JOAQUIN PHOENIX, one of the finest actors of his generation, has always marched to a different drummer.

But it still came as a bit of surprise to hear him tell us in a recent interview that he checks his e-mail only once a month. In this day and age, that’s a shocker to most people who virtually sleep with their BlackBerry. But this is probably why Joaquin has stayed refreshingly different from his colleagues.

The actor, who stars in the drama, “Reservation Road,” admitted in a talk at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel in New York: “I’m pretty computer illiterate. I do e-mail but only occasionally, like once a month. But of course, the Internet is a great tool for research. I don’t know what actors did 15 years ago. I don’t know if I could go to a library and spend that much time researching. I’m very fortunate to be in this time as an actor because we have the Internet as a great research tool.”

Joaquin revealed that he’s “not a big reader” in general. “I read scripts and on whatever research I have to do,” he explained. “I have this problem — I suppose it’s why I’m an actor. When I start reading a book, I end up just going off on these fantasies where I take the character somewhere completely different. I have to go back three pages because I was inventing this other fantasy. I get stimulated by a book but reading doesn’t let me focus on staying with the book. I just start wanting to invent other things.”

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PRESIDENT Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo’s recent photo with two Fil-Am talents and Lea Salonga made us rush and watch for the nth time “Les Miserables” on our trip to New York this past weekend.

It was good to see Fil-Am talents like Adam Jacobs and Ali Ewoldt (in photo, courtesy of Carissa Villacorta) following in the footsteps of Lea.

Watching and listening to Adam and Ali by themselves on a Broadway stage at a certain point in the very popular musical thrilled us. We are glad to see that race-blind casting is taking hold in Broadway.

Editor’s note: Photo courtesy of  Carissa Villacorta

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THANKS to all for your comments — keep them coming!

And while we are on this “Desperate Housewives” topic (read the latest development on the story by clicking here), and as we feel energized by this lively discussion, let me bring up a related matter.

Most Filipinos know that in many US hospitals, you can’t turn a corner without bumping into a Filipino health care professional — doctor, nurse, therapist, nurse aide and so on. So have you, like me, wondered why there are no Filipino characters in the main cast of these hospital drama shows? And to think there are dozens of these shows on American television.

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A READER, Joy Franje, forwarded an e-mail that has been circulating in cyberspace.

The e-mail, with the subject line, “Desperate Housewives — Insulting Remark on Philippine Medical Schools,” came with an attached MP3 clip of the dialogue. Click here for the MP3 clip.

The e-mail also came with a transcription of the dialogue (read below) from the popular TV series. As we write this, we are trying to get a statement from the folks behind “Desperate Housewives.”

From the e-mail:

Susan Mayer Delfino, played by Teri Hatcher, was talking with her OB/Gyn in the scene. Her doctor told her that she might be hitting menopause (with her saying that she’s too young for that).

Here’s what she said: “Okay, before we go any further, can I check those diplomas? Coz I would just like to make sure they are not from some med school in the Philippines.”

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DIRECTOR Quentin Tarantino must like the barong given to him on his recent visit to the Philippines.

The innovative filmmaker wore the barong at the premiere of his film, “Death Proof,” in Dublin, Ireland. He paired the Philippines’ national shirt with black and white athletic pants, the unusual combo he came up with when he received the Lifetime Achievement Award of the Cinemanila Film Festival from President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo in Malacañang, as shown in this file photo.

Quentin’s pants were drenched when he was forced to ditch his flood-struck limo and ride a pedicab to Malacañang amid heavy rain. So he had to change into athletic pants before receiving the award from GMA.

The ensemble must be comfortable — and he must have enjoyed his stay in the Philippines so much (he is a walking encyclopedia of the films of such Pinoy directors as Cirio H. Santiago and Eddie Romero) that he decided to bring a touch of Pinas all the way to Ireland.

Editor’s note: File photo showing President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo and Quentin Tarantino at the Malacañang Palace in Manila courtesy of Agence France-Presse/Malacañang-PCPO

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