José O. Vera


José Olfinas Vera was a Filipino politician, judge and film studio executive.
Vera served as Representative from Albay's 2nd district from 1916 to 1919, Governor of Albay from 1919 to 1922, and Senator of the Philippines from the 6th district during the 7th to 10th Legislatures and for the whole nation in the 1st Congress. He served in the seventh branch of the Court of First Instance of Manila as judge ad interim. Beyond politics, he was also the head of the production studio Sampaguita Pictures which he handed over to his son-in-law Jose R. Perez in the 1950s.
In 2004, the Quezon City Council honored Vera by renaming Granada Street, which runs through the old Sampaguita Pictures estate, after him.

Early life and education

Vera was born November 15, 1888 in Pandan, which was then part of Albay province. He studied at Colegio de San Juan de Letran then took up law at Escuela de Derecho, garnering second place in the bar in 1913 after peer Manuel Roxas.