To hear Ariel Ureta confidently tell it, he's one of the best there is at what he does. "I'm much better than any of these people put together, I'm very good. There's no question to how good I am." Though it may come across as arrogance, he conveys the boast with such a disarming manner and a calm, dulcet tone that one cannot help but agree that maybe he has a chance to fulfill that promise. Also taking into consideration that in a span of three decades the man has practically done it all in the field of entertainment, from hosting to acting in front of the camera, as well as working behind-the-scenes as a director and producer, among countless other duties, his new talk show, My Favorite Show , might indeed make converts and fans of even the most rigid cynics.

If he's so good though, one is obliged to ask: Why the long absence? "The last time I was in front of the camera was in 1997 on Channel 5, on Go for It , a game show," he says. Previous to his latest gig, he worked for several years as a creative consultant and director for ABS-CBN on comedy programs like Klasmeyts and Yes Yes Show . "Meanwhile, I was with my family, living my life. I was so happy."

Upon co-hosting ABS-CBN's 50 th anniversary show with Korina Sanchez and Kris Aquino in October 2003 at the Philippine International Convention Center, Ariel proved to many doubters that haven't seen him in a while that he still had the chops to mesmerize audiences with his matchless delivery and snappy, quick wit. Despite that success, the powers-that-be still had some reservations. So, to test the waters, he was placed as an anchor on ABS-CBN's radio station DZMM, an opportunity he was initially reluctant to accept. "Maybe DZMM is a stepping stone, so I said fine, I'll take it," he says. "But I'm a TV man; what do I do? Radio in Tagalog? But I realized it was fun pala."

After proving his mettle to the network bigwigs, he has now finally been given the chance to go back to doing what he loves. "I'm going to prove myself, that we can find some intelligence in television," he says, quickly adding, "But of course, I'm joining ANC (ABS-CBN News Channel) so I might be the dumbest one there!" ANC is the station's 24-hour CNN-style news division, with the occasional talk show and documentary special. As Ariel explains, the difference between the premium cable channel and regular, free television is that on ANC, one is not obliged to score top ratings. "They want to give you what you should know. It's information, it's for the country, it's what you deserve. That's why they have all these intelligent people there, now they want an entertainer - that's me."

One thing Ariel wants to make clear is that his new show, if anything, will be different in several respects. "I'm not going to talk about everything under the sun," he says. "I'm going to talk about people's favorites only. Why favorites? When you get to know what his favorites are, then you get to know the person. You will ask, 'Who do you like, [Osama] bin Laden or Rizal?' 'I like Bin Laden' - You know what type of person he is."

He also points to a fault within the talk show format which he wants to consciously avoid. "They want to give me a show, it should be a little different from what everyone else's doing. I could do what they're doing, but so what? I'll be an addition, another faceless person. I told the scriptwriters and director, 'Do you know what's wrong with your script? If you removed the [host's] name, you can interchange it with anybody.' A question asked by one person could be asked by another. There is no difference. I want my shows to have character, a niche."

What then, in his opinion, makes for a good host? "Number one, you actually have to be interested in the person. Second, it's like basketball. You have to be a good 'assist' person, and not the top scorer."

Ariel, 58 , was born on November 5, 1946. He took up architecture at the University of Sto. Tomas, where he reached only third year. His career in broadcasting began, unassumingly, while tutoring his neighbor son's in math for P30 a month. " Tutor means I would be the one to do the homework," he says. " Ang laki ng utang ng loob , because he was passing." The neighbor also happened to be station manager of DZQL. "My mom said, 'Let me handle this.' She said, 'Did you know my son's an announcer? Give him a job at DZQL.' All the while, what I did was sit at the station at the Aquinas Dramatic Guild in UST. That was nothing; that was drama."

Though he admits to not having experience in broadcasting at the time (he was only 17 in 1963) they were so impressed with his voice, he was asked to join their ranks. Looking back, he says, "I didn't have a good voice, I developed it. You could have a good body, but you go to the gym. It's easy, if you want to have a deep voice, parang nag vo-vocalizing. Pababa. "

From there his career flourished, amassing credentials that would eventually make him the nation's premier host and entertainer in the seventies. Ariel has hosted such landmark programming as Channel 7's Noontime Matinee , ABS-CBN's Twelve O'Clock High , Ariel con Tina, Ariel & Co. after 6 , Patok na Patok , RSVP (with Dawn Zulueta) , Miss Earth Beauty Pageant , and Motown sa The Tent for Bantay Kalikasan. Not content to simply mug in front of the lens, Ariel expanded his creative horizon and became a knowledgeable director and producer as well. "I wanted to direct so I can learn the experience, know what the director is thinking," he says. "As a host, you're only worried about how you look. As a director, you think about the pacing, you learn so many things. I wanted to learn that so I can have a background and have a backbone." His credits include the popular shows as Ober da Bakod (both the sitcom and movie), Alabang Girls , and Kate & Boogie .

As if that weren't enough, this modern-day Renaissance man also had an impressive stint in the realm of advertising, becoming associate creative director of Mc Cann Ericson, as well as joining J. Romero and Associated Advertising Agency and Link Agency. "It's like using the other parts of the brain, and transferring that information," he says. "What I learn in advertising, I can apply to television; what I learn here, I can apply there. If I'm directing, I'm the smartest man on the set. That's how I got into ABS in the first place."

Asked whether he feels any pressure to perform to expectations, Ariel merely scoffs at the notion. "I've done so many things dating back a long time, that all you have to do is put me back on. And it's a matter of 'Do you like me or don't you like me on?' Yan ang usapan . The question of can he do it? People know I can, I've done so many programs in my life, from this to that."

With the sad state of television these days, what with the relentless emphasis on sex and malicious gossip, which aims to appeal to the lowest common denominator, Ariel aspires to transcend current trends and bring quality and excellence back to television that will appeal to all tastes and social classes.

"I want to prove myself to be good on television so I can be an example that people will copy. For example, the big blockbusters, like the Sound of Music . It can be enjoyed by the D and E (classes), but it's beautifully done, so it can be appreciated also by the A's. That's what I want to accomplish, to say, Hey, we can make our television entertaining, we can make it rate, but we don't have to show bodies shaking all the time and make it as bobo as we can, to make it rate."

Though he readily admits that the younger generation many not be familiar with him or his work over the years ("Usually it's their parents or grandparents," he jokes), one shouldn't take that into account in order to enjoy My Favorite Show and what he can offer. "For a long time, I looked down on people, on announcers and people of my caliber who want to do shows like the good old days. 'Alam mo noon, noong sikat pa ako ...' - No, forget that, I'm going to fight even. My philosophy is, you don't know me, so I'm going to introduce myself. No reputation preceding me. You see me now, in five minutes, you either like me or you don't. You'll know what I can do. I don't want to introduce myself with all my credentials, forget that. I don't want to talk about the good old days."