NOTES ON NOTES
A SECOND JOHNNY MATHIS
LIFE is a gamble.
Offen one has to take risks to survive, difficult decisions have to be made:-
was
Bert Nievera had a decision to make two years ago. It probably the most im- portant decision, of his young life.
:
decide
He had to whether to -risk security and utter boredom for, a career which wasn't as stable, but which gave him complete enjoyment and happiness.
After much soul searching, Bert decided on the latter
course.
PERFECT
Today he is a singer, much sought after on the Far East- ernand: Australasian night- club circuit, with a whole new career in front of him and with few regrets.
Bert is currently wooing
'But Johnny
didn't seem pleased
crowds at a new nightclub.
downtown
I was told before meeting him that he was known as Mathis
the Johnny Philip-
never
of the But I pines. realised just how perfect the imitation was.
·
The tone, the phrasing, the style-it's Mathis right down the
Bert line. Of course
La doesn't always sing a Mathis. He likes Mel Torme phrase a Torme and often will creep into a song.
I found Bert to be a direct, honest young man (he is 24) with no airs or graces. He admitted that
he imitates Mathis deliberately.
"You see," he said, “in the Philippines, unless you are imitating one of
'The Guns of Navarone'
Cinema passes for the winners
COL
YOLUMBIA'S "The Guns of Navarone," now showing at the King's and Princess theatres, is one of the most stirring movies to be made about World War.II.
It concerns the exploits of a group of commandos whose task it is to destroy the guns of Navarone-two giant wea- pons concealed in a natural cave on the small island that are causing tremendous damage to British shipping.
This is a film of gripping action and almost unbearable suspense.
It has an international cast headed by Gregory Peck, David Niven, and Anthony Quinn. Co-starring are Stanley Baker, Anthony. Quayle and James Darren. The glamour is supplied by lovely Irish-Italian beauty Gia Seals and Greek actress Irene Papas.
In conjunction with the showing of this film, this column presents a competition which is open to its club members only.
THE PRIZES: Double cinema passes for the first four correct entries received. ́ ́
Below are two lists. One gives the name of fishing vessels, the other explains their types. All we want you to do is to pair them off.
For example Caique (No 10) should be paired off with the letter E which is "A Greek vessel" The caique inciden- tally is the fishing boat used by the commandos in the film.
Entries cipse on Thursday, August 24. It's fairly simple so why not give it a try.
1 Falacca
2 Trireme
3 Bucentaur
4 Galliot
5 Junk
6 Prod
7 Dhow
8 Kayak
9 Piroque
10 Caique
A Eskimo canoe.
B Dutch merchant ship. C Mediterranean vessel.
D Roman galley. E Greek vessel.
F Venetian barge.
G Malaysian outrigger.
H Dugout canoe.
1 Chinese vessel.
J Arab vessel.
the current
favourites, по
American one
bothers to listen to you.
re-
"I discovered that my
voice natural
closely sembled that of Johnny any-
so I went
out of my. way, way to imitate him."
But it took Bert quite some time to make up his mind what he wanted to do with his life.
COMMERCE
"For a long while I just couldn't make up my mind. Like lots of the kids in the Philippines, I sang a lot, but never dreamed of turning professional.
"I entered the University of the Philippines and was tak- ing foreign service. I later shifted to commerce and then slowly drifted to dramatics.
"I spent four years at the University and even now I am not sure whether I bene- fited or not.
"I do realise that I spent more time studying dramaties than anything else. It was in 1958 that I started entering amateur concerts. I won all of them, much to my surprise, It was this year too that I sang professionally for the first time.
"But here my problems really started. In the Philip- pines there is always plenty of competition in show busi- ness and it doesn't always pay well. Even at the top there is
no security. So I gave it all up and joined an airline for two years.
IMITATING
"I didn't really enjoy it. In fact I was utterly bored. So I said to myself "I don't really care whether I make the grade or not as long as I am happy so I took the plunge back into show business.
"Ecsides, I was pretty well fed up with the airline busi- ness at the time anyway. I joined mainly because it pro- mised travel. I found I was going nowhere in a hurry.
"Well once I had thrown caution to the wind, I soon got a job and plenty of other offers. I had realised earlier that trying to develop my own style was getting me nowhere. So I started imitating the current favourite with the Filipino public Johnny
Mathis.
"That did it I guess. I won one Student Canteen pro- gramme singing like Johnny
44444444
Bert Nievera photographed by Frank Fischbeck at one of the colony's leading night-spots.
and the consequent publicity gave my career a tremendous boost. I sang for a year at a US military base at Baguio and later joined the Embers nightclub.
was
"It was while I was singing at the Embers that I offered a job at the fabulous I sang Areneta Coloseum. there a couple of times, once on the same programme
Los Panchos the Trio
Now one visit Hongkong. ambition has been fulfilled. I have received offers to sing in Australia, Japan, Taiwan and other Far Eastern coun- tries.
"I haven't decided yet exact- ly what I am going to do. Of course I'd like to go to the States too, but I guess I have plenty of time left.
"This life suits me
As
and
once with
fine."
the Pageant
of
Beauty show.
"To licar the crowd's ap- plause was a feeling I cannot put into words.
"I couldn't belive thy 20- tually liked me.
"Later Johnny Mathis him- self appeared at the Areneta and one night he came down to the Embers for a drink.
"I was introduced to him as of the the "Johnny Mathis "Philippines." I hated it. John- ny didn't seem pleased either.
AMBITION
try
"He advised
me.to and develop a style of my own, for as he so rightly id, the day his popu- larity starts to wane, will mine.
SO
my
"It was while I was at the Embers that I received offer to sing in Hongkong. I accepted almost immediately. wanted to "I had always
Stars of the film "The Guns of Navarone" seen in one of the many exciting sequences in the film. Being interrogated by a German officer are from left to right: Gia Scala, Irene Papas, James Darren, Stanley Baker, Anthony Quinn, David Niven and Gregory Peck.
just
NEW MEMBERS
INDRU
DASWANI, 18, student, 75 Granville-road, Kowloon.
WILLIE LAI, 17, student, 144 Prince Edward-road, 1st floor, Kowloon.
HELEN KWOK, 17,
Central student,
District Health Centre, Kau U Fong, Hongkong.
LIBIA LOO, 17, student, 126 Nga Tsin Wai-road, 2nd floor, Kowloon.
DANNY student, 32 Kowloon.
17,
TROY, Junction-road,
SUZIE LEUNG, 19, student, 17 Old Bailey-street, 2nd floor, Hongkong.
PATRICK WONG, 18, student, 50 Kadoorie Avenue, top floor, Kowloon.
CHARLEY CHUNG, 20, student, I Poplar-street, 2nd floor, Kowloon.
PETER B. W. YU, 17, student, 25 Kai Tak New
|Village, Kowloon.
THOMAS TE, 17, student, 33 Grampian-road, 2nd floor, Kowloon.
(Continued on next page).