The Manila Times

More ‘firsts’ for Maine Mendoza on her second year in the biz

- !” CHRISTINA ALPAD

TWO years into the business and Maine Mendoza continues to accomplish many firsts in her young but already successful career.

Over the weekend, the 22-year- old conquered the “Eat Bulaga” stage with a challengin­g performanc­e that may have put her at risk but neverthele­ss empowered her for she did it sans a trusty partner.

Mendoza was the safari queen for her performanc­e in “# DabarkadsG­oals: The Ultimate Battle,” which was part of the show’s 38th anniversar­y celebratio­n on Saturday. Her lithe body was tossed and turned, and she hung on a bamboo pole for dear life for the duration of the performanc­e all while keeping a huge smile on her face.

But behind her seemingly perky dispositio­n, one- half of the phenomenal love team AlDub had to battle fear and pessimism before hitting the stage. As she wrote on her Instagram account @ mainedcm, she almost gave up when her co- host Ryan Agoncillo— whom she had performed with earlier in the week for the same number— could not make it on the big day because of health reasons.

Thankfully for her fans, Mendoza’s determinat­ion prevailed and she hit the stage for an epic noontime show performanc­e.

“This performanc­e is a big deal for me because I rarely put my whole self in the things I do. Like I have said, I’m always “just enough but this #DabarkadsG­oals competitio­n is an exception. I did not expect this! This is one of the few moments I feel proud and satisfied for doing something ‘great.’ Thank you for this memorable experience, Mendoza wrote.

Outside television, Mendoza continues to be a fashion cover girl, but this time for a title different from the establishe­d magazines she has worked with in the past. She was chosen as the maiden cover girl of an independen­t lifestyle magazine named which will also be done very differentl­y.

On Tuesday, revealed that Mendoza will have three covers: a classic one wearing a rose gold Mark Bumgarner dress; the second, an avant- garde themed cover wearing a silver embroidere­d Michael Cinco dress; and lastly most unconventi­onal of which; in her trademark wacky face, which is not an industry standard for magazine covers.

Finally, the sought- after endorser— now dubbed as the “endorsemen­t queen” for her numerous works with consumer brands— has also taken a first in her endorsemen­t deals.

Mendoza was the additional lucky charm of Jolly, the canned vegetables and fruit manufactur­er, for their 20th anniversar­y when they revealed her as their first celebrity endorser.

It was also a first for Mendoza for even if she has been the face of other food and beverage brands, she had yet to endorse ready- to- use cooking ingredient­s until Jolly came along.

“I am super happy to endorse a brand I’ve been using since I’ve been in culinary school,” the Hotel, Restaurant and Institutio­n Management degree holder from De La Salle- College of St. Benilde revealed.

Indeed, because of her many achievemen­ts in her showbiz career, many have forgotten that Mendoza’s first profession was in the Hotel and Restaurant industry and thus also has a talent for cooking. But while tinkering in the kitchen with her favorite canned mushroom is not a first for the “phenomenal star,” it looks like this smar t and gifted girl has many more surprises up her sleeve as she forges on toward her third year in the spotlight.

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Maine Mendoza

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