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By Bayani San Diego / Inquirer News Service
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Date Posted: 12:57:39 07/11/05 Mon
If that was a joke, no one's laughing
First posted 07:41pm (Mla time) April 06, 2005
By Bayani San Diego / Inquirer News Service
Editor's Note: Published on page A28 of the April 7, 2005 issue of the Philippine Daily Inquirer
"I WOULDN'T know whether to hug her or scold her," TV host Boy Abunda said when asked how he would conduct himself next time he came face to face with his longtime friend Nora Aunor.
The actress was arrested at the Los Angeles airport on March 30 on "suspicion of contraband possession." Authorities reportedly found prohibited drugs and paraphernalia in her personal belongings.
In fact, Abunda said, the first time he got the news via SMS, he had dismissed it as "a sick ... April Fools joke." After all, he recalled, there was the Aga Muhlach car crash hoax a few days before.
But no one laughed, especially when the story landed on the front pages of major local dailies. Like other certified Noranians, Abunda's initial reaction was to "be in denial."
They could hardly be blamed. When it came to urban legends, Aunor could still upstage even younger rumor-mill regulars, including Kris Aquino and Gretchen Barretto.
Ron Masayda, a PR practitioner and staunch supporter of the actress, made frantic calls to friends in the US. "I can't believe she would do something as careless and stupid as that, when she's trying to apply for a Green Card," Masayda said.
Aunor is reportedly applying for an 01 visa, a status "designated for aliens of extraordinary ability in the sciences, arts, education, business or athletics."
Actress Gina Alajar was given such a visa in 1998.
Citing "sensational" media reports, another Aunor fan fumed, "Why would she endanger all her prospects in the US for eight grams of shabu?"
Indeed, Noranians find it easier to subscribe to a conspiracy theory. They said their idol, Philippine cinema's eternal beloved underdog, was "being framed by powerful people she had irked in the last election."
A source in the actress' inner circle admitted this was pure conjecture. "But we heard from Filipinos in LA that before she entered the airport security area, she was talking to strangers who had introduced themselves as fans. And they said one of those people handed Nora the items that got her in trouble."
That's scenario no. 1.
The "Superstar" has critics, too, unfortunately, who are starting to think the incident and subsequent frenzy were just a "gimmick" to drum up her forthcoming US concerts-in Reno, LA, Las Vegas, New Jersey, and Virginia Beach.
"That's silly," Masayda insisted. "It's not wise at all to trifle with the American justice system. I admire her for deciding to face the music in the US and not run back to the Philippines."
So what's next?
"I'm just glad that she has a good team of lawyers behind her," Abunda said, referring to Sherwin Edelberg and Claire Espina, who are preparing the defense. Espina is Filipino-American; Abunda describes her as "brilliant."
Norie Sayo, Aunor's manager, expressed extreme confidence in Edelberg and Espina in a statement e-mailed to Inquirer Entertainment: "We know [they] will protect Nora's interests to ensure she meets with justice and fairness."
In the meantime, Aunor is being shielded from the media, a close associate volunteered, as part of "a legal strategy."
Still, Aunor has managed to relay messages to friends and admirers back home.
A devoted colleague of hers told Inquirer: "The first time I talked to her by phone after the incident, she kept saying, 'Wala akong kasalanan (I am innocent).' And she ended up comforting me, saying she was okay, we shouldn't worry, friends were helping her."
Nightmarish
Abunda said he was "not blind" to criticisms that Aunor had "self-destructive" tendencies. "However, at this time, I believe she doesn't deserve cruelty. But don't get me wrong. It seems to me (after interviewing Sayo on his Sunday show, "The Buzz") that Nora is not asking for pity. She is merely asking for our prayers, our compassion, our understanding. What happened is no joke; it's nightmarish!"
Needless to say, it's hard to ignore that, with this latest misadventure, Aunor has once again hooked the Filipino public's fickle attention. The series of unfortunate events in LA is but the latest cliffhanger in her tumultuous life story, which has oft been likened to a long-running soap opera.
In the mean time, her handlers have deemed it in order to announce that the scheduled concert tour would push through. Also, followers are set to launch a book of testimonials titled, "Si Nora Aunor sa mga Noranian: Mga Paggunita at Pagtatapat (Nora Aunor to Noranians: Remembrances and Revelations)."
Yes, the show must go on and it will, because the chismis-loving multitudes are once more riveted.
>A special media research on Nora Aunor.
>
>Music Inside Buzz
>http://insidebuzz.tripod.com
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