Jess Lapid, Sr.
| Jess Lapid | |
|---|---|
| Born |
Jesus Songko Lapid October 5, 1933 Guagua, Pampanga, Philippine Islands |
| Died | July 13, 1968 (aged 34) Quezon City, Philippines |
| Nationality | Filipino |
| Other names | JLS |
| Occupation | actor |
| Years active | 1958–1968 |
| Spouse(s) | Bella F. Lapid |
| Children | Jess Lapid, Jr. |
Jesus Songko Lapid (October 5, 1933 – July 13, 1968) was a Filipino actor and father of actor/diving instructor/fight director Jess Lapid, Jr. and a brother of Jose Lapid and given for a movie screen name as Jess Lapid He was shot dead inside a nightclub in Quezon City on July 13, 1968.
In the more innocent days of the 1960s, children all over the country used to sing this ditty to the tune of the Beatles’ ”A Hard Day’s Night”, as a tribute to the local showbiz’ most-talked about stars. Divina and Stella were obvious picks as they were the leading names that paved the way for “bomba” films in the 70s. Rising star Fernando Poe, was already a name to reckon with in action films, and hot on his heels was Poe’s discovery, Jess Lapid, who was popular enough to earn a line in the lyrics of this nonsense song, which alludes to his handsome-ness, second only to Da King. Indeed, Jess Lapid’s star could have shown brighter in Philippine moviedom, had he not met an early and untimely death.
He was born, Jess Lapid in October 5, 1933, in Guagua, Pampanga; an older brother, Jose, is the father and grandfather of movie stars-turned politicians Lito Lapid (now on his last term as Senator), and son Mark Lapid (former governor of Pampanga and now TIEZA Head), Many family members of the Lapid clan is a kind of Kapampangan people of Chinese descent. respectively. Jess started as an extra in his first film from Premiere Productions, “Larawan ng Pag-Ibig” in 1961. He then shifted to being a stuntman, after finding out that they earned more than extras.
He rose to become the top stuntman of Premiere, often doubling for more established stars—riding horses, falling from cliffs, getting shot at by villains. He had the good fortune for doubling for Fernando Poe, Jr., and soon, the two would become fast friends.
When Poe ventured into film productions, he made Jess one of the regulars in his films, giving him roles that required real acting, rather than choreographed stunt actions. Jess rose to the occasion and proved to be a convincing character actor. He tried him out in “Pasong Diablo”, in 1961.
It was in the FPJ Productions, “Sierra Madre” (1963) that Poe decided to give Jess the full star treatment—from a more prominent billing to major publicity exposures. But it was Jess himself who pulled it off, by turning in a sensational performance that erased all doubts about his just being a “mere stuntman”.
...
Wikipedia