renderings of Ilocano songs. He even hired the Rainmakers, a popular singing group in the ’70s, as his songwriters and music arrangers. Unfortunately, his singing voice sounded unmistak- ably like that of an Ilocano lakay . When told about this, he again frantically sought help to improve his accent and voice projection. It was determination all over again. For all his failed efforts as a recording star, however, Papa en- deared himself to Ilocanos in the United States who wanted to listen to their old favorites like “Pamulinawen” and “Manang Biday.” Papa imagined himself becoming the Ilocano Juke Box King. He made great effort through his runners to encourage local radio stations in the Ilocos region to play his songs. Well, he actually was dubbed King of Ilocano Songs, for his 1998 Ilocano chart topper “Agtignaykan.” My personal favorite is a song that he himself wrote for Mama, entitled “Teresita.” He topped the Civil Engineer Board Exam in 1953. Former President Fidel Ramos had quipped, “I was only No. 8 behind Deming in that same board exam.”
At some point, he drank only water placed overnight under a pyramid-shaped wire, which he believed gave the water cura- tive powers. Another time, he took to drinking 10 glasses of water from early morning till noon to cleanse his body system. There was a time he read the Bible aloud every morning in the bathroom to improve his voice projection and enunciation. He
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