Pepsi Paloma, 19 Yrs Old

Bold star Pepsi Paloma was only 14 when she was presented to talent manager Rey dela Cruz for possible movie roles. Coming from a poor family in Olongapo City, Pepsi, Delia Smith in real life, made her movie debut in 1981 in Celso Ad. Castillo’s Brown Emmanuelle. She was launched as one of the so-called “softdrink” beauties, together with Sarsi Emmanuelle and Coca Nicolas. Pepsi will be remembered in the celebrated rape case in 1982 involving actor/TV hosts Vic Sotto, Joey de Leon and comedian Richie D’Horsey.
On May 31, 1985, Pepsi ended her life. Monetary problems, longings for a mother’s love and anxieties over her relationship with her live-in boyfriend may have driven the bold star to end her life. Her diary found by police investigators in the room where she hanged herself showed such problems. From the pages of Times Journal, here’s the detailed account of that unfortunate incident that shocked the whole movie industry.

Pepsi Paloma, who crashed into the local movie scene by baring her whole body three years ago when she was just 14, killed herself by hanging yesterday afternoon in her apartment in Quezon City. Police surmised that Pepsi, Delia Smith in real life, hanged herself between 1 and 2 p.m. at the second floor of her apartment at 52-D Iriga st., Sta. Mesa Heights. But it was not until 6 pm that her limp body, clad only in a flimsy yellow night gown, was found hanging inside a closet from a three-inch thick and 36-inch long cotton sash. The people who found her were her live-in boyfriend, Jose S. Sanchez, 25, salesman; half-brother Zaldy White, 15; and her two so-called aides- George Ricaborla, 22, and Philipp Clemente, 20.
“She couldn’t have done it because of financial problems,” said Babette Corcuerra, her new manager. “She was earning well and was fully booked for dancing performances.” “She just finished the Pepsi Paloma Show at the Bughaw and 10 other beerhouses,” Corcuerra added. For the one-week stint in the beerhouses, she was supposed to get P10,000, the manager revealed. “She was even booked for a week’s show at the Jailhouse Rock club in Angeles City” Corcuerra said, “and she was to be paid P2,500 a night.” According to Corcuerra, Pepsi has three movie offers: Dormitory Girls for Ron Gallardo Pablo, Savage Girls and May Batas sa Daigdig.
Pfc. Willy Borgonia of the Quezon City police investigation division, however, said a diary he found at Pepsi’s room disproved her manager’s claim. The diary said she was so depressed for not having had any movie offers lately. “Wala akong masyadong pelikula. Maraming gastos,” she wrote in her diary. “Ako lahat ang gumagastos sa bahay, pati pang-tuition ng mga kapatid ko.” She also complained about her mother in Olongapo City: “Hindi ko alam kung itinuturing akong tunay na anak ng nanay ko.”

Pepsi’s last movie was Room 69, which was shown two weeks ago. It was bruited to be the last movie that Rey de la Cruz’ softdrink beauties would make together. It also starred Sarsi Emmanuelle, Myra Manibog, Irma Alegre, Emily Loren and Glenda Araneta. That was a follow-up film to Naked Island which Rey’s softdrink beauties made with Regal last year.

Her brother, Zaldy, in an interview with the Times Journal, said Pepsi took her lunch at about 12 and immediately proceeded to her room and told her two aides not to wake her up. She told them she will only rest and then locked her room. Her live-in boyfriend, Jose, called her up at about 3 pm, but failed to talk to Pepsi. Zaldy knocked on the door to wake her up but got no response. At about 6 pm, the boyfriend arrived. Told that Pepsi was in her room, Jose went upstairs and knocked several times but Pepsi never answered. Jose then banged and destroyed the door and found Pepsi hanging.

News of her death sent fans and other movie personalities trooping to the hospital to take a last look. Among the first to arrive was Sarsi Emmanuelle, her best friend. Sarsi broke into hysterics and collapsed on seeing Pepsi dead. In an interview later, Sarsi said it was Pepsi’s second attempt to commit suicide. Only last week she said, she foiled an attempt of Pepsi to kill herself in her apartment in Quezon City. Sarsi said Pepsi confided to her all her family problems.

Pepsi’s manager Rey dela Cruz, arrived at the morgue at 7:25 pm. Rey also broke into hysterics.

Pepsi Paloma made ripples when she made her first big movie, Brown Emmanuelle, for Celso Ad. Castillo in 1981. She was just 14 then, yet she bared everything in that movie. As Pepsi Paloma, she was just less than a year old in show business. Earlier, she carried the name Scarlet but that screen name didn’t bring any luck so manager Rey dela Cruz thought of this new name and started his own stable of softdrink beauties. But in the movie circles, Pepsi will be remembered as the complainant of a rape case filed in July 1982 against television hosts Vic Sotto, Joey de Leon and Ritchie D’Horsey. The case rocked show business for four months until it was dismissed on October 16 after the parties sought forgiveness from the actress.

From then on, she was in the vortex of controversy. She chose to leave manager Rey dela Cruz to live with boyfriend Roy Rustan in the boy’s Makati residence. Less than a year after the celebrated rape case, she found herself the defendant in an obscenity case filed against her in Bulacan. That time, the PC Criminal Investigation Service (CIS) people raided the Paulette theater in Baliuag and arrested Pepsi along with two other dancers for alleged indecent show.

Her liason with Rustan and Laila Dee, who acted as her manager, was short-lived. People in the know professed that she had an abortion at this time. She returned to Rey dela Cruz’s fold in 1983. She was underweight, less than 80 lbs., so Rey had her confined in a private clinic. A simple case of drug abuse, insiders claimed.

There were several suicide attempts. Sometime in 1982 when the rape case was in progress, she attempted suicide with a blade but Rey and Gil Guerrero came in time to prevent that.

Pepsi Paloma could have celebrated her 18th birthday next year. “She was looking forward to that event,” Babette Corcuerra, her acting manager at present told the Times Journal. “Pinapangako niya na nga ako to throw a big party for her sa isang hotel dahil debut niya raw ito.”

Pepsi was the eldest of four children of Lydia Duenas Smith, a native of Borac, Northern Samar, and an American letter carrier, Kenneth Smith, who deserted the family when the children were still young. A talent scout, Tita Ester, brought her to Rey dela Cruz in 1980 for possible movie roles. “Ikaw ang kapalit in Rio Locsin sa Akin,” Rey told the young girl. But it was Myrna Castillo who came later than Pepsi who made it big first in the movie scene. Pepsi waited for sometime until Celso Ad. Castillo took her for Brown Emmanuelle and Virgin People.

After the celebrated rape case, a producer tried exploiting the case by making a movie, The Victim, with Pepsi in the title role. Together with Celso’s Virgin People, the movie also made a killing in the box office during the 1983 Manila International Film Festival.

Pepsi had an adopted son, Chuck, who is four months old.

Stella Strada, 21(?) Yrs Old

Stella Strada started her movie career in a very high note in 1983 in Seiko Films’ Kirot. She was Seiko’s top honcho Robbie Tan’s prized contract star. She was making one blockbuster movie after another. Movies like Puri, Angkinin Mo Ako, Hanguin Mo Ako sa Putik, Kriminal and Sex Education were all sensational hits.
In the latter part of her life, Stella’s movie career took a nosedive as less and less film offers came her way, as she decided not to do any bold movies. She became so depressed that she was reportedly went into drugs. She even hired a new manager to supervise her career. On December 28, 1984, she committed suicide together with her confidant. Both were found hanged. The sad story shocked the whole movie industry. Her death has been shrouded with mystery as police authorities were trying to piece the evidences together.

Despondency and drugs may have led bold star Stella Strada to take her own life yesterday morning. Strada apparently hanged herself inside her bedroom with Rene, an old friend whose full identity remained unknown to the police. She was known to have been resorting to illegal drugs in periods of depression. She is known to have attempted suicide several times by slashing her wrists. Police investigators raised the possibility that Strada and Rene were high on drugs when they committed suicide. They said the bodies will be autopsied for traces of drugs in their system but the results of the autopsy may not be available until after the New Year holidays.

Emma Ordinario, a housemaid, found Strada, Suzette Bishop in real life, and Rene hanging from nylon cords. Police said Ordinario knocked at the door to wake up Strada but no one answered. After a few minutes of banging on the door with no response from the actress, the housemaid decided to use a duplicate key. Strada’s neighbors at 327 Jose Abad Santos st., San Juan, then heard the screams of the hysterical Ordinario. Rthe police recovered an unsigned suicide note which read: “Mommy, walang nagmamahal sa akin at walang nakakaintindi ditto. Mahal ko kayong lahat. Isang bagay lang ang hinihiling ko. Pakisunog ninyo lahat ng gamit ko at walang ititira.” Ordinario confirmed that the note was in the actress’ own handwriting.

Strada was reported to have been depressed lately because of dwindling movie offers. It was reported that after her successful films like Angkinin Mo Ako, Kirot, and Puri, she became a born-again Christian and decided not to accept any more bold roles. The offers dwindled after that. Ernie Garcia, who co-starred with her in Angkinin Mo Ako said Strada was a loner. He said that during their shooting of the film, Strada covered her arms with bandages, apparently because she had cut her wrists in one of several suicide tries. “I hate to say this,” Garcia said, “but I think she had suicidal tendencies. Too bad because she was a very talented actress.”

Police investigators yesterday went to town with their theories on the deaths of bold star Stella Strada and her makeup artist that ranged from the bizarre to the ridiculous. So much so that many sympathizers of the bold star were openly wondering if the investigators are not deliberately muddling the investigation “to keep the limelight on them, for a while, at least.” One such theory holds that Strada and her makeup man, identified as Rene Mas, a 26-year-old native of Zamboanga who was residing at Road 29, Cogeo subdivision, Antipolo was a case of murder-suicide. Some investigators were quoted by media men as saying Strada and Mas did not die together— they died one after another, thus suggesting that one killed the other before committing suicide.

Another theory holds that Mas was, in fact, not just as “alalay” or confidant of Strada but a “live-in” lover. The investigators who suggested this took note of stories that even the father of Strada objected to such a relationship to a point that last Wednesday, he went to Strada’s apartment and scolded her for it. This may have caused despondency for both Strada and Mas that eventually led them to commit suicide, the investigators with this theory said. While the common belief now is that Strada and Mas committed suicide— they were found hanging by nylon cords inside Strada’s apartment in San Juan— investigators refused to confirm or deny this theory. They have also reportedly refused to show to Strada’s and Mas’ relatives the “suicide note” purportedly written by Strada before her death. The note was not signed but Strada’s maid confirmed it was written in the bold star’s own penmanship.
There are also reports that Strada left behind a tape recorder of her inner thoughts, frustrations and her goodbye to relatives. The tape is now reportedly in the keeping of Strada’s relatives but the police refused to confirm or deny this too.

Meanwhile, bits of stories about Strada’s unhappy childhood surfaced yesterday from people who claimed to have known her way back. All the stories confirmed speculations that her sad life, her addiction to drug and craving for love that was never satisfied led her to take her own life. One such story, said that she was sexually abused at the tender age of 9 and that she apparently has never shaken off the trauma. Another had it that she was in and out of jail on vagrancy charges. Still another was that she was really hooked on drugs that at one time, she was arrested and policemen found a syringe in her bag along with some drugs. Tell-tale scars on her arms seemed to bear the “drug use” stories.
But most of those who worked closely with her in the movies spoke highly of her and her talent for acting. One of them was Perla Bautista who played the role of Strada’s mother in her first and last films. “Mabait siya at malambing. Para sa akin, she was a misunderstood kid. Simple lang ang gusto niya at wala siyang kibo kung bago ka lang niyang kakilala. Matahimik at sof-spoken siya,” Bautista said. The first movie they made together was filmed for two weeks in Jalajala, a town by the Laguna lake. “Nakilala ko si Stella nang husto roon, pati na si Rene,” she recalled. (Rene is the same Rene Mas who committed suicide with Strada). “Malapit si Stella kay Rene pero sa aking palagay, hindi niya boyfriend ito. Hindi at ease si Stella with other people, lalo na sa crowd. Kung may mga taong hindi niya kilala, kumakapit siya sa braso ni Rene dahil parang security blanket niya ito.” Bautista believes Rene is just a close cofidant of the bold star. “Natural lang sa mga artista na magkaroon ng someone na at ease sila. Naniniwal si Stella na hindi siya mahal ng mga taong nakapaligid sa kanya. At si Rene lang siguro ang nag-uunawa sa kanya,” she said. When Strada was making Matamis ang Nakaw na Tubig in Lucena City with Perla, the actress was quite open with her screen mother. “Naging makuwento na siya sa akin,” Bautista said. Dahil homebody nga siya, naglilibang siya sa Betamax sa kuwarto niya. Sabi niya nga sa akin, nagsasawa na nga raw siyang manood ng Betamax at nag-aalaga na lamang ng mga pets sa bahay. May aso siyang mahal niya, may mga pusa at goldfish pa yata. She kept her emotions a lot to herself. I had still to see her to really let go then, “Bautista said. According to Bautista, Strada wanted to give up bold roles and try her hand at serious acting. “Siguro kayak o na.” Iyan ang sinasabi niya noon at nagtatanong nga siya ng mga pointers sa akin at napapansin ko she was really serious to make good at acting. Optimistic naman siya sa pagtanggap ng tao sa kanya bilang isang serious actress.” When they made Kirot, Strada had no boyfriend, Bautista said. “Pero close siya kay Edgar (Mande) dahil pareho silang matahimik.” Still two years later when they were in Lucena for that last film, Strada confided to Bautista some intimate things. “But nothing about boys in particular, she now recalls

Her friend Claudia Zobel died a year earlier from car crash.

Alfie Anido, 22 Years Old

(December 31, 1959 – December 30, 1981) was a popular Filipino matinee idol best remembered for his death at the age of 22. He was the eldest of four children of Alberto Anido and Sara Serrano, and was the brother of Albert Anido, another Filipino actor.

Born Alfonso Serrano Anido, he was also a fashion and commercial model before he became a contract star for Regal Films, a leading Filipino film production company. He was dubbed as one of the Regal Babies, along with other then-young actors such as Gabby Concepcion, William Martinez, Albert Martinez, Jimi Melendez, Maricel Soriano, Snooky Serna and Dina Bonnevie. He was famously linked with Bonnevie, his co-star in the 1980 camp classic Temptation Island. At the time of his entry into show business, he was in college at the Ateneo de Manila University taking up Management.

To date, an air of mystery still surrounds the circumstances behind Anido’s death. The official version, contemporaneously reported in the mainstream Manila media, was that Anido had shot himself in a suicide. This version has not been officially or authoritatively contradicted to this day. However, immediately after his death, rumors quickly spread that Anido was actually murdered, and that such fact was covered up owing to the prominence of the personalities allegedly involved. Fingers started pointing to the direction of the family of an ex-girlfriend whose father was a high ranking government official. The rumor gained traction in Manila, which was then under the throes of the authoritarian rule of Ferdinand Marcos, whose government controlled the mass media during that period. Other versions on the death of Anido were printed in the alternative press such as the Philippine Collegian, the official student organ of the University of the Philippines, a hotbed of anti-Marcos activism. While the rumor that Alfie Anido was murdered still persists, with the aura of an urban legend, the fact remains that no evidence has been put forth to rebut the official version of a suicide.