Former actor Pepito Rodriguez dies at 83
Former veteran actor Pepito Rodriguez, one of the top stars of Sampaguita Pictures, died on Thursday, Feb. 26, due to pneumonia. He was 83.
Pepito’s demise was confirmed by his nephew Marco Yutuc through a statement which was also posted on the latter’s Facebook page.
“Our beloved Tito Pepito Rodriguez passed on [at] 4:05 this morning due to pneumonia. [He] was confined yesterday at the hospital,” the statement read.
Further details on Pepito’s condition and his wake are yet to be announced as of this writing.
READ: ‘Stars ’66,’ 50 golden years later
Pepito, the brother of late veteran actor Ramil Rodriguez, was a Sampaguita Pictures actor who starred in numerous films from the 1960s to the 1990s. He was among the group of talented actors dubbed as Stars ’66.
Pepito’s filmography includes “Sa Bilis, Walang Kaparis,” “Abaruray Abarinding” wherein he both starred with the late Susan Roces; and the soc-called “Bata” film series like the “Mga Batang Bakasyonista” where he worked with the late German “Kuya Germs” Moreno, Rosemarie Sonora and Gina Pareño.
Pepito and Sonora also teamed up in several projects including “Juanita Banana” and “Life Everlasting,” with the actor admitting in a 2024 interview with Morly Alinio that they had a romantic relationship. In the same interview, Pepito said he did not have a wife and children.
Aside from Sonora, Pepito had other screen partners including the late actresses Gloria Romero (“Ang Bituin at Araw”) and Amalia Fuentes (“Santa Teresa de Avila”).
Speaking in 2024 about his aspirations, Pepito said, “Everybody has dreams but time might be limited. In this age, you never can tell what’s gonna happen. Just do what is today and let tomorrow come… My life is happy.”
In a more recent interview in 2026 with Aster Amoyo, Pepito even expressed his willingness to return to the spotlight should he be given a project opportunity.
When asked how he wanted to be remembered, the former veteran actor said, “I don’t know. As long as I do good, love everybody, don’t talk anything bad about others.” /edv
