RPN-9 to mark 54th year

May 30, 2014

With Kasama Ako! tagline as its theme, RPN-9 will celebrate its 54th anniversary with a week of activities starting on June 1, at the RPN-9 studios at Broadcast City, Capitol Hills, Diliman, Quezon City.

A major highlight of the celebration is a two-hour TV special entitled Kasama Ako!: RPN 54 Celebration which will feature the major talents discovered and developed by RPN-9 and who became legends or institutions themselves, as well as clips of the famous shows which also became famous. The TV special will be aired on primetime on June 1, the foundation day of The Kasama Network.

As a broadcast statuon, RPN-9 has excelled in four areas, among others:
 * 1) Leadership in talent discover and development - RPN-9 discovered and developed the longest list of talents who started their careers in RPN=9 and became famous artists. Among them are Nora Aunor, Hilda Coronel, Snooky Serna, Tina Revilla, Maricel Soriano, Janice de Belen, Inday Badiday, Lino Brocka, June Keithley, Bert de Leon, Eric Quizon, Reford White, Tito Sotto, Vic Sotto and Joey de Leon, Harry Gasser, Loren Legarda, Ian de Leon, Lotlot de Leon, Rustom Padilla, Herbert Bautista, Manilyn Rey,es Rina Reyes, Dolly Anne Carvajal, Gelli de Belen, Donna Cruz, Regine Velasquez, Dranreb Belleza, Dolphy, Maila Gumila, Nida Blanca and Lovely Rivero.
 * 2) Leadership in programming - RPN-9 produced a variety of local shows which became the greatest hits, like John en Marsha starring the comedy king Dolphy and Nida Blanca, Nora Aunor's musical variety show Superstar, Champoy, Buddy en Sol top-billed by Eric Quizon and Reford White, the drama series for Hilda Coronel, Rosernarie Sonora, Snooky Serna, Boots Anson-Roa and Nora Aunor. The Filipino mini-series like Malayo Pa Ang Umaga, Bisperas ng Kasaysayan, Cebu and Davao.
 * 3) Other top hit variety shows were those of Tirso Cruz III, Tina Revilla, Jeanne Young and Sonny Cortez. Other musicals were Aawitan Kita, Carmen Soriano Show, Maggie de la Riva Show, among others. Spin-A-Win, Tic-Toc-Toe abd Clubhouse 9 for children were institutions.
 * 4) Broadcast leadership - RPN-9 brought the first slow-motion machine in 1973 to support the coverage of the MICAA basketball games and the PBA games; it also encouraged the use of domestic satellite and the first to acquire "back-pack" cameras to encourage location shooting. RPN-9 also brought the country the first color outside broadcast van (OB Van). RPN-9 also became the leader in sports broadcast and the first to air a one-hour newscast Eyewitness News, which later became RPN-9's prime newscast Newswatch is the longest-running English newscast.
 * 5) Leadership in innovative ideas - RPN-9 made the first experiment on development communication (popularly known as devcom) through its long-playing series John en Marsha. It also dubbed foreign drama series into Tagalog, like Kojak and has poineered in several aspects of public service programs.
 * 6) Since the resurging trend in 1996 with a telenovela La Traidora, Marimar and Maria la del Barrio which is starring Thalia, Simplemente Maria, Luz Clarita, Maria Isabel, among others.