Lotis Melisande Key is a former Filipino-American professional film and theater actress who starred in 85 major films in

Asia Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an ...

. She was born and lives in the United States, although she spent her childhood traveling the world with her family. She was Vice President of the Minnesota Christian Writers Guild. She is the author of the novels ''The Song of the Tree'', ''A Thing Devoted'', and ''A Song for the Wide Place''.

Career

She received

FAMAS Award The Filipino Academy of Movie Arts and Sciences Awards (also known as the FAMAS Awards) are the annual honors given by the Filipino Academy of Movie Arts and Sciences (FAMAS), an organization composed of award-winning writers and movie columni ...

nominations as Best Supporting Actress for the movies ''Dalawang Mukha Ng Tagumpay'' (1973) and ''Ibigay Mo Sa Akin Ang Langit'' (1975). She worked with the likes of

Ramon Zamora Ramon Artiaga Zamora (June 27, 1935 – August 26, 2007) was a Filipino film actor best known for his leading roles in local martial arts films and action movies of the 1970s. He was popularly dubbed as the "Bruce Lee of the Philippines". ...

in Ang Mahiwagang Daigdig Ni Pedro Penduko (1973),

Tony Ferrer Antonio D. Laxa (June 12, 1934 – January 23, 2021), better known by his stage name Tony Ferrer, was a Filipino actor, film director and producer. He was tagged as the James Bond of the Philippines for his films in which he played a spy named ...

in ''Kung Fu Master'' (1974), Chiquito in ''Enter Garote'' (1974),

Eddie Garcia Eduardo Verchez Garcia (; May 2, 1929 – June 20, 2019), known colloquially as Manoy, was a Filipino actor, television personality, film director and producer. With almost 600 film and television roles and a career spanning seven decades, he ...

in ''Lady Luck'' (1975),

George Estregan Jesús Jorge Ejército (; July 10, 1939 – August 8, 1988), better known as George Estregan or George Estregan Sr., was a Filipino ''mestizo'' film actor. Estregan made his film debut in 1963 with ''Jose Nazareno, ang Taxi Driver''.Villanueva ...

in ''Bamboo Trap'' (1975), and

Dante Varona Dante Varona (born 1953) is a former Filipino people, Filipino actor and film director. He was considered one of the more famous action stars from the 1970s up to the 1980s along with Fernando Poe, Jr., Joseph Estrada, Jun Aristorenas, Ramon Rev ...

in ''Silakbo'' (1975). Key made about 11 movies with Comedy King

Dolphy Rodolfo Vera Quizon Sr. (; July 25, 1928 – July 10, 2012), better known by his stage names Dolphy, Pidol, and Golay, was a Filipino comedian and actor. He is widely regarded as the country's "King of Comedy" for his comedic talent embodied ...

including

Captain Barbell Captain Barbell is a Filipino superhero created by writer, Mars Ravelo and artist Jim Fernandez. His characteristics are similar to American fictional superheroes Superman, DC Comics' Captain Marvel, and Thor but Ravelo based his backstor ...

(1973), ''Fung Ku'' (1973), ''Facundo Alitaftaf'' (1978),

Darna, Kuno? ''Darna, Kuno?'' () is a 1979 Filipino film directed by Luciano B. Carlos and co-written by Toto Belano. Produced under the action, comedy, and fantasy genre, it was a family-friendly movie intended as a parody or spoof of Mars Ravelo's comic ...

(1979), ''Max En Jess'' (1979) and ''Bugoy'' (1979). In 1986, she moved to the

U.S. The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territor ...

and worked in industrial video, trade shows, TV commercials, theater, radio and on camera narration. She became a Christian theater director and writer. She wrote and produced plays that traveled all over the US and

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tota ...

. In 2007, she also took a team a large team to the Philippines to present shows in under-privileged areas. From directing and producing theater she moved on to writing and apart from numerous magazine and newspaper articles has published two literary novels: ''The Song of the Tree'' and ''A Thing Devoted''.

Personal life

She is married to

Renato "Bambi" Kabigting Renatus is a first name of Latin origin which means "born again" (natus = born). In Italian, Portuguese and Spanish it exists in masculine and feminine forms: Renato and Renata. In French they have been translated to René and Renée. Renata i ...

, a college basketball player for the

Ateneo Blue Eagles The Ateneo Blue Eagles are the collegiate varsity teams of the Ateneo de Manila University that play in the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP), the premiere collegiate league in the Philippines. The collegiate women's ...

and

Crispa Redmanizers The Crispa Redmanizers were a multi-titled Filipino basketball team that played in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) from 1975 to 1984. It was one of the nine founding teams of the PBA, winning a total of thirteen PBA championships, i ...

who went on to play for several professional

Philippine Basketball Association The Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) is a men's professional basketball league in the Philippines composed of twelve company-branded franchised teams. Founded in 1975, it is the first professional basketball league in Asia and is the se ...

teams including San Miguel, Alaska and Great Taste. They have a daughter, Abbey Key. Key is now based in

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the List of U.S. states and territories by population, 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minne ...

. In 2014, Key and husband Bambi Kabigting took professional chess player

Wesley So Wesley Barbossa So (born October 9, 1993) is a Filipino and American chess grandmaster and 3-time U.S. Chess Champion (in 2017, 2020, and 2021). He is also a three-time Philippine Chess Champion. On the March 2017 FIDE rating list, he was rank ...

into their family. Key serves as the adoptive mother and manager of So.

Weng Weng Weng may refer to: * Weng (surname), a Chinese surname * Weng, Germany, a town in the district of Landshut, Bavaria, Germany * Weng im Innkreis, a town in the district of Braunau am Inn, Upper Austria, Austria * Weng im Gesäuse, a town in the distr ...

's brother said that Key is the only Filipino celebrity to attend his funeral in 1992.

Selected filmography

*''Laurel Avenue'' (1993) *''Untamed Heart'' (1993) *'' Sweet Revenge'' (1987) *''Katawang Isinumpa'' (1982) *''Bugoy'' (1979) *''Max en Jess'' (1979) *''

'' (1979) *''Facundo Alitaftaf'' (1978) *''Mokong'' (1978) *''War Kami ng Misis Ko'' (1977) *''Karunungang Itim'' (1976) *''The Outside Man'' (1976) *''Meron Akong Nakita'' (1975) *''Ibigay Mo sa Akin Ang Langit'' (1975) *''Sleeping Dragon'' (1975) *''Walang Duwag sa Kayumanggi'' (1975) *''Biyenan Ko ang Aking Anak'' (1974) *''Kung Fu Master'' (1974) *''Return of the Dragon'' (1974) *''Dalawang Mukha ng Tagumpay'' (1973) *''

'' (1973) *''

Fight Batman Fight! ''Fight Batman Fight!'' is a 1973 Filipino Batman action-fantasy film produced by Pacific Films (Philippines). It stars famous Philippine actors such as action star Victor Wood as Batman, Rod Navarro as Joker, comedians Roderick Paulate as Robin ...

'' (1973) *''Fung Ku'' (1973) *'' Ang Mahiwagang Daigdig Ni Pedro Penduko'' (1973) *''

Black Mama White Mama ''Black Mama White Mama'' (also known as ''Women in Chains'') is a 1973 women in prison film directed by Eddie Romero and starring Pam Grier and Margaret Markov. The film has elements of blaxploitation. The movie also was released as ''Hot, Hard ...

'' (1973) *''Stardoom'' (1971) *Manigun Bagung Tao TV New Year presentation Channel 5 Manila Starred Alan Martell, Hilda Coronel and Beautiful Lotis Key and directed by Lino Broka 1970-

Books

*''The Song of the Tree'' *''A Thing Devoted'' http://www.ohmybuhay.com/wordpress/decors/ Lotis Key to Bambi Kabigting"

References

External links

Lotis Key official websiteVice President Lotis Key in Minnesota Christian Writers Guild
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Key, Lotis Living people Year of birth missing (living people) American people of Filipino descent