'Sang Linggo nAPO Sila


'Sang Linggo nAPO Sila was a Philippine daily noon-time variety show of ABS-CBN that aired from February 4, 1995 to November 28, 1998. It was hosted by the APO Hiking Society. Some of the original co-hosts included Kris Aquino, Bing Loyzaga, Michelle Van Eimeren, Agot Isidro, Lara Melissa de Leon, Amy Perez, John Estrada, Rannie Raymundo and Roderick Paulate.
The show was a spin-off of ABS-CBN's popular Sunday noon-time show Sa Linggo nAPO Sila. It was one of the new shows launched by the network in 1995 as part of their "Primetime on Daytime" block after Eat Bulaga! moved from ABS-CBN to GMA. It aired live daily from ABS-CBN's studio at the Delta Theater until it moved to Studio 3 at the ABS-CBN Broadcast Center in their last days in 1998.

First Year: The New Era of Noontime

'Sang Linggo nAPO Sila started its first live broadcast from the ABS-CBN Delta Theater on February 4, 1995. The core hosts from the previous show Sa Linggo nAPO Sila were initially joined by various ABS-CBN contract artists on a twice-weekly basis, until the show established its own core of regular hosts committed to appear on a daily basis.
It garnered high ratings most especially in provinces and cities where ABS-CBN had superior signal. But the real challenge for "Sang Linggo" was the show's content itself as it tried to veer away from the usual noontime format of slapstick humor and various talent portions that its predecessor Eat Bulaga!" had presented to its viewers. Eventually, the show decided to compete for viewership by coming up with various game and talent portions as their answer to their rival show's own tried and tested segments. Among the portions that were a hit to its viewers on its initial year were "Conan the Beautician", "Hibangers", "Pop-Pinoyan", and "Princess Asia".
Soon after, 'Sang Linggo nAPO Sila became the avenue to showcase talent and introduce new stars. The likes of Rico Yan, Bojo Molina and Matthew Mendoza were introduced to the public as regular co-hosts. The show's rotating comedy sketch segments won loyal following out of new star combinations like the comic duos of John Estrada and Manilyn Reynes, Roderick Paulate and Jun Encarnacion, and Redford White and Norman Mitchell.

Second Year: Top-rating status and downfall

In the show's second year, it launched "Calendar Girl", a pageant segment for girls aged 15–21 years old. The segment injected a "sexy" element to the show but won over a new fanbase. The noontime show also introduced "Barangay APO", a segment where host Eagle Riggs goes on live remote telecast on a selected barangay and gives out many prizes in cash and kind. The said segment catapulted 'Sang Linggo nAPO Sila to the number 1 spot in the noontime slot in Mega Manila. But the show's popularity declined when Eat Bulaga! introduced "Super SiReyna", a transgender pageant. Due to "Super SiReyna"'s phenomenal success in 1996, it catapulted Eat Bulaga! back to the top spot as well as other new segments that capture the attention of its viewers.

Third and Final Year

'Sang Linggo nAPO Sila barely celebrated its third year on Philippine TV when the show suddenly suffered in the ratings game. The show was moved to Studio 3 of ABS-CBN Broadcast Center at that time in 1997. With Eat Bulaga! continuing to thrill the noontime viewing public with "Super SiReyna", "Kaserola ng Kabayanan", and "Philippine Bulaga Association", the staff decided to give its still-popular segment "Calendar Girl" a more bolder, naughtier approach. The question and answer portion was now handled by the newly established trio of John Estrada, Randy Santiago and Willie Revillame. Their delivery of naughty jokes on national TV was met with mixed reactions. At the same time, the show unveiled its own game portion "APO Cash ng Bayan" which it gave out lots of cash prizes at stake. The ratings improved a bit with the changes but it reportedly did not sit well with some of the original hosts of the show. The show was in danger of cancellation and went its final airing on November 28, 1998, when co-hosts Randy Santiago, John Estrada and Willie Revillame went on to become the main hosts of the network's new noontime show Magandang Tanghali Bayan that aired Mondays to Fridays. The APO Hiking Society, on the other hand, kept the Saturday noontime slot via the musical variety show "Sabado Live". However with "MTB" posting higher ratings after adding the phenomenal segment "Pera o Bayong" later before the year ended, ABS-CBN management decided to cancel "Sabado Live" and extend "MTB"'s run to Saturday. "Sabado Live" had its final show on February 27, 1999.

Legacy

'Sang Linggo nAPO Sila garnered high ratings from the start of its airing on February 4, 1995 but it was not able to overtake Eat Bulaga! permanently, but it did gain popularity in regions where GMA's signals were weak and ABS-CBN's signals were stronger. The show also introduced many new talents to television. Some of the show's new talents would eventually make their mark in show business as box-office stars and acclaimed artists despite "Eat Bulaga"'s reported clout and power in the showbiz industry.
However, despite the show's initial advocacy to "clean up" the noontime slot and become the viewer's alternative choice, the management eventually decided that the show must go head-on with Eat Bulaga!. The all-out "noontime network war" escalated as the staff and fans of both warring noontime shows accused each other of copying segments.
The downfall of the show was blamed on the humor being "too intelligent for the average Filipino" as the management tried to request the show's hosts to tone down on jokes that only a few would understand. Apparently, ABS-CBN was looking for a bigger version of its competitor in the noontime slot. After the axing of "APO", succeeding Kapamilya noontime shows would feature younger set of hosts with the same "street humor" inspired by their competitors.

Hosts

Main hosts

Segments