Heart & John Interactive

by: Marj Akil

She's the pretty girl -- everybody's sweetheart whose angelic Oriental face and girl-next-door demeanor
are as comforting as a scoop of your favorite ice cream. Take a look at her and you'll be reminded of mary
jane's, ribbons, skirts, and ruffles. She has the personality of pastels and bubblegum pink and every-strand
-of-her-hair-in-place, and the charm of the girly classmate who's on every adolescent (and even young men's)
boy's list of crush ng bayan. A typical teener maybe, except this girl has a dash of extras.

Those very same qualities caught a talent scout's attention three years ago. Shopping at the Body
Shop in Alabang Town Center, she was spotted, approached, and dropped the quintessensial showbiz-pass
question, "Do you want to be a commercial model?" Who would refuse such an offer?

From endorsing a teen beauty product line to a deodorant, she breezed through the boob tube, landing
the role of John Prats' love interest in the teen program G-mik. To every 14 year old orso, she's "Missy" the
cool girl whose long black tresses are most envied, whose fashion sense is most often copied, and whose
ka love team everyone seems to be crushing on. In no time at all. viewers stopped asking, "Heart who?"

Showbiz Material

Heart was born Love Marie Payawal Ongpauco on Valentine's Day, The youngest in a brood of five,
the 17-year old looker is often perceived as a rich, bratty young lady who could very well get away with
anything on a whim, for she's an Ongpauco, of a well-to-do clan that owns a chain of restaurants. But
Heart decided to embark on her career and bank on her talents. That episode with the talent scout
tapped a new world for her someplace that seemed to be waiting to welcome her. "Ever since I was a
kid, I wanted to be an artista." Heart confides.

"I started in commercials. My dad didn't allow me to join showbiz. So I said, 'Okay workshop lang.
I went to the workshop in ABS, and I was asked to audition. I did it without telling my dad. Eventually I
told him that I had to go back for another audition. He said, 'Okay, if you get into that, fine. "Pag hindi,
wala na. So, wala na siyang nagawa." Along with G-mik, endorsing Star magic and Props pumped up
Heart's name recall.

School Ties

Regular school may have taken a backseat. but she's been managing to get an education at her
own pace. An incoming junior at ABS-CBN Distance Learning Center. Heart proves that a young showbiz
personality doesn't have to totally abandon learning to further fuel stardom. Leaving Colegio de San
Agustin let her to become more responsible and learn to simultaneously handle work and studies, "It's
Hard," Heart says of the tutorial school system. "They give you modules, you study, then they give you
exams and projects. No quizzes, no anything. You have to do it fast, kung hindi, you'll be stuck. I'm
given until this month to finish all my modules so I can advance to third year." While at CSA, Heart got
accolades for her drawings (check out celebritext.pinoyauctions.com for a closer look at her
masterpieces!), and was very active in Drama and Art clubs. The gifted artist considers Araling
Panlipunan as her favorite subject. "I like memorizing whenever I'm in the mood," she says.

Showbiz Connections

While other celebrities complain that there's a dearth of true friends in the entertainment industry,
Heart sees herself fortunate to have found her best buds in the business. Reel and real, the cast of G-mik
has formed a genuine friendship, "I hang out with John and Camille until now.

Sobrang friends kami." She's closest to former co-stars Camille Prats and Angelica Panganiban.
"Sobrang close. We can't be separated. Kaya during the last episode, we were crying talaga," Heart
recalls. True enough, the kids weren't acting that time. oblivoius of the rolling camera while doing a
poignant scene. G-mik wasn't just a career launching path for Heart. It was like a family that taught her
about valuing friendships and relationships and trusting the right people. In fact, she can readily identify
with her character "Missy," who's as stylish as she is except that "Missy" is "childish and harot,"
distinguished Heart.

Looking Ahead

"I'm so happy 'cause I've only been here for one and a halk year and sobrang dami ko nang
ginagawa, Heart proudly beams. I've been training for one year in acting, singing, dancing, everything,"
she enumerates. Talent Center os planning to package Heart and John as the next Kristine and Jericho.
They will soon be frontlining a TV show, the concept of which trails that of Tabing-Ilog. A new movie is
on the roll and an album will soon be in the works (this actually made her laugh). "it's like Mandy Moore,"
she describes when asked about the musical style. She also has two endorsement deals under her name:
Vitasoft Cologne Gel and Bum Equipment. She's seen on cam on a regular basis with her sitcom "Ok
Fine Whatever' and, of course, her source of pride; veejaying for MYX. " I was in Talent Center and they
told me, 'Uy, audition ka daw kasi they wanna see you. So I auditioned," she recounts of how she got into
MYX. "It wasn't really an audition. They were just chatting with me. I just talked and talked. Tehn they
called me. "In less than two months, she had to gather up loads of info about music through readings
and the Net in preparation for her new stint. Heart is joined by Franco (more popularly knows as
"Jasper"), Michi and Ala. She's loving her current job because of oppurtunities to meet a lot of people
and travel to different places.

With career path diversing in different directions, there's still that road leading to earning a college
degree, She plans to major either in Fine Arts or Hotel and Restaurant Management, the former an
affirmation of her artistic inclination, and the latter of her restauranteur blood. Her most significant goal
is to continue to be a role model to today's youth. "Kids today who are my age are really wild. I wanna
say I'm different. I wanna be known as someone with values. May breeding. Someone who knows what's
right and what to do in her life," concludes the teen heartthrob.




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		Chalk Magazine Cover Story: All in a Heartbeat August, 2002 by: Marj Akil She's the pretty girl -- everybody's sweetheart whose angelic Oriental face and girl-next-door demeanor are as comforting as a scoop of your favorite ice cream. Take a look at her and you'll be reminded of mary jane's, ribbons, skirts, and ruffles. She has the personality of pastels and bubblegum pink and every-strand -of-her-hair-in-place, and the charm of the girly classmate who's on every adolescent (and even young men's) boy's list of crush ng bayan. A typical teener maybe, except this girl has a dash of extras. Those very same qualities caught a talent scout's attention three years ago. Shopping at the Body Shop in Alabang Town Center, she was spotted, approached, and dropped the quintessensial showbiz-pass question, "Do you want to be a commercial model?" Who would refuse such an offer? From endorsing a teen beauty product line to a deodorant, she breezed through the boob tube, landing the role of John Prats' love interest in the teen program G-mik. To every 14 year old orso, she's "Missy" the cool girl whose long black tresses are most envied, whose fashion sense is most often copied, and whose ka love team everyone seems to be crushing on. In no time at all. viewers stopped asking, "Heart who?" Showbiz Material Heart was born Love Marie Payawal Ongpauco on Valentine's Day, The youngest in a brood of five, the 17-year old looker is often perceived as a rich, bratty young lady who could very well get away with anything on a whim, for she's an Ongpauco, of a well-to-do clan that owns a chain of restaurants. But Heart decided to embark on her career and bank on her talents. That episode with the talent scout tapped a new world for her someplace that seemed to be waiting to welcome her. "Ever since I was a kid, I wanted to be an artista." Heart confides. "I started in commercials. My dad didn't allow me to join showbiz. So I said, 'Okay workshop lang. I went to the workshop in ABS, and I was asked to audition. I did it without telling my dad. Eventually I told him that I had to go back for another audition. He said, 'Okay, if you get into that, fine. "Pag hindi, wala na. So, wala na siyang nagawa." Along with G-mik, endorsing Star magic and Props pumped up Heart's name recall. School Ties Regular school may have taken a backseat. but she's been managing to get an education at her own pace. An incoming junior at ABS-CBN Distance Learning Center. Heart proves that a young showbiz personality doesn't have to totally abandon learning to further fuel stardom. Leaving Colegio de San Agustin let her to become more responsible and learn to simultaneously handle work and studies, "It's Hard," Heart says of the tutorial school system. "They give you modules, you study, then they give you exams and projects. No quizzes, no anything. You have to do it fast, kung hindi, you'll be stuck. I'm given until this month to finish all my modules so I can advance to third year." While at CSA, Heart got accolades for her drawings (check out celebritext.pinoyauctions.com for a closer look at her masterpieces!), and was very active in Drama and Art clubs. The gifted artist considers Araling Panlipunan as her favorite subject. "I like memorizing whenever I'm in the mood," she says. Showbiz Connections While other celebrities complain that there's a dearth of true friends in the entertainment industry, Heart sees herself fortunate to have found her best buds in the business. Reel and real, the cast of G-mik has formed a genuine friendship, "I hang out with John and Camille until now. Sobrang friends kami." She's closest to former co-stars Camille Prats and Angelica Panganiban. "Sobrang close. We can't be separated. Kaya during the last episode, we were crying talaga," Heart recalls. True enough, the kids weren't acting that time. oblivoius of the rolling camera while doing a poignant scene. G-mik wasn't just a career launching path for Heart. It was like a family that taught her about valuing friendships and relationships and trusting the right people. In fact, she can readily identify with her character "Missy," who's as stylish as she is except that "Missy" is "childish and harot," distinguished Heart. Looking Ahead "I'm so happy 'cause I've only been here for one and a halk year and sobrang dami ko nang ginagawa, Heart proudly beams. I've been training for one year in acting, singing, dancing, everything," she enumerates. Talent Center os planning to package Heart and John as the next Kristine and Jericho. They will soon be frontlining a TV show, the concept of which trails that of Tabing-Ilog. A new movie is on the roll and an album will soon be in the works (this actually made her laugh). "it's like Mandy Moore," she describes when asked about the musical style. She also has two endorsement deals under her name: Vitasoft Cologne Gel and Bum Equipment. She's seen on cam on a regular basis with her sitcom "Ok Fine Whatever' and, of course, her source of pride; veejaying for MYX. " I was in Talent Center and they told me, 'Uy, audition ka daw kasi they wanna see you. So I auditioned," she recounts of how she got into MYX. "It wasn't really an audition. They were just chatting with me. I just talked and talked. Tehn they called me. "In less than two months, she had to gather up loads of info about music through readings and the Net in preparation for her new stint. Heart is joined by Franco (more popularly knows as "Jasper"), Michi and Ala. She's loving her current job because of oppurtunities to meet a lot of people and travel to different places. With career path diversing in different directions, there's still that road leading to earning a college degree, She plans to major either in Fine Arts or Hotel and Restaurant Management, the former an affirmation of her artistic inclination, and the latter of her restauranteur blood. Her most significant goal is to continue to be a role model to today's youth. "Kids today who are my age are really wild. I wanna say I'm different. I wanna be known as someone with values. May breeding. Someone who knows what's right and what to do in her life," concludes the teen heartthrob. Copyright © 2002 Chalk Magazine. All rights reserved. © 2003 Heart & John Interactive and may not be reproduced without expressed written permission of the site owner. All Rights Reserved. Heart & John Interactive is owned, designed and maintained by Beth.