{{Short description|Filipino singer, actor, and politician (1946–2021)}} {{For|the curler|Victor Wood (curler)}} {{Use mdy dates|date=April 2021}} {{More citations needed|date=September 2010}} {{Philippine name|Nobleza|Wood}} {{Infobox musical artist <!-- See Wikipedia:WikiProject Musicians --> | name = Victor Wood | image = Victor-Wood.jpg | caption = Wood in 2020 | image_size = | alias = | birth_name = Victor Nobleza Wood | birth_date = {{Birth date|1946|2|1}} | death_date = {{Death date and age|2021|4|23|1946|2|1}} | birth_place = Buhi, Camarines Sur, Philippines | death_place = Quezon City, Philippines | instrument = | genre = {{hlist|Manila sound|OPM}} | occupation = {{hlist|Singer|actor|politician}} | years_active = 1960s–2021 | label = Vicor Music<br />Plaka Pilipino (1970–1977)<br />Alpha Music Corporation<br />D' Concorde Recording Corp<br />VIVA Records | website = }}
'''Victor Nobleza Wood''' (February 1, 1946 – April 23, 2021){{efn|Sources of his age at the time of his death vary whether he was 74<ref name="vw001">{{cite news |title=Jukebox King Victor Wood, 74, dies due to COVID-19 complications |url=https://entertainment.inquirer.net/408677/jukebox-king-victor-wood-74-dies-due-to-covid-19-complications |access-date=April 23, 2021 |newspaper=Philippine Daily Inquirer}}</ref> or 75.<ref name="vw002">{{cite news |title=Iconic Pinoy pop singer Victor Wood passes away at 75 |url=https://mb.com.ph/2021/04/23/iconic-pinoy-pop-singer-victor-wood-passes-away-at-75/ |access-date=April 23, 2021 |work=Manila Bulletin}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title='70s singing heartthrob Victor Wood passes away at 75 |url=https://www.pep.ph/news/local/157957/victor-wood-dead-a734-20210423 |access-date=April 23, 2021 |work=PEP.ph}}</ref>}} was a Filipino singer, actor and politician. His voice earned him various titles, including "Jukebox King" and "Plaka King".<ref name="vw001"/><ref>{{cite news |title='Eternally' singer Victor Wood dies due to COVID-19 complications |url=https://www.philstar.com/entertainment/music/2021/04/23/2093297/eternally-singer-victor-wood-dies-due-covid-19-complications |access-date=April 23, 2021 |work=The Philippine Star}}</ref>
Before becoming a singer, Wood starred in some productions of Sampaguita Pictures. He was a member of Iglesia ni Cristo. He previously hosted the show ''Beautiful Sunday'' every Sunday on the Iglesia ni Cristo-owned Net25.<ref>{{Citation|last=NET 25|title=Victor Wood's "Beautiful Sunday" on NET 25|date=March 4, 2017|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ntQNNqswOHs |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211215/ntQNNqswOHs |archive-date=2021-12-15 |url-status=live|access-date=April 16, 2017}}{{cbignore}}</ref>
Wood died on April 23, 2021, due to COVID-19 complications.<ref>{{Cite web|date=2021-04-23|title=Jukebox King Victor Wood, 75, dies due to COVID-19 complications|url=https://entertainment.inquirer.net/408677/jukebox-king-victor-wood-74-dies-due-to-covid-19-complications|access-date=2021-04-24|website=INQUIRER.net|language=en}}</ref>
==Early life== Victor Nobleza Wood was born on February 1, 1946, in Buhi, Camarines Sur, Philippines<ref name="vw002"/><ref>{{cite news |title='Jukebox King' Victor Wood dies at 75 |url=https://www.rappler.com/entertainment/celebrities/jukebox-king-victor-wood-dies/ |access-date=April 23, 2021 |work=Rappler}}</ref> to Sgt. Kocky Wood and Rosario "Tiyang Saring" Nobleza. His mother was well known in Buhi and neighboring towns for selling herbal medications and perfumes. He studied and finished secondary school at Jose Abad Santos High.
==Musical career== Wood's voice earned him various titles, including Jukebox King and Plaka King{{Citation needed|date=September 2009}} in the 1970s when his career bloomed.
In 1972, Wood released his third album ''In Despair''. He became a very popular singer of that era and recorded many albums for Vicor Records. ''In Despair'' is an album of cover versions of popular English songs from the 1950s and 1960s. Three songs on the album, namely "Jenny Jenny", "Rip It Up" and "Good Golly Miss Molly", were originally hits for Little Richard in the 1950s. The album has a combination of slow and fast songs, and the slow ballads include "In Despair", "Vaya Con Dios", "Have a Good Time", "Hurt" and "Return to Me". The album's ballads are highly favorable to karaoke singing, and a number of them are still heard in karaoke nightspots. Among the album's upbeat songs are versions of Roy Orbison's "Pretty Woman", Gene Vincent's "Be-Bop-a-Lula" and Del Shannon's "Runaway".
In 1974, Wood released his eleventh album, ''Ihilak''. Eleven of the album's 12 songs are Philippine folk love songs sung in the Visayan language. The remaining song, "Gugma Ko", uses the melody of Neil Diamond's "Song Sung Blue" and replaces the original English lyrics with Visayan-language ones.
In 1979, Wood covered the Indonesian version of "Anak" from the fellow Filipino original artist Freddie Aguilar.
Wood and his family migrated to the United States in the late 1970s. {{citation needed|date=April 2021}}
==Acting career== Aside from singing, Wood was also an actor who starred in various films until 1979.
==Later life and death== Wood ran for the Senate of the Philippines during the 2007 Philippine general election under the KBL banner, but lost.{{Citation needed|date=September 2009}}
According to his third wife, Nerissa, Wood died of complications from COVID-19 on April 23, 2021.<ref>{{cite news |title='Jukebox King' Victor Wood dies at 74 |url=https://www.abs-cbn.com/entertainment/04/23/21/victor-wood-dies-of-covid-19 |access-date=April 23, 2021 |work=ABS-CBN News}}</ref>
==Personal life== Wood had two children with his second wife, Ofelia Mercado Ponce, whom he met during his stay in the United States.<ref name="SW"/> The couple had a son, Simon, and a daughter, Sydney Victoria.<ref name="SW">{{cite web|url=https://www.philstar.com/entertainment/2009/05/04/463611/simon-wood-truly-his-fathers-son|title=Simon Wood ready for stardom|last=Gil|first=Baby|date=May 27, 2009|publisher=PhilStar|access-date=September 8, 2009}}</ref>
==Electoral history== {| class="wikitable" style="font-size:90%; text-align:center;" |+ Electoral history of Victor Wood ! rowspan="2" style="background:#eaecf0;" |Year ! rowspan="2" style="background:#eaecf0;" |Office ! colspan="2" rowspan="2" style="background:#eaecf0;" |Party ! colspan="4" style="background:#eaecf0;" |Votes received ! rowspan="2" style="background:#eaecf0;" |Result |- ! style="background:#eaecf0;" |Total ! style="background:#eaecf0;" | % ! style="background:#eaecf0;" |{{abbr|2=Position|P}}. ! style="background:#eaecf0;" |Swing |- !2007 | Senator of the Philippines | style="background:{{party color|Kilusang Bagong Lipunan}};" | | KBL | 283,036 | 0.96% | 34th | {{n/a}} | {{Lost}} |}
==Discography== ===Albums=== ====Studio albums==== *''I'm Sorry My Love'' (June 1970, Vicor) *''Mr. Lonely'' (1971) *''In Despair'' (1972) *''Memories'' (1972) *''14 Bestsellers'' *''Blue Christmas'' *''Knock on Wood'' *''His Majesty'' *''Victor Wood Music'' *''Wood, I Love You'' *''Ihilak'' (1974, Plaka Pilipino) *''Pilipino'' *''Kalyehon 29'' *''Love Is'' *''Wooden Heart'' *''Sincerely'' *''Follow Me'' *''Karon or Visayan Hitsongs Collection Vol. 2'' *''Moods'' *''Victor Wood'' (1979, Blackgold) *''Bintana ng Puso'' *''Kumusta Ka, Mahal'' *''If I See You Again'' *''Padre'' *''Inday ng Buhay Ko'' *''You're My Everything'' (1997, Alpha Music Corporation) *''Victor Wood: Ngayon'' (2002, VIVA Records)
====Compilation albums==== *''Special Collectors Edition: Malupit Na Pag-ibig'' (1994, Vicor) *''Special Collectors Edition: Mr. Lonely'' (1994, Vicor) *''Carmelita 4CD: Vicor Music 40th Anniversary Collection'' (2006, Vicor) *''Special Collectors Edition: You Are My Destiny'' (2008, Vicor) *''18 Greatest Hits: Victor Wood'' (2009, Vicor)
====Live albums==== *''One Man Show''
====Collaboration albums==== *''Jukebox King & Queen'' (with Imelda Papin) (1999, D'Concorde)
===Songs=== *"Love Can Fly" *"Take My Hand for a While" *"Oh My Love" *"I Don't Want Your Lovin' Anymore" *"Here's My Happiness" *"I'm Gonna Make You Mine" *"Smoke Gets in Your Eyes" *"The Great Pretender" *"Tiny Bubbles" *"The Miracle of Christmas" *"Young and Beautiful" *"For Mama" *"Rock Around the Clock" *"Rock Your Baby" *"Dick and Jane" *"Don't Cry Joni" *"Where Can She Be" *"Pagbati (Feelings)" *"Love Is a Pain in the Heart" *"Let's Sing a Christmas Song" *"Anak" (Indonesian Version; Original in Tagalog by Freddie Aguilar)
== Notes == {{Notelist}}
== References == {{Reflist}}
== External links == *[https://web.archive.org/web/20080926234805/http://www.inquirer.net/specialfeatures/eleksyon2007/candidates.php?name=Wood,-Victor-(Vic) Victor Wood's Profile] *[https://web.archive.org/web/20100708164418/http://arts.eurasiawebs.com/artists_victor.html Victor Wood as an artist] *{{IMDb name|1047421}}
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Wood, Victor}} Category:1946 births Category:2021 deaths Category:Deaths from the COVID-19 pandemic in the Philippines Category:20th-century Filipino male singers Category:Manila sound musicians Category:Filipino people of American descent Category:Singers from Camarines Sur Category:Male actors from Camarines Sur Category:Politicians from Camarines Sur Category:Bicolano politicians Category:Bicolano actors Category:Filipino actor-politicians Category:Kilusang Bagong Lipunan politicians Category:Members of Iglesia ni Cristo Category:Vicor Music artists Category:Filipino male film actors Category:Labor Party Philippines politicians