Early Life and Career
Joseph Ejercito Estrada was born on April 19, 1937 in Tondo, an urban district of Manila. His family later moved to the wealthy suburb of San Juan. He belonged to an upper-middle-class family, and was the eighth of ten children of Emilio Ejercito and his wife Maria Marcelo. He was kicked out during his primary studies at the Ateneo de Manila University and subsequently enrolled in an engineering course at the Mapua Institute of Technology in an effort to please his father, but dropped out.
In his twenties, he began a career as a drama actor. He adopted the stage name "Joseph Estrada", as his mother objected to his chosen career and his decision to quit schooling. He also acquired the nickname "Erap" (a play on the Tagalog slang "pare", meaning buddy) from his friend Fernando Poe, Jr..
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