Jesus Velez Cruz (Tagalog pronunciation: [ˈkɾus]; December 24, 1947 – October 3, 2001), better known by his stage name Ricky Belmonte, was a Filipino actor, popular during the 1960s as one of Sampaguita Pictures' talents.
Belmonte was born as Jesus Velez Cruz on December 24, 1947 in Tondo, Manila to Cesar Cruz, Sr. and Milagros Velez.
His screen surname was taken from the Belmontes, STAR magazine publishers who, in the 1960s, used to publish several movie magazines like Movie World, Movie Land, Movie Star, among others.
He was survived by his three children - Renzo, Sheryl, and Patrick - by his marriage to actress Rosemarie Sonora from 1970 to 1986.
He died on October 3, 2001, in a hospital at Medical Center Parañaque in Parañaque, four days after cerebral hemorrhage caused by a massive stroke, he was 53 and was buried at the La Loma Cemetery in Caloocan.