JOJIT Paredes and Ronnie Henares It will be the ‘70s all over again on 1 September, 8 p.m. at the Theater at Solaire Resort and Casino when Ronnie Henares and Jojit Paredes get together for a one-night reunion concert in “Twofus…Reunion of Friends.”

Today’s audiences instantly recognize Henares as a mainstay in the popular comedy series Pepito Manaloto where he surprised people with his comic flair. Ronnie is also widely recognized as the manager in tandem with wife Ida, responsible for transforming steel-throated Ang Bagong Kampeon champ Chona Velasquez into the classy musical superstar Regine Velasquez. Others developed under their Primeline Management & Production, Inc. were Lani Misalucha, Zsa Zsa Padilla, Nanette Inventor, Tux, Gino Padilla and the list goes on.

Jojit, on the other hand, has since opted for a quieter life in the United States.

But in the ‘70s, Ronnie and Jojit were the musical heartthrobs of the day. They were, in a manner of speaking, the equivalent of Leif Garrett and Rex Smith in the Philippines, with throngs of screaming and swooning fans.

Close buddies from their La Salle grade school days, Ronnie and Jojit together with Jim Paredes became lead vocalists of Les Violents, a high school band formed by the Paredes cousins. The band was formed to enter a “Battle of the Bands” competition sponsored by De La Salle High School where they won second prize.

“The high school band was the start of my musical partnership with Ronnie,” recalls Jojit. “We were invited to perform at all sorts of parties and gatherings.”

One of those gatherings was a weekend at the Laurel beach house in Matabungkay, Batangas upon the invitation of Lynnie Laurel. In the midst of the merriment, Ronnie and Jojit grabbed their acoustic guitars and started singing for the guests who were impressed by the two’s harmonious vocal blending.

The Twofus (pronounced as “Two of Us”) was born.

With boyish good looks and (social) class-transcending appeal, the Twofus would become a big hit among college and university campuses, the invites coming initially from exclusive private schools, and later, from public schools.

Ronnie and Jojit then invaded radio, print and television. They shuttled back and forth gigs on primetime TV, musicals, live shows, road tours, concerts and radio shows. When the Twofus was introduced to Tower Productions, they turned composers for the first time, writing the movie theme for the fan flick Funny Girl starring Tina Revilla.

Ronnie and Jojit then became part of the highest rating prime time show that time, D’ Sensations, which featured Vilma Santos and Boboy Mortiz.

“One afternoon after a radio interview at the program of Ike Lozada in ABS-CBN, he brought us to meet Tony Santos, the famous director of the show,” remembers Jojit. “Direk Tony Santos asked us if we could do an impromptu song and he’d put us on live. We took a deep breath and went for it. At first the audience fell silent as acoustic guitars were not yet amplified and the boom mike was picking up peripheral noise. When we finished the song, the audience went wild, demanding more.”

For a couple of years, Sunday evening televiewers were enthralled by the Twofus. In record time, Ronnie and Jojit cemented their status as national teen idols.

But the time to pursue different paths eventually came.

They got together last year and recalled their successful the US reunion. “It was heartwarming seeing familiar faces that we haven’t seen in ages plus fans from our youth that packed the afternoon matinee and evening shows, and how much fun we had performing for them and watching them participate in the show,” says Ronnie who suggested that he and Jojit reunite in Manila.

“These days we need a dose of yesteryears when love songs were tender, lengthy laugh trips were highly contagious and dancing expressed the soul’s joy and rhythm…more importantly when friendships lasted lifetimes,” Ronnie adds.

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