Lopez was the Binibining Pilipinas Universe 1982 titleholder and represented the Philippines in the 31st Miss Universe Pageant in Lima, Peru. She became controversially known as a Filipina beauty queen and an actress provocatively known for acting Sex in film. Lopez was previously married to a Japanese national, Hiroshi Yokohama, later annulled. Lopez then married Jonathan Melrod in the United States. She is a mosaic artist and a professional member of the Society of American Mosaic Artists and acts in various roles in Philippine cinema.
Lopez is from Cagayan de Oro City and was born to Benjamin Lopez and Crescencia Pagunsan. Prior to becoming a beauty queen titleholder, she worked as a fashion designer at The SM Store and Rustan's department store as well as a sexy model for various fashion salons, namely by gay fashion designer, Rodolfo Fuentes (1950—2011) who scouted her as a candidate in the national pageant that year and was assigned as candidate number # 15.
At age 24, she won the Binibining Pilipinas Universe beauty pageant in 1982, after being almost dethroned for her pre-discovery as a sexy lingerie model in a Girard Peter fashion show due to an immorality clause set by Stella Araneta. Lopez maintains that she was pressured to resign her title but refused. Lopez further gained notoriety when the famed mistaken question of virginity from Philippine judge and actress Rita Gomez (1935—1990) was attributed during her national competition (in actuality was for Janet Sales of Manila), creating an urban legend among beauty pageant connoisseurs during the 1980s. During her national competition, she was asked by American drummer Alphonse Mouzon regarding the independence of women. At her coronation night, her name was initially mispronounced as Maricar Isabel Lopez, later corrected.
Film work
Lopez became controversial when she entered the movies due to her highly sexualized roles not usually expected of a beauty queen titleholder. Her first movie Sana, Bukas Pa Ang Kahapon (English: “Hoping, that tomorrow is still what passed”) in 1983, starred Hilda Koronel, Lorna Tolentino, Dindo Fernando and Jay Ilagan, and was directed by Romy Suzara. She was in the original cast of Working Girls (1984), a comedy film where she starred as a young office worker who entered as a sex worker at night to gain more income, directed by National ArtistIshmael Bernal. In 1988, Lopez was hired as a commercial sexy model for White Castle Whiskey.
During the height of her popularity, Lopez began more intense sexual and romanticized movies, namely the following:
In 2009, Lopez became the center of controversy when she was not given a complimentary ticket for the Binibining Pilipinas 2009 pageant, an oversight she strongly resented in public due to not being allowed to sit in the box where former beauty titleholders were allotted after finally obtaining a ticket.
In 2010, Lopez became involved in a conflict with various Philippine journalists, namely Ricky Lo who implied that Lopez strongly desired the passing of Stella Araneta. Lopez vehemently denied the allegation as libel, but maintained the accusation that Araneta is an elitist, who refuses to address people of impoverished backgrounds due to her grandiose ego.[3] Lopez maintains that Araneta has never forgiven her for making sexualized films after her reign as Miss Philippines 1982.[4]
In 2016, Lopez gained notoriety for a green pageant gown she wore for the 2015 Cannes Film Festival wherein she made comparative comments of her evening gown to the one used by Pia Wurtzbach.
In January 2017, Lopez publicly revealed on a televised Philippine morning show Unang Hirit, the strong discrimination against dark contestants during her time as a beauty queen titleholder. She noted that during the Miss Universe 1982 visit at the Presidential Palace in Peru, the first lady Pilar Nores de García was racially dismissive towards dark-skinned contestants, namely Miss Papua New Guinea and Turks and Caicos.
In November 2017, Lopez was penalized for illegally driving, removing traffic cones among others, on the driving lane reserved for the ASEAN delegates which were being hosted in the Philippines. Consequentially, Lopez' driver's license was revoked and confiscated along with a minimal fine after complaints from the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority employees upon discovery of sharing the violation on her Facebook account.[5] The Metropolitan Manila Development Authority recommended the violation to the Land Transportation Office to suspend or cancel her driver's license.[6][7] Lopez later claimed that seeing other vehicles using the ASEAN lane prompted her to drive on it as well.[8] The office later revoked her license and barred her from reapplying and reacquiring her license for the next two years.[9] She was also fined ₱8,000 (US$160) for ignoring traffic signs, reckless driving and violating the Anti-Distracted Driving Act.[10] Lopez accepted the charges and issued a public apology.
Personal life
Lopez married Japanese national Hiroshi Yokohama, a former DHL executive in 1990 and both lived in Tokyo, Japan. The couple later moved to the Philippines and separated in 2006 due to claims of abuse and infidelity. They have two children, a daughter, Mara Lopez, an actress, and son, Kenyo "Ken" Yokohama, a Civil Engineering graduate of De La Salle University. On 9 June 2019, Lopez married a Jewish American National, Jonathan D. Melrod, and both live in Sebastopol, California.
Lopez studied Fine Arts at the University of the Philippines Diliman and is member of the NCCA (National Commission for Culture and Arts), and was Secretary of the Committee on Visual Arts for the year 2011— 2013. Lopez also completed art classes both in Chicago Mosaic School and Institute of Mosaic Art in Berkeley, California. In 2015, she toured UNESCO Italian mosaics in Ravenna, Italy as part of her interest in mosaics at www.mariaisabellopezart.com.
"Former Bb. Pilipinas-Universe Maria Isabel Lopez attacks BPCI head"
"Maria Isabel Lopez admits past relationships with politicians and lesbians"
"Maria Isabel Lopez's career blooms anew after Survivor Philippines: Celebrity Doubles Showdown"
February 04, 2023
maria, isabel, lopez, this, philippine, name, married, women, birth, middle, name, maternal, family, name, pagunsan, birth, surname, paternal, family, name, lopez, marital, name, melrod, maria, isabel, pagunsan, lopez, melrod, born, august, 1957, filipina, mov. In this Philippine name for married women the birth middle name or maternal family name is Pagunsan the birth surname or paternal family name is Lopez and the marital name is Melrod Maria Isabel Pagunsan Lopez Melrod 2 born 19 August 1957 is a Filipina movie and television actress Maria Isabel LopezLopez in July 2017Born 1957 08 19 August 19 1957 age 65 Cagayan de Oro Misamis Oriental PhilippinesEducationUniversity of the PhilippinesOccupationsBeauty pageant titleholderactressmodelmosaic artistHeight5 ft 5 in 1 65 m 1 Spouse s Hiroshi Yokohama m 1990 annulled 2006 wbr Jonathan Melrod m 2019 wbr ChildrenMara Isabella Yokohama Kenyo Ken YokohamaBeauty pageant titleholderTitleBinibining Pilipinas Universe 1982Years active1982 presentHair colorBlackEye colorBrownMajorcompetition s Binibining Pilipinas 1982 Winner Binibining Pilipinas Universe 1982 Miss Universe 1982 Unplaced Lopez was the Binibining Pilipinas Universe 1982 titleholder and represented the Philippines in the 31st Miss Universe Pageant in Lima Peru She became controversially known as a Filipina beauty queen and an actress provocatively known for acting Sex in film Lopez was previously married to a Japanese national Hiroshi Yokohama later annulled Lopez then married Jonathan Melrod in the United States She is a mosaic artist and a professional member of the Society of American Mosaic Artists and acts in various roles in Philippine cinema Contents 1 Pageantry 2 Film work 3 List of controversies 4 Personal life 5 Selected filmography 5 1 Television 5 2 Movies 6 See also 7 References 8 External linksPageantry EditLopez is from Cagayan de Oro City and was born to Benjamin Lopez and Crescencia Pagunsan Prior to becoming a beauty queen titleholder she worked as a fashion designer at The SM Store and Rustan s department store as well as a sexy model for various fashion salons namely by gay fashion designer Rodolfo Fuentes 1950 2011 who scouted her as a candidate in the national pageant that year and was assigned as candidate number 15 At age 24 she won the Binibining Pilipinas Universe beauty pageant in 1982 after being almost dethroned for her pre discovery as a sexy lingerie model in a Girard Peter fashion show due to an immorality clause set by Stella Araneta Lopez maintains that she was pressured to resign her title but refused Lopez further gained notoriety when the famed mistaken question of virginity from Philippine judge and actress Rita Gomez 1935 1990 was attributed during her national competition in actuality was for Janet Sales of Manila creating an urban legend among beauty pageant connoisseurs during the 1980s During her national competition she was asked by American drummer Alphonse Mouzon regarding the independence of women At her coronation night her name was initially mispronounced as Maricar Isabel Lopez later corrected Film work EditLopez became controversial when she entered the movies due to her highly sexualized roles not usually expected of a beauty queen titleholder Her first movie Sana Bukas Pa Ang Kahapon English Hoping that tomorrow is still what passed in 1983 starred Hilda Koronel Lorna Tolentino Dindo Fernando and Jay Ilagan and was directed by Romy Suzara She was in the original cast of Working Girls 1984 a comedy film where she starred as a young office worker who entered as a sex worker at night to gain more income directed by National Artist Ishmael Bernal In 1988 Lopez was hired as a commercial sexy model for White Castle Whiskey During the height of her popularity Lopez began more intense sexual and romanticized movies namely the following Silip Daughters of Eve by Elwood Perez 1985 Isla English Island 1985 by Celso Ad Castillo Hubo Sa Dilim English Naked in the Darkness 1985 Mga Nakaw Na Sandali English Stolen Moments 1986 Dingding Lang ang Pagitan English Only thin walls that separate 1986 among other sexualized films She won the Golden Screen Award Best Supporting Actress Award for Kinatay English Butchered 2009 Lopez walked the red carpet at the Cannes International Film Festival in France for Brilliante Mendoza s award winning film Kinatay 2009 Lopez again walked the red carpet at the Cannes International Film Festival in France for Brilliante Mendoza s award winning film Ma Rosa 2016 Lopez was the line producer for Tulak 2009 and HIV Si Heidi Si Ivy at Si V 2010 She was also in the cast again for the modern sequel Working Girls 2010 film for GMA Films under the helm of Jose Javier Reyes Lopez was one of the castaways in GMA Network s Survivor Philippines Celebrity Doubles Showdown 2011 2012 in tandem with her daughter Mara Lopez also an actress in her own right having won Cinema One Originals Best Actress 2012 She played the mother of Sid Lucero in GMA 7 s prime time series Legacy 2012 List of controversies EditIn 2009 Lopez became the center of controversy when she was not given a complimentary ticket for the Binibining Pilipinas 2009 pageant an oversight she strongly resented in public due to not being allowed to sit in the box where former beauty titleholders were allotted after finally obtaining a ticket In 2010 Lopez became involved in a conflict with various Philippine journalists namely Ricky Lo who implied that Lopez strongly desired the passing of Stella Araneta Lopez vehemently denied the allegation as libel but maintained the accusation that Araneta is an elitist who refuses to address people of impoverished backgrounds due to her grandiose ego 3 Lopez maintains that Araneta has never forgiven her for making sexualized films after her reign as Miss Philippines 1982 4 In 2016 Lopez gained notoriety for a green pageant gown she wore for the 2015 Cannes Film Festival wherein she made comparative comments of her evening gown to the one used by Pia Wurtzbach In January 2017 Lopez publicly revealed on a televised Philippine morning show Unang Hirit the strong discrimination against dark contestants during her time as a beauty queen titleholder She noted that during the Miss Universe 1982 visit at the Presidential Palace in Peru the first lady Pilar Nores de Garcia was racially dismissive towards dark skinned contestants namely Miss Papua New Guinea and Turks and Caicos In November 2017 Lopez was penalized for illegally driving removing traffic cones among others on the driving lane reserved for the ASEAN delegates which were being hosted in the Philippines Consequentially Lopez driver s license was revoked and confiscated along with a minimal fine after complaints from the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority employees upon discovery of sharing the violation on her Facebook account 5 The Metropolitan Manila Development Authority recommended the violation to the Land Transportation Office to suspend or cancel her driver s license 6 7 Lopez later claimed that seeing other vehicles using the ASEAN lane prompted her to drive on it as well 8 The office later revoked her license and barred her from reapplying and reacquiring her license for the next two years 9 She was also fined 8 000 US 160 for ignoring traffic signs reckless driving and violating the Anti Distracted Driving Act 10 Lopez accepted the charges and issued a public apology Personal life EditLopez married Japanese national Hiroshi Yokohama a former DHL executive in 1990 and both lived in Tokyo Japan The couple later moved to the Philippines and separated in 2006 due to claims of abuse and infidelity They have two children a daughter Mara Lopez an actress and son Kenyo Ken Yokohama a Civil Engineering graduate of De La Salle University On 9 June 2019 Lopez married a Jewish American National Jonathan D Melrod and both live in Sebastopol California Lopez studied Fine Arts at the University of the Philippines Diliman and is member of the NCCA National Commission for Culture and Arts and was Secretary of the Committee on Visual Arts for the year 2011 2013 Lopez also completed art classes both in Chicago Mosaic School and Institute of Mosaic Art in Berkeley California In 2015 she toured UNESCO Italian mosaics in Ravenna Italy as part of her interest in mosaics at www mariaisabellopezart com Selected filmography EditTelevision Edit Year Title Role Network2022 Love in 40 Days Roberta Berta Ignacio Kapamilya Channel2019 Sino ang May Sala Mea Culpa Maribel Baniaga ABS CBN2018 Ngayon At Kailanman Lucia SimbajonBagani DorayMaalaala Mo Kaya Barya Victoria2017 Haplos Corazon Cora Maglalim GMA NetworkImbestigador Nagbigti O Binigti Selya2016 Doble Kara Rona Mallari ABS CBNFPJ s Ang Probinsyano Clarissa SubitoWansapanataym Candy s Crush Venus AngaraMaalaala Mo Kaya Pole Samantha2015 Pangako Sa Yo Isabel MirandaBridges of Love VeronicaKarelasyon Belinda GMA NetworkImbestigador Hinalay sa loob ng bahay Gupit Panty Janet Buenavista2014 Ang Lihim Ni Annasandra RosarioIpaglaban Mo Paano Na Ang Pangarap Aling Mila ABS CBNThe Legal Wife Sandra De Villa2013 Bayan Ko Sylvia Rubio GMA News TV2012 Magdalena Julia Huling Hermoso GMA NetworkKung Ako y Iiwan Mo Sonia Pedroso ABS CBNMaalaala Mo Kaya Gong Apeng SukayLegacy Lala Salcedo GMA NetworkKapitan Awesome Samantha Hussein TV52011 Maalaala Mo Kaya Tungkod Linda ABS CBNMaalaala Mo Kaya Bracelet Bebeng2010 Precious Hearts Romances Presents Alyna Fausta Del CarmenStar Confessions Tisay The Lala Montelibano Confession Lydia TV5Precious Hearts Romances Presents Love Me Again Sonia Barrera ABS CBNMaalaala Mo Kaya Saranggola Luzviminda2009 Lovers In Paris Julia Francisco GatusMaalaala Mo Kaya Videoke LettyParekoy Mother DearMaalaala Mo Kaya Kalendaryo Lucing2007 Magpakailanman The Liza Dela Cruz Story unknown GMA Network2004 Spirits Queen of the Engkanto ABS CBN1998 Halik Sa Apoy Marta GMA NetworkMovies Edit Year Title Role Film Company1989 Sa Kuko Ng Agila Shirley JE Productions Rich Films V Rich Films1988 Red Roses For a Call Girl BAS Films Lisa Films1987 When Good Girls Go Wrong LCS Productions Inc JRS Productions1986 Bakit Naglaho ang Magdamag Greed FilmsKapirasong Dangal Urban FilmsDingding ang Pagitan Ian Film ProductionsMga Nakaw na Sandali First ProductionsHuwag Pamarisan Kulasisi Emperor FilmsUnang GabiHayokSilip Tonya Viking Films1985 Hubo sa Dilim FLT Film ProductionsHeartache City Joji Essex FilmsHello Lover Goodbye Friend Falcon FilmsEscort Girls Tala Films Inc 1984 Isla Isla Viva FilmsWorking GirlsBatuigas II Pasukuin si Waway Vanguard Films Inc 1983 Dugong Buhay Viva FilmsSana Bukas Pa ang Kahapon CandySiphayo 2016 Barcelona A Love Untold 2016 Just the 3 of Us 2016 Maria Leonora Teresa 2014 Mariposa Sa Hawla ng Gabi 2012 Ang Misis ni Meyor 2012 Corazon Ang Unang Aswang 2012 Captive 2012 Ritwal The Faithfools 2011 Sirip 2011 Cuchera 2011 HIV Si Heidi Si IVY At Si V 2010 Ika Sampu 2010 Ang Babae Sa Sementeryo 2010 Ways of the Sea 2010 Working Girls 2010 Pilantik 2010 Fidel Kinatay 2009 Hilot 2009 Tulak 2009 Ay Ayeng 2008 See also EditBinibining Pilipinas Miss Universe 1982 Philippines at major beauty pageantsReferences Edit Lo Ricky 7 March 2014 PLDT presents 2014 Bb Pilipinas pageant The Philippine Star Archived from the original on 8 October 2015 Nikko Tuazon 20 June 2019 Maria Isabel Lopez 60 marries for the second time pep ph Retrieved 28 October 2022 Maria Isabel Lopez denies wishing Stella Marquez Araneta dead 23 April 2010 Former Bb Pilipinas Universe Maria Isabel Lopez attacks BPCI head Maria Isabel Lopez may lose driver s license for breaching ASEAN lane 12 November 2017 Manila traffic official Snipers could ve mistaken Maria Isabel Lopez for terrorist Coconuts Manila 14 November 2017 Actress Maria Isabel Lopez summoned for Asean lane violation SunStar 13 November 2017 Maria Isabel Lopez apologizes for driving in ASEAN lane LTO cancels Maria Isabel Lopez s driver s license 27 November 2017 Philippines Actress Maria Isabel Lopez fined for using VIP traffic lane BBC News 27 November 2017 External links EditMaria Isabel Lopez at IMDb Former Bb Pilipinas Universe Maria Isabel Lopez attacks BPCI head Maria Isabel Lopez admits past relationships with politicians and lesbians Maria Isabel Lopez s career blooms anew after Survivor Philippines Celebrity Doubles Showdown Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Maria Isabel Lopez amp oldid 1134613913, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
