(L-R) Marvin Agustin, Rico Yan, Claudine Barretto and Dominic Ochoa. Image: Instagram/@marvinagustin, Instagram/@claubarretto, Instagram/@domochoa
Rico Yan may have passed away years ago, but his memory lives on as Claudine Barretto, Marvin Agustin and Dominic Ochoa paid tribute to him on his 46th birthday.
Barretto, Yan’s ex-girlfriend, chose to honor his memory by preparing a small feast in her home, as seen on her Instagram page on Sunday, March 14.
“Since it’s the birthday of Rico, we want to celebrate and remember him. May konting salu-salo dito sa bahay,” Barretto stated. She also said a prayer for Yan before she blew the candle on his cake. (Since it’s the birthday of Rico, we want to celebrate and remember him. We have a small gathering here at home.)
“Happy birthday, Rico. We love you. We will not forget you. Just keep watching over us,” the actress said.
Yan’s former co-actor and friend Agustin also remembered him on his special day.
“Happy 46th birthday RICO!” Agustin said as he posted a video of him and Yan dancing together, as per his Instagram page on March 14. The video was lifted from a movie they both starred in, except the movie’s audio was replaced by the song “Intenso Boom Boom.”
For Ochoa, the thing he remembers the most from his friendship with Yan is their mutual love for cars and bikes, the actor stated in an Instagram post on the same day. He talked about fond memories he had with Yan as he showed a black-and-white photo with Yan after his birthday in 2002.
“We switched cars, he drove my Cooper, I drove his HKS turbo Miata. Fun times buddy!!! Happy Happy RY,” Ochoa said.
Barretto and Yan were love team partners in the 1990s, and their on-screen chemistry eventually evolved into an off-screen romance. They starred in hit movies such as “Dahil Mahal na Mahal Kita” and “Got 2 Believe.”
Meanwhile, Yan, Agustin and Ochoa worked together in the youth-oriented TV show “Gimik” in the late 1990s, before getting lead roles in the weekly sitcom “Whattamen” in 2001.
Yan was found dead in a resort in Palawan in March 2002, with cardiac arrest being cited as the cause of his death. He was 27 years old. JB
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