to start. Let us start right now. Thank you all very much." 
Brazil's question from judge Carol Alt was, "What is your opinion in places that do not allow women to vote, travel abroad, or drive cars?"
Brazil replied, "Good evening, everybody. In my opinion, we as women achieved our independence through time. Unfortunately, nowadays we still have some problems with our independence as women
But we need to keep our open minds because nowadays we are homemakers, we are out there in the work force. In my country, we have a female president. We are capable of everything."
Spain's question came from judge Anne Vyalitsyna, "What is the most significant thing we can do to help elect more women to political offices around the world?"
Spain replied, "Good evening. I believe that in order to select a good woman, she must possess good qualities in order to perform a good job: discipline, know how to adapt herself, how to respond.
Her work, her performance and fulfilling her job. (Hesitated breath) Thank you so much." 
Philippines' question was from judge Tara Lipinski, "What can be done about the lack of jobs for young people starting their careers around the world?"
Philippines answered, "Preevyet, Russia! For the people who have lack of jobs, I do believe that we people should invest in education and that is my primary advocacy, because we all know that if everyone of us is educated and well aware of what we are doing, we could land into jobs and we could land good careers in the future.
So education is the primary source and a ticket for a better future. Thank you." 
Venezuela's question came from judge Steven Tyler, "What is your biggest fear and how do you plan to overcome it?"
Venezuela replied, "I believe that one may have a lot of fears but nonetheless this is nothing negative. I believe we should overcome all of our fears and this in turn would make us much stronger.
And thusly, we can become much stronger persons. As soon as we overcome our fears and we're sure of ourselves, we can face any challenge. Thank you."  
CROWNING MOMENTS

Miss Universe 2013 Official Results:

Winner: Venezuela, Gabriela Isler
1st Runner-Up: Spain, Patricia Rodriguez (will assume the duties of Miss Universe 2013 if the titleholder for some reason cannot fulfill her responsibilities)
2nd Runner-Up: Ecuador, Constanza Baez
3rd Runner-Up: Philippines, Ariella Arida
4th Runner-Up: Brazil, Jakelyne Oliveira

And Then There Were Two












TRIVIA

Venezuela's victory marks their 7th crown of Miss Universe while USA still holds the most number of wins, 8 crowns.

2013 Miss Universe Top Three
Another interesting fact is the Philippines' 4th consecutive placement in the Top 5 of the pageant: Maria Venus Raj (2010 Miss Universe 4th Runner-Up), Shamcey Supsup (2011 Miss Universe 3rd Runner-Up), Janine Tugonon (2012 Miss Universe 1st Runner-Up) and Ariella Arida (2013 Miss Universe 3rd Runner-Up).

The PHILIPPINES has now reached the Top 5 AND last round of voting for 4 consecutive years, something it has never done before. 

It also joins an elite group of countries that have done it before: AUSTRALIA (1969-1972), GERMANY (1954-1957), SWEDEN (1978-1981), USA (1958-1961). and VENEZUELA (1984-1987 and 2000-2003). 

Only FINLAND (1965-1969) has the distinct record of making the Top 5 and last round of voting for 5 years in a row, but the PHILIPPINES has a good shot of equalling that record next year.

THE REST OF THE RESULTS: 
6th Great Britain, Amy Willerton
7th India, Manasi Moghe
8th USA, Erin Brady
9th Ukraine, Olga Storozhenko
10th Dominican Republic, Yaritza Reyes

11th Costa Rica, Fabiana Granados
12th China, Jin Ye
13th Indonesia, Whulandary Herman
14th Puerto Rico, Monic Perez
15th Nicaragua, Nastassja Bolivar
16th Switzerland, Dominique Rinderknecht

SPECIAL AWARDS:

Miss Photogenic Universe™ Award: Poland, Paulina Krupinska. 

An expert panel chose the delegate they thought best exemplifies beauty through the lens of a camera. She was awarded a $1,000 cash prize and a gift from pageant sponsor Diamond Nexus.



Miss Congeniality Universe™ Award: Miss Universe China, Jin Ye. 

This award reflects the respect and admiration of the delegate’s peers who voted for her as the most congenial, charismatic and inspirational participant. She was awarded a $1,000 cash prize and a gift from Diamond Nexus.



Best National Costume: Nicaragua, Nastassja Bolivar



Winner of the Fan Vote: Philippines, Ariella Arida. The winner of the fan vote powered by www.missuniverse.com, with the winner automatically advancing to the Top 16.

The Lady & The Trump
 Photo Credits: Copyright infringement not intended

Saturday, November 23, 2013

Berdeth Gives Back for Bohol's Future

REACHING OUT

It was a meaningful birthday celebration for Italy- based Boholana Berdeth Piquero when she celebrated her natal day with a visit to Pangangan Elementary School located in Pangangan Island, Calape, Bohol last Thursday November 21 to share her blessings with the school's teachers and 452 pupils

She was joined by your blogger and her high school classmate and good friend Lyndon Boiser who incidentally, is marking his golden year today

Good friends Lyndon & Berdeth with Bohol's future
 
CLASSES IN A TENT CITY 

Both were immediately drawn to the innocent faces of the young pupils who were oblivious to the makeshift tent and bamboo structure that has been their classroom for the past few weeks after an earthquake devastated their school and houses

During our visit, we found out that several of the teachers and the pupils have fallen ill because of the not so conducive ventilation from the nylon tarpaulin that turn the makeshift classrooms into ovens when the sun comes out during the day




It was an eye- opener for my companions who witnessed the deplorable surroundings. 

After the visit and the distribution of the school supplies, both Berdeth and Lyndon thanked me for the opportunity to reach out to the kids. 

I said "Don't thank me for I'm just an instrument" 

















Before she flew back for Italy this morning, Ate Berdeth promised to initiate a fundraiser so that the community's dream for their kids to have a sturdier classroom will be fulfilled

Cheers to you both Berdeth & Lyndon!

If you want to help rebuild Bohol's school buildings and classrooms that were either totally destroyed or partially damaged by the October 15 temblor, please visit the FB Link below:


Photo Credits: Raul Phillip Gatal & Berdeth Piquero

Extra Special Blog Feature

Part 1: The Tragic Story of Amparo Munoz

  no fairy tale ending SPAIN CONQUERED THE PHILIPPINES AGAIN. Whenever discussions and debates center on who is considered as the ...