History Creator / FernandoPoeJr

The 70s served as a transitional period for FPJ. He did a few more westerns before transitioning to his bread-and-butter action movies which lasted well into the 80s, 90s, and 2000s. (He would supplement these with the occasional ScrewballComedy.) However it was his four-part 80s FantasySeries ''Ang Panday'' (''The Blacksmith'') which some consider to be his greatest work. The four films swept the box office at every UsefulNotes/MetroManilaFilmFestival they were shown in, winning a Best Picture Award ''every time'' along with a slew of awards.

Fernando Poe, Jr. (Born Ronald Allan Kelley Poe; August 20 1939 - December 14, 2004) was a [[FilipinoMedia Filipino actor, director, screenwriter, producer, singer, and attempted politician]]. He was dubbed [[RedBaron The King of Philippine Cinema]] and more colloquially, Da King or FPJ.[[note]]Close friends called him Ronnie, in reference to his real name.[[/note]] In the annals of Filipino cinema he is considered the country's answer to Creator/JohnWayne and Music/ElvisPresley, though his long repitoire of [[Main/ActionGenre action movies]] might very well make him a mix of Creator/ClintEastwood, Creator/CharlesBronson, Creator/LeeMarvin, Creator/ArnoldSchwarzenegger, Creator/SylvesterStallone, Creator/BruceWillis, Creator/ChuckNorris, Creator/BurtReynolds, Creator/TomSelleck, Creator/KurtRussell, and Creator/DavidHasselhoff.

** His character in 1988's ''Gawa Na Ang Bala Na Papatay Sa 'Iyo'' (''The Bullet That Will Kill You Has Already Been Made'') is no CowboyCop, but an ex-con seeking revenge for his daughter and brother's deaths.

* The ''Isang Bala Ka Lang!'' (''You'd Only Take One Bullet!'') duology, where he plays a RetiredBadass CowboyCop. The first film won him a FAMAS Best Actor Award.

* ''Musilm .357'', where he plays a Muslim cop transfered to Manila to fight against TheSyndicate, headed by [[CorruptCop the corrupt]] [[TheMole Police Captain Ramos]], played by again by Eddie Garcia. This won him his fifth and final Best Actor Award and a spot in the FAMAS Hall of Fame.
* ''Alamat ng 7 Kilabot'' (''Legend Of The Dreaded Seven''), an [[AllStarCast All-Star]] [[TheWestern Western]] starring himself and his fellow [[ActionGenreHeroGuy action stars]] in a [[TransatlanticEquivalent Filipino-ized]] version of ''Film/TheMagnificentSeven1960''.

FPJ's career began in 1955 after the passing of his father, Fernando Poe, Sr. from rabies during production of ones of his movies, while the younger Poe was in junior high. Dropping out of school, he got his first acting role in ''Anak ng Palaris'' (''Child of Palaris''), before becoming a star in the [[LongRunner long-running]] youth comedy series ''Lo' Waist Gang''. The series was a massive success, having kickstarted the popularity of the titular pants. However it was 1961's ''Markado'' (''Marked'') a {{Swashbuckler}} adventure that crowned him as "Da King", as it was his first venture as an independent producer with his own studio, FPJ Productions. He spent the rest of the 60s in a series of urban dramas in the vein of ''Theatre/AStreetcarNamedDesire'' and more notably, a string of [[TheWestern Filipino westerns]], along with a few war movies, some of which were made with American companies. In 1968, Da King found his Queen when [[SuperCouple he married The Queen of Filipino Cinema, Susan Roces]], in a ceremony with [[UsefulNotes/FerdinandMarcos then-President Ferdinand Marcos and his wife, Imelda, serving as sponsors.]][[note]]Not unheard of in the Philippines, Marcos' predecessor Ramon Magsaysay did the same for a few film stars in the 50s.[[/note]] FPJ and Susan would remain HappilyMarried for the next 36 years, despite FPJ having more than [[YourCheatingHeart one affair with a few of his female costars]]. FPJ would have three children with either Susan or his mistresses in this time, though he'd also adopt a daughter, Grace Poe, who would cameo in a few of his movies and successfully run for office as a senator.