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The young Patrick’s life could easily have followed an entirely different path.
Instead, entertainment found him.
His mother, who had herself been an actress and singer in the Philippines, recognized her children’s potential and began taking them to auditions.
One of those auditions would change everything.
It was for The King and I.
Adiarte was still a child when he joined the stage production, appearing among the royal children opposite Yul Brynner.
It was the beginning of a career that would eventually take him from Broadway to Hollywood.
The King and I
For many performers, appearing in one major musical would be the highlight of an entire career.
For Adiarte, it was only the beginning.
When The King and I was adapted into a major motion picture in 1956, he returned to the story, this time portraying Prince Chulalongkorn.
He appeared alongside Brynner and Deborah Kerr in the film, bringing to the screen the same character he had helped portray on stage.
Imagine that for a young performer.
One moment, you are a child auditioning for a musical.
The next, you are standing on a Hollywood set with major stars and becoming part of a film that audiences will continue watching decades later.
Adiarte had made the transition from stage performer to film actor before many people his age had even begun thinking about careers.
And he wasn’t finished.
Another Musical, Another Milestone
Adiarte’s career continued with another major musical production.
He appeared in Flower Drum Song, first on Broadway and later in the 1961 film adaptation, playing Wang San.
The Rodgers and Hammerstein musical was an important production in its era, and Adiarte’s involvement placed him once again in the middle of a major American entertainment event.
His career was developing in several directions at once.
He could act.
He could dance.
He could perform on stage.
And he had the kind of versatility that allowed him to move between different forms of entertainment.
He also appeared in the 1960 comedy High Time, starring Bing Crosby and Fabian, portraying college student T.J. Padmanagham.
But perhaps one of the most revealing parts of his early career came through dance.
The Dancer Behind the Actor
Before television audiences came to know him as Ho-Jon, Adiarte was already an accomplished dancer.
He became one of the regular dancers on Hullabaloo, the NBC musical variety series that aired during the 1965–1966 television season.
This was the era of elaborate television variety shows, when dance numbers, singers, comedy and celebrity performances were brought together for prime-time audiences.
Adiarte fit naturally into that world.