Sex tapes and infidelity made headlines in 2009

In a year best remembered for the deaths of democracy icon Cory Aquino and the King of Pop Michael Jackson, the killer cyclones in Luzon and the slaughter of 57 innocent civilians in the southern Philippines, sex tapes and infidelity provided the necessary diversions in 2009. For the past 12 months here and abroad, the following are notable personalities who, in one way or the other, squirmed in the limelight of various sex scandals. Famous and powerful? Just be sure the scandal you’ll be in won’t erase whatever success and influence you have built through the years … DR. HAYDEN KHO JR. Together with Katrina Halili, Hayden is to be credited for reviving interest in the George Michael song, “Careless Whisper," when his sleazy dance routine with the sexy actress made waves on the Internet in May. More sex videos were soon uploaded and subsequently, a Senate hearing was conducted.

Hayden will remember 2009 as the year he turned from a famed celebrity doctor to “a pervert of the highest kind" (in the words of Sen. Ramon Revilla Jr.). Months after the scandal, Hayden lost his medical license, Katrina resumed her acting career, and yes, despite the grandstanding by some, the Senate panel has yet to come up with its report. One thing sure though, the scandal has diminished chances that Katrina will ever gonna dance again with the disgraced Hayden. MANNY PACQUIAO The Filipino boxing icon’s twin victories this year seem to have been overshadowed by Pacman’s alleged affair with 23-year-old starlet Krista Ranillo. The controversy reached fever pitch when, during a thanksgiving Mass in the US after the Pacquiao-Cotto bout, Jinkee wept as the priest was delivering a sermon about the importance of family. As expected, both Pacquiao and Krista denied having any illicit affair, while Jinkee has decided to release all her emotions on the controversy via an exclusive interview with a local showbiz magazine. For now, the controversy has died down, but everybody is anticipating not just another episode in the ring for the world’s best pound for pound fighter but also another chapter in the so-called Team Jinkee versus Team Krista rivalry.
TIGER WOODS With success comes controversy. Such may be true in the case of Tiger Woods. Late in the year, more than eight women had claimed that the international golf icon is a “tiger" with his “wood." Whether there’s truth in the claims of the women is yet to be seen and Tiger so far has chosen to be out of the limelight while he fixes his personal life. Is he now a tiger lost in the woods? DAVID LETTERMAN Sex and blackmail almost always go hand in hand, but very few can handle it as suavely as American late-night talk show host David Letterman, who, after acknowledging his sexual relationships with several female members of his staff, has turned the whole issue into slapstick. They say even Bill Clinton is laughing. LUIS ‘CHAVIT’ SINGSON The man largely credited for bringing down President Joseph Estrada in 2001 was back in the public eye this year following the much-publicized scandal involving his long-time partner who was allegedly caught red-handed with another paramour. But what caught everybody’s attention was Singson’s frankness in dealing with the issue. “Mabait pa nga ako dahil hindi ko sila pinatay," was his remark that made feminists stand up in protest. The latest word, however, is that the female victim has settled the issue with Singson who, incidentally, reportedly acted as adviser to the Pacquiao couple at the height of the alleged Pacman-Krista affair. DAVID CARRADINE Dying in a hotel room closet with a rope tied to his neck and genitals is surely not the way fans expect Hollywood kung fu icon David Carradine to pass away, but that’s exactly what happened. And the world could only shake its head and wonder at the kind of mysterious sexual kinks that Carradine must have been pursuing inside that closet. BARON GEISLER Give it to young character actor Baron Geisler to grab the headlines once in a while with his off-screen bad boy attitude. This year, his victim of choice was Kapuso star Yasmien Kurdi, who accused him of fondling her. Yasmien, however, decided against filing a sexual harassment case against a reportedly apologetic Baron, and everybody lives happily ever after … But Geisler’s acts of lasciviousness case filed by the daughter of celebrity couple William Martinez and Yayo Aguila has yet to reach a similar ending. This page requires a higher version browser
MIGUEL COTTO Is Puerto Rican fighter Miguel Cotto following in the footsteps of Pacquiao as far as controversy is concerned? Just this December, Cotto, who was pulverized by Pacquiao in November, faced a sexual harassment suit filed by one of his former employees for alleged unwanted romantic advances. Not a good year for Cotto, 2009 was. He seemed to be not getting any, inside and outside the ring. MOCHA Sexy singer Mocha added flavor to the already steamy Krista-Pacman issue when photos of her locking lips with Krista surfaced on the Web. In her blog, she admits that she loves "to have fun and play around, get dirty and all." She, however, said she doesn’t approve of messing around with married men. At least, the gal has a bit of class! MIKE DUVALL US politician Mike Duvall learned something the hard way this year, and that is, bragging about a spanking fetish, the type of underwear worn by a mistress, and the apparent ability to carry on two extramarital affairs at once is a no-no in this day and age of YouTube. If it will not cost you your marriage, it will definitely cost you your job. It should be safe to assume that the discovery of their multiple sexual indiscretions hounded celebrities in equal measure throughout the millennia, from Cleopatra and Queen Victoria to Kobe Bryant. But in this age of miniature video cams, email hacking and Twitter, all celebrities are properly forewarned: be more careful, or you could be in next year's Top 10. – with Raffy S. Jimenez, GMANews.TV