RUFFA TO CO-HOST MILLENNIUM CONCERT
Orlando,
Florida, Dec. 31, 1999-
ABC5 has been awarded the exclusive broadcast rights to air "Countdown
to the Millennium" throughout the Philippines, Kenneth Botelho, president
of Century Productions Inc., announced.
"It is only natural to have awarded this prestigious broadcast right to ABC5, considering that one of our rising stars, Ruffa Gutierrez, also makes her home there as co-host of Eezy Dancing non-stop."
Ruffa will co-host The Millenium Countdown Concert tomorrow, December 31, 1999, starting at 8:30 PM EST. The concert will be held at Disney World's MGM Studios in Orlando, Florida and will be broadcasted live on the Internet. North American viewers can watch the show on satellite television such as Comcast, DirecTV and ExpressVu. Ruffa is co-hosting the event with Todd Newton of E! Entertainment and Lisa Robertson, a former Miss Tennessee and Miss America contestant. Among the performers are: Cheap Trick, LFO, Styx, Lynyrd Skynyrd, George Thorogood & the Destroyers, The Spinatras, Cutters, 38 Special and comedians Janine Gardner, Al Lubel, Gary Gulman and Robbie Printz.
Century Productions Inc., a leader in producing top entertainment specials for broadcast television and cable distribution, will be presenting the concert at Walt Disney World for the fifth year in a row.
"It is our understanding that ABC5 will position this special to air during prime time on New Year Day. ABC5 will carry this show beginning at 8:00 pm on January 1st." said Botelho.
Ruffa is elated that ABC5 has decided to carry this broadcast in its entirety. While some networks were going to carry bits and pieces of various New Year’s celebrations throughout the world, ABC5 will carry the entire 5 1/2 hours from Walt Disney World.
"Mr. Botelho will allow me to say 'hi' to everyone back in the Philippines during my live segments in the broadcast. This is important to me as I leave the Philippines to begin my International Television career."
Botelho said that the reason that this event was awarded to ABC5 was due to their commitment to carrying the program in its entirety. "This allows us to let Ruffa welcome in the New Year to all of her fans back in the Philippines. This is the least that I can do after receiving such a warm reception when I was in Manila last week. Considering the global nature of the broadcast, I need to balance what the viewer sees. But we only have one Filipino star and that is Ruffa. Saying 'hi' to everyone back home for the turn of the millennium is fine by me!"
Ruffa told that PHNO that "I'm really excited with this concert because my whole family is flying in from Manila to welcome the new millennium. Mom, Dad, Rocky, Elvis, Richard, Raymond, Ritchie Paul, the nanny, Norma, her son, Norielle, and my PR in the Philippines, Jun Lalin. WOW! A whole caboodle! Year 2000 is gonna be the bomb! So much is in store for me."
This years show will again be produced and directed by Emmy Award winning director Ken Botelho. Botelho’s approach will top last year’s broadcast, where 21 live cameras were used. This year, in addition to the excitement of providing exceptional camera coverage, Botelho will spend a considerable amount of time concentrating on making the hosts very exciting and part of the millennium atmosphere on air.
To watch and listen to the concert via the Internet, you will need Netscape or Internet Explorer version 3 or higher and Microsoft Media Player with at least a 28K Internet connection. Point your browser to: