Wilbert Ting Tolentino (born May 18, 1975) is a Filipino entrepreneur and philanthropist and a vlogger. Tolentino owns bars, a spas, and trading business. He is a

beauty pageant A beauty pageant is a competition that has traditionally focused on judging and ranking the physical attributes of the contestants. Pageants have now evolved to include inner beauty, with criteria covering judging of personality, intelligence, ...

producer. He regularly serves as a judge for other beauty pageants like Miss Earth 2018 in November, and Miss Asia Pacific International 2017. Tolentino founded and produced several pageants and competitions: Miss F Universe, Mr. Fahrenheit/Mr. Gay World Philippines, Miss Earth Fahrenheit, Fahrenheit Look of the Year, Mr. Bear Fahrenheit, Miss F Jumbo, Miss F Supranatural & The Voice Of Fahrenheit. He earned the first Mr. Gay World Philippines in 2009, and competed for Mr. Gay World 2009 in Whistler,

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

. Tolentino is an

LGBTQ ' is an initialism that stands for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender. In use since the 1990s, the initialism, as well as some of its common variants, functions as an umbrella term for sexuality and gender identity. The LGBT term is a ...

advocate awarded as one of Philippine's “Outstanding Men and Women“ of 2019. Tolentino was the first openly gay Filipino man to compete in an international pageant. He went on to compete in

Mr Gay World Mr Gay World is a registered and trademarked annual international competition for gay men. The reigning Mr Gay World is José López Duvont from Puerto Rico. López is the first Latino winner, and the first winner from the Americas. Beginning ...

winning Mr. Gay Popularity and Best in National Costume in 2009. As of September 2016, he is the national director of MGWF. In March 2019, Tolentino received a special award at the “Phenomenal Stars of Philippine Cinema” event, Global Entrepreneur of the Year. He serves on the Quezon City Pride Council. In recognition of frontline health workers he is starting a reality show competition to reward cash prizes. In September 2020, he started a virtual pageant, Miss GCQ or Miss Gandang Contesera Quest, to support pageant contestants until a regular season resumes.

Early life

Wilbert Ting Tolentino was born in

Binondo Binondo () is a district in Manila and is referred to as the city's Chinatown. Its influence extends beyond to the places of Quiapo, Santa Cruz, San Nicolas and Tondo. It is the oldest Chinatown in the world, established in 1594 by the ...

Manila Manila ( , ; fil, Maynila, ), officially the City of Manila ( fil, Lungsod ng Maynila, ), is the capital of the Philippines, and its second-most populous city. It is highly urbanized and, as of 2019, was the world's most densely populate ...

with

Chinese-Filipino Chinese Filipinos; tl, Tsinoy, / Tsinong Pilipino, ; Philippine Hokkien , Mandarin (also known as Filipino Chinese in the Philippines) are Filipinos of Chinese descent, mostly of southern Fujianese ancestry, where the majority are bor ...

parents. He is a businessman and owner of Fahrenheit Cafe & Fitness Center or F Philippines, a gay membership club situated in the main street of

Quezon City Quezon City (, ; fil, Lungsod Quezon ), also known as the City of Quezon and Q.C. (read in Filipino as Kyusi), is the List of cities in the Philippines, most populous city in the Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a populatio ...

, and he runs various health spas. Tolentino is one of the board of directors of Quezon City Pride Council that promotes

HIV/AIDS Human immunodeficiency virus infection and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (HIV/AIDS) is a spectrum of conditions caused by infection with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), a retrovirus. Following initial infection an individual ...

awareness to

LGBT ' is an initialism that stands for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender. In use since the 1990s, the initialism, as well as some of its common variants, functions as an umbrella term for sexuality and gender identity. The LGBT term is a ...

community. Tolentino studied at

Lorenzo Ruiz Academy Lorenzo Ruiz Academy or Blessed Lorenzo Ruiz - Crusaders Academy as it appears on the facade of the school, () is formerly known as the Crusaders' Academy, is a Filipino-Chinese Catholic school in Ongpin Street corner E.T. Yuchengco Street(former ...

in Manila's Chinatown center and continued his college years at

University of Santo Tomas The University of Santo Tomas (also known as UST and officially as the Pontifical and Royal University of Santo Tomas, Manila) is a private, Catholic research university in Manila, Philippines. Founded on April 28, 1611, by Spanish friar Miguel ...

for few units.

Pageant career

Tolentino was 2009's Mr. Gay World Philippine representative and is currently the national director for

Mr. Gay World Philippines Organization Mr. Gay World Philippines Organization is a non-profit organization that holds a national contest for Filipino delegates for Mr. Gay World. Wilbert Ting Tolentino was given the license to be the newest national director in January 2016. Christ ...

. He was appointed to represent the Philippines and the competition was held in

Whistler, Canada Whistler ( Lillooet/Ucwalmícwts: Cwitima, ; Squamish/Sḵwx̱wú7mesh: Sḵwiḵw, ) is a resort municipality in Squamish-Lillooet Regional District, British Columbia, Canada. It is located in the southern Pacific Ranges of the Coast Mount ...

. He was Mr. Gay Popularity, Best in National Costume, Best in Formal Wear and Sports Challenge Winner. Prior to Mr. Gay World 2009, Wilbert competed for the Mr. Gay Philippines in 2007 and landed only 2nd runner up. He bagged numerous special awards such as Best in Casual Wear, Best in Talent, Congeniality Award, Photographer's Choice Award and Mr. Popularity. He also joined in a local noon time variety show in

ABS-CBN ABS-CBN (an initialism of its two predecessors' names, Alto Broadcasting System and Chronicle Broadcasting Network) is a Television in the Philippines, Philippine Commercial broadcasting, commercial broadcast broadcast network, network tha ...

, It's Showtime's

I am Pogay I, or i, is the ninth letter and the third vowel letter of the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''i'' (pronounced ), plural ...

contest in 2014 and landed as a weekly finalist.

Pageant production

He founded and produced five major local gay competitions:

Mr. Gay World Philippines Mr. Gay World Philippines Organization is a non-profit organization that holds a national contest for Filipino delegates for Mr. Gay World. Wilbert Ting Tolentino was given the license to be the newest national director in January 2016. Christia ...

(aka Mister Fahrenheit), Miss F Universe, Miss Earth Fahrenheit, Fahrenheit Look Of The Year. In 2016, Tolentino became the license holder for Mr. Gay World Philippines. He attributed two winners for

Mr. Gay World Mr Gay World is a registered and trademarked annual international competition for gay men. The reigning Mr Gay World is José López Duvont from Puerto Rico. López is the first Latino winner, and the first winner from the Americas. Beginnings ...

John Raspado John Fernandez Raspado (born February 20, 1981, in Quezon City) is a Filipino businessman and pageant titleholder who was crowned Mr. Gay World 2017. He won Mr. Gay World Philippines 2016, therefore earning the right to represent the country in ...

and Janjep Carlos of 2017 and 2019, respectively. Mr. Gay World Philippines/Mister Fahrenheit was the Philippines' first male pageant for

gay men Gay men are male homosexuals. Some bisexual and homoromantic men may also dually identify as gay, and a number of young gay men also identify as queer. Historically, gay men have been referred to by a number of different terms, including ' ...

and bisexuals, and the longest running, since 2003. In 2018, the production for Mister Fahrenheit merged with Mr. Gay World Philippines, with its winner representing the Philippines in Mr. Gay World. Its platform are mental health awareness, HIV/AIDS and pre-exposure prophylaxis awareness. Louie Gonzalez was the first openly gay man titleholder, when he was proclaimed as the winner. Miss F Universe is a

Miss Universe Miss Universe is an annual international beauty pageant that is run by a United States and Thailand based Miss Universe Organization.Natalie Tadena (July 2, 2015"Donald Trump's Miss USA Pageant Lands on Reelz Cable Channel". ''The Wall Stre ...

inspired pageant for

bisexual Bisexuality is a romantic or sexual attraction or behavior toward both males and females, or to more than one gender. It may also be defined to include romantic or sexual attraction to people regardless of their sex or gender identity, whi ...

men and

queers ''Queer'' is an umbrella term for people who are not heterosexual or cisgender. Originally meaning or , ''queer'' came to be used pejoratively against those with same-sex desires or relationships in the late 19th century. Beginning in the lat ...

. Its platforms are the fight against

homophobia Homophobia encompasses a range of negative attitude (psychology), attitudes and feelings toward homosexuality or people who are identified or perceived as being lesbian, gay or bisexual. It has been defined as contempt, prejudice, aversion, h ...

and

transphobia Transphobia is a collection of ideas and phenomena that encompass a range of negative attitudes, feelings, or actions towards transgender people or transness in general. Transphobia can include fear, aversion, hatred, violence or anger tow ...

. Miss Earth Fahrenheit is a

Miss Earth Miss Earth is an annual international major beauty pageant based in the Philippines that advocates for environmental awareness, conservation and social responsibility. Along with Miss World, Miss Universe, and Miss International, it is one of t ...

inspired pageant for

and bisexuals men and

. Its platform is the involvement of the

LGBTQI ' is an initialism that stands for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender. In use since the 1990s, the initialism, as well as some of its common variants, functions as an umbrella term for sexuality and gender identity. The LGBT term is a ...

community for the preservation of nature and environment. Fahrenheit Look Of The Year is a male pageant for

and bisexuals men which began in 2006. Its platform is to advocate programs and laws for the protection of the

gay youth Gay men are male homosexuals. Some bisexual men, bisexual and homoromantic men may also dually identify as gay, and a number of young gay men also identify as queer. Historically, gay men have been referred to by a number of different terms, ...

. Mr. Bear Fahrenheit is the Philippines' only male pageant for

bear Bears are carnivoran mammals of the family Ursidae. They are classified as caniforms, or doglike carnivorans. Although only eight species of bears are extant, they are widespread, appearing in a wide variety of habitats throughout the Nor ...

s and chubby gay men. The winner represents the Philippines at Mr. Bear Universe. Its platform is to support the solidarity of bears and chubs in the country. Miss F Jumbo is a plus size pageant for

and bisexuals men and

. Its platform is the fight against

fat shaming Social stigma of obesity is broadly defined as bias or discrimination, discriminatory behaviors targeted at overweight and obese individuals because of their weight. Such social stigmas can span one's entire life, as long as excess weight is pr ...

. Miss F Supranatural is a '' pangkalawakan'' inspired pageant for

and bisexuals men and

who embody over-the-top personality and are judged not by their beauty but their wit and humor. The Vocalist of Fahrenheit is a singing competition open to all gender and ages.

Facebook online challenges

Because of the worldwide COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic, Tolentino started multiple online benefit competitions starting in March 2020 for "drag queens, gay contestants, male contestants, social media influencers, entertainment and pageant media, pet owners community and singer-songwriters" to raise funds for the contestants and their families who had lost income.

Covid 19

On July 24, 2020, Tolentino experienced mild symptoms of sore eyes. Eventually it became severe and on August 2, he was hospitalized for testing positive and having symptoms of Covid Pneumonia in critical severe state with Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome. He had a survival chances of 20% and was intubated in CCU at St. Luke's Hospital in Quezon City.

Youtuber

In October 2020, Tolentino started publishing a

vlog A video blog or video log, sometimes shortened to vlog (), is a form of blog for which the medium is video. Vlog entries often combine embedded video (or a video link) with supporting text, images, and other metadata. Entries can be recorded in ...

on YouTube.

Talent Manager

Madam Inutz

In April, 2021, Daisy Cabantog aka Madam Inutz signed a management contract with Wilbert Tolentino. Madam Inutz is a viral sensation online seller during pandemic that made her famous. She recorded four singles: Inutil, Sangkap ng Pasko, Madam and Marites. Tolentino entered Inutz to Pinoy Big Brother Kumunity Season 10 and finished fourth.

Herlene Budol

In February 2022, https://mb.com.ph/2022/02/13/hipon-girl-joins-wilbert-tolentinos-roster-of-talents/ Herlene Budol signed a management contract with Tolentino. Under Tolentino's management, Herlene Budol joined Binibing Pilipinas 2022 and finished 1st Runner Up. Budol bagged (8) eight special awards: Bb. Pizza Hut, Bb. Shein, Bb. Silka, Jag Jeans Denim Quenn, Bb. World Balance, Manila Bulletin Choice Award, Bb. Kumu, Bb. Black Water. After the pageant, Budol signed various endorsement deals, TV appearances, and recording labels. Tolentino has produced a single "Gandang Hipon" which means Beautiful Shrimp in English, under Kafreshness Records. Budol became a lead role in a TV Mini series called "Magandang Dilag" on GMA Network. Tolentino also entered Budol to Miss Planet International in Kampala, Uganda. However, the pageant was postponed and Budol withdrew. Instead Tolentino entered Budol to Miss Grand Philippines a year after and won Miss Philippines Tourism. Budol bagged 5 awards: Best in Runway, Miss Ever Bilena, Miss Arena Plus, Miss Mermaid Manila Hair, Miss Blue Water Day Spa. On July of 2023, Tolentino terminated his management contract with Budol.

Notes

References

External links

official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tolentino, Wilbert Ting Living people People from Binondo 1975 births Filipino people of Chinese descent Filipino LGBT businesspeople Filipino gay men Gay businessmen