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[jmantony05]

AN ACTOR’S CALLING: a biography

“Well somebody had to play these roles, and it happened to be me. No matter the role, or how small it is, you have to give it your best” — Eddie Garcia

Actor, television personality, film director, and producer. He is widely considered the "best Filipino actor of all time" with more or less 700 film and television performances and a career spanning seven decades. A Wiseman said that in everything we do we must always give our 100 percent. A very evident trait of the late great Eddie Garcia, which is shown in his marvelous works, shows, and films, he always gives his 100 percent in his works. And even if he is in his later years, his dedication to acting is unparalleled, he never let his age be a hindrance in doing what he does best.

Part I: The Arrival

Eduardo “Eddie” Verchez Garcia was born in Juban, Sorsogon, to Antonio Garcia and Vicenta Verchez on May 2, 1929. He was raised by his grandparents on a farm in Naga with his four siblings, Mila, Efren, Menchu, and Santiago. Garcia's ancestors were descendants of Spanish colonists. Garcia's grandfather, who arrived in the Philippines in 1870 as a captain in the Spanish army, married a lady from Pampanga and settled in Naga.

He attended Sorsogon Elementary School before transferring to Manila to finish high school at San Beda College, where he earned an A.B. For three years, he studied psychology at the same college on the same campus.

 Part II: Family and Life

Garcia had a 33-year civil partnership with Lilibeth Romero. Garcia was married to Lucilla Scharnberg before Romero, who died of cancer in 1995. He and Scharnberg had three children: Eduardo "Eddieboy" Jr., Erwin, and Elizabeth. At the age of 22, Eddieboy died in a motorbike accident; Garcia termed it "the biggest tragedy of his life," and he felt terrible about it because the motorcycle his son had used was his gift to him. In 1996, Elizabeth died after a heart attack. He is the stepfather representative of Mikee Romero and has a living daughter Lisa Ortega who lives in San Diego, California.

"Acting is just a profession. It's an honest way to make a living," Garcia said, adding that he had originally dreamed to be a soldier or a lawyer. He was also enthusiastic about target shooting as a sport and was a superb marksman, having previously served in the military.

 Part III: Star in the Making

Garcia was a military policeman in Okinawa, Japan, after serving with the Philippine Scouts following World War II. His commanding commander asked him to return and enlist for another overseas assignment after he returned, but he met a friend who convinced him to pursue a career in show business.

Garcia began his acting career by applying for the late renowned director Manuel Conde and was accepted for his first role in the feature film "Siete Infantes de Lara" in 1949. In the same year as his first acting role, he appeared in the film "Kahit and Mundo'y Magunaw." "Huling Patak ng Dugo" and "Kilabot ng Langit," both released in 1950, were among his first two films in the industry.

He was first classified as a villain due to his Hispanic appearance and demeanor. In 1955, he appeared in Olive La Torre's film "Contravida." He was so good as a villain that he received his first FAMAS awards for Best Supporting Actor three years in a row, from 1957 to 1959, for the films "Taga sa Bato," "Condenado," and "Tanikalang Apoy," respectively. He is the only person to win any prize from that particular institution three times in a row.

In 1961, he directed his first film, "Karugtong ng Kahapon," and in 1963, he directed another important film, "Historia un Amor." Garcia directed "Pinagbuklod ng Langit" in 1969, earning him his first FAMAS Best Director award.

 Part IV: Rise to Stardom

Garcia was a key figure in the Philippine film movement from the 1970s to the early 1980s, which is known as the "Second Golden Age of Philippine Cinema." In 1978, he returned to directing and producing, starring Nora Aunor in Atsay, which won Best Picture at the Metro Manila Film Festival.

Garcia won back-to-back Luna Awards for Best Director for another film he directed the following year, "Magdusa Ka." He also appeared in "Kapag Puno na ang Salop (1987)" and its sequel, "Ako ang Huhusga (1989)," both directed by Fernando Poe, Jr. In 1989, he received the Metro Manila Film Festival Award for Best Director for the film "Imortal." In 1991, he was inducted into the FAMAS Hall of Fame as a director, and on March 21, 1992, the Guillermo Mendoza Memorial Scholarship Foundation dubbed him "All-Time Favorite Actor of RP Movies." In 1991, Garcia starred in the film "Boyong Maalac: Hoodlum Terminator," for which he won the FAMAS Best Actor award a year later.

The Film Academy of the Philippines (FAP) awarded him the Lifetime Achievement Award in 1998. He starred in Raymond Red's Anino (Shadow, 2000), which received the Cannes Film Festival's grand prize in the short film category in 2000. Garcia won the Best Actor award for his role as an elderly criminal who protected a young prisoner from the harsh realities of prison life in the film Death Row in 2000.

In 2002, Garcia won the Academy Award for Best Actor for the film "Mano Po." At the 2002 Star Awards, he won his first Best Actor in a Drama Series award for playing Leandro Montemayor, the fictional Philippine President in GMA 7's television drama series "Kung Mawawala Ka." In 2000, he won the Urian Award for Pangunahing Aktor (Best Actor) for his performance in the film Death Row. In 2006, he received the Natatanging Gawad Urian award.

 Part V: Later Life

He had an appearance in the television series "Little Nanay" in 2015. From 2016 until 2019, he worked with Coco Martin in ABS-CBN's “Ang Probinsyano," the longest-running action television show in Philippine history.

Garcia continued to act in films until he was 89 years old, stating that "retirement was never in my vocabulary." His last notable work was Hintayan ng Langit, an entry in the 2018 QCinema International Film Festival in which he starred alongside Gina Pareño.

Garcia was taken to Mary Johnson Hospital in Tondo, Manila, on June 8, 2019, after stumbling on a cable wire and hitting his head against the sidewalk while filming "Rosang Agimat," a GMA Network upcoming television series. When he was transferred to Makati Medical Center's ICU the next day, he was unconscious. His brain was found to be in normal functioning order on a CT scan, ruling out the possibility of a stroke. As a result of the fracture, he was in a coma until June 15th. He was still on a ventilator and showed little indication of brain activity. At the age of 90, he died at 4:55 p.m. the next day. 20.06.2019 Garcia's ashes were cremated and buried in an olive green urn shortly after his death, as he had requested. Taguig's Heritage Memorial Park was chosen to host his wake.

Eddie Garcia is one of the greatest, if not the greatest actor in the Philippine showbiz industry. He is the most versatile actor that I have ever seen, he can act in drama films or television shows, action shows and films, comedy films, etc. And his dedication to acting is incomparable, at very old age he still films action series, which is unbelievable considering the risk it brings to his age. It is just sad that he died during a taping. Eddie Garcia is gone, but his contributions to Philippine Entertainment Industry are unmatchable, he is the one and only “Manoy” of the Philippine Showbiz Industry.

[jmantony05]

THE ROAD SO FAR… : An Autobiography

"If we believe that tomorrow will be better, we can bear a hardship today."

For 16 years of my existence here in this world, I experienced a lot of things; hardships, obstacles I must conquer, and joyful moments. I also met people who made so much impact on my life and made me who I am today, which makes me feel very grateful.

At the time of 1:25 am on May 23rd, the year 2005. My mother gave birth to me, her third child. I was born in a little hospital in Tandang Sora, Quezon City. I was born in a simple family, where every penny counts. In short, we are not that rich, but we are not that poor also. Fortunately, we still eat three times a day because of my hardworking father who works at an auto supply. While my mother is a housewife, she is the one who is taking care of us.

I usually do not tell others about my childhood memories because they are not that great and I don't want to remember that anymore because those memories left some bitter effects on me. At a very young age, I was diagnosed with an illness. There was a stone in my urinary bladder, surgery is required and it needed to be removed as soon as possible, it was very devastating news for my parents and for me as well. If I remembered it right, I was confined at National Kidney and Transplant Institute (NKTI) for a few weeks. During my stay there, I met a very kind nurse whom I called “Ate Candy” she was very kind to me and to my parents, she even gave me a coloring book. Fast forward to the day of surgery. Fortunate enough, the surgery was successful and I am still alive and telling my life story. Sadly, after the successful surgery, I never met Ate Candy again I even don’t know what her full name is and I have been wanting to thank her properly ever since.

Following this tragic time of my life, I finally went to school. When I was around 5 years old, I started going to school at Pasong Tamo Elementary School (PTES). I finished kindergarten as the top 3 in my section at PTES in 2011, and I remember being overjoyed when one of the teachers delivered me the diploma; I was thinking to myself at the time that I was done at school and would no longer have to go to school every day.

I thought the good things will continue to shower upon us, I realized that good thing will not always happen in a very hard way. Another hostile moment happened to me again. I was once again diagnosed with an illness, there is another stone found in my body, this time in my left kidney, and immediate surgery is needed to remove the stone. My stay in the hospital at that time was much harder compared to my first confinement. It was really hard and I thought it was over for me. At last, the day of the surgery has come. I remembered that I woke up in the middle of the preparation for my operation, the operating room was very dark and there is only one light focused on me. After that, I became unconscious again. A few hours passed and thankfully the operation was successful. My parents are waiting the day for me to get discharged from the hospital. But suddenly, I got a fever that lasted for a few days and the doctors said that there was an infection in my wound, there is a fluid inside my wound and it is the cause of my fever. One of the doctors removed the fluid inside my wound which is fresh from the operation, the doctor removed the fluid while I was awake and it hurts so bad. The doctor squeezed the wound on the left side of my body. During the process, I saw my mother crying and it is much more painful than what the doctor did to me at that moment. I am thankful because after the fluid was removed, my fever was gone. After that, we can finally go home and it makes me very happy. The two operations left me scars; the first one is located at the bottom of my navel and the second one is located on the left side of my body. These scars made me always remember how I should be thankful to the Man above for this second life, and I am also very grateful to the support of my family who never ever gave up on me, even if I am losing hope. 

These devastating moments, made me even stronger and more grateful for the blessings that have been given to me and to my family. I fully recovered from my illness, and I continued to study and pursue my dreams. In 2017, I finished elementary at Pasong Tamo Elementary School (PTES) where I graduated with honors.

Also in the year 2017, I started my high school life and I enrolled at Culiat High School (CHS). I can say my high school life is the most joyful and memorable time of my life because I made a lot of happy memories with my classmates and my friends.

2019 is the year I considered the best year of my life so far. Many happy events happened in my school life and my personal life. Our section joined volleyball in the intramurals and we won two games but lost the last and we were later eliminated. I was on the team because our section lacked members and mostly I was on the bench cheering for them, but it was a very fun experience for me. Even if we were eliminated, it was still a very happy moment for us.

Also in 2019, where we performed a waltz. It is a requirement for our MAPEH subject, we practiced very hard, and our hard work paid off. During the dance, I felt nervous at the same time excited. Thankfully, we performed well.

2020 was a very hard year for all of us, the pandemic came and we were home quarantined for a few months. Later that year, the online classes started, it was very challenging at first but I get a hold of it. And last 2021, I completed junior high school at Culiat High School (CHS), where I graduated with high honors.

Back to the present year and it is now 2022, I am currently a grade 11 student at New Era University (NEU) and the strand that I have chosen is Humanities and Social Sciences (HUMSS), at first I am having a hard time adjusting to the new school and new classmates but thanks to the help of my friends, I was able to adjust smoothly. I hope that I will be able to complete grades 11 and 12 and graduate from senior high school and eventually graduate from college and get a degree. I hope that I can live my life to the fullest, fulfill my dreams and ambitions and have zero regrets in the future.

[jmantony05]

Welcome to the Pack: a memoir

“A dog is the only thing on earth that loves you more than he loves himself.”

It was May 26, 2021, around 5 in the afternoon, and I am a Grade 10 student. I can still remember it like it was yesterday. Another exhausting day in our synchronous classes, yet again. I am just sitting on my Monobloc chair, my ears, back, and eyes are hurting because of the long usage of my gadget during online classes. I cannot wait for our classes to end, I am staring at the wall clock “tic-tac”, and I am hoping that the clock will be kind to me and that he will move his hands a little bit faster. Finally, our online classes are over, I can rest my whole exhausted body now. I took my old pillow and my sleeping mat to take a very quick power nap, I laid my sleeping mat on the floor and placed my pillow above it. Then, I set an alarm so I can wake up and do my unfinished school works.

When I was in the middle of my shallow sleep, I heard a voice from a distance and it is calling my name. I ignored it because I thought I am just dreaming at that particular moment. But, it never stopped calling my name and the voice’s sound is slowly increasing, which makes me a little bit annoyed and irritated because I am resting. I rose from my sleeping position quickly which makes my head hurt a little bit, I opened the door in our room and walked outside while my head still hurts a little bit and it feels like the world is spinning. I looked for the one who is calling me, it was my mother, I said to her that I was sleeping and asked her why she was calling me. My mother said that she will get the puppy that my uncle was giving to us and she will get accompanied by my older sister. She told me to look out for our house, while they are outside. My mood changed instantly out of excitement, I went downstairs and waited for them to come out, so I can close the door. My mother said that they will go now, I said goodbye to them and “Take Care”. I waited for them to come home, I don’t know what to think, and I am excited and a little bit nervous because it is going to be our very first dog.

After a few hours of waiting, my mother and my older sister went home with him. The stomping of footsteps coming from the outside caught my attention, I knew it was them. And as I was about to open the door, the time suddenly slowed down. I knew I opened the door in a slightly aggressive manner out of excitement, but the door creaked very slowly as if I were in a horror movie. My mother put him down and he started roaming in his new home. We decided to name him Gizmo, a loyal, loving, and playful dog. It is hard for him at first to adjust to his new home and new family, he is crying a lot. But, we showed him how we truly loved him and that we cared for him. After a few days, he finally accepted us and acknowledges us as his new family.

He saved me from my saddest days and nights, he showed me that love cannot only be expressed through words but it can also be shown through actions. And there is no need to speak just to show how much or how you love someone. Now, he is eleven months old and grew a little bit bigger than his first month. Even though his body got bigger, he is still our baby and our “bunso”. From that day on, I decided to shower him all of my love and I will try my best so that he will not feel lonely and feel that he is alone.

[jmantony05]

Who are you?: a writing prompt

Prompt: Write a scene where a stranger stops your main character, saying that they know them, and insisting your main character is someone they are not. Describe exactly how this mistaken identity makes your character feel.

Another busy and tough day at work, yet again. Jack is on his way home, and he has one thing in his mind and it is “Rest” he is so ready to get to bed as quickly as possible. When he was crossing the street, he heard a sound from his back that drew his attention in: "Psst!" A man was calling Jack.

“Hey! Jeremy, are you finished with the game you borrowed from me?”

“Umm… Are you talking to me?” Jack looked around if someone was there. But, there isn’t.

“Yes I am talking to you silly! Where is it? Did you finished playing it?”

“I think you got the wrong guy sir”

“Stop making fun of me, I know that’s you Jeremy”

“Look man, you really got the wrong person here”

“Ha ha very funny! Stop playing with me Jeremy, return the game ASAP because I need it”

“Alright, stop it man, I am really tired from work and I already said that you got the wrong person”

When Jack was about to walk again, the person he had been talking to grabbed his shoulder and stopped him from leaving.

“Stop fooling around Jeremy, where is the game you borrowed?”

Nothing, not even the sun, can compare to how hot Jack's head is right now. He's scorching hot and enraged at the guy who keeps insisting that he's someone the guy knows. Jack took off his face mask.

“Okay that’s enough! I already said I am not Jeremy! Look man, I am really tired. So, would you let me leave? So I can rest.”

“I am so sorry, I thought you are one of my friends, because you have the same shirt and eyes”

“It’s okay, I am sorry for raising my voice, I am just really tired”

“I’m sorry again for the inconvenience, have a safe trip”

Their chat came to an end, and they began walking again. When Jack arrived home, he dragged his exhausted body straight to his room and he slept on his bed.

[jmantony05]

“Time is what we want most, but what we use worst” - William Penn