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<img loading="lazy" src="https://cdn.kahimyang.com/resources-6/ramon-revilla-sr.webp" alt="Ramon Revilla Sr." />
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(Former Senator Ramon Revilla Sr.)
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Born Jose Acuña Bautista Sr. in Imus, Cavite on March 8, 1927, Revilla Sr. was the youngest of the 10 children of businessmen Ildefonso Bautista and Andrea Acuña. He obtained his Bachelor's Degree in Commerce at the Far Eastern University.
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He adopted his screen name when he began his film career in the ‘50s.
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He, however, only landed small roles, so he shifted career and went to government service starting as a senior intelligence officer and rose through the ranks to reach the rank of major and headed the Secret Service Unit (now known as the Customs Intelligence and Investigation Division) from 1965 to 1972.
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In 1972, he returned to show business and adopted the role of action star and producer.
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Revilla popularized the agitmat (amulet) from Filipino folklore with his back-to-back fantasy movies hits "<a href="https://kahimyang.com/kauswagan/articles/2787/the-story-of-leonardo-manecio-better-known-as-nardong-putik" class="news_link">Nardong Putik</a>" (1972) and "Pepeng Agimat" (1973).
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He also popularized characters "Tiagong Akyat" - whose "Hulihin Si Tiyagong Akyat" movie won him Famas Best Actor in 1973 - and "Tonyong Bayawak" (1979), which made him that year's Box-Office King.
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His last big screen appearance was in his son Revilla Jr.'s "Exodus: Tales from the Enchanted Kingdom" (2005).
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June 26, 2020: movie icon and former senator Ramon Revilla Sr. died