Raizo Ichikawa
| Ichikawa Raizō VIII | |
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Ichikawa Raizō VIII, detail from movie poster for Shin Heike Monogatari (1955)
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| Born |
Yoshiya Ōta August 29, 1931 Kyoto, Japan |
| Died | July 17, 1969 (aged 37) Tokyo, Japan |
| Occupation | film actor, kabuki actor |
| Years active | 1954-1969 |
Ichikawa Raizō VIII (八代目 市川 雷蔵 Hachidaime Ichikawa Raizō?, born 29 August 1931 in Kyoto, Japan, died 17 July 1969 in Tokyo, Japan) was a Japanese film and kabuki actor.
He was born Yoshiya Ōta (太田 吉哉 Ōta Yoshiya) in Kyoto on August 29, 1931. A student and adopted son of Ichikawa Jūkai III, the name of Ichikawa Raizō VIII was bestowed upon him.
Ichikawa Raizō appeared mostly in period dramas (jidaigeki). He is best known for the Sleepy Eyes of Death (Nemuri Kyoshiro) series, Ninja (Shinobi no Mono) series and Nakano Spy School (Rikugun Nakano Gakkō) series (based on the Nakano School). Raizō worked many times with director Kenji Misumi. Their collaborations include The Sword (Ken) (from a book by Yukio Mishima) and Destiny's Son (Kill!).
Other great works include An Actor's Revenge (Yukinojo henge). He was so admired for his gracefulness that in his lifetime he was called "the genius who thinks with his body." He eventually died of rectal cancer.
The filmography of Ichikawa Raizō includes 158 films:
(1950s is complete)
(1960s incomplete)
...
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