Walang patutunguhan ang kulang sa pag-ibig
Kung ang iyong halaman ay kulang sa dilig
Kagaya ni Caparas na merong angking galing
Ngunit ‘di siya malunok ng kababayan natin

Hindi pa ba dapat na bigyang parangal?
Itong minagaling na nagsimula sa sukal
Ano pa ba ang dapat para tuluyang mahinog?
Hindi ba sapat ang mga gawain niyang hinubog

Ako’y tinuruan kung paano magsaing
‘Wag buksan ang tuntong habang sumisingasing
Baka mabantilaw kung subo’y pipigilin
Hintayin mo Caparas na ito ay mainin!

I couldn’t help myself laughing out loud about your YouTube video “Kwentong Tambay with Johnny #2: Carlo J. Caparas.” You made your arguements very well, objectively-wise and the way you and Johnny delivered them were whacked-out funny. May both of you never tire of this fight. Hey, don’t you & Johnny want to be actors? I’m sure CJC could use your talents in one of his “masa”cre movies. Hehehehe!

I saw the videos of CJC being interviewd by Cheche Lazaro in Media in Focus and Lolit Solis together with 2 unggok in Startalk.

Cheche was good, not biased, the way a journalist should be. From that interview, you could feel the under current CJC is NOT WILLING to give up the National Artist title, holding onto it like a “tuko” knowing it will not come his way again. Like a kid, he also brought with him his samples of drawings. Oh boy, that one was hilarious! A National Artist for Visual Arts proving he could draw!

As for Lolit Solis’ interview, man, that one was something else. Everybody knows Lolit is in the showbiz industry and CJC is a “director.” (Please, take note of the quotation marks!) I never saw a host as blatant a “sipsep” than Lolit. She knows she couldn’t be neutral on the issue or antagonize CJC if she wants movie opportunities for her proteges.

You should be a journalist, aside from being a komikero.

Now let’s just wait until CJC101 becomes a requirement in school – God Help Our Children! Mwahahahaha!

Thank u so much for your comment.

With regards sa pagiging “MAHUSAY NA MAKISAMA” ni CJC , I agree to that, Nun maliliit pa kming magkakapatid, nakita ko ang samahan ng Daddy ko at Mr. Caparas. Dahil noon ay lage kaming lumalabas kasama ang family niya, family namen together with the associates of my Dad. Para silang tunay na magkaibigan. Dumating pa un point na sinuntok ni CJC ang isa sa mga associates ng Daddy ko dahil me ginawang di maganda sa Daddy. Akala nga namin un magandang samahan nilang yun ay di na magbabago, pero me hangganan pala lahat.

Lumamig lang ang samahan nila dahil sa problemang kinasangkutan ng mga illustrators noon. Sabe nga nila duon mo masusubok ang isang kaibigan kung hanggang saan sya. Pasikat na sya noon bilang director, maaring ginamit lang nya ang utak nya (CJC).

Regards,

Larry

I felt a lump in my throat when I read your comment, specifically when you related the circumstances of your Dad’s death. So sad pala.

I had known Mar Santana when I worked in Atlas in the early 80s. What struck me at the time was, of all artists/illustrators, Mar Santana helped a lot of other artists. Other illustrators might have done the same but it was your Dad’s generosity in training and employing budding artists that had first made an impression on me.

Re CJC letting your Dad down at the time when he needed it most, thank you, Larry (and Gerry, of course, for your blogspace), for sharing that with us who weren’t aware of that fact.

That was quite telling, a reflection of how CJC treated, and has been treating, the artists that rendered the visuals to his novels.

Pero narinig ko rin not very long ago from an artist who worked (works?) with CJC that he, the latter, was “mahusay makisama.” I guess that did not apply to your Dad at the time…

Sigh…

First of all I want to introduce myself, I am Larry, the eldest son of MAR T SANTANA.
I would like to take this opportunity to Thank you for the comments you have given in your ” panawagan kay Carlo “.

Kaming magkakapatid ay nabigla rin sa pagiging National Artist for Visual Arts ni Carlo.Lumaki kami at napagtapos ng aking ama ng dahil sa komiks.

It was in the late 1980’s, ng magkaroon ng welga ang mga artist dahil sa paghingi ng rate increase para sa mga komiks illustrator. My Dad being the highest paid illustrator that time ay nakisama sa kanila dahil alam niya ang hirap ng isang pagiging artist, pero ang isang taong inaasahan nyang tutulong sa kanya ( si Mr. Caparas ) ay pinabayaan sya. Dahil sa paninindigan nya at hindi nya iniwanan ang mga kasamahan sa trabahong ito ay tinanggal sa kanya ang mga nobelang dinidibuho nya sa komiks ng mga publikasyon gaya ng Atlas Publications, GASI Phils, Liwayway at Counterpoint ( Ito ay ilan lang sa mga publications na ginagawan nya ng mga dibuho). He ( Carlo )was claiming that he only wants to help the artist by giving them his novels, kung talagang gusto nyang tumulong bakit pinabayaan nya ang mga artist/illustrators sa kanilang welga?

Ang sunod-sunod na mga pangyayaring ito ang naging dahilan kaya naistroke sya. Pero kahit nagkasakit sya ay pinipilit pa rin nyang gawin ang kanyang minahal na trabaho. Hirap na syang magdibuho sa kanan, ay ginamit nya ang kaliwang kamay para makabuo ng nobela sa Gospel at Marvel. Ang lahat ng ito ay di lingid kay Mr. Caparas.

If I remember it right, Totoy Bato was done by my Dad.

He was also awarded as “The Best Illustrator of the Decade ” in the 80’s.

Hindi nya pinabayaan ang pamilya nya & we are very proud of him.

Ng mamatay ang Daddy ko, we are expecting Mr. Caparas to give his last respect to him but up to day we laid him to rest, hindi sya nagpakita. We expect much from him dahil silang dalawa ang talagang magkasama at almost 60% of his novels were illustrated by my Dad.

According to Mr. Caparas, “in born talent” daw nya ang pagdrawing, I disagree coz my Dad told him to only concentrate in writing novels , my Dad knew he has no future with it. “An artist knows an artist.”

I only want to express my sentiments regarding the issue.

In our hearts, his children, My Dad will qualify to be awarded as the National Artist rather than Mr. Caparas.

Again, on behalf of my mother & siblings, we thank you.

I came across this issue of either People’s Journal or People’s Tonight(I really don’t care which of the two, I think they’re both garbage)which had Dante Jimenez of the Volunteers Against Crime and Corruption VACC, vouching in for CJC’s character. (Clearly another ploy at sidestepping the issue of the NA)

I would just like to say that I have lost respect for Mr. Jimenez.

7 years ago, a friend of mine
was the victim of a brutal killing (stabbing incident)over at UP Diliman. I saw Mr. Jimenez at the wake, hoping that justice would be served for my friend and his family. Fast forward today, the culprits are still out there and Mr. Jimenez’s most recent (public) activity in support of his crusade would be to justify CJC’s winning(?) of the NA. I am not able to quote Mr Jimenez’s exact words, but what he was basically saying was that:

CJC has done so much for the families of victims of heinous crimes through his works. This for Mr. Jimenez gives CJC the right to be named NA.

TO MR. JIMENEZ: YOU and CJC HAVE ABSOLUTELY DONE NOTHING FOR MY FRIEND OR HIS FAMILY. NONE OF YOU HAVE SUCCESSFULLY APPREHENDED ANY CRIMINALS
AND HAVE NEVER DONE ANYTHING THAT WOULD MERIT A NATIONAL ARTIST AWARD FOR VISUAL ARTS. YOU OFFEND ARTISTS WITH YOUR BIASED OPINIONS AND GIBBERISH. FOR SOMEONE WHO STANDS “AGAINST CRIME AND CORRUPTION”, IT IS SICKENING TO HEAR YOU SAY SUCH THINGS AND TO TOLERATE SUCH ACTIONS.

THERE IS A WORD FOR SUCH VILE ACTIONS:

INJUSTICE.

I wish that the posts on this site would reach a broader audience, hopefully through TV, even though we know that there’s a chance that they would probably spin it the wrong way.

I’m just hoping for a concentrated effort not only by Komiks professionals, but also by dignified visual artists from different sectors to denounce this act of disrespect for the medium and it’s practitioners.

Sana lang yung mga epal sa mga ganitong isyu, wag na makisawsaw pa. Wag nyo na ito idaan sa kashowbizan nyo. I now believe that being a good person is no longer enough; whatever it is that good people do, bad people do too. Whatever happened to decency and humility?

I guess they were massacred too.

WE DO NOT NEED A KOMIKS KING, BECAUSE SUCH A TITLE IS AN INSULT NOT ONLY TO THE MEDIUM, BUT ALSO TO THOSE WHO HAVE WORKED HARD TO PUSH THE BOUNDARIES OF WHAT KOMIKS CAN BE. THERE WERE/ARE GREAT ARTISTS AND WRITERS THAT SHOULD BE CONSIDERED AS NATIONAL TREASURES.

I know in my heart that there will be more in the future.