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Death of Philippine Showbiz Icons: Actors and Musicians Who Have Gone Too Soon

Deaths of showbiz icons like that of Francis Magalona’s could bring a whole nation down to the hysterics.

With their influence and their contributions to the Philippine Showbiz and music scene, (which we are all a fan of) they are very much capable of doing so.

Unlike the deaths of our lolos, say, the 75 year old Palito (his death is still a great loss), the persons included in this article have untimely passed away.

Some committed suicide, some via vehicular mishaps, and some are just too bad to be true.

Some are just on the rise, like AJ Perez and Marky Cielo who we all thought would be the next Coco Martin or Richard Guttierez but the proverbial veil has dawned upon them early, unfortunately.

Such is life. And death.

Here are some more celebrities who could have shined brighter lest they lived the standard length.

Cipriano “Dodoy” Cermeño II (December 5, 1955 – July 25, 2010), aka Redford White

Redford White is more known in his character Sol in the sitcomm Buddy en Sol which aired on RPN 9 throughout the most parts of the 1990s.

On July 25, 2010, at 6:47 a.m., Redford White died of complications from his bout with brain cancer and lung tumor at the age of 54. His wake took place at what had been his residence in the Maligaya Subdivision, Fairview, Quezon City.– wikipedia.org

Francis Michael Durango Magalona (October 4, 1964 – March 6, 2009)

Francis M received honorary awards after his death including the 2009 Presidential Medal of Merit which recognizes his great contribution in music which instilled great faith in his country.

Meanwhile, a petition is circulating in the online community for Magalona to be recognized as a Philippine National Artist.

On March 6, 2009, at 12 noon, Magalona succumbed to multi organ failure secondary to septic shock, secondary to pneumonia in the immunocompromised (immediate cause); acute respiratory failure secondary to acute respiratory distress syndrome (antecedent cause); underlying cause: acute myleogenous leukemia blast crisis.[23][24] He had undergone several chemotherapy sessions since he was diagnosed the previous year, and had been expected to undergo a bone marrow transplantation (BMT) and peripheral blood stem cell transplantation (PBSCT).-wikipedia.org

Marky Cielo
Marky’s death was one of the most surprising. His career is yet to peak as he is fresh from his success as his death is only two years after he debuts on TV as the 2006 Startruck Ultimate Survivor.

Cielo, 20, was found unconscious (nakahandusay) on December 7, 2008 by his mother. The night before, he was last seen playing an online video game up until ten o’clock in the evening in an internet cafe in Quezon City. Marky is said to have made several unanswered calls to his manager-mentor. When he arrived home, he had a discussion with his mother about “something personal”. His mother advised Marky to sort out his problem, “Lutasin mo ang problema mo; ikaw lang ang makakalutas n’yan.” The next morning, his mother entered his room in their house in Antipolo at around six o’clock AM to wake him up for a charity event. When he did not respond, she immediately rushed him to the nearby Antipolo Doctors Hospital where he was declared dead on arrival.– wikpedia.org

Rodolfo “Rudy” Valentino Padilla Fernandez (born March 3, 1952, aka Rudy Fernandez — June 7, 2008)

Rudy Fernandez, one of the premier action stars of Philippine cinema, received received 15 nominations in the FAMAS alone where he won the best actor awards for his roles on Batuigas…Pasukuin si Waway (Batuigas…Make Waway to Surrender) (1984) and Operation: Get Victor Corpuz, The Rebel Soldier (1988).

In his later years, he also received numerous lifetime awards. One of which is the 2008 Ulirang Artista Lifetime Achievement Award, at the 24th Star Awards for Movies.

Fernandez celebrated his 25th wedding anniversary with Lorna Tolentino on June 1, 2008. He suffered a seizure three days later on June 4, but refused to be taken back to the Cardinal Santos Memorial Center in San Juan City.
Fernandez died from periampullary cancer at his Quezon City home on the morning of June 7, 2008.–wikipedia.org

Ronald Allan Poe y Kelley-Gatbonton (August 20, 1939 – December 14, 2004)

FPJ could have been the 13th president of the Philippines as allegations of election manipulation of the ex-PGMA are now surfacing.

More than that, one of the many contributions of FPJ is his presence and influence in Philippine cinema. With his mounds and mounds of movies, he, indeed, has become one of the pillars of the Philippine showbiz industry.

Poe was admitted to Saint Luke’s Medical Center in Quezon City on the evening of December 11, 2004 after complaining of dizziness at a gathering in his production studio premise. He suffered from a stroke and slipped into a coma while being treated for a brain clot. Doctors described his condition as a cerebral thrombosis with multiple organ failure. He died at the age of 65 on December 14 at 12:01 am, without regaining consciousness. Friends and allies from the movie and political worlds were at his bedside. He left behind his wife actress Susan Roces and daughter, Mary Grace. wikipedia.org

Vanessa Uri aka Halina Perez, Quezon

Halina Perez’ career, too, was on the great makings when he faced her ill fate. Her career which catered to 10 films included roles in flicks Ligaya… Pantasya ng Bayan and Sex Files.

After attending a grand opening of a Konica store in Legazpi City, when the car they were driving veered out of line and slammed into a van. Five of the car’s passengers, including Halina, were asleep at the time of the crash, Halina was still breathing when she was pulled out of the car by rescuers, but was declared dead on arrival at the hospital after suffering a broken neck, her manager Isah Munio was also declared dead. The other four including Danna Garcel suffered fractures and minor injuries but survived the crash.–wikipedia.org

Marcelino Antonio “Miko” Carag Sotto III (May 10, 1982 – December 29, 2003)

Actor Miko Sotto died after he fell from the ninth floor of a condominium building in Mandaluyong City before dawn Monday.
Sotto, 21, was declared dead on arrival at the Mandaluyong Medical Center.

According to initial investigation, Sotto was with his cousin Oyo Boy Sotto, two other friends, and a helper at the San Francisco Garden Plaza Condominium on Bonifacio Avenue, Mandaluyong.

According to reports, a security guard saw Sotto seated at the railings of the balcony.
Sotto was about to part with his friends and tried to get down from the railings when his foot allegedly got caught in a plant box, causing him to lose his balance and fall from his perch.
Sotto was immediately rushed to the nearby Mandaluyong Medical Center where he was declared dead on arrival.

“The patient died from multiple skull fracture,” , the physician on duty at the hospital.

From the Mandaluyong hospital, Sotto was brought to the Makati Medical Center (MMC) but doctors there were also unable to revive him.—wikipedia.org

Ricardo Carlos Castro Yan (March 14, 1975 – March 29, 2002)

Rico Yan, who was then linked to actress Claudine Barreto was, in a way, the then John Lloyd Cruz of ABS CBN. His movies were always a box office hit and so are his teleseryes and commercials.

On March 29, 2002, the day after shooting a television commercial for Talk n’ Text, Yan was found dead inside his room by his friend, actor Dominic Ochoa at the Dos Palmas Resort in Puerto Princesa City, Palawan. Autopsy concluded that Yan had died of cardiac arrest caused by acute hemorrhagic pancreatitis(bangungot in Tagalog) while asleep. He was 27. According to Ochoa, the group attended a party the night before and went back to their cottage at around 2 AM Friday. The five friends slept together in one big room, with Yan occupying the loft because he was a snorer. At around 6 AM, Yan was heard groaning but his companions dismissed it as mere snoring. When Ochoa tried to wake Yan up at past 9, he found him stiff and lifeless– wikipedia.org

Renato “Rene” Requiestas (January 22, 1957 – July 24, 1993)

Rene Requiestas is best remembered as Cheetaeh( gandang lalake!), a role of his where he acted as the sidekick of Starzan (Joey de leon).

Before Requiestas entered show business, he sold cigarettes on the streets. He was discovered by a talent scout of Regal Films and mentored by De Leon.

Requiestas died on July 24, 1993 at the age of 36 due to tuberculosis and other complications brought about by heavy smoking and drinking.

Teodoro de Villa Diaz, more popularly known as Teddy Diaz (April 1, 1963 – August 21, 1988)

Teddy Diaz is the Dawn’s original guitarist. His influence still stands tall today as he is being mentioned by guitarists (specially those from the 90s era) as one of the guitarists who they look up to.

After performing live at “Martin After Dark”, a show hosted by Martin Nievera, on August 21, 1988, the members of The Dawn went their separate ways and Diaz proceeded to his girlfriend’s home in Quezon City. As he was approaching the gate to the dwelling, he was accosted by two drunken men. Diaz gave them his wallet; however, one of the men, who was armed with a ezknife, began stabbing Diaz. Wounds on Diaz’s left arm indicated that he may have tried to parry the blows, but a knife thrust to his throat caused massive bleeding, eventually leading to his death.

Pepsi Paloma

Pepsi Paloma was only 14 when she entered the movie industry. She joined Sarsi Emmanuel and Coca Nicolas to form the famed softdrink beauties.

At a very young age of 17, she already has 9 flicks to her name. Her filmography includes Virgin People (1984), Snake Sisters (1984) and Virgin Forest (1985).

in May 31,1985, she was found in her apartment hanged. According to the investigation, the rape case in 1982, involving actor/TV hosts Vic Sotto, Joey de Leon and comedian Richie D’Horsey, was one factor of her suicide. Another reasons which were found in her diary were monetary problems, longings for a mother’s love and anxieties over her relationship with her live-in boyfriend.

Antonello Joseph “AJ” Sarte Perez (February 17, 1993 – April 17, 2011)

AJ Perez is one of the most promising talents of Star Magic batch 13 which also includes Empress Schuck and Dino Imperial.

His April 30,2011 MMK episode was a high rater. Also, it is also considered as AJ’s best performance. Unfortunately, it was also his last.

On April 17, 2011, Perez had just finished a show in Dagupan and was riding an ABS-CBN service van on his way home with his father Gerardo, and four others. The driver of the van tried to overtake a trailer truck but collided with a Partas provincial passenger bus along MacArthur Highway in Barangay San Julian, Paniqui, Tarlac. He was declared dead on arrival at the Rayos-Valentin Hospital in Moncada, Tarlac at 12:10 a.m. Initial reports said that the cause of his death is “multiple head injuries”. The autopsy, however, revealed that his broken ribs pierced his heart and lungs thus causing his death


Pablito Sarmiento aka Babalu

Babalu is one of the most well loved comedians in the Philippines. His stint in Home along da Riles as Mang Bab has exposed his wit and prowess as a source of good time and funny moments.

He died of liver cancer on August 27, 1998 aged 56. He was buried in Antipolo, Rizal. His treatment of Cancer in the United States was not successful because his tumour in the liver got bigger. Instead of quitting his showbiz life, he continued to act until his condition got worse.

*****
They are the personalities we wish to have lived longer and entertained us more.

Sadly, the best thing we could do is to just pray for their souls and hope that actors of today would fill in the former’s shoes.

They are a great loss, and they will sorely be missed.

images from:
blogphilippines.com
philippines.exilez.com
skamid.com
halukay.com
dokumentaryonijuantagalog.weebly.com
midnightafterburner.blogspot.com
findagrave.com
pilipinas360.blogspot.com
Ricardo Carlos Castro Yan (March 14, 1975 – March 29, 2002)
peoples-history.com
facebook.com
wikipeddia.org
movie-industry.blogspot.com
onesongmeow.blogspot.com

About Publisher

JR Cantos is the Publisher of WOWBatangas.com. Some of the articles here on the website have been contributed over the years, so please just email us at help (at) wowbatangas.com if you have any concerns. Salamat!

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3 comments

  1. Where is Julie Vega?

    • Eduardo bautista

      Oo nga ano si julie vega sa drama sa abs cbn ang tatay nya si dan fernandes 4 na taon tumagal diko na tanda drama name! Pero itong si dan Fernandez walang utang na loob sa abs cbn isa sa 70 tongressman nagpasara na pinatagal nila ang hearing upang mapaso lang franchise ng abs xbn at ibigay sa intsik 25 years contract intsik sa communications na hinde dapat hahaha lol!

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