“GUY AND PIP” TOPS THEM ALL!

Guy and Pip (1971)- Stars Nora Aunor, Tirso Cruz III, Romy Lapus, Ven Medina, Jose de Villa, Bobet Torres, Naty Mallares, Nympha Bonifacio/ Directed by German Moreno

Back in the summer of 1971, when Sampaguita Pictures’ Guy and Pip starring the phenomenal Nora Aunor and Tirso Cruz III opened nationwide, it stayed in cinemas for 6 months. It grossed an unprecedented record-breaking box-office gross of P8 million. A measly and laughable figure compared with the P230 million gross registered in 2009 by ABS-CBN/ Viva’s You Changed My Life.

Let’s take a comparative analysis on ticket prices then and now. At an average of just over P 2 a ticket in 1971, Guy and Pip was seen by more than 4 million Filipinos in a population of 37 million. At an average of P 140 a ticket today, You Changed my Life was seen by 1.61 million Filipinos in a population of 96 million. Adjusted for ticket price inflation, Guy and Pip’s P 8 million gross is equivalent to P 560 million at 2009 average ticket prices. Truly, the Nora-Tirso love team remains as the most successful love team in the history of Philippine Movies.