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Tag: Francis Magalona

Francis M inspires

Published by Ellen on March 8, 2009

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When a friend, Marlyn Divinagracia, 32-year old wife of detained Scout Ranger Capt. Ervin Divinagracia, was diagnosed to have leukemina Nov. 7 last year, we told her not to lose hope and cited rapper Francis Magalona.

“Look at Francis Magalona. He has leukemia and he has survived it,” we told her. It was announced in August 2008 that Francis had leukemia.

Marlyn’s battle with leukemia was swift. One week after, we bade goodbye to her.

Francis also bade goodbye last Friday. But in his seven-month battle with leukemia, he showed how to turn the prospect of death into a celebration of life. In his blog (http://francismagalona.multiply.com), the Jan. 9, 2009 entry was about the visit of artist-magician Jeffrey Tam while he was in a recording session with “Ely B” at Tracks studio in Pasig.

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Bibeth talks of Francis M

Published by Ellen on March 8, 2009

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This is one of the three photos in Francis M’s last blog entry dated Jan. 14, 2009 as he was preparing for his fourth chemo.

by Bibeth Orteza
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Thursday night, March 5, I had a meeting with Malou Choa-Fagar, Executive
Producer of Eat Bulaga. The meeting stretched all the way to 4:30 a.m.,
Malou had been informed by Tita Rose (Rosa Rosal) that it was a matter of
time, for Kiko. My friend of many years back was sad, terribly sad, for
Francis called her ³Mama,² and was really close to her. The next day, March
6, at a lunch meeting with Gabriela party-list Rep. Liza Maza, I got a text
from Malou: ³Francis passed this noon.² I was stunned.

March is usually when I work on The ³Eat Bulaga² Holy Week drama episodes as
writer and director. For this year, before we found out we weren¹t going to
do any, Kiko through his wife Pia agreed to the plot I outlined on the
phone. He was to play himself, he was willing to lend us videos and photos
of his treatment, do his voice-over narration, with scenes of his treatment
to intercut with fictional stories about other people who want to give up
because jobless, because spurned by a lover, because unable to deal with an
in-law, etc., with the message ³Yo, I ain¹t giving up, so don¹t.² The
project sadly didn¹t push through.

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