Dingdong Dantes got his start as a member of the boy dance troupe Abztract Dancers, and hit teen idol stardom in 1995, at age 17, in the Philippine teen drama
TGIS (Thank God It's Sabado). Many teen movies and tv series followed.
His first major adult role came in the fantasy series
Encantadia (2005-) which
has been a bit more successful than
Rounin , with 256 episodes to date.
He played Ybarro, a bandit, who falls in love with a diwata, a fairy-like being from Philippine folklore who lives in another dimension. It turns out that he is really Ybrahim, lost heir of the Kingdom of Sapiro.
He got his cousin and best friend Arthur Solinap (left), who was working as a dancer and model, a role as a soldier named Muros.
He also got Arthur a role in
Eternity (2006), about a pair of star-crossed lovers (Dingdong Dantes, Iza Calzado) who transcend time and space. Arthur played his cousin and best friend Demetrio.
And in the dramatic series
MariMar (2007-2008), about a poor girl named MariMar who falls in love with the wealthy Sergio (Dingdong Dantes). Arthur played Diego, husband of the evil Monika. (By the way, there was also a gay character, the chauffeur Arturo, who was in love with Sergio)
And in the comedy
I Heart You, Pare (2011-), a
Victor/Victoria homage about a woman disguised as a drag queen. Dingdong plays Kenneth, manager of the drag club, who is in love with him/her. Arthur has a recurring role as Chong dela Paz.
You can see it
on youtube, but you have to speak Tagalog.
Both Dingdong and Arthur have been interviewed by gay magazines. Arthur Solinap even posed in a Speedo for
X-Ray.
With all that brotherly love and courting of gay fans, one wonders if the two are a couple?
Guess not. Dingdong is engaged to Marian Rivera, and although Arthur Solinap claims to be a "gay magnet," his gay friends are just friends.
