Janno Gibbs (MNS Photo)
Longtime fans of both Ogie Alcasid and Janno Gibbs are well aware that the friendship of the two singers slash comedians slash actors slash TV hosts dates back to “Small Brothers”, the popular ABS-CBN weekly variety show they headlined following the EDSA Revolution in the late 1980s.
But it wasn’t until they became co-hosts of three long-running Sunday noontime variety shows (“SOP,” “Party Pilipinas” and “Sunday All-Stars”) on GMA Network dating back to 1997 that the bond between the two was cemented.
So when Ogie left GMA to sign with TV5 in 2013 and Janno decided to stay on, it was not easy for many fans to imagine one without the other, even as both had their respective shares of individual success even while working together on the same shows.
Ogie Alcasid (MNS Photo)
Last month, it was reported that Janno was leaving GMA to transfer to TV5. Not a few fans believed that even if it’s not because he and Ogie will again star on the same show, it will only be a matter of time before the two start to work again with each other since that they’re now under one network.
TV5 officially launched its upcoming new Sunday noontime variety game show, “Happy Truck ng Bayan”, which will be headlined by Derek Ramsay, Jasmine Curtis-Smith, Mariel Rodriguez, Gelli De Belen,Tuesday Vargas, Empoy, Kim Idol and, yes, Ogie and Janno.
Although Ogie is quick to clarify that he has nothing to do with Janno’s decision to transfer to TV5 and was just as surprised as everyone else when he first heard about it, he admits that he is very happy to be reunited with his old bosom buddy.
And since “Happy Truck ng Bayan” will air from 11AM to 1PM every Sunday, it will not only be pitted with ABS-CBN’s long-running musical variety show “ASAP”, but also with “Sunday All-Stars”, the show he and Janno used to co-host and whose current hosts also include Ogie’s wife, Regine Velasquez.
Being the professionals that they are, Ogie said being pitted with each other is not an issue with him and his wife. He also denies trying to convince Regine to move to TV5.
But now that he and Janno are on the same show together, Ogie told News5 in an earlier interview that he was now looking forward to do some of the things they used to do together in their previous shows.
‘Yung gagawin namin sa show (‘Happy Truck’), yun pa rin dating ginagawa naming nung magkasama pa kami, kumakanta at puro kasiyahan,” he revealed.
For Janno, being in a new home is still something he’s trying to get accustomed to, even as like Ogie, he is adept at hosting and performing with several variety and even game shows to his credit.
“This is still new to me. I’ve been with GMA for the longest time so first time ko ito sa labas ng bakuran nila. Pero excited ako na makasama ko yung mga artista ng TV5,” Janno said.
Adding that “Happy Truck ng Bayan” is a “fiesta” that he and the other hosts of the show will be personally bringing to the viewers every Sunday starting June 14, Janno said he is likewise excited about this new phase of his career. (MNS)