Richard and Raymond Gutierrez celebrate 24th birthday belatedly
Bong Godinez
Wednesday, January 30, 200801:23 PM


Work hard. Play hard.

Richard and Raymond Gutierrez—the identical, handsome twins of Annabelle Rama and Eddie Gutierrez—did exactly what the adage says as they belatedly celebrated their 24th birthday last night, January 29, at the One Esplanade Place, SM Central Business Park in Pasay City.

The twins were born in Beverly Hills, California, on January 21, 1984.

Coinciding with the special event is Richard's 7th year anniversary in show business. As a present and thank you to all of the young actor's fans and loyal supporters, a special program under the guidance of GMA-7 Production Manager Redgie Acuña-Magno was held at the same time. The event will be aired this coming Sunday, February 3, at 7:00 p.m. on the Kapuso Network.

DADDY'S WISH. Proud dad Eddie Gutierrez, who led the toast for his birthday boys—reminiscent of the TV commercial they did for a liquor brand last year—was obviously very pleased as he watched Richard and Raymond being swarmed by showbiz and non-showbiz well-wishers.

"Well, I wish them good health kasi they won't be able to function well if they are not healthy," smiled the former matinee idol when asked by PEP (Philippine Entertainment Portal) for his birthday wish for the twins.

"So sana umiwas sila sa drugs, and take care of their health, and go to the gym, and pray and love their fans," he added.

One of the highlights of the evening celebration was the lie-detector test. Richard and Raymond took turns on the hot seat with either of them posing questions. This was of course inspired by John "Sweet" Lapus's "Don't Lie To Me" segment in the Sunday showbiz talk show, Showbiz Central, where Raymond is a co-host.

A kilig moment transpired during a Q&A with Richard when separate VTRs of Anne Curtis and KC Concepcion played on a huge screen plastered on the stage wall. Anne, as many know, is an ex-flame of Richard, while KC is one of the actresses presently being linked to the Kamandag lead star.

Speaking of Kamandag, a special dance number was also presented by Richard, together with the sexy women of the said series led by Ehra Madrigal, Maxene Magalona, and Jewel Mische—who is also romantically linked to the young actor.

Joey de Leon, Ogie Alcasid, and Janno Gibbs also took center stage to personally greet Richard and Raymond on their special day.

As soon as the program ended, the real party began, turning every corner of the wide venue into a dance floor.

Some of the celebrities spotted by PEP were Joyce Jimenez, designer Mich Dulce, Jay-R, Arnell Ignacio, Rhian Ramos, Ramon Christopher, Bianca King with rumored boyfriend Champ Lui-Pio of the rock band Hale, and Mark Anthony Fernandez, among many others.