Charlene, Toni and Willie: bid farewell?

Not everyone welcomes good­byes. For many, goodbyes are bittersweet affairs best left for the hardhearted. Then again, in the cutthroat world that is show business, goodbyes are very much a given, particularly as it often go hand in hand with reinvention – a de­mand fundamental to sustaining relevance. The seemingly all-too-sudden sayonara by longtime “The Buzz” hosts Toni Gonzaga and Charlene Gonzales on Sunday came with no explanation but if anything, it signaled a big new beginning, as co-host Boy Abunda so dramati­cally hinted via voice-over.

“Sa inyong walang patid na pagsubaybay, sa inyong walang sawang pagsuporta at sa patu­loy naming pagbibigay serbisyo, kasama kayo sa isang panibagong simula,” Abunda said. “Kasali kayo sa pagbubukas ng isang bagong kabanata, mas malawak, mas malaki. Pakiking­gan, paguusapan at pakikiala­man. Ito ang pagbabagong ka­kapitan, pagbabagong tatatak sa puso at isipan. Ito ang inyong ‘The Buzz.’”

In her parting spiel, Gonzales heaped thanks on the show’s staff and her co-hosts, describing her stint on the show as a “wonder­ful journey” and one that paved the way for her to share the stage with “two of the greatest artists in the industry – Toni Gonzaga and Boy Abunda.”

Gonzaga, for her part, acknowl­edged the “lessons” she learned while doing the show, courtesy of Abunda whom she said was “gen­erous” in imparting “wisdom.” But her parting shot was quite telling: “I believe that goodbyes don’t really mean that it’s the end or tapos na ang lahat. It just means na ‘yung pamama-alam namin sa hapon na ito ay… I’ll see you again.” Of course. Not surprisingly, controversial TV host Willie Revillame also hint­ed at a comeback even before he finished saying his goodbyes to a teary-eyed audience during the farewell episode of “Wowowillie” on Saturday.

Although he had previously announced that the end of the program will mark his retirement from show business, Revillame said: “May bubuksan para sa magandang pag-asa at magan­dang buhay. Abangan niyo po ‘yan…”
“Wala pang kumakausap sa akin,” he added with a laugh, seemingly tickled pink with the idea. “Kung may kakausap, pag­iisipan…”

It was not the first time Re­villame made such a promise. “Wowowillie” aired for only seven months but it was actually the third version of the show since Revillame transferred to ABS­CBN from ABS-CBN. The first, “Willing Willie,” was caught in a snag after a 6-year­old show contestant made head­lines for supposedly dancing inappropriately.

Eventually, Revil­lame went on hiatus only to re­turn a month later with “Wiltime Bigtime.” “Wowowillie” marked the pro­gram’s transfer to a noontime slot only in January this year. Revillame related the difficul­ties in producing a daily variety show in his farewell monologue. Said he, “Hindi po biro ang mag-show araw-araw, na kahit wala ka sa mood, may sakit ka, kailangan mo ngumiti. May nama­tay, may sakit ang anak mo, may sakit ang pamilya mo, may sakit ang staff mo, hindi po biro ‘yon dito sa amin sa ‘Wowowillie. ’” He added, “Kailangan pagla­bas namin, sumisigaw ka, nakan­giti ka, kahit nagdurugo ang puso mo…” But all that said, he was quick to declare: “I will return!”(N. Ra­mos, mb)