| Mother Lily Lily Yu Monteverde | |
| Birth Name: | Lily Yu Chu |
| Birth Date: | 19 August 1938 |
| Birth Place: | Manila, Philippines |
| Death Place: | Manila, Philippines |
| Resting Place: | The Heritage Park, Taguig, Philippines |
| Native Name: | 楊莉華 |
| Native Name Lang: | Chinese |
| Othername: | Mother Lily |
| Occupation: | Film producer, hotelier |
| Yearsactive: | 1960–2024 |
| Parents: | Domingo Chu (father) |
| Children: | 6, including Goldwin |
Lily Yu Chu-Monteverde[1] (19 August 1938 – 4 August 2024), known as Mother Lily and professionally credited as Lily Yu Monteverde, was a Chinese Filipino film producer and businesswoman.
Monteverde was one of the first Filipina movie producers who produced many local blockbuster films under different genres in the 1970s and 1980s. She produced movies with Alma Moreno, Lorna Tolentino, Maricel Soriano, Snooky Serna and Dina Bonnevie starring as lead stars during that time. She also propelled Richard Gomez and Aga Muhlach's careers to greater heights in the early 1990s.
Her father Yu Chu did not provide her with dowry after she decided to marry Leonardo, a San Beda University basketball star. In 1958, her brother Jesus granted her a loan to finance Regal Entertainment as distributor of Hollywood films, starting with her ₱7,000 film rights to All Mine to Give, which hit the ₱500,000 mark in the box office. In 1961, Monteverde, as adventurer earned ₱200 per day of work with her parent-in-law at Montemarte Department Store. With her two popcorn makers costing 3,000 pesos, she started her business as popcorn hawker at a Cherry Foodarama in Mandaluyong and at Good Earth Emporium at Rizal Avenue.[2]
Her very first 1974 Magsikap: Kayod sa Araw, Kayod sa Gabi sold P4 million from a P400,000 cost. Monteverde revealed that her top films include Sister Stella L., Shake, Rattle, and Roll and Mano Po.[3]
Monteverde produced nearly 300 films in the Philippines from the early 1960s. She operated Regal Entertainment for many years. The Mano Po film series, which began in 2002 and was produced by her filmmaking firm, paid tribute to her Chinese Filipino roots and became a hit in various local markets.[4]
In August 1996 she invested much of her wealth into hotels in Quezon City.[5] She opened the Imperial Palace Suites on the site of an old gasoline station at the corner of Tomas Morato Avenue and Timog Avenue in Quezon City.
In 2000, she received the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Cinemanila International Film Festival. She also received the Fernando Poe, Jr. Lifetime Achievement Award in the 37th Luna Awards in 2019, the Ina ng Pelikulang Pilipino Award in 2017 and the Lifetime Achievement Award in 2023 from the Film Development Council of the Philippines.[6] [7]
Monteverde was born in Bicol to Domingo Yu Chu, a copra magnate, philanthropist, educator, and founder of the Shang Yi Zhong Xue Chinese school and Profetiza Buban Yu. She was the youngest of 12 siblings. She was the mother of five children, including UP Fighting Maroons basketball coach Goldwin Monteverde of UP Fighting Maroons.[8] [9] Her husband, Leonardo “Remy” G. Monteverde (born December 25, 1937) owned several Art Deco theatres in Manila. He died of pneumonia on July 29, 2024.[10]
She studied at St. Scholastica's College, Manila and Miriam College. Monteverde and her family resided in Greenhills, San Juan. She had seven grandchildren and a great-grandchild.[11]
Monteverde died in Manila on August 4, 2024, at the age of 85, less than a week after the death of her husband and 15 days before her 86th birthday.[12] She was buried at the Heritage Park in Taguig.[13]
| width="90%" class="wikitable sortable" | |||||
| Year | Award-Giving Body | Category | Work | Result | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 | Best Original Story (with Roy Iglesias) | align=center rowspan=1 | Mano Po[14] | ||
| 2003 | align=center rowspan=1 | Mano Po 2: My Love[15] |