Queen of Philippine Movies Gloria Romero was one of the respectable actresses I’ve known in my movie reporting career.
I might not be close to her but I respected and took her as one of the most fascinating persons in the local entertainment industry.
Tita (a term of endearment to an older person or woman or auntie by blood or by affinity) Glo will always be the fine lady I’ve noticed since the time I saw and met her in person.
She was kind to me that whenever I bumped into her, she had a ready smile for me and I had on her.
Even if she wasn’t talkative as I remember her, she was full of good vibes and intentions for everyone.
I recall that when I saw her with Kuya (a term of endearment to an older man or brother by blood or affinity) Germs, German Moreno in real life, at the Mowelfund grounds where the first Walk of Fame was conceptualized and conceived, I just looked at her passed me by. Kuya Germs and Tita Glo were good friends and former colleagues at Sampaguita Pictures where they both were signed up stars—she was a major talent and he was a struggling character actor and comedian.
Whenever she was free, she would grant Moreno her appearance especially on projects he oversaw.
Gloria Romero was one of the very first Walk of Fame recipients so she had to be in Mowelfund with German to witness the unveiling of the site until it was transferred to Eastwood, also in Quezon City.
Most of the time that I had encounters with Tita Gloria, especially in shoots of films and tapings of TV shows, she was always quiet.
She would just stay in one corner, mindful of her own business like being made up or reading scripts or anything that required by herself.
But she would also talk with someone in the room especially if he or she was familiar with her.
The only time that I witnessed her openness and candidness was in her tapings of “Palibhasa Lalake,” a weekly sitcom in ABS-CBN that starred Richard Gomez, Joey Marquez, Amy Perez, Cynthia Patag, Carmina Villarroel and a host of other stars.
Because the ABS-CBN studio at the time of the show was intimate—the dressing rooms were located in adjacent chambers—we could see and hobnob with each other clearly and closely.
One of the most ubiquitous persons on the set was the entertainment writer Arthur Quinto who was a confrere of Douglas Quijano, talent manager of Richard and Joey and one of the program’s consultants.
Arthur was writing lengthy feature stories for Jingle Extra Hot, Artista, Sensation (all fan magazines) and other fanzines and tabloids so he needed to be updated and running around with movie, television and stage stars to be written.
Quinto was a prolific writer and he was also close to Tita Glo.
Prior to “Palibhasa Lalake,” Romero was already interviewed and written about by Arthur in her other media outlets like Modern Romances and True Confessions and Bulaklak, two of the most popular and sought after publications during the 60, 70s, 80s up to some years of the 90s.
Sometimes I went with Quinto inside the “Palibhasa Lalake” studio or I would go there by myself because I was a very active and solicitous field reporter, writer, segment producer and Voice-Over (VO) talent of “Star News,” one of the most viewed portions of ABS-CBN primetime news show in the local broadcast industry.
I also had the chance to get Tita Glo on camera especially when she had new movies or some things she would want to impart about the sitcom.
When I heard the news that Tita Glo passed on—presumably because of old age, I felt sad but would say a little for her.
The only illness she had was vertigo.
She was 91.
Condolences to her only child, the unica hija, Maritess Gutierrez and Tita Glo’s grandchild, Chris.
#WeTakeAStand #OpinYon #OpinYonColumn #Imagery #GloriaRomero