8 things you may not know about Joey de Leon

Since Joey de Leon turned 80 last 14 October, I decided to pay tribute to the legendary multi-media personality by listing down 80 not-so-well-known facts about him.

But 80 is a huge number. Eighty details about Joey would never fit into this space. So, I just whittled it down to eight pieces of information you may not likely know about the great Joey de Leon.

1. Joey and Lolit Solis were childhood enemies

The two of them were raised in the Manila district of Sampaloc. They studied in the same school for their primary education: Moises Salvador Elementary School.

Joey was naughty and always played pranks on Lolit, who would retaliate by stabbing him with her Mongol pencil.

It was Joey who often started their constant fights. That was Lolit’s version of the story.

To Lolit’s frustration, however, Joey — who was cute and mestizo — only had to flash an impish smile and the teacher would become disarmed. It was Lolit who would end up being punished instead.

He always got away with his naughtiness because, according to Lolit, Joey as a boy looked like Mark Lester, the star of the musical Oliver!

2. Joey almost became part of the classic Anak-Dalita

Joey was often criticized for some of the comedy films he made from the 1980s to the mid-1990s. In my book, I like his Barbie for President movie because it tackled issues about Philippine politics. It remains relevant to this day.

In 1956, he auditioned for LVN Pictures’ Anak-Dalita. Joey is actually related to the De Leons (the family of Mike de Leon) and, for a while, even lived at the LVN compound as a boy.

When there was a casting call for a child actor to play Rosa Rosal’s younger brother, Joey tried his luck and acted his heart out before the casting panel.

The role went to child actor Vic Bacani instead. But Joey came close to getting the part.

Anak-Dalita won Best Picture at the Asian Film Festival. This Lamberto Avellana classic is now considered one of the best films in Philippine cinema history — and Joey de Leon could have been part of it.

3. Joey travels not for sightseeing, but to eat

During a trip to Spain, Joey once finished about a dozen sticks of skewered roasted olives. But his all-time favorite is shrimp — the “suaje” variety.

He used to order this dish, prepared halabos or salt-boiled, at the Shangri-La restaurant on Times Avenue. Sadly, the Chinese restaurant stopped operations at the height of the pandemic in 2020.

I wonder where he now gets his favorite “suaje” dish. But leave it to Joey’s wife, Eileen Macapagal, to find a new restaurant where they can order “suaje.” Eileen, if you must know, is a walking food directory.

4. Joey is the only TV personality to have worked for all local television networks

He was with ABS-CBN when Eat Bulaga! aired on the Lopez network from February 1989 to January 1995. Currently, he is with TV5, the present home of Eat Bulaga!

On GMA, he did not only Eat Bulaga! but also Nuts Entertainment, Startalk and Mel & Joey. RPN-9, of course, was where Eat Bulaga! started. Then there was IBC-13, where he starred in the sitcom Iskul Bukol.

Believe it or not, he also became part of PTV-4 in 1979 when he co-hosted the Sunday noontime youth-oriented talk show Friends with Tito and Vic Sotto.

Their female co-host? Charo Santos.

5. The Tito, Vic and Joey trio almost broke up

In 1982, rumors circulated in the television industry that Joey was unhappy with Eat Bulaga!

It may have been due to creative differences because Joey had always been a person with ideas constantly swirling in his head. Whatever the reason was, executives of Student Canteen saw it as an opportunity to bring Joey into their fold.

A meeting was set in a watering hole in the Teachers’ Village area, and Joey agreed to meet with the Student Canteen people. Host and co-producer Bobby Ledesma lost no time reminding Joey that he actually started with them — the Student Canteen team.

In 1976, Joey was invited to co-host Discorama, Student Canteen’s sister show on Channel 7. In time, Joey asked Tito and Vic Sotto to join him in the program, and that was how the trio Tito, Vic and Joey — or TVJ — was born.

TVJ became so popular that producers scrambled to get the group’s services for a noontime show opposite Student Canteen. In the end, TVJ chose the Jalosjos group, and that was how Eat Bulaga! was formed.

For two years, the cast and crew of Eat Bulaga! were not paid. Despite the popularity of Tito, Vic and Joey, the show remained a poor second to Student Canteen. Advertisers stayed away because of its low ratings.

Then, Coney Reyes got fired from Student Canteen. She was absorbed by Eat Bulaga! Since everyone loves an underdog, noontime viewers shifted from Student Canteen to Eat Bulaga!, which became the number one show overnight.

It was panic time for Student Canteen. The only hope of regaining its former glory was to get Joey. That was why the Student Canteen bosses arranged a meeting with him.

The talk was conducted over drinks. It reached a point when Joey said he was willing to leave Eat Bulaga! and move to Student Canteen.

By the time the meeting ended, Joey had more or less given his word — informally, though — that he was amenable to joining the Student Canteen fold.

And so, they shook hands and called it a night.

Joey never bothered to learn how to drive. During the early years of Eat Bulaga!, he would sometimes take a cab to get to the studio.

One day, he was at a street corner along East Avenue trying to get a taxi when he realized he had one drink too many. At one point, he threw up, which cleared his head. Nahimasmasan (he regained his senses).

Along with whatever he vomited were his plans about leaving Eat Bulaga! and joining Student Canteen. It was then that he admitted to himself how much he loved Eat Bulaga! — so much so that he stayed on for the succeeding decades.

Eat Bulaga! is now only three years away from marking its golden anniversary.

6. How Joey became part of Startalk

In May 2004, Startalk host Rosanna Roces left the showbiz-oriented talk show after a fallout with her manager, Lolit Solis. She never returned to the program.

Startalk relied on guest co-hosts after Rosanna’s departure. Most of the time, it was Alma Moreno who filled the void.

That same year, Joey was suspended from Eat Bulaga! for about two months by the MTRCB because of the language he used in one segment of the noontime program.

He would still report to the Eat Bulaga! set at Broadway Centrum in Quezon City every day, but he would watch from the audience gallery. That was how dedicated he was to the show.

I do not recall whose brilliant idea it was to try Joey as a guest co-host on Startalk. But he clicked with the show.

He was invited week after week until it was decided to make him a permanent co-host.

Oh, what fun it was to work with him. And what an honor. To this day, I consider it a blessing to have worked with Joey de Leon for 10 years.

7. Only Joey can make Vilma Santos leave her home in a housedress — and without makeup

For the past several decades, Joey and his family have lived in Green Meadows subdivision in Quezon City. One of his early neighbors there was Ricky Reyes.

In 1991, Vilma Santos also moved to Green Meadows. This was a year before she married now Executive Secretary Ralph Recto.

Joey occasionally hosts mahjong sessions at his home. One time, he thought, why not invite Vilma over and ask her to play?

Vilma, however, had always been the type to never leave the house with a single strand of hair out of place. But with one call from Joey, she would drive over to his home — yes, in a housedress and without makeup.

That’s how much Vilma respects Joey. Anyone would have done the same for this genius of a man.

8. Joey will remain Catholic until the end

No one knows Joey’s relationship with God. He has never flaunted his faith.

In show business, many actors have chosen to become born-again Christians. Nothing is wrong with that. To each his own.

But not Joey. He said that he was baptized Catholic and intends to remain one until the end.