NEWSFLASH

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GMA-7 GRABS MAJOR TELEVISION STAR AWARDS

Manila, Oct. 20, 1997 - GMA Channel 7 won 26 awards in 44 categories at the Star Awards for Television ceremonies over the weekend. Channel 7 was also voted Best Station with Balanced Programming for the period covering July, 1996 to July, 1997.

Tirso Cruz won Best Drama Actor for "Valiente," tied with Ricky Davao for "Familia Zaragoza." Rosanna Roces won as Best Comedy Actress in the program "1 for 3" while Maricel Soriano was proclaimed Best Drama Actress.

The awards night, a project of the Philippine Movie Press Club (PMPC), was marred by the boycott of two major networks: ABS-CBN and ABC-TV Channel 5.

PMPC President Jun Nardo touched on the boycott in his speech, saying "it is the PMPC's mission to provide inspiration and encouragement, and not to engage in divisive tactics."

PMPC officers and members believe it was unfair for their organization to be caught in the middle of an ongoing Battle of the Networks.

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