Here is a list of Philippine celebrities who have been raised by adoptive parents:

Jennylyn Mercado

Singer-actress Jennylyn Mercado was only six months old when she was abandoned by her real parents. She was single-handedly raised by her adoptive mom, Mommy Lydia, who claimed to be a distant relative of the actress’ biological mother.

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Today is a day to truly celebrate the remarkable strength and resilience of every woman and girl in the world. Let's continue to empower ourselves as individuals who do not let anything stop us from achieving our dreams. We don’t give up. We speak up. Happy International Women's Day!❤️

A post shared by Jennylyn Mercado (@mercadojenny) on Mar 9, 2018 at 12:23am PST

Mercado has since reconnected with her biological parents, Noli Pineda and Jinkee, on separate occasions.

Vicki Belo

Popular entrepreneur Vicki Belo had been teased as a child that the reason she was given away was because she was fat and ugly. This became the foundation of her goal to build a dermatology and beauty clinic enterprise.

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I think my husband is a talented photographer. What do you think ? ☺️

A post shared by Vicki Belo, M.D. (@victoria_belo) on Sep 11, 2018 at 7:06pm PDT

Belo was raised as an only child of her adoptive parents, Enrique Belo and Nena Gonzales, with the latter being the sister of her biological mother.

She is actually the niece of celebrated politician Ninoy Aquino, being the daughter of the late senator’s first cousin, Augusto Cancio with Victoria Gonzales.

Ai-ai delas Alas

Comedienne and blockbuster film actress Ai-ai delas Alas was given up for adoption out of poverty and because of the separation of her parents.

It was never hidden from delas Alas that she was adopted by her unmarried aunt, Justa delas Alas.

She is the natural-born daughter of deceased parents, Rosendo delas Alas and Gregoria Hernandez.

Angelica Panganiban

Child actress and comedienne Angelica Panganiban always had a question at the back of her mind why she does not look like her siblings or parents. The beloved actress from the hit romantic film ‘That Thing Called Tadhana’ had a hunch that maybe she was adopted but only got the confirmation back in 2010.

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Hindi naman na sikreto ang kwento ng buhay natin. Pero hindi ko pa nagsasabi sayo na, salamat. Salamat sa buhay na meron ako ngayon, na hindi ko ipagpapalit kahit pa papiliin ako. Salamat dahil kahit minsan, hindi ko natanong sa sarili ko kung paano ba magmahal ang tunay na ina. Minahal mo ko nang higit pa sa sarili mo. Salamat dahil hindi ko naramdaman kahit minsan na may kulang sa pagkatao ko. Alam kong hindi ko kayang tumbasan ang pagmamahal mo. Pero, mahal na mahal kita ma. Lahat ng fats mo, mahal ko. Happy birthday Okja!

A post shared by Angelica Panganiban (@iamangelicap) on Feb 3, 2018 at 1:39am PST

Panganiban’s questions were answered by her adoptive mom, Melania Panganiban. Mrs. Panganiban had all the photos and details the actress wanted to know about her real identity.

The ‘Playhouse’ actress originally had no interest in looking for her biological parents. However, when she found out that her biological mother had passed away, she made an effort to find her real father. Soon after, she met her real dad, Mark Charlson, for the first time.

Lotlot de Leon

A famous actress of the 80s, Lotlot de Leon knew early on that she was adopted; being continually called “ampon ni Nora” by those who flock her.

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It was through Nora Aunor’s mother that Lotlot got adopted by the Superstar and her former husband Christopher de Leon.

Lotlot de Leon’s biological parents are Donald Olson and Eva Rodriguez.

Mark Herras

According to television and film actor Mark Herras, he and his mom were abandoned by his father when he was barely five years old.

He was never ashamed of his gay foster parents, Herminigildo “Papa Pim” Santos and Daddy Jun Herras. Both have sadly passed on in 2016 and 2014, respectively.

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Herras’ biological mom, Jasmin Santos, has also passed away in 2016.

Angeline Quinto

Talented singer Angeline Quinto was given to her aunt for adoption following an abusive relationship her mother had with her father.

It was her aunt Sylvia “Mama Bob” Quinto who convinced Angeline’s mom not to push through with abortion and volunteered to raise the singer-actress as her own.

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Angeline was born as the only daughter of Pop Quiros and Rosemarie Mabao.

• Stars who have been recipients of “fat memos” from their networks.
• They shared their reactions and how the said memo affected their careers and mental health.

As public personalities, people have this thinking that celebrities should be confined to the society’s ideal perception of what being attractive is. That they should have smooth skin, no flaws, and a skinny body.

Whenever these figures doesn’t fit those descriptions, there are always netizens that will point out what they should be and should not be. This includes the topic of weight.

As cameras make one look multiple times the size they truly are, networks give ‘fat memos’ to those who they think looked heavy on-screen.

Here are some of the celebrities who have were reported to have received memos from their respective networks and those who have been fat shamed online.

Jessy Mendiola

Jessy recently admitted that she has received a “fat memo” from the big bosses of ABS-CBN around one or two years ago.

“It’s a proof na you can’t get work if you gain weight. That’s how society works.”

She admitted that back then, she didn’t understand the reason why she received the said memo, and it did not have a positive effect on her. In fact, the incident even pushed her into depression.

“I got very depressed. Parang dumating ako sa point na, ‘Ah ito na lang pala din talaga ‘yung halaga ko. Kung hindi ako sexy, wala akong projects or hindi nila ako makikita as who I am.’”

But eventually, the star picked herself up and decided that rather being sexy, she just wants to be healthy and feel good about herself. Losing weight is just an add-on to the process.

She also gave credit to her support system who became her inspiration through those hard times.

“Yung support system ko. And it’s more of siyempre hindi naman ‘yun mangayayari mag-isa. Kailangan mo rin talagang maging active in life. Hindi lang siya sa pagwowork-out ha. More of pro-active sa mga tao, sa work mo.”

Geoff Eigenmann

Geoff was also one to receive the said “fat memo” from his mother station GMA.

He admitted it four years ago, and said that he “knew it was coming.”

It was said that during Forever, his series with Heart Evangelista, their stylists had to resort to layering off his clothes just to hide his weight gain. And later on, the executives had to intervene.

“GMA talked to my manager, they went over what should be done and all that, and then my manager told me about it.”

Unlike Jessy, Geoff didn’t have any negative reactions. But the memo didn’t have any positive effect either as he didn’t have any projects following such.

“GMA talked to my manager, they went over what should be done and all that, and then my manager told me about it. When he told me, wala. I wasn’t angry. I didn’t complain. There was no point.

“I don’t want to bullshit you: It wasn’t just a memo, it was a suspension. Nawalan ako ng trabaho.”

He was given three months to get back in shape.

• Click TV Series was aired 1999 to 2004.
• Click jump-started the careers of the several popular actors and actresses in the Philippines today.
• The show was usually aired every Sunday.

Click was a Philippine television drama series broadcast by GMA Network. It aired from December 4, 1999 to July 24, 2004. The show revolves around a clique of friends with unique personalities facing the challenges of being a teenager. They battle against pains, struggles, challenges and discoveries of teenage life.

The show earned “Best Youth Oriented Show, PMPC Star Awards for Television” in 2002, 2003 and 2004, “Best Youth Drama Program, Catholic Mass Media Awards” in 2002 and “Anak TV Seal Award Winner” in 2003 and 2004. The show jump-started the careers of these celebrities:

ROXANNE BARCELO as Toni

She is now cast in Wildflower as the secondary antagonist, “Nathalie Alcantara.”

JAMES BLANCO as Anton

Best New Male Personality Winner, PMPC Star Awards for TV 2000

He now has a wife whose a New Zealand native and three kids; one daughter and two sons.

ANGELIKA DELA CRUZ as Oli

She is now a wife to Orion Caesario and has two children. She is cast in “Ika-6 na Utos” as Geneva Takashi.

ALESSANDRA DE ROSSI as Ian

Her most recent and most notable role as an actress was Lea in the movie, “Kita kita.”

DANICA SOTTO as Kara

She is now a wife to Marc Pingris and a mother to Michel and Caela.

ANTOINETTE TAUS as Allie

She left the Philippines and stayed in Los Angeles to pursue American show business. Now, she came back to resume her career.

CHYNNA ORTALEZA as Mimi

She is now marries to Kean Cipriano and they have one daughter, Stellar, together.

WOWIE DE GUZMAN as Hector

He was cast as one of the warriors to protect Malia in “La Lune Sangre.” He was married to Sheryl Ann Reyes. They have a daughter together but unfotunately, she died after a month of giving birth.

WENDELL RAMOS as Ben

He is currently cast as Raul Torillo in “Wildflower.” He is married, has one son and one daughter.

RICHARD GUITERREZ as Enzo & ANGEL LOCSIN as Charley

They used to be a love team but now they are both cast in “La Luna Sangre.” Guiterrez as the Supremo and Locsin as the hybrid vampire and werewolf, Lady in Red. Guiterrez is now engaged to Sarah Lahbati. They already have a son, Zion and expecting another baby boy.

KAREN DELOS REYES as Weng

She just gave to a baby boy in October 2017. Her most recent role was in “Sakaling Hindi Makarating” with Alessandra de Rossi.

JAKE CUENCA as Tryke

He will be the new ‘Lizardo,’ the mortal enemy of Flavio in “Ang Panday.”

IYA VILLANIA – ARELLANO as Sydney and DREW ARELLANO as Gilbert

They were both cast in the show but now they are happily married and have a son named, Primo.

JENNYLYN MERCADO as Carol

Her most recent role is in the TV series, “Dear Uge” as Cynthia. She is now a proud mother of Alex Jazz.

MARK HERRAS as Migs

His most recent role was in a TV series, “Dear Uge” as Nestor.

YASMIEN KURDI as Leilani

She is now happily married to Rey Soldevilla, Jr. and has a daughter with him. 

BIANCA KING as Marnie

She is now cast in “Pusong Ligaw” as Marga Cervantes.

StarStruck is the first, the original and perhaps the most successful reality-based artista search in Philippine TV. This competition lasted for seven seasons including the one for StarStruck Kids. The reality show launched the career of some of the brightest stars in the country today.

The recent reunion of StarStruck Batch 1 in GMA Network’s newest talk variety show ‘Basta Everyday Happy’ gave their loyal fans a chance to check on the lives of these former celebrity aspirants. Below’s a quick glimpse on what happened to StarStruck Season 1 graduates after the show gave them their much-awaited shot in the limelight.

Jennylyn Mercado is undoubtedly the most successful in the first batch. Finishing the competition as the Ultimate Female Survivor, Jennylyn turned out to be one of the country’s best dramatic actress. She currently stars in the top-rating Kapuso primetime series ‘Rhodora X’.

Mark Herras was crowned as StarStruck Season 1’s Ultimate Male Survivor. His talent in dancing earned him the title ‘Badboy of the Dancefloor’ and a mainstay of GMA’s variety shows starting from the now defuncts ‘SOP,’ ‘SOP Gigsters’ and ‘Party Pilipinas’ to the current Sunday musical variety show ‘Sunday All Stars.’

Cristine Reyes was the second to be included in the first batch’s Avengers. Being one of the first to be eliminated in the competition, Cristine climbed her way to stardom after consistently getting mature roles specially when she joined ABS-CBN in 2008.

Nadine Samonte was immediately groomed to be a dramatic actress right after graduating from StarStruck. She starred in multiple afternoon drama series in GMA but later on decided to join the growing Kapatid Network, TV5. She’s now rumorred to return to her home network after three years with TV5.

Yasmien Kurdi ended up as the season’s First Princess and eventually crowned as GMA Drama Princess for her multiple hit drama series in the Kapuso Network. At the peak of her career, Yasmien decided to take a hiatus in showbiz to focus on her studies and later on returned to showbiz after giving birth.

Katrina Halili was casted as a sexy villain in various GMA TV series including ‘Darna,’ ‘Majika’ and ‘Marimar.’ She also bagged FHM Philippines’ Sexiest Woman for two straight years – 2006 and 2007. After a video scandal involving her and Hayden Kho, Katrina’s career eventually slow down.

Sheena Halili has been getting supporting roles after the competition but her most notable to date was when she played Monica in the hit primetime remake of ‘Marimar’. She was even offered to be a Regal contract star after the soap ended. Sheena’s now taking mother roles in her recent projects still with GMA.

Rainier Castillo completed the season’s Final Four as the First Prince. His ‘killer smile’ and F4 hairstyle easily earned him thousands of fans. Soon after being casted in multiple shows in GMA, Rainier signed a three-year contract with TV5 but is still struggling to get a new break.

Dion Ignacio is consistently getting projects with GMA and is seemed to be satisfied with supporting roles. He was tapped to be in a leading man post in the afternoon drama ‘Magdalena’ opposite Bela Padilla but was not given a follow up role after doing so. At least, he’s loyalty with GMA is continuously being paid off as he’s still seen in various shows every now and then.

Tyron Perez initially started as one of the teen hosts of ‘Walang Tulugan with the Master Showman’ before getting his big break with StarStruck. Upon graduating, Tyron then starred in indie films ‘Twilight Dancers’ and ‘Pipo’. He also joined ABS-CBN in 2010 but his career ended when he committed suicide in 2011.

Jade Lopez never really had a big break after StarStruck. The roles that she’s been getting are minor ones that people won’t care to remember. Still, Jade is blessed to get projects both from GMA and TV5.

Alvin Aragon was the first to be eliminated in the competition and never had a chance to showcase his talents. After StarStruck, he got embroiled in a lot of troubles and fathered a child with his then non-showbiz girlfriend. He’s now happily married to a former Sex Bomb dancer Izzy Trazona.

Christian Esteban had a short-lived showbiz career. After StarStruck, he starred in a few shows and has since quit the industry.

Anton dela Paz quit showbiz after a few years of getting minor roles. In his most recent interview, Anton commented that he finds showbiz as ‘unstable.’