Bubble Gang may be now the longest-running Filipino sketch comedy show today, but television viewers in the ’90s were also glued on two similar programs, that first made millions of Pinoy viewers laugh, before the now 25-year-old Kapuso show, did.
There is a number of big celebrities today who trace their roots to some iconic tv shows, in the ’90s. Among these shows, are ABS-CBN’s sketch comedy program, Super Laff-In, and TV5’s (formerly ABC-5) Tropang Trumpo. Interestingly, some of the stars from these iconic gag shows, also eventually joined Bubble Gang, which went on to become the longest-running comedy program in local television.
Super Laff-In’s original run goes back to the late ’60s. Originally hosted and led by veteran comedians, Bert de Leon, Balot, Mitch Valdez, Frankie Evangelista, Nova Villa, and Babalu, Super Laff-In aired on ABS-CBN, from February 1, 1969, to September 16, 1972. The show was largely influenced by the American sketch comedy tv program, Rowan and Martin’s Laugh-In.
In 1996, ABS-CBN brought back the program on air, but with an entirely new set of performers and presenters. The second reiteration of the show was headlined by then up-and-coming stars, Diether Ocampo, Vhong Navarro, Redford White, Mylene Dizon, Regine Tolentino, Bayani Agbayani, Wowie de Guzman, John Prats, Ruffa Mae Quinto, among many others. Like its American inspiration, the show featured skits, spoofs, and parodies. A popular segment of the show was when it remade popular tv commercials into a humorous parody.
Some of Super Laff-In’s stars eventually ascended in the local comedy scene. Both Redford White and Bayani Agbayani starred on a streak of box-office hits, while Diether Ocampo, John Prats, and Wowie de Guzman soared as leading men in various ABS-CBN projects. Navarro had tremendous successes across many platforms, including film, recording, and television. He currently hosts the 11-year-old, It’s Showtime.
Tropang Trumpo, on the other hand, was already making Philippine households laugh as early as 1994. Two of its original cast members, Ogie Alcasid and Michael V., eventually left the show in 1995, to lead the cast of Bubble Gang, a new comedy program with the same format, which started airing on GMA Network. The show’s arguably most popular segment was its Battle of the Brainless, which spoofed the 90’s game show, Battle of the Brains, which was aired by RPN.
Also part of the show, were Kempee de Leon, Jake Roxas, Gelli de Belen, Carmina Villaroel, Jomari Yllana, Mark Anthony Fernandez, Eric Fructuoso, and Candy Pangilinan. Ruffa Mae Quinto was also part of the show, for a year. The popularity of Tropang Trumpo ultimately became its doom when several shows copied its format, and allowed its following decline, leading to its eventual farewell, on March 13, 1999, almost exactly three years since its March 12, 1996 debut.
