Looking for Ben Tisoy

Many are wondering about the whereabouts of Ben Tisoy, a comedian known for a characteristic hand movement that he does while speaking. The palms are positioned parallel to the cheeks. Each palm is positioned about five to six inches. For each syllable of spoken word, the palms are waved.

Image Credit: Quick Meme

A quick check with IMDb, however, reveals that Ben Tisoy is a moniker of Ben Sanchez. Sanchez played bit roles in movies from the 1960s to early 2000s. He probably got the nickname at a time when political correctness is not yet widespread. The slang term tisoy is the diminutive of mestizo. Anyone labeled as such is expected to have a fair complexion. Ben Tisoy does not.

According to entertainment writer Butch Francisco, the comedian is also part of Ito 'Yun, ang Galing!, a lunchtime program that was broadcast by MBS-4 (currently known as PTV4) before the EDSA Revolution. Ben Tisoy's popularity increased when he became part of John en Marsha, the long-time RPN-9 sitcom that was topbilled by Dolphy. The following video is a snippet of a John en Marsha episode that features Ben Tisoy.

Video credit: YouTube / 85oztube

When the sitcom ended in 1990, Ben Tisoy continued to appear in movies. Based on Ben Tisoy's IMDb page, the comedian last appeared in the 1998 film Ala eh... con Bisoy Hale-Hale-Hoy! Laging panalo ang mga unggoy. He was never heard of ever since. There are some jokes that Ben Tisoy died due to a fall after doing the famous gesture while clinging outside a running passenger jeepney. I still believe that Ben Tisoy is very much alive. His whereabouts? I do not know. Do you?