Didith Reyes, 60

I could not forget Didith Reyes because our neighbor in Batuan, Bohol used to sing all her songs when I was still young. My neighbor was our own version of Didith Reyes in that small town. She was even more known than Reyes herself. Anyways, Reyes' songs were also overplayed in the AM stations and a favorite background for radio soap operas so I could always recall those songs she sang.

She was found dead in a shanty in Laguna, possibly from heart attack.

This is a sad news because most artists and actors from her era all have the same fate- die like paupers. Maybe this is why the new generation artists suddenly invest in business like mad. Knowing that their trade is not as reliable as the peso itself, a good business sense can layout some good foundation in case they retire.

Didith Reyes was tagged as the orginal jukebox queen. In fact her songs still are sung by my noisy neighbors here in Cebu.

A very comprehensive article is written by the INQUIRER.net staff parts of which are copied here in toto.

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Downward spiral

Reyes’ decline, Amoyo noted, began in 1978 when she became unprofessional.

“She did not show up at performances. What I know is that at the height of her popularity, she would throw a flat iron [at people who displeased her]. But she was very kind when she was not in a foul mood. She was the type of person who was easy to love,” Amoyo said in Filipino.

Amoyo said she barely recognized Reyes during a meeting set up by a friend at a coffee shop in Greenhills, San Juan City, two years ago.

“Para akong nalusaw sa itsura niya (I almost fainted when I saw her). She had aged physically, she had gained weight, she was limping due to a wound on her foot and she smelled badly,” Amoyo recalled.

The Didith Reyes of her prime, who reportedly had an insatiable sexual appetite and had affairs with prominent businessmen, club owners and politicians, eventually went on a downward spiral. She got hooked on drugs and alcohol.

Homeless

Homeless, she once sought help from Amoyo and promised to mend her ways. Amoyo took her to Reyes Haircutters, whose owner, Les (a brother of beauty guru Ricky Reyes), promptly took her in.

“But she was a pain in the ass,” Amoyo said with amusement. “She was always drunk, drinking gin straight from a plastic bottle. So I told Les just to let her go, but he just couldn’t do it immediately.”

The last bit of news Amoyo heard about Reyes was that she was hospitalized and that Les paid the bill.

Reyes left behind a son, Arvy, now married and living on his own. Before she become famous, she had been separated from husband Victor Reyes. Her last known relationship was with a 67-year-old man from Laguna, her live-in partner for seven years.

Reyes’ remains were to be brought for viewing to the Mount Carmel Church on Doña Juana Rodriguez Avenue in New Manila, Quezon City, De la Fuente said.