PHILIPPINE Cinema has lost one of its greatest treasures. The man who has not only been an icon Philippine show business but was – more than anything – a great friend to many.
The multi-awarded actor-director Eddie Garcia passed away on Thursday at 4:55 p.m. after suffering from a neck fracture while working on a TV series, Makati Medical Center confirmed. He was 90.
Garcia is survived by his partner of 33 years, Lilibeth Romero, his stepsons Michael and Nikki Romero, and daughter Lisa Ortega.
He left behind an impressive and unforgettable legacy in a showbiz career that spanned nearly seven decades, with over 600 films to his name as an actor and film director.
Garcia’s death came just days after he was awarded the Gawad Urian for best actor for his role as a delusional military officer who tortures students in the 2018 Cinemalaya movie “ML.” Mr. Garcia portrayed the role of a retired colonel who — in a state of dementia — tortures young people in his household basement, thinking the country is still under Martial Law. Mr. Mique enjoined the audience to work towards making Mr. Garcia “a National Artist” for film.
Eduardo Verchez Garcia was born on May 2, 1929, in Juban, Sorsogon. His parents were Antonio Garcia and Vicenta Verchez. He spent his early years in Juban. After World War II, he was stationed as a military policeman in Okinawa, Japan. He was part of the occupation troops of the Philippine Scouts with the U.S. Army for 3 years.
In 1949, President Elpidio Quirino disbanded the troops. Garcia would have wanted to re-enlist for the U.S. Army, but he got sidetracked and joined the movies instead.
He was convinced to try out as one of the talents for director Manuel Conde, who was developing a swashbuckling film, “Siete Infantes de Lara.” After being shortlisted and eventually cast for the role, he never looked back.
Since then, his craft and gift for acting made it very clear that while he really wanted to become a soldier, he was destined to face the camera.
Garcia’s International Movie Database (IMDb) page lists 653 acting credits to his name from films to TV series.
Due to his Hispanic features and bearing, Garcia was typecast into playing villain roles. One of his films was named just that — Contravida (1955) by Olive La Torre.
He was so effective as a villain that he won the FAMAS (Filipino Academy of Movie Arts and Sciences) award for Best Supporting Actor for three straight years from 1957 to 1959. The same award-giving body would eventually give Garcia six best supporting actor trophies, five best actor trophies, and five best director trophies.
“He is the only one in the history of the FAMAS to win the Best Supporting Actor trophy for three consecutive years (1957, 1958 and 1959); was the first to be inducted into the Best Supporting Actor Hall of Fame; and is the only one to have also been inducted into the Best Actor and Best Director Halls of Fame, in addition to a Lifetime Achievement Award,” Greg Macabenta’s wrote in his June 11 column in BusinessWorld.
The consummate artist that he was, he eventually ventured outside the villain role and accepted more controversial roles — he played a closeted gay family man in National Artist for Film Catalino “Lino” Brocka’s Tubog sa Ginto.
Garcia won the best actor trophy from the FAMAS for his work in Tubog sa Ginto. During the period of what is commonly called the “Second Golden Age of Philippine Cinema” (the 1970s to the early 1980s) when seminal works of Nationals Artists Lino Brocka and Ishmael Bernal among others abound, Garcia was an intergral part of the movement.
He was in Brocka’s Tinimbang Ka Ngunit Kulang (1974), Eddie Romero’s Ganito Kami Noon, Paano Kayo Ngayon (1976) and Miguelito: Ang Batang Rebelde (1985), to name a few.
He also starred in more social dramas like Gumapang Ka sa Lusak (1990), Joel Lamangan’s Bakit May Kahapon Pa (1996) and Deathrow (2000). In Deathrow, he played an aged convict who shielded a young prisoner from harsh prison life. He won a Gawad Urian for Best Actor for his work in the film.
He was fondly called “Manoy” and has dabbled in comedy films as well as action flicks for much of the 1980s and 1990s where he acted opposite Fernando Poe, Jr. in Kapag Puno na ang Salop (1987) and its sequel, Ako ang Huhusga (1989) which the latter also directed.
Garcia’s love affair with the screen didn’t stop at acting as he was also a multi-awarded director — among his directorial credits were Karugton ng Kahapon (1961) and Historia un Amor (1963). His most recent directorial credit was “Abakada… Ina” in 2001.
In 1969, Garcia directed “Pinagbuklod ng Langit,” a biopic about former President Ferdinand E. Marcos, which won him his first Best Director award from FAMAS. In 1978, he directed “Atsay,” which won Best Picture at the Metro Manila Film Festival. Atsay starred Nora Aunor.
When the new millennium came, Garcia once again reinvented himself, this time as a supporter of independent cinema. He starred in Raymond Red’s Anino, which won the grand prize in the short film category at the Cannes Film Festival in 1999 and in Rica Arevalo’s “ICU Bed #7” where he won best actor in the first Cinemalaya Film Festival in 2005.
Some of his last works were “ML” (2018) by Benedict Mique Jr., “Hintayan ng Langit” (2018) by Dan Villegas and “Rainbow’s Sunset” (2018) by Joel Lamangan.
“Tito Eddie” has contributed so much to the Philippine cinema. His passing is a great loss to the industry. Nevertheless, his legacy remains and no matter what happens there can only be one Eddie “Manoy” Garcia. He will be missed but never forgotten. My condolences to the family and friends of Tito Eddie.
Goodnight Tito Eddie, you are a TRUE legend.
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