Japanese Celebrity Obituaries

Naomi Kawashima passes away at 54

Actress Naomi Kawashima, a pioneering female university student who began making television appearances, died of bile duct cancer at a Tokyo hospital Thursday. She was 54.

Born in Nagoya, Kawashima, whose real name was Naomi Yoroizuka, drew public attention as she was picked as a late night radio music programfs disc jockey in 1981 while she was still studying at Aoyama Gakuin University.

Kawashima attracted many fans after making regular appearances in the gOwarai Manga Dojoh (gFunny Manga Training Hallh) TV show. As an actress, she took roles in TV dramas, such as gIguana no Musumeh (gThe Daughter of Iguanah) and gShitsurakuenh (gParadise Lost)h, and in movies including gKagih (gThe Keyh). In recent years, she was also performing in musicals.

Kawashima was diagnosed with cancer in January last year. After undergoing surgery, she resumed acting. But she withdrew from a musical she was starring in earlier this month, as her physical condition worsened.

She looks so familiar, but I don't recall seeing any of her dramas. Maybe I saw her on some news site.
RIP

Setsuko Hara passes away at 95

Japanese screen legend Setsuko Hara, most famous for her role in Yasujiro Ozu's classic Tokyo Story, died of pneumonia on Sept. 5. She was 95.

The actress, born Masae Aida in Yokohama, had been a virtual recluse since her retirement in 1962, and news of her death only reached the public when her family made the announcement, as Japan's Kyodo News Agency reported on Wednesday.

Hara appeared in films by Tadashi Imai and Akira Kurosawa, but it was her roles in six Ozu productions that she was most remembered for. Among them, it was her portrayal of the grieving widow Noriko – the name of a number of her characters in Ozu films – who takes care of her dead husband's parents in Tokyo Story (1953).

From her debut in 1935 until her sudden, unexplained retirement in 1962, she appeared in more than 100 films.

Her last major role was in Hiroshi Inagaki's 1962 version of the classic samurai tale Chūshingura (47 Ronin). She retired to live alone in Kamakura, a former Japanese capital about 30 miles from Tokyo, where a number of Ozu films had been set and the legendary director was buried.

Ignoring numerous offers to come out of retirement, Hara was rarely seen in public afterward, not even attending Ozu's funeral.

gaijinmark wrote:Setsuko Hara passes away at 95

Ignoring numerous offers to come out of retirement, Hara was rarely seen in public afterward, not even attending Ozu's funeral.

I think I read somewhere that many considered her a Japanese version of Greta Garbo...

Manga artist Mizuki Shigeru passes away

Prolific manga creator Shigeru Mizuki passed away on Monday morning in a Tokyo hospital. He was 93.

Mizuki fell and hit his head in his home on November 11, and had been hospitalized since then. He then died of heart failure at the hospital on Monday.

Mizuki had ended his latest manga, the autobiographical Watashi no Hibi (My Everyday), in May. Shogakukan had noted at the time that the reason for the abrupt end was not due to Mizukifs health.

Mizuki was born in Osaka in 1922, and he grew up in Tottori Prefecture. He was drafted into the Japanese Imperial Army during World War II, where he injured — and later lost — his left arm. He penned multiple manga based on his experiences in World War II, such as Onward Towards Our Noble Deaths and Watashi no Hibi.

Mizuki was also famous for his manga about yōkai — Japanese supernatural creatures. His manga and research into yōkai is largely responsible for the popularity that yōkai stories have today. He recently starred in a documentary about yōkai that aired on Japanese television in September.

Mizuki was the first Japanese creator to win a major award at Francefs Angoulême International Comics Festival when he won the Fauve dfOr: Prix du Meilleur Album in 2007 for NonNonBâ. He was also honored as a Person of Cultural Merit by the Japanese government in 2010.

North American publisher Drawn & Quarterly has released many of Mizukifs works in English, such as Onward Towards Our Noble Deaths, and Showa: A History of Showa Japan (Comic Showa-Shi), the latter two of which were nominated for a Harvey Award in 2012 and 2014, respectively. Drawn & Quarterly also published a one-volume selection of Mizukifs Ge Ge Ge no Kitaro series under the title Kitaro in 2013, and it plans to publish seven more volumes of the series. The company also published Mizukifs biographical Hitler manga this month.

Mizukifs Showa 1939-1944: A History of Japan and Showa 1944-1953: A History of Japan manga won the 2015 Will Eisner Comic Industry Award for Best U.S. Edition of International Material—Asia in July.

Taira Tomi passes away at 87

Actress Tomi Taira, who achieved great popularity for her role in the popular TV series gChura-san,h died Sunday of respiratory failure at a hospital in Naha, Okinawa Prefecture. She was 87.

In 2001 she was featured in the NHK drama series as gObaa,h an grandmother of the heroine acted by actress Ryoko Kuninaka.

Taira, who spoke the Okinawan dialect in the TV programs, won over audiences nationwide thanks to her charming smile and behavior.

Born Tomiko Taira in Okinawa in 1928, she joined a local musical drama group at the age of 13.

When you look at the names of the people that were at his funeral, gives a pretty good indication of how important he was in Japanese theater.

Yukio Ninagawa passes away at 80

Director Ninagawa Yukio passed away on 12 May at the age of 80 due to multiple organ failure caused by pneumonia. His funeral hosted by his daughter photographer Ninagawa Mika, was held at Aoyama Funeral Hall on 16 May which was attended by a total of 1,344 people including fans. Celebrities who attended the funeral included Suzuki An, Aoi Yu, Matsumoto Jun, Ninomiya Kazunari, Kagawa Teruyuki, Hasegawa Hiroki, Takahata Mitsuki, Matsuzaka Tori, Asaoka Ruriko, Miyamoto Amon, Mori Shinichi, Fujiki Naohito, Ikuta Toma, Okamoto Kenichi, Ichimura Masachika, Shinohara Ryoko, Tsuruta Mayu, Onoue Matsuya, Yamamoto Kansai, Watanabe Ken, Yokota Eiji, Katsura Yumi, Harada Mieko, Kamikawa Takaya, Tabe Mikako, Ishibashi Renji, Kitamura Kazuki, Natsuki Mari, Iura Arata, Saito Takumi, Abe Hiroshi, Uchino Seiyo, Kimura Takuya, Miyazawa Rie, Kimura Yoshino, Nishioka Tokuma, Mizobata Junpei and Maeda Atsuko.

5 actors who were especially close to Ninagawa i.e. Hira Mikijiro, Otake Shinobu, Yoshida Kotaro, Fujiwara Tatsuya and Oguri Shun took turns to read their condolence messages. Hira said that he was thankful to Ninagawa for helping him to lead a fruitful life on stage and he had worked hard to earn words of praise from the latter. He commented that he won't say goodbye to Ninagawa as they will meet someday soon. As for Otake, she revealed her gratitude and thanks to Ninagawa and remembered fondly his smiling face whenever she did well in her acting. Yoshida commented that Ninagawa had a peaceful and beautiful face as if he was sleeping. Fujiwara and Oguri who were the favourite disciples of Ninagawa, took turns to reveal their thoughts about their beloved mentor. Oguri said that he was happy to be part of the Ninagawa Theatre Group and hoped that Ninagawa would come into his dreams to scold him at times. When it was Fujiwara's turn, he was sobbing and said that he would most likely have been scolded if Ninagawa saw him. He was sad and regretful that they didn't get to work more together but was glad that Ninagawa helped him transform as an actor since they first met in 1997 and thanked him for the 19 years they spent together.

During the final address to those who were present for the funeral, Ninagawa Mika thanked everyone for coming despite their busy schedules and recounted how her father was fighting to the last minute and always said that he could die anytime without regrets. However, when she found a script for a play which he intended to produce, she realised that he must have wanted to do that play too. Although her father would not see another new work again, she hoped that all of them will continue to work hard and forge ahead.

Source: Sponichi 1 / Sponichi 2 / Sponichi 3 / Sponichi 4

Yumi Shirakawa passes away at 79

Actress Shirakawa Yumi passed away on 14 June due to heart failure at the age of 79. Shirakawa whose real name was Nitani Akiko, was the wife of actor Nitani Hideaki who passed away in 2012 due to pneumonia and leaves behind their daughter Yurie who is the president of Try Group and used to be an actress.

Shirakawa became an actress in 1955 and made her debut in the movie "Narazumono". She married Nitani in 1964 and they were known as a model couple. Shirakawa had appeared in many dramas and movies such as "Majo no Jouken", "Ohisama", "Kaseifu no Mita", "GTO" and "DOCTOR X".

The wake will be held on 17 June while the funeral will be on the following day.

Source: Daily Sports

If you're trying to place her, she played Aimi Nakamura's mom in GTO.

gaijinmark wrote:Yumi Shirakawa passes away at 79

Actress Shirakawa Yumi passed away on 14 June due to heart failure at the age of 79. Shirakawa whose real name was Nitani Akiko, was the wife of actor Nitani Hideaki who passed away in 2012 due to pneumonia and leaves behind their daughter Yurie who is the president of Try Group and used to be an actress.

Shirakawa became an actress in 1955 and made her debut in the movie "Narazumono". She married Nitani in 1964 and they were known as a model couple. Shirakawa had appeared in many dramas and movies such as "Majo no Jouken", "Ohisama", "Kaseifu no Mita", "GTO" and "DOCTOR X".

The wake will be held on 17 June while the funeral will be on the following day.

Source: Daily Sports

If you're trying to place her, she played Aimi Nakamura's mom in GTO.

that's sad news. last time i saw her was in Black President back in 2014. so it was her last role for the dramas?

Ei Rokusuke dies at 83:http://www.asahi.com/ajw/articles/AJ201607110065.html

Actress/singer Lilly passes away from lung cancer

Actress-singer Lily passed away in the morning of 11 November due to lung cancer as announced by her agency. She was 64 years old. Her funeral will be attended by family members and close acquaintances only in accordance to her wishes.

Lily whose real name was Kamata Saeko, made her debut as a singer in 1972 with the album "Tamanegi" and had released hit singles such as 1974's "Watashi wa naiteimasu" and 1976's Orenji mura kara haru e". As an actress, she had appeared in movies such as "Natsu no Imouto" in 1972 and "Shoukei Yuugi" in 1979. She took a break from 1983 to 1995 due to marriage and childbirth. Lily's latest appearance in a movie was in "Yu wo wakasu hodo no atsui ai" starring Miyazawa Rie which is currently showing in cinemas. Her son JUON is the vocalist of band FUZZY CONTROL and the husband of DREAMS COME TRUE's Yoshida Miwa. Prior to her death, Lily was resting due to her lung cancer condition.

JUON wrote on his Twitter page that his mother passed away at a ROCK time of 6.09am today (the digits 6 and 9 rhyme with rock in Japanese) and referred to her as the person who taught him what it means to love. From now on, his mother will continue living in his heart and he will work hard to make music which can reach out to everyone's hearts. He also thanked Lily for giving him his name Juon (means the sound of trees in Japanese Kanji).

Sources: Oricon 1 / Oricon 2 / Oricon 3

Hiroki Matsukata passes away at 74

Matsukata Hiroki succumbed to cerebral lymphoma on 21 January at the age of 74 while hospitalised in a Tokyo hospital. The first sign of his health troubles first surfaced on 23 February last year when various media agencies reported that he was said to be suffering from a cerebral tumour. Due to the need for long term recuperation, he quit from the Yume Concert which was supposed to run from 1 March to 8 June last year and his play "Tooyama no Kin-san to Onna Nezumi" was also cancelled. It was only later when it was known that he was actually suffering from cerebral lymphoma and had been heading in and out of the hospital all this while due to the administration of cancer medicine which caused cerebral infarction from time to time.

Matsukata was the eldest son of period drama star Konoe Juushirou and actress Mizukawa Yaeko and has a younger brother Meguro Yuki who is also an actor. Although Matsukata wanted to become a singer initially, he entered Toei in 1960 when he was in the last year of high school and secured his first leading role in his debut movie "Juunanasai no Gyakushuu Bouryoku wo buttsubuse" the same year. Since then, he has appeared in many dramas, movies and variety programmes. Matsukata was previously married to actress Nishina Akiko and the couple's son and daughter Masaki and Hitomi are also active in showbiz. He also has another son Meguro Daiju from a previous marriage who is an actor.

In accordance to Matsukata's wishes, his agency announced to the media that his funeral will only involve his family members and close associates. In addition, offerings and condolence money will not be accepted. As for the farewell ceremony, details will be released at a later date after discussions with all parties involved.

Sources: Sponichi Annex / Nikkansports / Sanspo / Sponichi

'Monsieur' Kamayatsu passes away at 78:http://www.japantimes.co.jp/culture/2017/03/02/entertainment-news/monsieur-kamayatsu-ex-member-1960s-rock-band-spiders-dies-78/

He was the guy that ran the bar in "Muri na Renai".

Watase Tsunehiko passes away at 72:http://www.japantimes.co.jp/culture/2017/03/16/films/tsunehiko-watase-yakuza-movie-star-known-role-oshin-dies-72/

Just as a great ballplayer will get his number retired, they should now retire the character of overbearing mother-in-law:

Yoko Nogiwa passes away at 81

Actress Nogiwa Yoko passed away at the age of 81 on 13 June as reported on 15 June. According to insiders, her wake and funeral which was attended by family members only had been completed.

Nogiwa was born in Toyama City, Toyama Prefecture, before she moved to Suginami, Tokyo, at the age of 3. After graduating from Rikkyo University, she managed to overcome the low odds of 0.3% to become a NHK announcer in 1958 and was the host for programmes like "Ohayou Minna-san". After quitting from NHK in 1962, she worked at an advertising agency for three months and switched to become a freelance announcer which then landed her the job of being the host of TBS programme "Josei Senka". In the following year, Nogiwa made her debut as an actress in the TBS drama "Hi no Utsuwa" and continued working as an actress until she went to study French literature at Universite de Paris in 1966. After she returned in 1968, she starred in the TBS drama "Key Hunter" which ran for 5 years and achieved ratings above 30 percent at the peak of its popularity. It was then when she met co-star Chiba Sonny and the couple got married in 1973 before she gave birth to their daughter Manase Juri in 1975 at the age of 37. However, when Chiba wanted to move to the US in 1994, Nogiwa didn't want to follow him there and felt that there were no longer any feelings between them so the couple went their separate ways.

Since then, Nogiwa had appeared in many dramas and movies and was especially known for her role as the mother-in-law who spoilt her son Fuyuhiko (Sano Shiro) in the 1992 TBS drama "Zutto anata ga suki datta". She also holds the title of the No.1 female guest who had appeared the most times (21) on Kuroyanagi Tetsuko's signature show "Tetsuko no Heya" as they had been close friends since the days when she was a NHK announcer. Nogiwa's last drama appearances are in the ongoing TV Asahi afternoon drama "Yasuragi no Sato" and TV Asahi Spring 2017 drama "Keishicho Sousa Ikka Kyugakari" while she can also be seen in the movie "Itsumata kimi to Herijunzailai" which was released in cinemas on 24 May.

Nogiwa was diagnosed with lung cancer in 2014 while she was acting in the FujiTV afternoon drama "Hanayome no Noren" and went through treatment. However, she suffered a relapse in the following year and went through an operation to remove the tumour. Although her condition had seen an improvement after chemotherapy, rumours of her being in ill health persisted especially when she was the only person in the cast absent from the production press conference of "Yasuragi no Sato" held on 16 March this year.

With regard to why Nogiwa passed away, her agency said that they would like to refrain from making her health problems public so as to respect her privacy. Even though Nogiwa had a number of illnesses in the past, she still tried her best to live healthily and happily.

Sources: Sports Hochi / Sanspo / Sponichi

gaijinmark wrote:Just as a great ballplayer will get his number retired, they should now retire the character of overbearing mother-in-law:

Yoko Nogiwa passes away at 81

Actress Nogiwa Yoko passed away at the age of 81 on 13 June as reported on 15 June. According to insiders, her wake and funeral which was attended by family members only had been completed.

Nogiwa was born in Toyama City, Toyama Prefecture, before she moved to Suginami, Tokyo, at the age of 3. After graduating from Rikkyo University, she managed to overcome the low odds of 0.3% to become a NHK announcer in 1958 and was the host for programmes like "Ohayou Minna-san". After quitting from NHK in 1962, she worked at an advertising agency for three months and switched to become a freelance announcer which then landed her the job of being the host of TBS programme "Josei Senka". In the following year, Nogiwa made her debut as an actress in the TBS drama "Hi no Utsuwa" and continued working as an actress until she went to study French literature at Universite de Paris in 1966. After she returned in 1968, she starred in the TBS drama "Key Hunter" which ran for 5 years and achieved ratings above 30 percent at the peak of its popularity. It was then when she met co-star Chiba Sonny and the couple got married in 1973 before she gave birth to their daughter Manase Juri in 1975 at the age of 37. However, when Chiba wanted to move to the US in 1994, Nogiwa didn't want to follow him there and felt that there were no longer any feelings between them so the couple went their separate ways.

Since then, Nogiwa had appeared in many dramas and movies and was especially known for her role as the mother-in-law who spoilt her son Fuyuhiko (Sano Shiro) in the 1992 TBS drama "Zutto anata ga suki datta". She also holds the title of the No.1 female guest who had appeared the most times (21) on Kuroyanagi Tetsuko's signature show "Tetsuko no Heya" as they had been close friends since the days when she was a NHK announcer. Nogiwa's last drama appearances are in the ongoing TV Asahi afternoon drama "Yasuragi no Sato" and TV Asahi Spring 2017 drama "Keishicho Sousa Ikka Kyugakari" while she can also be seen in the movie "Itsumata kimi to Herijunzailai" which was released in cinemas on 24 May.

Nogiwa was diagnosed with lung cancer in 2014 while she was acting in the FujiTV afternoon drama "Hanayome no Noren" and went through treatment. However, she suffered a relapse in the following year and went through an operation to remove the tumour. Although her condition had seen an improvement after chemotherapy, rumours of her being in ill health persisted especially when she was the only person in the cast absent from the production press conference of "Yasuragi no Sato" held on 16 March this year.

With regard to why Nogiwa passed away, her agency said that they would like to refrain from making her health problems public so as to respect her privacy. Even though Nogiwa had a number of illnesses in the past, she still tried her best to live healthily and happily.

Sources: Sports Hochi / Sanspo / Sponichi

She ranks among the very best character actresses of all time in dorama.

He never appeared on screen out of costume, nevertheless, he was a celebrity:http://screenrant.com/godzilla-suit-actor-haruo-nakajima-death-obituary/

Yoshio Tsuchiya passes away at 90

One of the more interesting actors to appear in Toho's Godzilla and other science-fiction movies, Yoshio Tsuchiya, has passed away at age 90.

He was born in Kofu, Yamanashi on May 18, 1927 and played quirky characters. Tsuchiya appeared in such movies as Godzilla Raids Again, Monster Zero, The Mysterians, Destroy All Monsters, Seven Samurai, Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah, Matango, The Human Vapor, Battle In Outer Space, Red Beard, Space Amoeba and many others.

He had said that he enjoyed appearing in science-fiction films, saying, "Most actors get comfortable with a certain genre, and they stick to that. But as far as I was concerned, it was equally prestigious to appear in science-fiction films or in Kurosawa movies."

According to Celebrity Icons, Tsuchiya passed away several months ago, but due to other health issues, his family delayed making an announcement until now.

Ren Osugi passes away at 66

Veteran actor Ren Osugi has passed away from heart failure.

Osugi was a highly respected and versatile actor. He appeared in Beat Kateshi films such as "Hana Bi" and last year's "Outrage Coda" as well as in Takashi Miike's "Dead or Alive" movies.

Born in Komatsushima City, Tokushima in 1951, he became a stage actor after quitting Meiji University in 1973. He made his film debut in 1980 in the movie "Kinbaku Ikenie".

If the name doesn't ring a bell, here is his JDorama page:https://jdorama.com/artiste.osugi-ren.415.htm

gaijinmark wrote:Ren Osugi passes away at 66

Veteran actor Ren Osugi has passed away from heart failure.

Osugi was a highly respected and versatile actor. He appeared in Beat Kateshi films such as "Hana Bi" and last year's "Outrage Coda" as well as in Takashi Miike's "Dead or Alive" movies.

Born in Komatsushima City, Tokushima in 1951, he became a stage actor after quitting Meiji University in 1973. He made his film debut in 1980 in the movie "Kinbaku Ikenie".

If the name doesn't ring a bell, here is his JDorama page:https://jdorama.com/artiste.osugi-ren.415.htm

don't see that coming! no idea he had a heart problems RIP Osugi