Charles Teves
Wowowin host Willie Revillame cannot thank GMA Network enough for not giving up on him after he initially decided to quit the hosting business due to lack of revenue being generated from the show.
During the early days of the program, Revillame was the sole producer who took care of all the costs to make Wowowin continue going on-air.
He would spend millions of his own money, but got nothing in return due to the lack of marketing.
The host then decided to quit the show business and retreat to Tagaytay when his spending amounted to over Php140 million.
“Walang nagbebenta ng programa so nalulugi. Sabi ko, paalam na ako.” he said.
“Kasi nagbabayad ho ako ng blocktime, eh, more than 2 million for 1 hour. Isipin n’yo sa 2 million, 2.2 yata, sa isang buwan ho, eh 8.8 million ‘yun. Wala ka pang ilaw.”
However, GMA Network executive Jose Mari R. Abacan did not make it easy for him to leave.
The two parties came up with deals that eventually convinced Willie to stay. Abacan’s proposal includes the Network shouldering a portion of the overall cost, giving the program a longer running time and placing it at a more attractive time slot.
“Nagsimula ako rito, May 10, ako ho ang nagpo-produce noon, ako. Pera ko ‘yun, every Sunday, 3:30-4:30 p.m.. Dumating ang time na after mga ilang linggo, sabi ko, stop ko na, dahil wala kasi akong marketing, eh. Walang nagbebenta ng programa,”
He thanked his loyal audience for sticking it out with the program.
“Hindi ako to, kayo to. Kung hindi niyo kami binigyan ng magandang ratings, wala na siguro kami sa GMA.
“Sir Joey thank you so much sa suporta mo at tiwala mo sa akin.”
In the recent airing, Willie looked visibly emotional as he told the viewers how much he misses the live audience.
Before the pandemic, people would wait hours outside hoping to enter the studio that can accommodate to 800 individuals.
“Bago kami mag start, nag sasayawan na dito.” he shared.
“Ako mismo namimiss ko talaga yung mga sigawan. Parang naging tourist spot [ang studio].”
He misses interacting with the fans and his production staff.
The Wowowin team currently has only less than 20 people, and Willie is grateful to every single one of them.
He also paid tribute to stand-up comedian Le Chazz who recently passed away after suffering from a heart-related attack.
Le Chazz was a frequent guest on Revillame’s programs.
