Forevermore actor “Bangky” dies at 71

“Please pray for the eternal repose of the soul of my Tito Nonong who passed away early this morning. He is more popularly known as “Bangkay” in horror movies and “Bangky” in Forevermore. This is aside from the hundreds of movies and tv appearances he was in throughout his acting career. He was 71.” (Photo: Powee Capino/Facebook)

Horror movie veteran actor Jose Clemente “Nonong” de Andres, also known as “Bangky” or “Bangkay” (because of the ‘dead’ roles that he played) passes away at the age of 71 last Tuesday, November 6.

The news was announced by family member Powee Capino who posts a picture of Bangky captioned, “Please pray for the eternal repose of the soul of my Tito Nonong who passed away early this morning. He was 71.” The cause of his death is still unknown, but Capino tells CNN Philippines that his uncle has been sick for the past few weeks with emphysema and other sicknesses. He also reports to ABS-CBN News that Andres passed away in the house of friend Mayor Bernard Tumagay at around 4:30 am.

According to Powee, besides the teleserye Forevermore, Bangky also starred in more than 100 movies and tv shows, which ABS-CBN confirmed. His first appearance was on 1976 film “Sa Kisame Street,” which also starred Dolphy, Panchito, and Nida Blanca. In Liza Soberano and Enrique Gil’s Forevermore, Bangky’s character was partnered with Lilia Cuntapay’s portrayal of Lola Aunor, and their love-team became known as “BangLi.” Lilia passed away a year after the hit series in August 2016.

Upon hearing the news, both Liza Soberano and Enrique Gil were quick to share their devastation on social media. Liza posts a photo of Bangky looking into the mountains of Benguet (where their show was set) and a selfie of her and the actor, saying, “Tito Bangky, I wish I could’ve hugged you one last time. May you rest in peace. I love you! We love you.” Enrique shares television screenshots of him and his mentor from the show, adding in a mix of Filipino and English, “Goodbye, Tito Bangks. We lost a good one today. Goodbye kiss from Xander.”

It is reported that besides acting, Bangky also managed his own beach resort in Plaridel, Quezon.