Phenomenal Legend: The Enigmatic Nora Aunor
SHE might not have dreamed of sculpting a superstar, but fate catapulted her to be one.
Nora Aunor, the only superstar of the Philippine movies has an ordinary persona with an extraordinary voice. It is her hoarse, unconventional yet, classic and lifting voice that separated her from other singers; her charismatic beauty that sets her apart from the pale-skinned, finely-chiseled features of "mestizos" and "mestizas" in Philippine tinseltown.
The presence of Aunor in the industry disproves that beauty has a stronghold over talent. Although she is not fair-skinned and dimunitive, Aunor has spanned over three decades in the movies and garnered several major awards from major award-giving bodies in the Philippines and elsewhere.
She is the first Filipino actress to win a best actress in a major international film festival in her portrayal in "Flor Contemplacion Story," as a Filipino maid hanged for murder in Singapore during the 19th Cairo International Festival in Eqypt on December 11, 1995. There were 220 entries from around the world including the US and France in this festival. It was also in the "Flor Contemplacion Story," that Aunor’s performance was lauded as, "acting at its best" at the Toronto Film Festival in 1995.
This petite and charming superstar has undoubtedly made history in the local movie industry. She also has redefined the standards of beauty and talent that make a person not only a star but a thespian. Although, she may not have the looks of Susan Roces, Amalia Fuentes or Gloria Romero, Aunor has the beauty that emanates from within. Her charm is disarming. Her eyes so luminous that you could see the beauty of her heart. She partly spent her earnings for her family and shared her sizable earnings with less fortunate kids. Acting for several decades, Aunor has already mastered the soul of Filipinos. She has portrayed roles in films with different genres. But her melodramatic pieces always give her the accolades for her acting prowess. One quality that Aunor has that others don’t have is, "the sadness of her eyes that set off instant sympathy among moviegoers, what some might call stage presence that dwarfs the rest of the cast."
"Superstar" was the longest running live show in the history of Philippine television. It is in her show, "Superstar," that she further honed her craft and expressed her heart where she could not express in the movies.
The legendary weekend show transformed a simple, young teener who won the Liberty Big Show in Naga, Darigold Bulilit Show in Manila (where she retired after winning 14 undefeated weeks as a champ), and Tawag ng Tanghalan (which became her passport to success) into a celebrated, professional and multiawarded chanteuse.
Aunor’s rise to stardom is phenomenal. The young water vendor by the railroad has emerged into the country’s most sought-after movie star.
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