Albuquerque Journal from Albuquerque, New Mexico • 29

Inside Source yYv 4 Fi.VTirr Television Comics 1 -T ffxT ff ff y- i6v r. CHARLOTTE BALCOMB LANE Of the Journal NEWS MAKERS t. Manzano Day School ifeteabig success he 60th anniversary party Saturday to benefit Manzano Day School was one of spring's splashiest events and not just because it -Un Ki -n Krt Vtnlrf in was U1C 1U31 Ulg ICIC LU UC 11C1U Ul "La Quinta since the handsome North Vallev estate was rezoned to Stevle's generosity is just wonder-ful By George Rush and Joanna Moi.i.oy Tribune Media Sen ices Stevie Wonder is a sly one. The soul legend recently walked into the Sam Ash music store and heard keyboardist Philippe Pierre doing an impression of him. Pierre who, like Wonder, is blind was cranking out "Superstition" and "Ribbon in the Sky" on one of the store's Impressed, sjipped over to another keyboard and started jamming along.

When they took a break, Wonder asked Pierre how he liked the keyboard he was playing a $4,000 Korg Trinity. "It's nice," said the shy, Haitian-born Pierre, who divides his time between session work and playing for his Queens church. "Are you getting it?" Wonder asked him. really," said Pierre. "It's an expensive After whispering something to one of his handlers, Wonder put Pierre's hand on the.

Trinity and said, "This is for you." Sam Ash salesman Ian Fisher Jr. recalls: "Philippe couldn't believe it. The tears just started rolling down his face." become a public inn and cultural Reenter. mi. i i i ne mstonc properry, Deionging to Penny and Armin Rembe, was a gorgeous gathering space for about "250 of the most well-heeled parents II rni in Aiouaueraue.

ine occasion was called Remembrances An Enchanted Evening and it was, featuring to-die-for auctions, an outstanding cocktail buffet and free-flowing wine. La Quinta's gardens were abloom, shedding scents of iris and lilac, over guests gathered under the portal, while fountains sprayed jets across a swimming pool. FJowers were blooming inside too, courtesy of parent and auction volunteer Miriam Ward, and her if. And there's a bit, ft- o- more. "Stevie does that all the time," says the salesman, WONDER: Bought MARK HOLMJOURNAL SISTER ACT: Sparx, the Sanchez sisters, are, from left to right, Veronica, Carolina, Rosamaria and Kristyna.

The group Is enjoying success In the United States and throughout Latin America. -mining company owner Jeff Ward. composed more than 60 arrangements, some as voluminous as the kind you find in hotel lobbies, filled with hundreds of fresh roses, i keyboard for fellow musician Vim ill Wmil -J are flying rx WARD: Manzano's flower lady imips aim vines. The event was organized by master i-dotter Cindy Bonafair, wife of businessman Tom Bonafair, owner of New Mexico Beverage. Albuquerque family four singing sisters and their big brother has music in its blood Son gets last word on Landon Tribune Media Sen ic es Michael Landon, beloved star of "Bonanza" and "Little House on the Prairie," gets the "Daddy Dearest" treatment with the telepic "Michael Landon, The Father I Knew" (Sunday at 8 p.m.).

Directed by Landon's son, Michael the Story by Barbara Chavez Of the Journal uiners wno helped create BONAFAIR: Organized Manzano's 60th anniversary auction "ant to know what it's like to be the Osmond family, but with a lot less white bread and a lot more hot, the event were Susan Horn, wife of much- spicy salsa? lnvpH par XJ vf Meet Albuquerque's Sanchez fami specialist Dr. Karl Horn. She co- the 26-member acquisition rrmmitaa urifh tad IMmrorc CBS movie depicts one of Hollywood's most cherished stars as a philandering father who left his son's mom for a young makeup artist he met on the "Little House" set in 1983. Landon, who also battled with alcohol, died of pancreatic can Apparently no one said no to these women, because the silent and live auctions included hundreds of items, from a New Mexico quilt decorated by one of it i i i "Gracias, amigas amigos," she started. "How are you?" In the United States, the banter is almost always bilingual, though in Latin America they speak mostly Spanish.

The Sanchezes were all born and raised in Albuquerque, products of the public schools and graduates of Highland High School. Veronica has a bachelor's degree from the University of New Mexico in international business. The others are working toward their degrees at UNM, but they're all taking time off from college to concentrate on their careers right now, says Rosamaria. "Our No. 1 choice is to sing together, but we have to have our education in case we need it in the future," she says.

Their parents, Amador "Tiny Morrie" Sanchez and Gloria Sanchez, preached education first. They now dedicate themselves full time to their children's entertainment careers. "We didn't set out to have kids so they could be a group or be in show business," says the soft-spoken Gloria. "But with their dad's influence, and in my family, which was also very musically inclined, they just naturally went down the music path. We're very proud of them and we do anything we can to help their careers." Morrie is a former band leader who enjoyed his See SINGING on PAGE C2 i It -inn 1 i LANDON: Cherished star depicted as a philandering father ly sisters Veronica, Kristyna, Rosamaria and Carolina and their big brother, Lorenzo Antonio.

The sisters, who range in age from 21 to 28, make up the popular group Sparx. They sing, dance and churn out Spanish popular music that regularly rockets to platinum on the Latin charts. Lorenzo Antonio, 29, is a high-energy solo act. You can add songwriter to his list of talents, as well. With hot vocals, sex-appeal and rising stardom, the Sanchezes enjoy a strong following of Latin music fans from the United States, Mexico, South and Central America.

They are on the road six to eight months a year, playing everything from dusty rodeos and state fairs in the Southwest to concert halls in Los Angeles, Chicago and New York to venues in Mexico, Argentina, Costa Rica and Puerto Rico. At a recent Cinco de Mayo concert in Albuquerque, Veronica, the oldest sister, did most of the talking. LAURA INNS JOURNAL CROWD FAVORITE: Lorenzo Antonio, the Sanchez sisters' brother, performs at the Albuquerque Convention Center for a recent Clnco de Mayo cer in 1991. Playing Landon was no stretch for John Schneider, best known as Bo Duke from "The Dukes of Haz-zard." Schneider cheated on his first wife, Los Angeles newscaster Tawny Little, more than once. "I See LANDON'S on PAGE C3 a murder mystery dinner for eight at Casa Rondena winery.

The I murder mystery dinner sold for a whopping $2,000 but was beat out by several items, including a I parking space in front of for one year that sold for "$2,200. The party lasted until late, as auctioneer Gene Finz, whipped school spirits into a froth of bidding. Few checkbooks emerged unscathed. Among the guests were many grammar school alums, including former Supreme Court Justice Dan McKinnon, who was playing a jnean set of drums as one-third of the Pat Rhoads Trio; real estate wizard Peter Parnegg; attorney I John Stiff; real estate developer John Price; and businessman Tom Growney, owner of Tom Growney Equipment. i Also among the guests were three generations of the Simms family that originally owned La Quinta and founded Manzano Day School (and Sandia Prep and Albuquerque Academy), patriarch Albert Simms and his wife, Barbara; their daughter Maggie Simms, Manzano's development director, and her daughter, Francie Goodart Also partying was commercial contractor Gerald Martin and his The years have been kind to Clint Eastwood 68-ear-old directoractor credits new serenity at home for grace on the screen By Jac Mathews New York Dailv New 1 I "i i 'i 1 i' i 'T i i 1 here's a scene in "True Crime" where Clint Eastwood playing a veteran newspaper reporter with a stand there half-naked and be captured for the ages and the aged as a lean, mean, sex machine.

Eastwood's long muscles aren't as defined as they once were, and his skin doesn't have the same snug fit. But at his age, John Wayne had a gut like Moby Dick's and was playing one-eyed Rooster Cogburn to schoolmarm Katherine Hepburn, who was also 68. Cary Grant had been retired for four years. Paul Newman still had the looks and some of the moves at 69 in "Nobody's Fool," but the title was ironic. How long, you have to wonder, can this thing last? "It really depends on the role," Eastwood says, during a break at the recent ShoWest Convention of movie exhibitors in Las Vegas.

"I taiow when he retired, Cary Grant said, 'Who the hell wants to see a man my age in a romantic situation on the "In a conventional relationship, that may be true. But in 'Bridges of Madison it worked because both lovers were mature people. And I think it works in this role because this guy has no maturity at all. He goes after everything, and once in a while gets lucky." In the novel from which "True Crime" was adapted, Eastwood's character Steve Everett is a man in his late 30s or early 40s, a talented -but scandal-prone New York Times reporter who gets himself banished to journalism purgatory in St. Louis.

There, he seizes an opportunity to redeem his career by saving an innocent man from lethal injection. Eastwood assumed the role, leaving his age undefined, and shifted the locale to Oakland, where he grew up. He says he changed settings partly because See YEARS on PAGE C3 wife, Victoria. (Martin's unofficial motto: "We build churches and jails, so whatever path you choose, nose for news and fast women is standing in front of a bedroom mirror, a towel cinched around his waist. His latest conquest, the city editor's wife, lazes on the bed anticipating another roufid of afternoon delight.

It's kind of an amazing moment when you consider that Eastwood is now 68, and that since he's both movie icon and A-list director, no one could make him do this. No Hollywood mogul could tell him to we've got a place for Martin is on the school's building and grounds committee. Proceeds from the auction will go toward building a multi-purpose building. No word I yet on how much the auction garnered, but according to Cindy i Bonafair it "raised more than any See MAYOR'S on PAGE C2 AGE UNDEFINED: In "True Crime," the 68-year-old Clint Eastwood plays a much younger man a talented but scandal-prone reporter..