Monty Manibog

Monty Manibog
Personal details
BornGonzalo Montilla Manibog Jr.[1]
(1930-02-14)14 February 1930
Laog City, Philippines[2]
Died12 August 2016(2016-08-12) (aged 86)[3]
Los Angeles, California, United States[4]
Resting placeResurrection Cemetery, Montebello, California[3]
SpouseJean (née Gingerich)[5]
Children6[4]
EducationUniversity of the Philippines
Loyola University
NicknameMonty
Military service
AllegianceUnited States
Branch/serviceUnited States Army
Sports career
National teamPhilippines Philippines at the 1952 Summer Olympics
SportWrestling
Sports achievements and titles
National finals
Philippines Gymnastics, Wrestling

Monty Manibog (born Gonzalo Montilla Manibog Jr.; 14 February 1930 – 12 August 2016), was a Filipino athlete who competed as a wrestler in the 1952 Summer Olympics. He later emigrated to the United States, served in the United States Army, became a lawyer in California, and was elected as a city councilmember for Monterey Park, California. He would go on to also be the city's mayor.

Early life

Monty was son of Gonzalo Manibog, who was the first Filipino American to receive a law degree, earning it in 1917.[3] He was raised in Hawaii.[5] He went on to attend the University of the Philippines.[3]

Sports career

In the 1950s, Monty earned two gold medals at the Philippines national championships in the sports of gymnastics and wrestling; for two years he was the "athlete of the year" at the University of the Philippines.[3] He competed in the men's freestyle featherweight at the 1952 Summer Olympics.[6] During the 1984 Summer Olympics he was an ambassador to Southeast Nations at the games.[3] In the 1990s he competed at Senior Olympics in California.[3]

Professional and personal life

Monty served in the United States Army from 1953 to 1955; he was stationed in Tokyo where he assigned to a psychological warfare unit.[5] He graduated from Loyola Law School.[3][5] In 1961, he passed the California Bar Exam.[7] In the 1960s and 1970s he was a professor at Van Norman University in Los Angeles, teaching law.[3] He also practiced law;[8] his law firm's office was located in the Temple-Beverly area.[9] Monty was a proponent of the concept of there being a Chinatown like Filipino Town in Los Angeles, purchasing a building on the street his law firm's office was located in.[10]

He was involved in various civic organizations, including the Cub Scouts, and organizing Philippine-American Friendship Day events.[5] He was the legal counsel of the Filipino Community of Los Angeles;[11] in this position he was involved in assisting with naturalization procedures.[12] He was one of twenty Filipino Americans honored by Representative Matthew G. Martínez in 1990.[13] The American Bar Association had awarded Monty a distinguished service award.[14] He died at Cedar Sinai Hospital in 2016; he was survived by his wife Jean, five children, and eighteen grandchildren.[4][a] A son, Dean-Carlos Manibog, was on the Philippine Olympic team during the 1988 Summer Olympics.[17][18]

Political career

In 1972, Manibog was first elected as a city council member for Monterey Park.[3][19] He became the first Filipino American to become an elected official in Southern California when he was elected to Monterey Park City Council; remaining on the city council until 1988, he served as the city's mayor several times.[20][b] In the 1974 election, Monty received the fifth most votes out of eight candidates for one of the three city council seats;[22] in his candidacy statement he wrote that he was an advisor to the California's 29th congressional district.[23]

He was elected as the city's mayor in 1976;[24][25] he won the mayoral race with a majority of the vote.[7] Monty served three terms as Monterey Park's mayor.[4] During his time as mayor, he kept the city's budget balanced;[26] partially through his efforts Monterey Park earned the All-America City Award in 1985.[26][27] He described himself as a moderate to conservative Democrat.[28] In 1982, Monty made an attempt to run for the California's 59th State Assembly district, receiving third place in the Democratic primary behind Charles Calderon, and Joseph Montoya's senatorial aide Mike Duffy.[29]

In the 2003 California gubernatorial recall election, Monty was a write-in candidate;[26][30] in running he was the first Filipino gubernatorial candidate in the mainland United States.[26] Calling his campaign "quixotic", he challenged Arnold Schwarzenegger to a debate and a charitable wrestling match.[26] He received eleven votes (ten from Los Angeles County, and one from Orange County) out of the more than five million votes cast during the election.[31]

Notes

  1. ↑ A son, going by the name of Monty Torres, became a news anchor at KMPH.[15] A daughter, Lisa Manibog Lew Brennan, won the Binibining Pilipinas crown in 1982.[16] A grand-daughter, Danae Manibog-Gatewood, succeeded in getting on the Philippines National Track and Field Team.[17]
  2. ↑ Lisa Lew, his daughter, claims that her father was the first Filipino elected in the Continental United States.[21]

References

  1. ↑ Who's Who in American Politics 1981-1982. R. R. Bowker LLC. 1981. p. 85. ISBN 978-0-8352-1368-4. Retrieved 5 June 2026.
  2. ↑ "Manibog, Gonzalo †". Philippineolympians.org. Manila, Philippines: Philippine Olympians Association. Retrieved 5 June 2026.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Medenilla, Klarize (23 August 2016). "FIL-Am political pioneer, Olympian Monty Manibog dies at 86". Philippine Daily Inquirer. Makati City, Philippines. Asian Journal. Retrieved 3 June 2026.
  4. 1 2 3 4 Manibog, Jr., G. Monty (16 August 2016). "Obituary "Goodbye to a Great Man" : Pasadena Attorney G. Monty Manibog, 86". Pasadena Now. Pasadena Now, LLC. Retrieved 5 June 2026.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 California Legislature, Senate (1942). Journal of the Senate, Legislature of the State of California. California State Print. Office. p. 3900-3901. Retrieved 5 June 2026.
  6. ↑ Evans, Hilary; Gjerde, Arild; Heijmans, Jeroen; Mallon, Bill; et al. "Gonzalo Monte-Manibog". Olympics at Sports-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Archived from the original on 18 April 2020. Retrieved 9 March 2019.
  7. 1 2 Gonzales, Juan L. (1994). The Lives of Ethnic Americans. Kendall/Hunt Publishing Company. pp. 63–65. ISBN 978-0-8403-9607-5. Retrieved 3 June 2026.
  8. ↑ Morales, Royal F. (1974). Makibaka: The Pilipino American Struggle. Mountainview Publishers. p. 96. Retrieved 5 June 2026.
  9. ↑ Los Angeles Citywide Historic Context Statement Context: Filipino Americans in Los Angeles, 1903-1980 (PDF). Office of Historic Resources (Report). City of Los Angeles. August 2018. Retrieved 5 June 2026.
  10. ↑ Bernardo, Joseph A. (2014). From "Little Brown Brothers" to "Forgotten Asian Americans": Race, Space, and Empire in Filipino Los Angeles. University Libraries, University of Washington (Doctor of Philosophy thesis). Seattle: University of Washington. Retrieved 5 June 2026.
  11. ↑ Montoya, C.M. (2008). Filipinos in Hollywood. Images of America. Arcadia Pub. p. 56. ISBN 978-0-7385-5598-0. Retrieved 5 June 2026.
  12. ↑ United States Congress, House of Representatives (13 May 1969). Report No. 91-236. U.S. Government Printing Office. p. 69-PA1. Retrieved 5 June 2026.
  13. ↑ 1990 Congressional Record, Vol. 136, Page H14736
    Martínez, Matthew G. (19 June 1990). "Tribute to the 20 Outstanding Filipino Americans" (PDF). congress.gov. Government Publishing Office. Retrieved 5 June 2026.
  14. ↑ "Getting to know your... Filipino-American Neighbors". sterlingheights.gov. Sterling Heights, Michigan: City of Sterling Heights. 2002. Retrieved 5 June 2026.
  15. ↑ "Monty Torres". KMPH. Fresno, California: KMPH Licensee, LLC. 12 October 2015. Archived from the original on 15 October 2025. Retrieved 5 June 2026.
  16. ↑ Nepales, Ruben V. (22 September 2012). "Fil-Am beauty queen turns Emmy-winning producer". Philippine Daily Inquirer. Makati, Philippines. Retrieved 5 June 2026.
  17. 1 2 Romo, Vanessa (30 June 2023) [25 June 2023]. "Danae Manibog-Gatewood: From the Valley to the Philippines". KMPH. Fresno, California: KMPH Licensee, LLC. Retrieved 5 June 2026.
  18. ↑ "2023-24 Cowboy Wrestling Roster". Oklahoma State University Athletics. Oklahoma: Oklahoma State. 2026. Retrieved 18 July 2026.
  19. ↑ "Fil-Am Pioneer Monty Manibog Passes Away at 86". Positively Filipino. Burlingame, California: Positively Filipino LLC. 17 August 2016. Retrieved 5 June 2026.
  20. ↑ Nissen, Zoe (22 January 2020). "Mayor Monty Manibog, A Pioneering Filipino American Official". USC Digital Library. Los Angeles: University of Southern California. Retrieved 3 June 2026.
  21. ↑ Medina, Rogelio (1 July 2025). "Lisa Lew's Fond Memories of the Fourth of July and Her Dad". Asian Journal. Retrieved 5 June 2026.
  22. ↑ "Nisei political record grows" (PDF). Pacific Citizen. Los Angeles. 15 March 1974. Retrieved 5 June 2026.
  23. ↑ "Sample Ballot". montereypark.ca.gov. City of Monterey Park. 5 March 1974. Retrieved 5 June 2026.
  24. ↑ Vergara, Benito (2009). Pinoy Capital: The Filipino Nation in Daly City. Temple University Press. p. 121. ISBN 978-1-59213-664-3. Retrieved 5 June 2026.
  25. ↑ Bayan, Visitacion (1978). "Leading Filipino Americans of the greater Los Angeles area, Monty Manibog, circa 1978". Calisphere. Los Angeles: University of California Libraries. Retrieved 3 June 2026.
  26. 1 2 3 4 5 Arguelles, Dunce (1 October 2003). "Ex-Pinoy wrestler challenges 'Terminator' in California polls". The Philippine Star. Bonifacio Global City, Taguig, Philippines: MediaQuest Holdings, Inc. Retrieved 5 June 2026.
  27. ↑ "Monterey Park: Ethnic Diversity Wins All-American Honor". Los Angeles Times. 28 March 1985. Retrieved 5 June 2026.
  28. ↑ Ward, Mike (11 May 1986). "Torres Probe of Superfund Listing Draws Political Flak". The Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 5 June 2026.
  29. ↑ Thompson, Robert (25 August 2013). "The Calderon family: A political timeline". capitalweekly.net. Sacramento: Open California. Retrieved 5 June 2026.
    Imamura, Peter (18 June 1982). "Few Asian Americans victorious in Calif. primary" (PDF). Pacific Citizen. Los Angeles: Japanese American Citizens League. Retrieved 5 June 2026.
  30. ↑ Shelley, Kevin (23 September 2003). Certified List of Write-In Candidates for the October 7, 2003 Statewide Special Election (PDF) (Report). California Secretary of Stae. Retrieved 5 June 2026.
  31. ↑ Shelley, Kevin (7 October 2003). Statement of Vote (PDF) (Report). California Secretary of State. Retrieved 5 June 2026.
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