film
A film also called a movie, motion picture, moving picture, picture, photoplay or (slang) flick is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, feelings, beauty, or atmosphere ...
production company
A production company, production house, production studio, or a production team is a studio that creates works in the fields of performing arts, new media art, film, television, radio, comics, interactive arts, video games, websites, music, and ...
. It was named for the Philippine
national flower
In a number of countries, plants have been chosen as symbols to represent specific geographic areas. Some countries have a country-wide floral emblem; others in addition have symbols representing subdivisions. Different processes have been used to ...
,
sampaguita
''Jasminum sambac'' (Arabian jasmine or Sambac jasmine) is a species of jasmine native to tropical Asia, from the Indian subcontinent to Southeast Asia. It is cultivated in many places, especially West Asia, South Asia and Southeast Asia. It i ...
. Though no longer functioning, the company's Sampaguita Compound remains in Quezon City.
History
Sampaguita Pictures was established in the last quarter of 1937. Its first feature-length film was ''
Bituing Marikit
''Bituing Marikit'' is the first full-length film produced by Sampaguita Pictures, released in 1937. It starred Elsa Oria and Rogelio de la Rosa.
Cast
*Rogelio de la Rosa
*Juancho Gutierrez
*Daisy Romualdez
*Elsa Oria
*Sylvia La Torre
...
'', starring Elsa Oria and
Rogelio dela Rosa
Regidor Lim de la Rosa"Filipinos in History Vol. 3", page 75. (November 12, 1916 – November 26, 1986), professionally known as Rogelio de la Rosa, was one of the most popular Filipino matinee idols of the 20th century.Garcia, J., ''A Movie Qu ...
. It was a box-office hit. The company continued to make films in the
action
Action may refer to:
* Action (narrative), a literary mode
* Action fiction, a type of genre fiction
* Action game, a genre of video game
Film
* Action film, a genre of film
* ''Action'' (1921 film), a film by John Ford
* ''Action'' (1980 fil ...
,
musical
Musical is the adjective of music.
Musical may also refer to:
* Musical theatre, a performance art that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance
* Musical film and television, a genre of film and television that incorporates into the narr ...
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
began, and the Japanese occupied the Philippines, several Sampaguita films enjoyed box office success in the region. Some of them employed the famous tandem of
Carmen Rosales
Januaria Constantino Keller (March 3, 1917 – December 11, 1991), better known by her stage name Carmen Rosales and by her nickname Mameng, was a noted Filipina actress and World War II guerilla fighter.
Her acting career spanned the decades i ...
and
Rogelio dela Rosa
Regidor Lim de la Rosa"Filipinos in History Vol. 3", page 75. (November 12, 1916 – November 26, 1986), professionally known as Rogelio de la Rosa, was one of the most popular Filipino matinee idols of the 20th century.Garcia, J., ''A Movie Qu ...
, like ''Panambitan'', ''Pagsuyo'', ''Jazmin'' and many more. But the first film made at the Sampaguita studio by Carmen and Rogelio was ''Takipsilim''.
After the war ended and the Philippines declares its independence from the United States, Sampaguita made several war pictures in 1946, including ''Guerilyera'', with Carmen and newcomer Celso Baltazar, ''
Maynila
Manila ( , ; fil, Maynila, ), officially the City of Manila ( fil, Lungsod ng Maynila, ), is the capital of the Philippines, and its second-most populous city. It is highly urbanized and, as of 2019, was the world's most densely populated ...
'', the comeback picture of Corazon Noble featuring
Tita Duran
Teresita Rigo Durango Magalona (born Teresita Rigo Durango; September 30, 1928 – April 27, 1990), known professionally as Tita Duran, was a Filipina film actress who began as a child actress. She was the first successful child star of Philipp ...
, and ''Isumpa mo Giliw'', with husband-and-wife team Angel Esmeralda and Corazon Noble.
After several war musicals became popular, the studio created a new star team with real husband and wife
Pancho Magalona
Enrique Gayoso Magalona Jr. (January 22, 1922 – April 7, 1998), popularly known as Pancho Magalona, was a Filipino actor from the 1940s to the 1970s.
Early life
Born Enrique Gayoso Magalona Jr. in Bacolod, Negros Occidental, he was the son of ...
and
Tita Duran
Teresita Rigo Durango Magalona (born Teresita Rigo Durango; September 30, 1928 – April 27, 1990), known professionally as Tita Duran, was a Filipina film actress who began as a child actress. She was the first successful child star of Philipp ...
. They made several hits including ''Bulaklak na Walang Pangalan'', ''Huwag Ka ng Magtampo'', ''Sa Isang Sulyap mo Tita'', and ''Sa Isang Halik mo Pancho''.
In 1950, the studios were hit by fire and hundreds of film prints were destroyed. But in 1951, they top-billed the unknown
Tessie Agana
Tessie Agana (born May 16, 1942) is a Filipina former child actress of the 1950s. She is best known for her role as the titular character in the 1951 film ''Roberta'', which was then the highest grossing Philippine film of all time. Her mother was ...
, the daughter of
Linda Estrella
Consuello Vera Rigotti (December 3, 1922 – February 18, 2012), professionally known as Linda Estrella, was a Filipina actress and singer, best known as one of the players of Sampaguita Pictures.
Biography
Consuello Vera Rigotti was born on De ...
, in her first lead role in ''Roberta'', with another child actor
Boy Alano
Hernando Alano (March 20, 1941 – July 23, 2022), better known as Boy Alano, was a Filipino actor. He won the award for Best Child Actor at the 5th Asian Filmfest.
Early life
He was the third child of Consuelo Sotto and Exequiel Alano. He wen ...
and the film was one of the biggest hits of the year.
In the early fifties several actors appeared in the studio's productions, including
Alicia Vergel
Erlinda Gaerlan Asturias-Aguilar (June 7, 1927 – May 20, 1992), popularity known as Alicia Vergel, was a Filipino people, Filipina actress noted for her roles as fighting women and amazons and, like Norma Blancaflor, for her heart-shaped face. ...
Diwani
Diwani is a calligraphic variety of Arabic script, a cursive style developed during the reign of the early Ottoman Turks (16th century - early 17th century). It reached its height of popularity under Süleyman I the Magnificent (1520–1566) ...
'', the Philippine folk hero
Bernardo Carpio
Bernardo Carpio is a legendary figure in Philippine mythology who is said to be the cause of earthquakes. There are numerous versions of this tale. Some versions say Bernardo Carpio is a giant, as supported by the enormous footsteps he has repu ...
, '' MN'' and many more.
In 1952 the half-Filipino half-American
Gloria Romero Gloria Romero may refer to:
*Gloria Romero (actress)
Gloria Anne Borrego Galla (born December 16, 1933), known professionally as Gloria Romero (), is a multi-awarded Filipino actress, regarded as the “Queen of Philippine Movies”, her care ...
made her first full-length film as the partner of Cesar Ramirez in an action costume picture ''Palasig''.
Another famous husband-and-wife team were Rita Gomez and Ric Rodrigo. They were popular together in their film ''Diyosa''.
The infamous tandem of husband-and-wife
Lolita Rodriguez
Dolores Marquez Clark, better known by her screen name Lolita Rodriguez (January 29, 1935 – November 28, 2016), was a multi-awarded actress in the Philippines. She was paired with Eddie Arenas in ''Gilda'' (1956), in which she won her first F ...
and
Eddie Arenas
Eddie Arenas (July 7, 1935 – March 31, 2003) was a Philippines, Filipino actor. He made numerous films for the film studio Sampaguita Pictures. He was often paired with Lolita Rodriguez, whom he married and later divorced. He eventually moved t ...
made some dramas together, like ''
Kundiman ng Puso
''Kundiman ng Puso'' () is a 1958 Philippine musical-romantic film produced by Sampaguita Pictures. The film is in black and white.
Plot
Rodriguez and Dauden play sisters and Arenas and Marzan best friends who go abroad to Italy for work. Aren ...
'', ''Busabos'', ''
Cicatriz
Cicatriz was a punk rock band from the Basque Autonomous Community (Spain) formed in 1983. The band had a big significance for the Basque Radical Rock (Rock Radical Vasco or RRV). The band reached a huge degree of influence in Spanish punk, alo ...
'' and ''Mapait na Lihim''. The two later divorced. Arenas is still active in Philippine cinema while Rodriguez moved to the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
.
Another husband-and-wife team in the 1950s were
Amalia Fuentes
Amalia may refer to:
People
*Amalia (given name), feminine given name (includes a list of people so named)
* Princess Amalia (disambiguation), several princesses with this name
Films and television series
* ''Amalia'' (1914 film), the first ...
and
Romeo Vasquez
Ricardo Alandy Sumilang (April 9, 1939 – May 2, 2017), also known by his stage name Romeo Vasquez, was a Filipino actor and former matinee idol of Philippine cinema.
Career
Vasquez was discovered by director Armando Garces who saw him while ...
. Fuentes made her last appearance for Sampaguita in 1964, before leaving for another studio.
Though not as well remembered, many supporting actors and actresses, such as
Imelda Concepcion
Imelda Concepcion (born 1936) was an actress associated with Sampaguita Pictures. She appeared primarily in supporting roles.
Concepcion was first noticed as a friend of Rita Gomez in a Pancho Magalona-Linda Estrella movie called Milyonarya at H ...
,
Nelly Baylon Bienvenida Anong, better known for her screen name Nelly Baylon, was a Filipina film actress. She was discovered by the owner of Sampaguita Pictures while she was selling sampaguita flowers on the streets of Manila.
Early life
She was born in 1937 ...
and
Naty Bernardo
Naty Bernardo (born 25 April 1911 – 4 January 1987) was a Filipino people, Filipino actress with a more than 40 year career. She is known for a variety of roles including as a martyr, character actress, and villain.Susan Roces took her first lead role as a boxer in ''Sabungera'' opposite
Luis Gonzales
Luis F. Mercado (June 21, 1928 – March 15, 2012) also known as Luis Gonzales, was a Filipino actor who appeared in more than 100 films during his career, most of them by Sampaguita Pictures.
Early life
Raised in Tondo, Manila, Gonzales may ...
, but the film was not a box office hit. Fuentes and Roces are famous for their rivalry when they made the film ''Cover Girls'' in the 1960s.
By that time, a new manager, Dr. Jose R. Perez, took over the reins of Sampaguita.
In 1960, Sampaguita made ''Pitong Pagsisi'' supported by 20 Sampaguita stars, including the return of
Paraluman
Sigrid Sophia Agatha de Torres von Giese, better known by her screen name Paraluman (December 14, 1923 – April 27, 2009), was an award-winning Filipina German actress. Her contemporaries include the likes of Fernando Poe, Sr. and Carmen Rosal ...
who reigned in the studio in the late 40s.
In 1970s, the studio continued producing films albeit on a limited production, especially with the Nora Aunor-
Tirso Cruz III
Tirso Silvano Cruz III (born April 1, 1952) is a Filipino actor, comedian, and singer. He currently serves as the Chairperson of the Film Development Council of the Philippines. Regarded as a "matinee idol", Cruz is a FAMAS Award and Gawad Ur ...
tandem culminating in the 1971 film ''Guy and Pip''. In 1982, after its last successful film ''
Batch '81
''Alpha Kappa Omega Batch '81'' (also known as ''Batch '81'' or ''ΑΚΩ 81'') is a 1982 Filipino psychological drama film directed by Mike de Leon, with a screenplay by de Leon, Clodualdo del Mundo, Jr., and Raquel Villavicencio. The film depic ...
'', Sampaguita Pictures stopped producing films and focused solely on distribution and post-production of films until 2005.
In March 1987, Sampaguita Pictures celebrated its 50th anniversary with a television special produced by Marichu Perez Maceda, the wife of politician
Ernesto Maceda
Ernesto "Ernie" Madarang Maceda Sr. (March 26, 1935 – June 20, 2016) was a Filipino politician, lawyer, and columnist who served as a Senator of the Philippines from 1971 to 1972 and again from 1987 to 1998. He served as Senate President fro ...
.
In 1996, the company ventured into television with
GMA Network
GMA Network (Global Media Arts or simply GMA) is a Philippine free-to-air television and radio network. It is the flagship property of publicly traded GMA Network, Inc. Its first broadcast on television was on October 29, 1961. GMA Network (f ...
; they produced the
drama
Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance: a play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a genre of poetry in general, the dramatic mode has been ...
anthology series
An anthology series is a radio, television, video game or film series that spans different genres and presents a different story and a different set of characters in each different episode, season, segment, or short. These usually have a differ ...
''Pira-pirasong Pangarap'' which lasted until 2003, which started another co-production ''Nagmamahal, Manay Gina''. Both series were hosted by Gina de Venecia.
Unitel Pictures currently owns Sampaguita's film library. All of the films are currently archived and handled by the
ABS-CBN Film Archives
The ABS-CBN Film Archives, also called ABS-CBN Archives, is a state-of-the-art film archive in the Philippines located at the basement of ELJ Communications Center in Eugenio Lopez Drive, Diliman, Quezon City. It was a member of the Southeast ...
and the
Film Development Council of the Philippines
The Film Development Council of the Philippines (FDCP) is the national film agency under the Office of the President of the Philippines responsible for film policies and programs to ensure the economic, cultural and educational development of th ...