HEART EVANGELISTA'S FIRST HEARTBREAK

MANILA, July 11, 2005 (MALAYA) STUDIO WHISPERS By ETHEL RAMOS - “He was my first love. And the first guy na ipinagta-tanggol ko sa father ko. I cried a lot when we parted ways.” – Heart Evangelista

For the first time, Heart Evangelista talked about her romance with John Prats.

"He was my first love. And the first guy na ipinagtatanggol ko sa father ko. I cried a lot when we parted ways," Heart confessed.

They were sweethearts for one year and three months and within that period they appeared as a tandem in several TV shows: the teen series "Berks" and "Gmik"; and the sitcoms "The Body and the Guard" and "The Sexy and the Pilot." They were also a pair in "Trip" and "My First Romance."

Why did they break-up?

"It was John who broke up with me," Heart replied, "One day, he just stopped seeing me. He also ceased communicating with me. And I confronted him about it, sabi niya, gusto niya muna i-enjoy and kanyang freedom."

Heart also claimed that there was no truth to the rumor that her second boyfriend was De La Salle student Brian Dy, the son of Isabela Mayor Paul Dy. Brian, she said, had all the qualities she wants in her ideal man but she discovered that one does not necessarily fall in love with a person because he is ideal.

"I will marry for love," said Heart. "I don’t care if the guy I would eventually fall in love with is mahirap or pangit. Tama na sa akin na mahal ko sya at mahal nya ako. Ipaglalaban ko sya sa father ko. Malaking bonus kung may pinag aralan sya."

She revealed she’s loveless at the moment, and that she’s looking for a boyfriend. "Di naman ako nagmamadali na magka-boyfriend," she quickly added. "Pero, masarap isipin na may iniibig ka at umiibig din sa ‘yo."

Heart is turning 21 on her birthday next year. She and John have the same birthday: February 14.

Heart, together with Geoff Eigenmann, who was her leading man in the recently-concluded ABS CBN teleserye, "Hiram," is the host of the new reality search program, "CloseUp To Frame: The Search for the Next CloseUp Couple," also on ABS-CBN.

Directed by Malou Sevilla, the show aims to find the special guy and girl who generate enough chemistry to launch romantic daydreams, a pair who possesses star appeal that ignites the small screen, and. above, all embody the CloseUp spirit.

Right now, there are 12 pairs vying for the title. They have been chosen from among thousand of aspirants, ages ranging from 13 to 23, who auditioned in four key cities nationwide, Metro Manila, Naga City, Cebu City and Metro Davao.

The winning couple automatically gets to take home prizes worth one million and will become the next couple to be launched in CloseUp’s newest commercials.

Some of the celebrities who were once CloseUp models are Gabby Concepcion, William Martinez, Richard Gomez, Onemig Bondoc and Dawn Zulueta.

Heart also did a CloseUp commercial with John Prats.

It’s Plinky Recto, formerly a CloseUp model herself, and young TV director Lino Cayetano, who will rate the couple as "hot or not." They will be assisted by former beauty tilt winner Nini Ricci Alagao, who taught the contestants proper make-up application.

Their ratings will be based on how confident the contestants carry themselves as they walk on the red carpet where the critics (Pinky, Direk Lino and Nina Ricci) will be awaiting them.

Criteria for judging are as follows: 40% for actual performance and 60% from viewers’ text votes.

To vote for your favorite CloseUp couple, viewers must purchase a CloseUp product with a sticker and send CloseUp (name, sticker, code, contestant’s number) to 2256. Each variant has a corresponding number of text votes. Each text is also considered a raffle entry registered to the viewer’s mobile number. Raffle winners have the chance to bring home a brand new Mazda 3 in the grand draw on September 14.