Rudy gets all his last wishes

MANILA, Philippines – When the end came, it shocked even if it was expected.

Rudy Fernandez died at 6:15 yesterday morning at the White Plains, Quezon City home he shared with wife Lorna Tolentino and their sons Ralphe and Renz for more than two decades.

“He fought until the very end,” Sen. Jinggoy Estrada told The STAR. “He was very brave.”

Jinggoy is one of Rudy’s three bosom buddies, along with Sen. Bong Revilla and Phillip Salvador, who stuck to him through thick and thin, especially during Rudy’s two-year battle with peri-ampullary cancer which was diagnosed two years ago only a few weeks before his 54th birthday during the celebration of which Rudy said while being serenaded by well-wishers, “I ain’t gonna die yet!”

The three friends, together with Sen. Jinggoy’s wife Precy Vitug, were with Rudy’s family during his last moments.

“He was in extreme pain,” Regal matriarch Mother Lily, who visited Rudy a few hours before he died, told The STAR. “”He was just moaning, his eyes closed. I am devastated. Rudy was a good person. He never let me down. Everytime I invited him and Lorna to special occasions, they would always show up. It’s rare to have a good friend and a good man like him.”

Saying he lost more than just a friend but “a brother,” Sen. Bong said the whole scene was just like from a movie late Friday night until dawn yesterday.

“I wished somebody shouted ‘Cut!’,” said Bong, his voice trembling.

Lorna finally broke down in tears, begging Rudy not to leave just yet, saying, “Huwag mo akong iiwan, huwag mo akong iiwan!” again and again until those around her told her to let Rudy go. After Rudy breathed his last, Lorna hugged him so tightly that she had to be gently pulled away. Lorna never left Rudy’s side. Everytime she did, even for a while, Rudy would look for her, calling, “Si Babes? Nasaan si Babes?”

Rudy didn’t want to see Lorna, or anybody for that matter, cry in his presence, that’s why Lorna would lock herself inside the bathroom to cry and spray water to take away the redness in her eyes, pretending that she was just washing her face.

Rudy and Lorna flew to the States in early March to try an alternative treatment for cancer. He was still strong at that time and he and Lorna even watched the Pacquiao-Barrera fight in Las Vegas. They came back in late April and returned to the States for further treatment after only two weeks. But they came home posthaste only after more than a week after they were told by the doctors that nothing more could be done. They arrived on May 4, fetched at the airport by an ambulance which brought them straight to the Cardinal Santos Hospital in San Juan City where Rudy was confined until Sunday last week, June 1, when he asked to be brought home.

“He died with all his last wishes granted,” said Lolit Solis, Rudy and Lorna’s good friend and manager, among them: not to put him on respirator once his organs have failed and to have his wake at the posh Heritage Park in Taguig City.

“He wanted to be in a dark suit,” added Lolit, “and he got that wish, too.”

His wake is open to everybody, especially to his fans who would like to pay their last respects, and that, too, was one of Rudy’s last wishes.

“He dedicated all his life to entertaining people,” said Mark Anthony, Rudy’s son with Alma Moreno.

One of the eight children of director (Dr.) Gregorio Fernandez, who did now-classic movies at the defunct LVN Studios, Rudy started doing bit roles at Sampaguita Pictures. He quit his commerce studies at UST to devote full time to acting. He achieved stardom in 1976 when he played the title role as a hanged convict in Bitayin si Baby Ama, based on a true story. Other true-life characters he portrayed included military man Victor Corpuz, action star Eddie Fernandez, Baguio cop Bobby Ortega and Sen. Ping Lacson. Rudy won four Best Actor awards.

“What I remember most about Rudy was his sense of humor,” said Alma. “When I visited him at the hospital, he was teasing me, ‘Uy, iiyak ‘yan!’ I teased him back, ‘Why should I cry over you?’ But of course, after I left, I started crying.”

Through Mickey Muñoz of the TFC (The Filipino Channel) World Tours, Sharon Cuneta sent The STAR this text message: “I am with Sharon and we just landed at the Fiumicino Airport in Rome. She is deeply grieving over the loss of her best male friend. She has been crying and hasn’t slept a wink since she heard the news past midnight. But Sharon goes straight to work from here. She will go as scheduled to the three screenings of Caregiver today, though she will cut short her trip and catch the first available flight to Manila after the last screening at 6 p.m.”

Contrary to reports, Rudy’s remains will not be cremated. They will be buried at the Heritage Park on Thursday, June 12, after a Mass.

‘A great loss’

Pardoned former President Joseph Estrada said Fernandez is a great loss to the Philippine movie industry.

“He is a great loss to the movie industry. Let’s pray for his soul,” Estrada said.

Estrada visited Fernandez two days ago and there were no signs that he would pass away so soon.

Senators Jinggoy Estrada and Ramon Revilla Jr. mourned yesterday the passing of their close friend and fellow movie actor.

After announcing the passing of Fernandez, Estrada said over dwIZ that he lost someone who was “more than a brother” to him and Revilla.

He said he would miss “Daboy,” as he had always been the mediator between him and Revilla everytime they would fight. Recently, Estrada said he and Revilla had a misunderstanding again to which Fernandez remarked, “O, ano na naman ‘yan?”

Sen. Panfilo Lacson fondly remembers Fernandez for portraying him in the movie  “Supercop – The Ping Lacson Story.”

“He struck me as a soft-spoken and a very humble person considering his superstar status,” Lacson said.

Manila Mayor Alfredo Lim said Fernandez, who also once portrayed him in a movie, was supposed to succeed great Filipino action stars like Estrada and the late Fernando Poe Jr.

Lim said he got a chance to befriend the actor when they were shooting a movie about his life entitled “Alfredo Lim” in 1977.

“One thing I know about Rudy is that in his lifetime, I have never heard of him being involved in any illegal activities,” he said. - With Aurea Calica, Rodel Clapano and Evelyn Macairan