Fernando Poe, Jr.

Fernando Poe, Jr. (August 20, 1939 – December 14, 2004) was an iconic and hugely popular Filipino actor. Late in his life he ran an unsuccessful bid for president in the 2004 Philippine election, losing to incumbent Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo. He was also known as "FPJ" and as "Da King".

Personal background

Fernando Poe, Jr. was born in Manila, Philippines, of Catalonian, Filipino and Irish-American extraction, the son of actor-producer Fernando Poe, Sr. and Elizabeth Kelley. Poe Jr.'s parents were not legally married yet when he was born in 1939, which Poe, Jr.'s Filipino citizenship would much later in life be called into question as he was the illegitimate son of a non-Filipino mother, according to his political opponents who sought to disqualify him from running in a political race. Although, his parents later married in 1940. http://www.manilatimes.net/national/2004/feb/11/yehey/top_stories/20040211top4.html He was the second of six siblings, born after Elizabeth and before Fernando (Andy), Genevieve (Jenny), Fredrick (Freddieboy), and Evangeline. His name at birth was Ronald Allan Kelley Poe; it was his brother Andy who was really named Fernando Poe, Jr.

Related Topics:
Manila - Philippines - Fernando Poe, Sr. - 1940

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Filipino actor Conrad Poe was his half-brother, the illegitimate son of the late Fernando Poe Sr. by actress Patricia Mijares.

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The original family surname was spelled Pou from his grandfather, playwright Lorenzo Pou, a Catalan migrant from Majorca, Spain, who ventured into mining and business in the Philippines.

Related Topics:
Majorca - Spain - Philippines

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As his father was a famous actor, Poe had small parts in several movies of the 1940s. However, Fernando Poe, Sr. died in 1951 after rabid puppies licked his wounds. His mother, Bessie Kelley, was an American and sometimes called Elizabeth Kelley in some sources especially in Philippine press. http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/images/news/microsites/halalan/poe.htmhttp://www.inq7.net/nwsbrk/2002/oct/28/nbk_2-1.htm http://www.newsflash.org/2004/02/hl/hl101468.htm His mother's parents, Arthur Kelley (WWI Army Corp of Engineer from Iowa, USA) was an Irish American who settled in the Philippines and Martha Gatbonton, a Filipina of mixed heritage.

Related Topics:
1940s - 1951 - American

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Poe finished primary education in 1953 at San Beda College. For high school, he went to San Sebastian College, Mapua Institute of Technology, and University of the East. After the death of his father, he dropped out of the University of the East in his sophomore year in order to work to support his family.

Related Topics:
1953 - San Beda College - San Sebastian College - Mapua Institute of Technology - University of the East

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He married actress Susan Roces in a civil ceremony in December 1968. They were later married in a church and among their primary sponsors were then President Ferdinand Marcos and First Lady Imelda Marcos. Mary Grace was their only child, an adopted one.

Related Topics:
Susan Roces - December - 1968 - Ferdinand Marcos - Imelda Marcos

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Although a well-known public figure, Poe had been very reclusive about his personal life. However, in February 2004, during the presidential campaign, Poe admitted to having sired a child out of wedlock. Ronian, or Ron Allan, was Poe's son by former actress Anna Marin.

Related Topics:
February - 2004

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