Pablo Martin Sarmiento (June 29, 1942 - August 27, 1998), better known as Babalu, was a

Filipino Filipino may refer to: * Something from or related to the Philippines ** Filipino language, standardized variety of 'Tagalog', the national language and one of the official languages of the Philippines. ** Filipinos, people who are citizens of th ...

comedian and actor. His screen name was a reference to his long, sharp chin ("''baba''" is the

term for "

chin The chin is the forward pointed part of the anterior mandible (List_of_human_anatomical_regions#Regions, mental region) below the lower lip. A fully developed human skull has a chin of between 0.7 cm and 1.1 cm. Evolution The presence of a we ...

") of which was sometimes a subject of on screen ridicule, usually by himself.

Personal life

He grew up in

Sampaloc, Manila Sampaloc is a district of Manila, Philippines. It is referred to as the University Belt or simply called ''“U-Belt”'' for numerous colleges and universities are found within the district such as the University of Santo Tomas, the oldest exta ...

in his grandmother's home with his mother, one sister and three brothers. Babalu fathered a son. For several years and until his death, he was living with his long-time partner who eventually became his wife prior to his death, with whom he had a child.

Acting career

Babalu is considered "one of the most famous, beloved, and greatest comedians" in the Philippines. He is the nephew of the famous actor

Panchito Alba Alfonso Discher Tagle Sr., better known as Panchito Alba or simply Panchito (February 5, 1925 – December 18, 1995), was a Filipino film actor who almost exclusively appeared in comedy roles. He was known for his swarthy looks and a prominen ...

Dolphy Rodolfo Vera Quizon Sr. (; July 25, 1928 – July 10, 2012), better known by his stage names Dolphy, Pidol, and Golay, was a Filipino comedian and actor. He is widely regarded as the country's "King of Comedy" for his comedic talent embodied ...

, the king of Philippine Comedy, discovered Babalu's talent as a comedian. Babalu was given a featured role on the Philippines' leading comedy-variety show ''Buhay Artista''. His appearances in movies and television included the shows ''

Home Along Da Riles ''Home Along Da Riles'' ( or Home Along the Railroad) is a Philippine situational comedy series that aired on the Philippine television network ABS-CBN from December 2, 1992 to August 10, 2003, and was replaced by ''Ang Tanging Ina''. The titl ...

'' and ''

Oki Doki Doc ''Oki Doki Doc'' (also known as ''Oki Doki Dok'') was a Philippine sitcom which aired on ABS-CBN from October 23, 1993 to December 2, 2000, and was replaced by ''Arriba, Arriba!''. It originally aired every Saturday nights, then transferred to Wed ...

''. Babalu's life story was featured on the television show ''

Maalaala Mo Kaya ''Maalaala Mo Kaya'' (; formerly written as ''Maala-ala Mo Kaya...''; abbreviated as ''MMK''), also known as ''Memories'', is a Philippines, Philippine television drama anthology show broadcast by Kapamilya Channel under ABS-CBN Entertainment. ...

'' "Imahe ng Berhen" on July 3, 2003.

Filmography

Film

Television

Death

Babalu was warned of his health condition in March 1998 but kept his health problems a secret from his co-stars, particularly from Aga Muhlach and the others in the weekly TV shows ''

'' and ''

'', wherein he was a regular cast. Writer Nene Riego, a close friend of Babalu, said the actor asked his doctor to tell him the truth about his ailment. Babalu was told he only had six months to live. He decided to seek further treatment in

Michigan Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and the ...

. Doctors there had the same diagnosis and advised him to spend the rest of his life in the Philippines. Babalu came back home on August 14, thin and weak. Babalu's last two movies were ''Tataynic'' with Dolphy and ''Tong Tatlong Tatay Kong Pakitong-kitong'' together with Redford White, Bonel Balingit and Serena Dalrymple. He died of

liver cirrhosis Cirrhosis, also known as liver cirrhosis or hepatic cirrhosis, and end-stage liver disease, is the impaired liver function caused by the formation of scar tissue known as fibrosis due to damage caused by liver disease. Damage causes tissue repai ...

on August 27, 1998, two months after his 56th birthday, in his home in

Antipolo Antipolo, officially known as the City of Antipolo ( fil, Lungsod ng Antipolo), is a 1st class component city and capital of the province of Rizal, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 887,399 people. It is the mo ...

. He was buried in Loyola Memorial Park in

Parañaque Parañaque, officially the City of Parañaque ( fil, Lungsod ng Parañaque, ), is a first class Cities of the Philippines#Legal classification, highly urbanized city in the Metro Manila, National Capital Region of the Philippines. According to t ...

. The film ''Tar-San'' is dedicated to his memory.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Babalu 1942 births 1998 deaths 20th-century comedians 20th-century Filipino male actors Burials at the Loyola Memorial Park Deaths from cancer in the Philippines Deaths from cirrhosis Filipino male comedians Filipino male film actors Filipino male television actors Filipino television personalities Male actors from Manila People from Antipolo People from Sampaloc, Manila