Being funny <i>is</i> sexy! (Part 2)

Bubble Gang is not only the longest running gag show in the Philippines, it’s also the most blessed when it comes to having the sexiest cast members. Ara Mina, Rufa Mae Quinto, Maureen Larrazabal, Francine Prieto, and Diana Zubiri, all beauty goddesses in their own right, prove to the viewers every Friday night that being funny can most definitely be hot. Text by Jillian Q. Gatcheco. Photos by Mitch S. Mauricio. In part two of this feature, get to know Francine Prieto and Maureen Larrazabal. Francine Prieto Francine Prieto is new to the Gang, having joined the show only a year ago. Her stint as the ditzy Jingle on Bahay Mo Ba ‘To prepared her for the move to a more slapstick and physical show. Her experience with these shows has already taught her a lot about doing comedy. “Parang mas nagiimprove yung acting mo, kasi dito sa Bubble Gang, iba-iba yung ginagawa mo, minsan matanda ka, minsan, basta iba-ibang role yung nagagampanan mo. So mas naiiba-iba, at saka marami kang nagagawa,” she says. Francine says that she especially likes doing the gags. “Nakakatawa kasi kapag gags, doon kami mas-madalas nagkakamali, Kaya iyun yung pinapalabas bandang huli, yung mga spoof, yung mga bloopers, lalo na pag kaeksena sina Ogie, nakakatawa!” She shares that an audience favorite is “Yung pag spinu-spoof nila yung mga commercial, kapag may mga kanta, sina Bitoy ( Michael V) naman may (gawa) noon. Magagaling sila dun!” Something that the audience doesn’t know is that despite having perfect vital statistics, all the girls in Bubble Gang love to eat. “Puro kain! Lalo na kapag gags, ang daming pagkain! Lalo na kaming girls, lagi naming kinakain mga manggang hilaw, favorite namin! Naku kapag nandiyan na, naku, kaniya-kaniyang sawsawan, iba-ibang gusto!” All this from just one year on the show! Maureen Larrazabal Maureen Larrazabal, on the other hand, has been making people laugh for three years with the Bubble Gang cast. She cites her first guest appearance on Bubble Gang as the most memorable, not because she did a hilarious sketch for the show but because she never even got to tape her segments! “The first time I guested here, I was still with another show na gag show din. So I got here, sa Filmex, and they were saying, ‘Uy, teka…you’re not supposed to be here! You have another show na katapat nung show!’ But my manager kasi wanted me to guest, so of course I have to follow. So I slept lang for a while, kasi normally, what I do, kapag sa taping, dala ko pa higaan ko. Tapos napansin ko, mga three, four hours, hindi pa ako tinatawag. And then si Bitoy, sabi niya sa akin, ‘Hay naku, uuwi ka rin!’ So I was like, ah, okay, uuwi daw ako. Maya-maya ginising ako, after four, five hours, ‘Ms. Maureen, I’m sorry, hindi pala pwede, you have to go home.’ I was like, ah, okay, so siyempre, nahiya ako! Kasi ready na ako, nandoon na ako. At saka nung pagbaba ko, iyun yung worst part, nagkasalubong kami ni Michael V., and he was like, ‘I told you so! Uuwi ka rin!’ That was my first time na nag-guest sa kanila. Nakatanim sa utak ko yun, nung nandito na ako, when they got me na regular sa Bubble Gang, lagi kong sinasabi sa kaniya iyun. lagi kong binabanggit sa kaniya. And he’s always laughing about it. But that one I cannot forget! And I’ll never forget that! Not really traumatic, but (it was) humiliating!” Since then she has become a regular on the show. And in those three years, Maureen has had a lot of funny experiences far better than her first guest non-appearance. She talks about her bloopers on the show: “Ang dami e! Hindi kasi maiwasan na nagkakamali. Minsan nakakalimutan ko yung linya, or hindi ko alam na papasok pa pala ako, or hindi ko alam kung ano gagawin ko. Mga ganoon. Maraming ganoon!” Maureen, who loves Bubble Gang’s commercial spoofs, shares a tidbit about the cast members. “Hindi alam (ng viewers) na may serious side ang cast. May serious side ang lahat ng cast, hindi lang isa in particular. They’re funny, they’re wacky, ang daming antics and stuff, but when you talk to them, they have thatm, laman; they have sense, at saka ibang klase yung pagkaseryoso nila sa life.” Maureen has also learned that comedy isn’t easy. “Harder na magpatawa kaysa magpaiyak ng tao. Mahirap magpatawa ng tao. At saka dapat perfect yung timing mo, tapos dapat iba-iba yung atake, hindi pwedeng dapat iisa lang yung way mo ng pagpapatawa. So natutunan ko yun sa Bubble Gang. Because lahat naman ng kasama ko, sobrang ang gagaling na. Sinusuportahan ka nila all the way. Paano mo idedeliver, kalian mo ilalagay yung punchline, ano yung _expression mo, even the intonation ng boses mo,” she says. To all the fans of Bubble Gang through the years, Francine has this to say: “Eleventh year na ngayon, salamat sa mga sumosoporta at saka sana patuloy niyo pa rin kaming susuportahan, at abangan niyo, siyempre, marami pa! Alam mo naman ang Bubble Gang, hindi mawawala sa uso iyan! Laging nakikisabay sa uso, so abangan niyo na lang yung mga bago pang portions, na magkakaroon kami!” Catch these two beautiful women every Friday at 10:00PM, right after Love of the Condor Heroes! And watch out for Part 2 of this web exclusive.