"My name is Walterina Markova. 73 years old." "Comfort gay." "Have you ever heard of a comfort gay?" "This is the story of my life." "One bad dream." "A nightmare." "But every bit real." "Gracious!" "Joan Crawford wannabe!" "Can ice water freeze the passage of time?" "Away with the morning star..." "Ugh!" "Sewage!" "Sister..." "Call them now." "Hey you gay fossils." "Breakfast's ready!" "This is where I live." "The Home for the Golden Gays." "Never heard of it?" "There are many things you don't know." "It was founded by a certain Mr. Councilor." "Excuse me-Ms." "Councilor." "Why haven't you called them yet?" "But I have!" "The old hags aren't hungry yet, I suppose." "That can't be." "They may have soft hearts but they have appetites of steel." "Call them." "Hurry!" "Hey you antiquated fags!" "Food!" "Idiot!" "Don't ruin the morning for us." "Call them-nicely-the Flower Queens." "Fine, fine." "Oh most beauteous gays..." "Breakfast is ready." "Insult them all you want, but never ever ever call them old, ancient, or prehistoric." "Remember." "It's profanity, I tell you!" "Absolutely!" "Sister, here's your day's itinerary." "Pray that the council passes the budget for the Home." "I'll have to do that later." "I have work today." "I can help you." "Me, I'm free." "Never mind." "Let him do the praying." "After all, God listens to sinners." " Ouch." " Just kidding." "Not a spoonful yet!" "Grace before meals, remember?" "As we always do." "My God, wake him up." "Forward... step,step..." "a little hip movement..." "Step by step." "Don't be in a hurry..." "Walk in a criss-cross!" "Zig-zag!" "Like this!" "And a pause, a hand on the hip, and the other..." "Bend the knee, like this!" "Get it?" "Got it?" "You, Giggling Girl!" "Let's see you walk." "See if you can make it in Japan." "Young lady." "Why do you walk like this?" "You move like a frog!" "You know where they'll send you?" "To Gapan, not Japan!" "One more time." "One more time." "Part of my daily routine is visiting churches." "It's a simple life." "Teaching beauty lessons to Japan-bound dancers." "Often, I'm in church." "Surrounded by old maids and the despondent." "Not thrilling it all." "Such hopelessness!" "Good evening, Ms. Councilor!" " Come here!" " What is it?" "Who are those kids?" " My nephews." " Nephews?" "!" "You're acting like sluts!" "At your age!" "You'll have the cops prancing in next!" "Know what they'll call this?" "Corruption of minors!" "I'm a Councilor here." "Allow me some respectability!" " So what do I do?" " Get rid of them!" " But I've paid in advance!" " Advance?" "!" " You've made some deposit, you moron!" " Ouch!" "They're not soldiers, nor guerillas." "But they too are victims of war who suffered at the hands of Japanese soldiers" "They're known as comfort women..." "women sexually abused by Japanese soldiers during World War ll." "After decades of silence, one woman with the courage to come forward is Nana Rosa." "If we could only bring back the past they'll understand what justice we are asking for." "They'll surely do the same." "My life since then has lost its meaning." " What now?" " Kick them out!" "Markova?" "What's with her?" "Don't ask me." "Look for yoursel !" "Are there boys inside?" "Who is it?" "It's me, sister." "Come in." "Honey..." "Something's bothering you?" "No." "Are you sure?" "It's that TV show, right?" "Honey, if you have a problem, you can tell me." "Okay." "Thank you." "Don't be sad." "Look what's happening..." "if you're not careful, you'll be planting more than rice there. ..sugarcane, too!" "You don't want to grow hideous, do you?" "You'll grow old too, you witch." "Oh, stop being sad!" "It's unhealthy!" "Be happy!" "I'm off to bed, goodnight now." "Long live the Emperor!" "Thank you very much." "Honey?" "Why are we meeting here, of all places?" "What's this melodrama?" "I like it here...so God can hear us." "It's not like He's not within earshot wherever we are." "Yes, but. .." "I feel free here." "Fine, fine." "So what's this about?" "I want to come out." "What?" "What do you mean?" "I want to come out. .with my story." "My God, what for?" "I'm sure, I'm not the only one who knows your story." "You make it sound like all of Manila knows about my secret." "So now you want the whole country to hear about it?" "Darling, let it go." "Forget the past." "Are you sure about this?" "If the comfort woman Nana Rosa had the courage, why can't I?" "You're different, darling." "Nana Rosa and I are alike." "You said if I needed help, I could count on you." "Of course!" "So I'm telling you...please, sister of mercy, help me out." "I feel like doing a novena." "You have a rosary?" "Let's walk on our knees." "Where's your rosary?" " In there." " But these are Chinese beads." "I was almost impressed...imagine Loren Legarda, a top journalist, visiting me!" "Excuse me." "Aren't you..." "Loren Legarda?" "I'm looking for Mrs. Markova." "Mrs. Markova?" "There isn't a Mrs. Markova here." "Sister..." "Let her in." "You're looking for Walterina?" "Yes." "Ma'am Walterina." "I see." "Come in please." "I've an appointment with Mrs. Markova." "Ma'am Walterina...?" "So Councilor JJ told you?" "Yes." "He told me I could see Mrs. Markova here." "I'm Markova...but I'm no Missus." "Excuse me. ls JJ around?" "He's attending a meeting..." "but he did tell me to expect you." "Hold on a minute." "So...there is no Mrs. Markova here?" "No." "So, there isn't a comfort woman?" "No." "So what's the story here?" "A comfort gay." " Please tell JJ..." " Please don't be angry." "Please tell JJ that I'm going to kill him." "I'll tell him." "I myself feel like killing him sometimes." "JJ, I'm dead serious about my report on comfort women." "You told me to come here because you've a boarder who was a comfort woman." "Okay, fine.What else can I do?" "I'm here so I might as well." "Okay...fine." "Pardon me, Miss..." "Mister..." "Walter Dempster, Jr. is my given name." "Let's take a seat." "Markova will do." "Markova?" "It's a screen name." "An alias." "The only people I know who use aliases are criminals." "Ouch." "Th at's o kay." "Okay." "Let's start at the beginning." "Isn't there a camera?" "None." "I need to hear your story first." "Where do we start?" "My parents lived in the south." "But we grew up in Manila." "My father was a doctor." "He had an optical company." "My mother was a simple housewife." "How many kids in all?" "Four." "Two boys, two girls." "Pardon me- I meant one boy, three girls." "And you were" "The third." "Frances was the oldest, followed by Robert... then me, the beauty queen." "Finally, our youngest, Arabella." "When did you know you were gay?" "Oh, I was a late bloomer." "I was already a young lady then." "How old?" "Sweet 16 or 17." "I tried to hide it from them." "But how difficult it was!" "I couldn't quite conceal the vamp in me." "I told my mom...it was okay with her." "I told my dad." "He pretended not to care." "But my two sisters, how delighted they were when I told them." "But my brother Robert. .wow." "He was the dark villain in my life." "He was furious." "He couldn't quite grasp my true beauty!" "Three times a day, I was his punching bag." "It was a closed-door massacre!" "Three times a day, I was his punching bag." "It was a closed-door massacre!" "Don't you want to play basketball?" "Yeah, so you can be with your boyfriend." "What boyfriend?" "Hmp!" "Like you don't know." "Who are you talking about?" "Who else but him." "Look!" "He took his shirt off!" "I think I want to play basketball now." "You mean with Antonio?" "Guia won't like that." "Well then, may the best girl win." "Here she comes." "Walter, why don't you play?" "Antonio's waiting." "I think I prefer the swing." "Really?" "Stay put then." "No, don't!" "I might fall!" "NO!" "No!" "NO!" "No!" "No!" "Hey!" "I have to go." "My bodyguard is here." "What did I tell you?" "Hey!" "Easy, man." "Don't ruin the car." "What did I tell you?" "What did you say, elder brother?" "So now you're talking back." "Well, you asked me." "Smart-ass." "Not just a sissy. .a smart ass too!" "Remember this; be a man!" "Understand?" "That's a big problem." "A smart-ass sissy." "I never listened to my brother." "Alone in my room, I couldn't help myself..." "That's when the woman in me truly came out." "I'd dress myself up in Arabella's clothes..." "Just a second, big brother!" "Walter, open up!" "Just a second!" "What are you doing in there?" "Just a second!" "One time, he caught me, Big brother usually Comes home late... but one night" "His ugly face decided to show itself." "Big brother..." " You deaf or what?" " I was asleep." "What do you want?" "I forgot something." "What's this?" "N-nothing." "You never learn, do you?" "Don't!" "You're a disgrace!" "Mom, Bobby's hurting Walter!" "What?" "Where?" "Don't... please... don't..." "Until you stop this nonsense You won't see the end of this!" "What can I do if I'm really this way?" "What can you do?" "Be a man..." "Because you are a man, stupid!" "Bobby, stop it!" "Are you trying to kill your brother?" "Mom, I will kill him if he doesn't wise up." "It's all right." "It's all right." "Why is elder brother like that, Ma?" "I didn't do anything wrong." "All I want is to be who I am." "Is that wrong?" "So...you were beaten up all the time?" "Yes." "And if elder brother only knew the truth, I'd really have gotten it good." "Take this to Roco." " What's this?" " Don't ask questions." "Just bring it to him." "Monster!" "Anybody home?" "Oh." "It's open." "Hello." "Anybody home?" "What is it?" "Elder brother told me to give you this." "Leave it on the table." "Wait. .want a drink?" "Or you can open that liquor you brought." "Oh no, please..." "I don't drink." "Wait a second." "What do you want, butter or cheese?" "What?" "What do you want on your bread?" "Butter or cheese?" "Any will do." "Softdrink. rink" "Sandwich." "Sit down...not there, here." "Do you and elder brother often drink together?" "Yes." "Why do you want to know?" "Cause he's not supposed to." "Is that why he had you bring the package to me?" " Maybe." " Nah...it's extra income." "Extra income?" "We sell them in the black market." "What black market?" "You ask too many questions..." "What do you do anyway?" "Me?" "I'm an actor." "Really?" "You don't believe me?" "Come, I'll show you my photos" "I need to go." "My brother might be looking for me." "Forget him." "He told me to just bring you the package." "And..." "Nothing else." "So there... come on!" "Come on..." "Please don't..." "Don't hurt me. ..please." "What are you doing?" "Please, don't!" "Don't!" "Don't!" "Don't!" "Please have pity on me!" "Why don't you sit down properly, Walter?" "Mom, I have a boil on my behind." "A boil?" "A boil...you know, the thing that when you squeeze, the pus" "Enough." "We're eating." "You just need to bathe more often." "I don't think that would help." "I said enough already!" "I can't describe how I felt about it." "I was angry at my brother." "As to what happened..." "I liked and didn't like it." "How big it was, sister!" "Did I shock you?" "You're as serious in person as you are on TV." "You mean you're not serious at all?" "Of course, I am!" "Sorry." "Did it happen again?" "Did you see Roco again?" "No..." "I did try to avoid him." "Good morning, my lovelies." "What happened?" "Call a doctor!" "Mom!" "Call a doctor!" "Walter, what is it?" "What happened?" "Roco, what happened?" "We were drinking." "He started coughing...vomited blood." "Didn't I tell you not to drink?" "It's bad for him!" "MY God!" "Call a doctor!" "Don't leave me." "Mom..." "Mom, don't leave me, please..." "I didn't know how to feel." "I was sad, of course." "He was my brother, after all..." "But on the other hand..." "I'm free... he'sgone..." "I 'mfree..." "Hard to understand, but that's how it was." "No bitterness." "I was just...happy." "Sad...but happy." "I was free..." "Oh, before I forget, I prepared a little snack." "Don't bother." "No trouble at all." "Have you been here long?" "Ba rely a yea r." "Don't belittle the sweet potato." "It kept us alive during the war." "Thank you." "Boiled potato, fried potato, grilled potato." "Stewed potato tops." "But my favorite. ..potato in syrup!" "Did you go out dressed in women's clothes during the war?" "Even before the war my friends and I were already sashaying through town." "We loved parading down Dewey Boulevard." "Who were your friends?" "There were five of us..." "Carmen,Sophie, Anita, Minerva, and yours truly..." "Walterina." "Let's take another shot!" "The Japs have come!" " They're here." " Are you thinking what I'm thinking?" "Sonofabitch!" "You not a woman!" "You want to be a woman...eh?" "You'll see how it is to be a woman!" "Hello?" "Send the soldiers!" "What happened?" "What else?" "The pussy-cat is out of the bag." "But Anita and I didn't get into any trouble." "Your muscles must've scared them off." "You mean we're just quicker to the bite!" "Wake up!" "Wake up!" "They're back!" "Beautiful, eh?" "I like her..." "I like the big one..." "All the same to me..." "Let's get on with it!" "Don't!" "Hurry, run!" "No!" "Have pity!" "Don't, have pity, please!" "Please don't." "Have pity!" "Sophie, help!" "Sophie, help me!" "We don't need your food!" "Enough..." "Don't Minerva!" "Don't!" "Pigs!" "You'll pay for this, bastards!" "I couldn't help thinking how beasts like them could make such sad music." "You have the time?" "On which part of the planet?" "What do you mean?" "Here-choose the time you want." "All you know is foolishness!" "We were treated like dirt." "If comfort women were on their backs, we were tossed around." "We were bruised...even here." "How long did that last?" "A Iifetime. me." "I don't remember..." "I don't want to remember!" "How did it end?" "Did you escape?" "Were you released?" "Even martyrdom comes to an end." "We carne to our senses." "...found our balls." "They just got tired of us." "They let us escape" "When the bombing started... we took the chance to escape." "The war was ending?" "No. .the" "Japanese were still in Manila." "That episode wasn't closed yet." "We had our revenge." "Where are you off to?" "Out there." "Isn't it dangerous?" "You want to get killed, Sophie?" "Are our lives worth anything?" "It's my business." "It's up to you to join me or not." "Me, I'll just try to live in peace here." "I'm perfectly happy as it is." "As long as I have sour pork broth, or sour fish broth...any kind of sour broth." "But do you have pork?" "Well, no..." "But we have potato tops." "Just count me out." "Revenge didn't last long." "One day, Sophie disappeared." "We heard she was imprisoned in Fort Santiago." "As for Carmen..." "She was accused of robbery." "Thief!" "Carmen was a battered beauty..." "But she survived." "Maybe she was terrified of dying." "And Sophie died in Fort Santiago prison." "When Manila was in chaos, we got separated." "I don't know what happened to that ﬂirt, Minerva." "After the liberation, I was still with Anita and Carmen." "I'm a little bloated..." "My period must be coming." "Guess what I just bought." "You bitch, what have you got?" "Guess!" "A white soldier." "Oh stop it!" "Okay. .a black soldier!" "Ouch!" "Well?" "I give up." "Show me." "At last!" "What's all that noise?" "What's going on here?" "Look what Anita got!" "You had me worried." "Get some herbs and help me with the cooking." "May I?" "..." "Ooh how silky!" ". ..how smooth!" "May I?" "..." "Ooh how silky!" ". ..how smooth!" "Oh how good it is...to feel like a real woman." "It's just sad they're not here." "May their souls find peace." "But for now..." "How are you?" "What happened to you?" "447 You just disappeared." "I went home to the province." "Tried to forget what happened." "Tried to change." "You slut." "You've never been uglier!" "It doesn't suit you." "Of all places, we had to see each other here." "This place is lonely when you've no one." "Or are you here to get picked up?" "You loon." "Who's with you?" "Him!" "Does he know?" "Of course." "I thought you were gone." "I want the old Carmen gone." "You know what all this pretending brought us." "You call this pretending?" "Or accepting who we are?" "Will you be happy to forget the old Carmen?" "And just like that." ".Carmen's glory was back with a vengeance." "We were together again in a gay parade... in a faraway province." "It was fabulous!" "Carmen was the Mystical Rose." "What happened to your American boyfriend?" "Oh, it was just a ﬂing." "A ﬂavor of the rnonth." "He had a family in the States." "When his duty was over, that was it." "When did you stop cross-dressing?" "Well, beauty does fade." "Even Imelda Marcos grew old." "When I started working in the theater, this hot babe was already in pants." " Knock-knock." " Who's there?" "Johnny's balls." "Oh Popoy, you're so vulgar!" "What's vulgar about it?" "Just let me in!" " Okay, I will!" " Knock-knock." " Who's there?" " Johnny's balls." " Johnny's balls who?" "Fuck you Popoy, I knew it was vulgar!" "So how was the show?" " The crowd loved us." " Oh good." "It did go well." " That's great." "I was a makeup artist in some theaters." "That's where I met the famous German Moreno, But I don't know if he remembers me." "Then I worked for the Gala, the Greenline Theater those burlesque theaters." "I need an extra here to buy candles." "Double time, we're about to do a take!" "You ready, man?" "Just a second." "I need a retouch." "I also went into the movies." "I was the makeup artist of the famous comedian Chiquito in "Kenkoy  Rosing'(" "I felt so at home in the movies." "I had plenty of sorority sisters there!" "What a bitchy director!" "Don't mind him." "He's just my assistant." "He acts like he owned the company." "Action, start walking!" "Hurry up, Kenkoy!" "We'll be late for the wedding!" "Rosing!" "This car goes well with my attire!" "I think it's very necessary that we have our picture taken!" "Buddy, take our picture, please." " Of course, your wish is my command." "Isn't it embarrassing?" "It's okay." "I like you two." "Okay,just give me a moment to retouch my makeup." "Young lady..." "Your handkerchief is falling falling." "I turn my back for a second, and you're already fooling around!" "I just want our picture taken!" " Oh really?" "Hey you!" "Stop ﬂirting with him, You still have lots to do!" "Bitch." "Just a second, boys." "Got to 514 work, I'll be back to retouch you." "Just a second." "Did you know that most actors have gay lovers?" "For example?" "Secret!" "I don't want to tattle..." "Did you know that hmm is handled by a queer?" "And do you know that hmm hmm hmm, Mr. Macho Man, also has a male lover?" "And hmm hmm hmm hmm is the Big Papa of another gay?" "If I know, these guys are all Rock Hudson's soul sisters." "And you?" "Who's your lover?" "My lips are sealed." "I don't want to be accused of sexual harassment." "What happened to Anita and Carmen?" "Your niece told me you were sick." "Isn't it obvious?" "How's the queer?" "Here she is...no longer beautiful." "It's just a matter of seasons." "Too bad ours has already passed." "At least you're still beautiful." "That's why I love you." "Because you're such a liar." "Darling, get a check up." "What?" "Get a check up." "It's better to be sure." "You're as much a slut as I am." "Do you know what hit me?" "Your niece told me." "I never prayed so hard then!" "During the war, I prayed everyday, but this was different." "That was a war, and everything was a matter of life and death." "I was so nervous waiting for the result of my blood test." "I didn't want to die of AIDS." "Negative!" "I'm negative!" "It's negative!" "I'm negative!" "You wouldn't believe how grateful I was." "But it was a sad time too." "Because Anita didn't hold out much longer." "And what about Carmen?" "What happened to her?" "I heard she was sick too." "So this beauty visited her." "Are you buying anything?" "Yes, to go. .away." "Hello." "I hope you all win!" "Tonypet, where's the Queen?" "U Upstairs." "Resting." "U Upstairs." "Resting." "I'll go up." "How cute you are!" "I want to steal you away!" " H Hey, q queer." " Who's q u queer r?" "Thank God you visited me." "How's the movie queen?" "Very bad." "I'm fading away like a wilted ﬂower." "It's all in your mind." "No." "The doctor said I need a triple bypass." "But I have no money to pay for it." " Well then get yourself an overpass instead." " Oh, you..." " There are so many of them on the highway..." " Don't make fun of my misery." "Can you bring me my favorite pleasure?" "Gracious!" "Can you still do that in your condition?" "Quit kidding..." "or I'll die laughing..." "No wonder Anita keeled over and died." "Poor Anita." "How are you?" " Well, we're now old hags." " Speak for yourself." "Your day will come too, bitch." "Come on." "Buy me my favorite." "Fork over the cash." "I don't have any." "Get some from Tonypet downstairs." "My favorite sour broth!" "Thanks for remembering, sister!" "Oh, how delicious!" "Hope you don't mind." "I couldn't find any fish broth." "All they had was pork." "Isn't that bad for my health?" "All that cholesterol?" "You want me to die?" "Don't you like that?" "Cardiac galore?" "What the hell...at least I'll die of pleasure." "How delicious." "Carmen didn't last long either." "Just recently I went to the cemetery." "But I couldn't find the graves of the queers." "It was cemetery for the poor." "Maybe the land was used for others." "Enough." "I've told you enough." "So you're the only one left from the gang?" "Naturally, this queen's getting old too." "I'm already 'ty-three.- ." "Seventy-three?" "ree?" "Or eighty-three?" "Ouch!" "You think I'm eighty-three?" "That's way past the last bingo number." "Just seventy-three. ree." "Have you forgiven the Japanese?" "Oh come on." "You were really a comfort gay?" "If there were comfort women, we were the comfort gays." "Yeah, right." "And you don't mind us working in Japan?" "What do I care what you want to work in Japan?" "So it's okay with you that we serve the Japs...the blood kin of your abusers?" "Not all the Japanese were bad." "And what's it to me if you lay out your pussies for them?" "Sisters, let's just be grateful that we have jobs." "You got that right." "But you know, I still find your story hard to believe." "If nobody listened to the comfort women, why would they listen to you?" "And what happened to their cases, anyway?" "They're dying one by one, and nothing's happened." "And now... here you are, a comfort gay." "Wow." "You're living in a fantasy world if you think they'll notice you." "Maybe so." "Ooops. .." "I slipped!" "Hey, my hair!" "Hey, my hair!" "My God." "That's the monk look." "But what if no one believes you?" "Do you?" "I don't know yet." "But it's not that I don't want to." "But I still need to investigate." "Is this how all journalists are?" "Someone bares his soul to you, and still you doubt?" "We need to be skeptical, so we can see the truth." "They say only one thing can set a person free.The truth." "How will you know the truth..." "if you refuse to believe my story?" "Freedom doesn't really come easy to people like us." "That's mine." "Hey,that's mine!" "It's mine." "This is my life!" "Come back for it when you believe me already." "Sorry I wasted your precious time." "Loren!" "It's good you're still here..." "What happened?" "Effeminate." "Faggot." "Queer." "Homo." "Gay!" "You are only being true to yourself..." "But all they see... ls a sham." "I am Walterina Markova..."