He was born in Inayawan, Cebu, which at the time of his birth in 1908, was part of Pardo.
Literature and journalism
Bacalso edited the Cebuano periodicals Bisaya from 1932 to 1934 and Manila-printed periodical Lamdag of Malayan Publishing Company. He was the founder of Tabunon, a Manila-printed periodical published by Mariano Jesus Cuenco. Known with his pseudonym "Talyux", he published Cadena de Amor'', a collection of stories, together with Fausto Dugenio. In 1947, Bacalso together with Vicente del Rosario was sued for libel filed separately by then Cebu municipal councilor Marcos Morelos and Mayor Dr. Luis Espina. The complaint was about an article Bacalso published alleging Espina and Morelos for various wrongdoings. The Supreme Court, upon the appeal by Morelos whose complaint in the local court was dismissed, reversed the ruling and sent it back to the local court.
Radio
Moreover, Bacalso was a noted broadcaster and hailed as Cebu's prominent radio commentator in his time. His radio program broadcast, which were aired in radio stationsDYRC and DYSS, was transmitted in Visayas and Mindanao and enjoyed ratings between 80% to 90% among Cebuano-speaking provinces.
However, he defected from the administration before the start of the 1969 Philippine presidential election and supported the opposition standard bearer, Sergio Osmeña Jr. of the Liberal Party. The popularity of his show and his talent for radio commentary undermined the Marcos' candidacy in Visayas and Mindanao and prompted belated efforts to persuade him to switch loyalty back to the administration.
By 1972, Marcos declared martial law in the country and remained president by virtue of transitory provisions in the 1973 Constitution that called for Marcos to convene an interim National Assembly in a shift towards parliamentary form of government, which he never did. In 1976, he called for a referendum to ratify amendments to the 1973 Constitution. The 1978 Philippine parliamentary election was the first national election to create a legislative body called Interim Batasang Pambansa during the Marcos dictatorship, and administration bets campaigned under the Kilusang Bagong Lipunan. The opposition party, Lakas ng Bayan, fielded candidates that included Ninoy Aquino, and in Central Visayas, Natalio Bacalso led the local opposition party Pusyon Bisaya together with 12 other candidates that included Fr. Jorge Kintanar, Hilario Davide Jr, Valentino Legaspi, Filemon Fernandez, Mariano Logarta, Alfonso Corominas, Julian Yballe, Eutiquio Cimafranca, Jesus Villegas, Jun Medina, Domingo Pernes and Bartolome Cabangbang. During his campaign speeches, Bacalso exposed the ills and human rights abuses of the Marcos regime. He was elected as assemblyman to the Interim Batasang Pambansa, Mariano Logarta became the minority leader, and Pusyon Bisaya won all 13 seats in Central Visayas region.
Filmography
Bacalso was nominated for Best Director in the 1956 FAMAS Awards for the film Salingsing sa Kasakit . Among the films he directed were:
Mutya sa Saging Tindok
Magdalena
Alimatok
Death
Bacalso died on March 30, 1980 at the age of 71.
Historical commemoration
On March 7, 1984, the Natalio Bacalso South National Highway was named in his honor by virtue of the Batas Pambansa Bilang 684. Regarded as Cebu's longest road, it starts from Leon Kilat Street and ends in Santander, Cebu.
