Isabella Villarama Granada (Tagalog:[ʔɪsaˈbɛlgɾaˈnada]; March 9, 1976[1] – November 4, 2017) was a Filipino actress and singer.
Early life and education
Isabel Granada was the daughter of Humberto Ortiz Granada, a Filipino chief marine engineer and Isabel Villarama, a Spanish homemaker.[2] Her father died in 1995.
Granada attended the Philippine Air Transport and Training Services College, where she obtained her bachelor's degree in aeronautical engineering[3] in 2001 and secured her private pilot license.[4] She served as an airwoman second class in the Philippine Air Force for two years.[5]
Career
Granada was a commercial model prior to starting a career in acting.[3]
In 2008, Granada played the role of Elena Valderama in the remake of Kaputol ng Isang Awit[8] with co-star Glaiza de Castro and Lovi Poe, recently shown on the GMA Network. She also appeared in the romantic comedy drama Philippine remake Lalola. In 2009, she was one of the guest stars in the Philippine adaptation of Zorro. During her final years in 2013, she joined It's Showtime's Bida Kapamilya Celebrity Round[7] with her Kapamilya's and she was working again on ABS-CBN's Got to Believe as Tessa Zaragosa,[9] along with Kathryn Bernardo and Daniel Padilla, among others.
In 2017, she played the challenging role of Jessica in Wish Ko Lang wherein she portrayed a woman disguised as a man just to feed her kids. No one knew that the new carpenter was a woman.
Music
Granada released her self-titled debut album under Dypro Records in 1990 with songs like "Crush na Crush",[6] "Classmate Dear Classmate", and "My Inspiration".[6]
In 1998, Granada released the album Out Here on My Own[3][10] and in 2000 she released In the Mood for Love.[3][11]
Personal life
Granada's first marriage was to Geryk Genasky, a councilor in Pampanga[6] in 2002. They eventually separated after twelve years,[12] but their relationship produced one son, Hubert Thomas Jericho Granada Aguas.[13] She married Arnel Cowley in 2015,[13] and was a stepmother to his daughters: Sarah, a young model and Abbey Cowley.[14]
Around 2006, Granada underwent oophorectomy of her right ovary after a cyst had developed; she again had to undergo the operation in 2008 after two cysts had grown on her left ovary, which were accidentally discovered during a removal of a benign tumor in her uterus.[15]
Coma and death
On October 25, 2017, Granada fell into a coma after experiencing six cardiac arrests during a meet and greet session with her fans in Doha, Qatar. Granada had traveled to Doha with her husband to attend the Philippine Tourism and Trade Conference, where she was a guest speaker. She was rushed to the Heart Hospital of the Hamad Medical Corporation[16] and was later transferred to Hamad General Hospital.[17]
In December 2017, actress Kim Rodriguez portrayed Granada and actor Benjamin Alves as Granada's husband, Arnel Cowley for their love story on the drama anthology, Wagas.[22]
^ abcAvante, Wells; Caliwara, Karen (October 25, 2017). "A peek into Isabel Granada's life as a mother". Philippine Entertainment Portal. Philippine Entertainment Portal, Inc. Retrieved October 25, 2017.
