20
Philippine Showbiz Today
March 22 - April 7, 2019
Long live comedy: Digital comics on
iconic Filipino comedians
Artist Alan Czar Santos
created a digital comic book
that pays tribute to some of the
most iconic Filipino comedians
and entertainers who played a
significant role in Filipino culture.
“The Comedians Reborn”
a world
where
reimagines
comedians like Dolphy, Babalu,
Rene Requiestas,
Redford
White, Panchito, Kuya Germs,
Bentong, Tiya Pusit, Elizabeth
Ramsay, Blakdyak and Tado are
still alive and making jokes.
Santos shared the first
19 pages of the comic book
on its Facebook page that he
created days after Chokocleit,
another well-known comedian,
succumbed to pulmonary edema
and heart attack.
The artist created the comic
book to honor the “talented,
astonishingly funny and brilliant
late comedians” in the industry
who have made a significant
impact on Filipinos’ lives.
“I just want to create a world
or universe that the late actors will
be alive again. In that perspective,
we wont [sic] forget them and
their contribution will always be
remembered,” one of his captions
reads.
While he recently posted his
comic book on Facebook, Santos
said that he has been researching
about it since January 2019.
“Nag-research a[ko] [ng]
maigi and carefully to know if the
comedians ay totoong patay na
REYFORT
Joel Castro
Web Designer
www.joelcastro.com
Jose K. Lirios
Contributing Writer
then put the whole concept na
malagay sila lahat to give tribute to
them,” he shared in an interview.
The comic book artist
also said that he plans to
incorporate elements of fantasy
“involving Filipino myths and
folklore.”
In another interview, Santos
said that the first volume would
consist of Dolphy, Babalu and
Rene Requiestas fighting off
against Filipino mythical creatures
like a manananggal, kapre and
some form of physical violence
where the actors are hit, tripped,
punched and tricked to the delight
of the audience.
Film historian Nick Deocampo
reasons that this type of comedy
is appealing to Filipinos since it is
easy to grasp and understand.
“Andaling intindihin. Kapag
binatukan mo yung isang tao
dahil mali-mali siya, natutuwa
tayo diyan,” he said.
It was the same genre of
comedy that had earned Dolphy the
title “King of Comedy,” particularly
in the longtime-running sitcom
“John En Marsha.”
Toilet humor, meanwhile,
refers to vulgar phrases intended
to be funny. It also refers to jokes
in matters that are considered
“previously unmentionable in
polite society.”
“May references siya sa
mga ginagawa nating sagrado
at pribado sa loob ng toilet.
So nakakatawa [ang ganitong
komedya] kasi taboo siya,”
Deocampo explained.
He also shared that the
secret to comedy is the person’s
ingenuity or creativity, regardless
of a genre.
“Kapag
nawala
ang
inventiveness sa comedy, hindi na
nakakatawa. Kaya may masasabi
tayo na mga ‘comic genius’
kasi yun ang mga tao na always
inventive,” Deocampo said. ●
bakunawas.
Comedy in Philippine culture
Comedy has always been part
of Filipino culture, particularly in
the entertainment industry during
the ’80s and ’90s.
According to a report, two
of the most constant types of
humor usually witnessed on local
shows and movies where most
iconic comedians have earned
recognition are slapstick and
toilet humor.
- J. Malasig, Featured image from
Slapstick comedy involves Alan Czar Santos, Interaksyon