The greats still among us
Have all the icons gone? Thankfully, we still have about a dozen or so left.
Death came in close succession for some of Philippine showbiz’s beloved icons: Eternal movie empress Gloria Romero, 1950s box-office queen Delia Razon, Asia’s Queen of Song Pilita Corrales, superstar and National Artist for Film and Broadcast Arts Nora Aunor and OPM legend Hajji Alejandro.
Female comic Matutina — Evelyn Bontogon-Guerrero in real life — also passed away last 14 February, followed by producer Tony Gloria on 24 March. And just last week, Romy Romulo also died. Romulo was a veteran stuntman and villain in action movies.
Have all the icons gone? Thankfully, we still have about a dozen or so left. That figure is small — given the hundreds if not thousands of stars that graced the local entertainment’s firmament from the time show business was introduced in the country. Below is a list of the remaining onscreen showbiz icons in the Philippines:
Vilma Santos
PHOTOGRAPH COURTESY OF FB/vilma santos
Vilma Santos. It can be said that Vilma was pulled out of Nora Aunor’s ribs. In the late 1960s, Nora was in an onscreen love triangle with Tirso Cruz III and Edgar Mortiz. Since Nora and Tirso fell in love with each other in real life, Edgar was left out in the cold. To the rescue came talent manager Cornelia “Angge” Lee who decided to pair Edgar with emerging teen star Vilma Santos, a former child actress.
As any showbiz observer knows, Nora and Vilma became chief rivals. With Nora sadly gone, there went the hottest rivalry ever witnessed by local show business. And now that Vilma has returned to politics, there’s a chance she won’t be making a movie in a long time.
Joseph Estrada. He may have been ousted as President of the country, but he will always be regarded as one of the greatest icons in Philippine cinema. He is not only a good actor, but is also exemplary as an industry leader (he created Mowelfund) and producer (he churned out movies with social significance).
President Estrada may have made it to Nora’s wake, but his health is no longer in tip-top shape. While he is not active in showbiz anymore, his contributions to the industry are much appreciated.
