Jose Sixto Raphael Dantes III or popularly known as Dingdong Dantes is one of the country’s most in demand leading actor and product endorser today. Having worked in the industry since he was a mere two year old, his career spans decades.
As of the moment, he is happily married to Marian Rivera, his reel to real love interest. With two adorable kids, Maria Letizia Dantes and Jose Sixto Dantes IV, and a stunning wife, he portrays the ideal husband and a model father to his slowly growing family. Now that he is turning forty, let us take a look on his career, achievements some things you didn’t know about our real life superhero, Dingdong Dantes.
1. He was appointed as the Commissioner at Large for the National Youth Commission by then president Benigno Aquino III.
2. He is the founding chairman of the YesPinoy Foundation, a nonprofit organization that caters to the core functions of Youth, Education and Service.
3. He has his own film studio called AgostoDos Pictures which he founded in 2011. Their work includes Segunda Mano, Tiktik: The Aswang Chronicles and Kubot: The Aswang Chronicles 2. The company name was derived from his birthday, which is August 2.
4. He is the eldest among four children.
5. He built his career as a commercial model. His first media exposure was when he modeled for Carnation milk commercial at the young age of 2.
6. He pursued his love for dancing and performance when he joined the all-male dance group – Abztract Dancers. They performed regularly in the shows Eat Bulaga! And That’s Entertainment.
7. He was a high school student at the Ateneo when he joined the Abztract Dancers.
8. Shake, Rattle and Roll V episode “Anino” was his debut as an actor.
9. He also is a certified recording artist. His album “The DingDong Dantes Experience” turned gold a week after it has been released.
10. His first regular show was T.G.I.S when he was 17. He played the role of the heartrob Iñaki who was paired with Antoinette Taus.
11. His popularity and regular appearances on TV shows and movies paved way for his hosting gigs. He hosted for Binibining Pilipinas, StarStruck and Family Feud.
12. Although an exclusive talent for GMA Network, he had worked with artists from rival networks. In the movie Segunda Mano, which was a Star Cinema suspense movie, he worked with Kris Aquino and Angelica Panganiban.
13. Even though he was very busy with his showbiz career, he still managed to persevere in getting his education. His hard work paid off when he graduated at the Western Negros University with a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration, major in marketing.
14. He currently serves as the chief operating officer in Hyundai West Paranaque.
15. Not many people know that he is a reservist at the Philippine Marines, with the rank of Master Sergeant.
16. He loves riding his bike, as he find it very therapeutic. IN fact during his wedding day, he went to the church, all clad in his suit, riding his bike!
17. As an avid toy collector, his house in Quezon City is full of collectibles such as statues of Superman, Sauron, Batman, Joker and Darth Vader. He also has a bronze statue of his wife, Marian Rivera as Darna.
After reading these, you might have been thinking that the roles he played which inspires us is not far from the real life he lives behind the cameras. A truly inspiring individual, businessman, and a family man, it is such an amazing achievement that he managed to do all these despite everything on his plate. His successes deserves a celebration! To our birthday celebrant, who turns the big forty tomorrow, happy birthday!
