Parting is such sweet sorrow for Anjo Yllana, who announced yesterday that he was leaving the 41-year-old noontime show Eat Bulaga.
Yllana announced his departure in an online post, where he wrote, “With a heavy heart… today Aug.11 2020… I submit my resignation… thank you Dabarkads…thank you Eat Bulaga…21 years and it was a blast… Good Bye and all roads to your 50th.”
Attached in the post were photos of him with his co-hosts, including its pioneers, Senator Tito Sotto, brother Vic Sotto, and Joey de Leon.
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Yllana, who started his career as a drama actor in the 1980s, joined Eat Bulaga in 1998. The Philippine Daily Inquirer reported that he quit because he was going to host another noontime program on Net 25, owned by Eagle Broadcasting Corporation, whose key members are believed to be part of the powerful Iglesia ni Cristo church. Yllana has yet to announce what his next program will be.
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Eat Bulaga started airing in 1979 and presents a slew of games, skits, and talent contests. It reached the height of its popularity in 2015, when its Kalye Serye (“street series”), a sort of soap opera, launched the careers of Alden Richards and Maine Mendoza. Richards and Mendoza became the hottest love team that year, but it disintegrated when overbearing fans wanted them to date for real.
Other hosts have also had their share of controversies, most notably de Leon. The veteran comedian has earned a rep for making offensive statements on-air, such as when he belittled mental depression, saying it was “just the creation” of a patient’s mind.
