I missed Douglas Quijano’s early-morning call yesterday.

I placed three blind items in Funfare and I expected Douglas to, as usual, call or text to inquire who the stars being referred to in the items were. No call came.

“Lucy would like to know,” was his standard “alibi.” “She couldn’t make a good guess.”

But yesterday, Lucy Torres was not interested in blind items. Her main concern when she and husband Richard Gomez arrived at dawn from San Francisco was to go straight from the airport to the Heritage Memorial Park in Taguig City where Douglas’ remains lie, surrounded by dozens and dozens of wreaths that line the corridors leading to the three (yes, three!) chapels where the wake is being held starting Saturday night when he was found dead in his sleep (heart attack, according to the doctor) at his newly-built house in Lucban, Quezon, until this Saturday when they are cremated, with the ashes to be enshrined at an altar in that house which has become Douglas’ sanctuary these past few years.

One of Douglas’ talents whom he treated like his children, Richard broke down as soon as he saw Douglas inside a mahogany coffin, a faint smile forever etched in his face, his silver hair cropped short.

“In all the 11 years that we’ve been together,” said Lucy, “I’ve never seen Richard cry so hard. He would feel sad but not cry as he did this morning.”

The couple had to cut short their stay in San Francisco where they graced a GMA Pinoy TV event together with other Kapuso stars. Richard’s bosom buddy Joey Marquez, another Douglas talent, can’t bear to see Douglas in sweet slumber, keeping a distance from the coffin because, Joey said, “Things haven’t sunk in yet.” When they do, he would break down as Richard did. Bench boss Ben Chan, one of those closest to Douglas, sat wordless at the back of the chapel, the weight of his personal loss heavy on his face.

Regal Matriarch Mother Lily Monteverde, for whose company Douglas line-produced several hits, was overjoyed by the number of people who love Douglas…people from showbiz, politics, business, all sectors of society.

“Ang daming nagmamahal kay Douglas,” said Mother Lily who wore black for the first time (she’s always in her signature white).

And they keep coming to bid Douglas a fond farewell in a light mood presumed to be what he would have wanted his last “get-together” to be, celebrated perhaps less with tears but more with recollection of beautiful memories and anecdotes about this man about whom nobody could say anything negative.

“He has no mean bone in his body,” said talent manager June Torrejon. “He was there when you need him.”

Tempo columnist Ronald Constantino said, “He was a good man, mabait sa lahat lalo na sa mga bagong reporter.”

Douglas was all that — and more.

Several years ago, I told him what a nice (read: expensive) bracelet he was wearing. “Try it,” he said, putting the bracelet around my wrist. Before I could gasp, he added, “Iyo na!”

That was Douglas. With him, it was always “Iyo na” and never, never “Akin na.” He was that generous, very giving in every way, whether with his time, materials things and friendship.

So you want interview any of his talents (also including, among others, Anjo Yllana and brother Jomari, Janice de Belen and sister Gelli, Antonio Aquitania, Wendell Ramos, Jeremy Marquez, John Estrada and Nadia Montenegro)? He would arrange an appointment for you posthaste. If you insisted, he would make any of his talents call you in a jiffy. In short, hindi niya ipinagdamot ang kanyang mga alaga.

When GMA offered me a show (Showbiz Stripped which metamorphosed into The Ricky Lo Exclusives that lasted for almost four years), Douglas became my self-appointed manager. Without my knowing it, he took the initiative of negotiating with GMA executive Wilma Galvante. Two weeks later, Douglas called and said, “Okay na.” Playing innocent, I asked, “Ang ano?” He said, “Ang lahat!” Meaning, six suits from Randy Ortiz (thank you, Randy!), weekly supply of Bench shirts from Ben Chan (tsin to sia, Ben!) and, ehem, talent fee. And he never got any “commission” for that. It was all a labor of love, an act of selflessness and generosity that I can never thank Douglas enough.

If you count the petals of the flowers that adorn the dozens and dozens of wreaths leading to the three chapels at Heritage Memorial Park where Douglas Quijano lies in peace, smug with a pair of glasses (the better to see upclose the faces that look down at him), you multiply that a hundred times and you get an idea, as Mother Lily aptly put it, how many people love Douglas.

Up there, with his iPod on, Douglas doesn’t need to call to find out who the stars in the blind items are. As a new arrival, he must be busy updating the likes of Charito Solis, Rita Gomez, Lino Brocka, Ishmael Bernal, Joey Gosiengfiao and FPJ, and all the others who have gone ahead and must now be welcoming him with open arms, on the latest goings-on in the showbiz which they loved so much.

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SIDELIGHT: Ruffa Gutierrez and her mon Annabelle Rama reconciled Monday night at the wake for Douglas. “I whispered to Tito Dougs to sort things out,” Ruffa told Funfare.

Annabelle and husband Eddie Gutierrez arrived barely three minutes before Ruffa.

At first, Ruffa hesitant to kiss her mom who, she said, has been calling her bruhilda. Much later, Ruffa gathered enough guts and approached Annabelle from behind and kissed her. “Totoo ba ito, Ruffa?” Annabelle asked. “May mga camera around!” Actually, I’m sure Annabelle was just waiting for this moment.

Back from Hong Kong, she even shopped for several pasalubong for Ruffa. “Baka naman binabati mo lang ako dahil sa shoes na pasalubong ko sa’yo,” Annabelle teased Ruffa while the cameras clicked.

Mother and daughter had a brief misunderstanding over John Lloyd Cruz, Ruffa’s rumored new love whom Annabelle frowned upon, prompting Ruffa to leave home with daughters Lorin and Venice.

Now that all’s well that ended well, will Annabelle finally accept John Lloyd as a future, hmmmm, “son-in-law?”

* * *

And here’s Richard Gomez last letter to Douglas:

June 16, 2009

Dougs,

I will never be able to express my gratitude to you for taking care of my career from the very first day up until your last breath. I am what I am and I have what I have because you were there to guide me and direct me on the right path.

You left behind people who were always happy to see you, people who always loved talking to you. You were also a welcome presence in any gathering, any life. You have touched so many in so many different ways. Your greatest joy was making people happy. You left behind a legacy of kindness. And these we will all cherish.

You will always remain in our hearts and you will be constantly thought of with fondness and deep love.

It is sad that you will never get to see what will become of my daughter Juliana and the other kids of your loved ones. Kids of Joey, Anjo, Gelli, Janice, Wendell, Jomari, Antonio, Nadia and many more. You will no longer be around to celebrate with us our future victories, and we will not have your shoulder to cry on when we meet bumps along life’s way.

I know that you don’t want us to be sad.

Ikaw na rin ang nagsabi na pag may nawala o namatay tayong kaibigan or kamag-anak ay sandali lang natin silang mami-miss — pero hindi ikaw, Dougs. I am not a very sentimental person but araw-araw kitang nami-miss.

Mahal ka namin at mahal ka ng maraming tao. A lot of people love you and a lot of them you don’t even know. You have touched so many people’s lives and made them better persons in the process.

I know that you are in heaven already. Please continue to look after us from where you are.

Thank you for your love.

(E-mail reactions at rickylo@philstar.net.ph or at entphilstar@yahoo.com) - FUNFARE By Ricardo F. Lo (Philstar News Service, www.philstar.com)