PILITA: I ENDURED 10 YEARS OF DOMESTIC ABUSE /
KC'S X FACTOR PHILS
[PHOTO- Asia's Queen
of Songs Pilita Corrales. File photo]
MANILA, JULY 6, 2012 (ABS-CBN) by Miguel Dumaual - The woman
hailed as "Asia's Queen of Songs" at one point lost her voice due to domestic
abuse.
In an interview on "Pipol" that aired Monday, veteran singer Pilita Corrales
said she endured 10 years of domestic abuse when she lived under the same roof
with former partner Amado del Paraguay.
"I lived with Amado (del Paraguay) for several years but we were not
married."
"[It was] very bad, I was beaten up. At one time, I lost my voice, although
the doctor said it will come back after one month," Corrales said
She said she even had to nurse a bleeding ear while performing on stage.
Corrales blamed alcohol for her partner's violent episodes.
"Once he would already take a drop of alcohol, I was already like this (hands
clasped in prayer), it would happen again," she recalled.
"[There was a time] I was hit with a telephone here (points to her ear) -- it
was bleeding -- can you imagine singing with that," Corrales said.
Staying in spite of it
Decades after the grim chapter of her life, Corrales is still befuddled as to
why she stayed in the relationship after the first time she was hit.
"Up until now, I cannot understand why. Why didn't I just walk out and run? I
don't understand," she said.
The strains from the abusive relationship would soon affect people's
perception of her, Corrales recalled.
"What happens is that sometimes people say, 'You like to be beaten,' but then
you tell yourself, 'Why didn't you get out?
"People were telling me, 'My God, gusto mo siguro magulpi. Why didn't you
leave him after so many years kung ginaganoon ka naman?' Then I thought, my
goodness," she said.
Not an hour
Recounting del Paraguay's abusive episodes, Corrales said she also feared
being alone -- the reason for her staying in the relationship despite the
physical and emotional strains that came with it.
"Seems like I thought, if I leave him, wala naman ako dito, maghahanap naman
ako ng iba. I don't want to be alone," Corrales said.
At the time, Corrales nonetheless had her two children -- Jackie Lou Blanco
and Ramon Christopher Gutierrez.
"Until a certain day came -- parang sinabi ko -- that's it. You leave and
never go back. It took me 10 years," she said.
Today, the "X-Factor" judge said she won't stay in a relationship a year if
she were faced with the same situation anew.
"If it would have happened now., the next day I will leave. I won't stay an
hour," she said.
Personal life
Corrales has two children, Jackielou Blanco and Ramón Christopher Gutierrez.
Both her two children are also well known celebrities in the Philippine Film
Industry.
Corrales was married in 1963 to the late Spanish executive businessman
Gonzalo Blanco and separated soon after, while her daughter Jackielou was still
a child. Gonzalo died in 1981.
Corrales gave birth to her second child, Ramón Christopher in 1971. Ramón's
father is Filipino actor Eddie Gutierrez.
On May 22, 2001, Corrales married Paraguayan businessman Carlos López. Asia's
Queen of Song Pilita Corrales and Australia-based Paraguayan businessman Carlos
Lopez, both in their 60s, have known each other around 20 years now. But it was
in 1998 when the two seriously considered marriage.
Earlier, it seemed, their personal commitments would not permit it. Then the
world cleared for the two of them. Truly, this is love the second time around
for Pilita: her first marriage was to daughter Jacqui Lou Blanco's late father;
there have been other men after him, but Carlos is only the second man she has
walked to the altar with.
Pilta will be among judge of KC's X Factor Philippines
Show
[PHOTO -The X Factor Philippines" host KC Concepcion and celebrity
judge-mentors. CONTRIBUTED IMAGE]
MANILA, Philippines -- For Asia's Queen of Songs Pilita Corrales, having a
good voice is not enough to win the upcoming TV talent search "The X Factor
Philippines."
In an interview with "Ganda Gabi Vice" on Sunday, Corrales said that aside
from being a good singer, she will look at the contestant's total package.
"Alam mo ang 'X Factor' kasi hindi lang singer ang hinahanap namin. We want
to have someone na ...like ikaw, kapag nakakita ka ng isang lalaki, alam mo na
iba siya," Corrales told the show's host Vice Ganda.
"May X factor siya," the veteran singer added.
Corrales will be a judge on the show along with fellow singers Charice, Gary
Valenciano and Martin Nievera.
Corrales has performed alongside internationally acclaimed artists including
Sammy Davis Jr., Pat Boone, Frank Sinatra and Julie Andrews.
She also holds the distinction of being the first Filipino to win in an
international music festival when she bagged the Best Performer Award at the 1st
Tokyo Music Festival.
Corrales once had a Kapamilya show "An Evening with Pilita," which aired on
ABS-CBN from 1965 to 1972 and is considered one of the benchmarks in Philippine
broadcasting history.
"The X Factor" is a world-renowned musical franchise by Simon Cowell that
started in the UK. ABS-CBN bagged the exclusive rights to localize the program
with KC Concepcion as host.
"The X Factor Philippines" will air its pilot episode on June 23.
Chief News Editor: Sol
Jose Vanzi
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