JUAN ?Johnny? Dugan Villena, 73, former chief photographer of the Philippine Daily Inquirer, died at 5:30 a.m. yesterday of complications due to prostate cancer.

?Chief,? as he was known to his staff and colleagues in media, is survived by his wife Adelita Abanto Villena; children John Alex and wife Ana, Anthony and wife Olive, and Maria Beatriz; and grandchildren John Edward, John Ulysses, Maryrose Anne and Ashton. His eldest child, Rosa Gina, died years ago.

Villena was chief of the photo department of the Inquirer at its founding in 1985. His staff described him as a jolly but strict boss. Photojournalist Jess Yuson remembers how he and Villena followed the tanks on Edsa during the first People Power revolt until the guns were trained on them.

He was a good storyteller, Yuson said.

There was the time Eugenia ?Eggie? Apostol, Inquirer founder, gave Villena money to repair his jeep after its rough edges had ripped her skirt when he had given her a ride. The money ended up paying for a round of beer with the boys at the National Press Club. ?There was no dull moment with him,? Yuson said.

Villena started out as a police photographer with the Times Journal in the 1970s but was taken in by Apostol when she put up the alternative newspaper Mr and Ms Special Edition towards the end of the martial law regime.

As chief photographer of the Inquirer, Villena required his staff to be first on the scene of all major news events. He equipped his photographers with two-way radios and the latest in camera equipment.

Villena retired in 1996 but was asked to stay on as a photo correspondent. He did not stay long, however, as he was ?pirated? to head the photo section of the short-lived Philippine Post in the late 1990s.

After his retirement from newspaper work, Villena became active in the Our Lady of Light Parish in Cainta, Rizal. He became a lay minister. His colleagues found it harder to invite him for late night drinks because he would say he had to wake up early to preach. He was also a member of the Knights of Columbus in Cainta.

Villena?s son, lawyer John Alex, said doctors discovered the cancer in 2003. He was taking medication daily until 2006 when Chief suffered a stroke. He underwent a heart bypass operation in 2008.

John Alex described his father as very caring and willing to sacrifice just to give the best to his family. He gave them the best education. His younger brother Anthony is a dentist while Maria Beatriz is a psychologist. Rosa Gina was also a journalist before she died in the 1990s.

John Alex said his parents would have celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary on Jan. 6.

Villena?s body lies at St. Peter Memorial Chapel in Antipolo City, near the Antipolo Cathedral. Interment will be on Jan. 7 after the 2 p.m. Mass.