I think Pitoy Moreno’s invaluable contribution to Philippine fashion was really sharing this with the entire world.  His fashion shows abroad were legendary. He used the beauty of our Filipino women and our fashion to show the entire world our culture and our people. He was truly the first Philippine Ambassador of Fashion. —Rajo Laurel

I still remember back in high school when I would get excited seeing photos of Pitoy Moreno’s creations on Pinay supermodels like Tweetie de Leon and Bea Recto. His creations using local fabric and his designs for Philippine Airlines were a testament to world-class Filipino design. Those were the times I would dream of becoming a fashion designer myself someday. —James Reyes

As a designer, Mang Pitoy was a Master Showman. He knew how to present himself and his clothes. You either loved him or hated him, no ifs no buts. Would we ever be so lucky to live our lives as we deem fit? No apologies just like Pitoy Moreno? He’s one of a kind. Bravo!—Eric Pineda

The Maria Clara Filipiniana dress, I think, was Pitoy’s biggest contribution to Philippine fashion. Not that it originated from him, but he dared present it in his own distinctive designs during his fashion shows here and around the world. —Barge Ramos

Mang Pitoy was one of the foremost designers whom I looked up to as one of the first to introduce Philippine fashion to the world and as the unofficial Ambassador of all of us designers who followed his lead. He also paved the way for us to aspire to promote Filipino design and ingenuity to the global stage, giving him the title as the “Czar of Philippine Fashion.” —Randy Ortiz

The core of my inspiration for haute couture elegance has and always will be Pitoy Moreno. I will always remember the hilariously embarrassing first encounter I had with “Asia’s Fashion Czar” when I was just an upstart designer. He complimented me and my newbie fashion collection. After thanking him, I asked him who he was. I think it was in the late ’70s. He just looked at me before turning his back. I was so embarrassed! To his credit, he never took it against me. —Mike dela Rosa

It is common knowledge among industry insiders that Pitoy Moreno was once the richest designer in the country. That he was able to put his money in good investments is extremely important for fellow designers like us to learn from. He was an astute businessman as well as a consummate artist. He showed us that it is possible to be good at both.

One of Mang Pitoy’s legacy is to champion Filipino creativity by doing numerous fashion shows abroad. In doing so, he also showed the world how beautiful our race is as seen through his models.

I’m in awe of his foresight by securing for himself a comfortable future early on. Designers are creatures of excess, but Mang Pitoy knew how to reign himself in even if he had so much. —Dennis Lustico

Ramon Valera is credited for modernizing the terno, but I think Pitoy Moreno, thanks to his longevity and amazing energy and determination to stage fashion shows abroad, took it further by introducing the terno to the world. He was also the master of what we younger designers then called “eat bulaga” or close-open collection. It was a product of its time when rich and fashionable women wore jackets and opera coats underneath their dresses and gowns. Pag bukas nila ng coat or cape, you’d see the inside either lined with colorful fabrics or embroidered and beaded. I also associate Pitoy Moreno with Imelda Marcos’ Bagong Anyo, a regular fashion show-cum-party at the Palace to impress foreign dignitaries and the then first lady’s high profile friends during the martial law years.

Pitoy, for me, was an institution. He was a versatile designer who did timeless pieces. I caught him at the height of his powers when I was being trained as a newbie designer by Christian Espiritu, one of Pitoy’s contemporaries, although much younger.

On a personal level, I was one of his go-to illustrators later on for many years. I illustrated for him based on a rough sketch he did and a few verbal instructions over the phone. Kuha ko na agad. We didn’t become close, but he respected me. He was very thoughtful as well. There was never any direct talk of money for the illustrations I did for him. But every time his driver went to my place to get an illustration he commissioned me to do, he never failed to hand me a letter envelope containing cash. He was never kuripot in that sense. He was very busy, but he’d find time to call me every so often. I missed his calls. And every Christmas, for a good number of years, he always sent me gifts like special cookies through his driver. To those who don’t know him, he was a legend. But Pitoy was also very down to earth. —Loretto Popioco

Pitoy Moreno brought the Philippine costume to the world stage. He brought pride to the Philippines most of all. I first met him on the steps of St. Patrick’s Cathedral the day after his fashion show in New York in 1995. He was very Old World. For one, his sentences were peppered with Spanish words, like those Dons you get to watch in old Tagalog movies. —JC Buendia

Pitoy Moreno had always been proud of the Filipino dress. In all his shows, especially abroad, a segment on Filipiniana fashion was always a major, major part of the show. As a designer, he didn’t veer too far from the norm because he still showed Western-style clothes. But the Filipino dress was something Pitoy kept pushing even years after he started it.

That push is needed much more now because Filipinos, unlike during the time of Pitoy and his contemporaries, were really wearing ternos and barongs to formal affairs.

In a way, I belong to that batch consisting of Auggie Cordero, Joe Salazar, and Gang Gomez, who experienced the tailend of Pitoy’s influence when it came to Filipiniana fashion.

When I was just starting out in the business, Pitoy was one of the three persons who reminded me to take my work more seriously. There was a time I would go back and forth from the Philippines to the US where my entire family is still based.

I’d do some clothes when I was in town, and then leave again for the US. Pitoy noticed this and pulled me aside during a party at Boy Saulug’s (former fashion director) house. Perhaps he saw my potentials. I don’t know if he was like that with most young designers then. More than anything else, he was there to encourage me.

A few years later, I found myself assisting Pitoy, especially when he had shows in Malacañang collectively called Bagong Anyo. I’d be called, no, summoned to the Palace because Pitoy did those shows, especially when there was a state visit. It wasn’t just me he tapped, but other young designers.

In a way, those shows opened opportunities for us young designers because the younger women in the audience would also see what we did and what we were capable of. Otherwise, it would not have been easy for me to develop my own clientele because established women those days go to a handful of veteran designers, including Pitoy. —Inno Sotto

As “Asia’s Fashion Czar,” Pitoy will long be remembered for showcasing Filipino fashion on the world’s runways. He was definitely a designer from the old school.  He took his work seriously and, according to people who knew him, really enjoyed being with his clients. They reciprocated that affection by remaining loyal to him.When I returned to the Philippines from the US to permanently live here in the early 2000s, I was re-introduced to him by friends and that was the beginning of what I would describe as a sustained friendship. He has been to my house for dinners and other parties many times. One funny incident still stands out in my mind. Pitoy never discussed his age. I always sensed it was a taboo topic. At one of our birthday club dinners, when it was time to pay the bill, the celebrant asked, “Where’s your senior citizen card, Pitoy?” and, without missing a beat, he responded, “I don’t have one. I am not a senior.” —Ito Curata

Vintage photos of Pitoy story credited on line to CNNPhilippines.com.