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‘Iyong ashes ko, ikakalat sa Manila Bay’: Eddie Garcia had long planned own silent funeral

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ABS-CBN News

<div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img src="http://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2019/entertainment/06/20/20190620-eddie-garcia.jpg?ext=.jpg"/><figcaption>Late screen veteran Eddie Garcia revealed in a 2012 interview that he had already paid for his cremation. <em>ABS-CBN News</em></figcaption></figure></div><p>MANILA — Screen icon Eddie Garcia had long planned how his final curtain call would unfold — at least seven years, in fact, prior to his passing on Thursday.</p><p>Garcia, who died age 90, had said in a 2012 interview that he knew precisely the details of his funeral. At the time, he had already paid for his own cremation, he said.</p><p>“Ako kasi, ‘pag namatay ako, wala nang makakaalam, e,” Garcia had told ABS-CBN News’ Mario Dumaual, reacting to speculation at the time about the state of his health. The screen veteran was 83 then.</p><p>“Gusto ko from death bed, diretso sa crematorium. Pagkatapos, may kaibigan akong piloto, kukunin ‘yung ashes ko, ikakalat sa dagat sa Manila Bay. That’s it,” he explained.</p><p>If it were up to Garcia, there would be “no obituaries” dedicated to him. “Para pagkahinanap mo ako for an interview. ‘One year kong hindi nagkita.’ Patay na!” he said, laughing.</p><p>“It’s not a joke,” Garcia insisted. “I already paid for my cremation.”</p><figure class="op-interactive"><iframe height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/NayG-WUQd5M?enablejsapi=1" width="560"></iframe></figure><div class="iwantbar">Watch more in <a href="//www.iwantv.com.ph/">iWantv</a> or <a href="//tfc.tv/">TFC.tv</a></div><p>The events leading up to his passing, however, had gone against Garcia’s wish for a silent exit. CCTV footage of an on-set accident that fractured his neck, and which led to his coma, circulated online. Medical bulletins updating supporters and showbiz colleagues about his critical condition were also regularly released.</p><p>“Ayoko ng fanfare, e,” Garcia said in the 2012 interview. “Tutal, gano’n lang ‘yan when you’re dead, nagkakagulo. After a year, kakalimutan ka na. So what’s the use? I don’t think it’s necessary. Nahihirapan pa ‘yung mga pupunta sa burol mo, ‘di ba?”</p><p>The “fanfare,” as Garcia termed it then, could not be helped on Thursday afternoon as mourning swept Philippine showbiz, which he had been part of for 70 years.</p><p>Up until his final days, Garcia had been a visible figure on television and films — a fulfillment of his own declaration seven years prior that he would never retire.</p><p>“I’ll just be in the industry as long as it needs me. Siguro, kung hindi na ako kailangan, sayonara!”</p>

<p>“Ayoko ng fanfare, e,” Eddie Garcia had said in a 2012 interview. “Tutal, gano’n lang ‘yan when you’re dead, nagkakagulo. After a year, kakalimutan ka na. So what’s the use? I don’t think it’s necessary.</p>

“Ayoko ng fanfare, e,” Eddie Garcia had said in a 2012 interview. “Tutal, gano’n lang ‘yan when you’re dead, nagkakagulo. After a year, kakalimutan ka na. So what’s the use? I don’t think it’s necessary.