His striking, timeless appeal is one of a kind.

And, for those who know Ian Veneracion as mainly the dapperEduardo, who charms us each night during the top rating run of Pangako Sa ‘Yo until early this year, itis quite interesting to reveal that he never lost his touch for over threedecades in the business!

Cute charmer

Ian started enamoring us as this cute little charmeropposite Joey de Leon in the 1982 sitcom Joeyand Son. Since then, the shrieks and screams never faded.

Of course, as a top young star out of that primetime comedygig, the late German Moreno had to include him in the most grandiose standardplatform for teen icons at the time, That’sEntertainment. That stint on the youth-oriented afternoon variety programfurther opened doors for him as he drew and grew his fanbase.

He would then become a teen heartthrob people adored.Appearing on one teeny-bopper flick after another, Ian rode the wave as theeffervescent idol who shone in the limelight. But, with numerous fellow youngactors jostling for the spotlight, retaining his popularity was a challengeespecially when those sparkling teenybopper days were about to end. As such,Ian was in the crossroads.

Action star

While some of his peers further zoomed up the showbiz ladderand others were left bursting at the seams, Ian shifted gears and took anuncompromising route to retain his flourishing run—being an action star.

Here, not only did he parade his versatility as an actor, heupgraded his image to a virile hunk still with the cutesy looks ready to takeon the prosperous genre of action—one that heralded such names as Robin Padillaand Bong Revilla. But while he didn’t reach the enormous heights fellow actionicons reached, Ian played his cards well—opting to appear in a variety ofroles, including villainous yet prominent portrayals.

In other words, his growing acclaim as a character actor becameestablished.

Here, he began his foray into teleseryes that have becomeriveting and unforgettable.

Appearing as either in support protagonist roles orover-the-top villains in melodramas, fantasy programs, or romantic series, Ianheld his own and made everyone further believe in his acting craft, whileamazingly retaining his irresistible youthful charm.

Eduardo

And this became all too real when casting for the remake of Pangako Sa ‘Yo started in early 2015.

ABS-CBN, which already tapped Ian in a number of teleseryes,considered him as a shoo-in to essay the crucial role of Eduardo Buenavista.And this, once more, offered yet another dimension to his astonishinglysustaining acting career—that of being a romantic lead. His “love team” withJodi Sta. Maria truly became talk-of-the-town and their on-screen chemistrybecame so electrifying that viewers, including boisterous millennials andteens, looked forward to each episode just to see how Eduardo and Amor’sheld-up romance would rebuild.

Leading man material

Ian, thus, became the leading man material we all wished himto attain since he began his showbiz journey as a scrappy yet handsome7-year-old. And now, after Pangako Sa ‘Yo,the 41-year-old Ian has extended his heartthrob tag with a romantic stintopposite Jodi in the riotous box office hit AchyBreaky Hearts, and soon will headline the teleserye A Love to Last with his new onscreen partner Bea Alonzo.

How does this princely looking actor, also an accomplishedpainter and sportsman, remain on top of his game? By taking good care ofhimself with healthy living through sports, treating his beloved family well,and truly making the right moves and strategies to chart his career.