Misplaced Pages

Masakazu Tamura (田村 正和, Tamura Masakazu, 1 August 1943 - 3 April 2021) was a Japanese film and theatre actor.

Profile

Masakazu Tamura was born 1 August 1943 in Kyoto, Japan to Japanese actor Tsumasaburō Bandō. Tsumasaburō Bandō died when Tamura was only nine years old. His brothers Takahiro and Ryō are also actors. He had been thinking of becoming an actor in the future since he was a child. He was thus trained in fighting with swords and more traditional forms of Japanese theatre like Kabuki and Nihon Buyō. He graduated from Seijo University.

In 1960, he made a cameo appearance in the film Hatamoto Gurentai, in which his older brother Takahiro starred. The following year, he signed a contract with the Shōchiku Ōfuna company while he was still in university. In the same year, he made his official film debut in the film Eternal Woman directed by Keisuke Kinoshita. His first leading film role was Kono koenaki sakebi directed by Hirokazu Ichimura in 1965. He left Shōchiku in 1966 and established his own agency. In 1967, He released the first and last song in his career "Sora Ippai no Namida". His breakthrough came in 1970 after landing a role in the television series Fuyu no Tabi on TBS. From 1970s, Tamura focused predominately on television with occasional film appearances including Yasuharu Hasebe's film Female Prisoner Scorpion: 701's Grudge Song and Yasuo Furuhata's film Nihon no Fixer . From the mid-1960s to the 1970s, Tamura was called the Japanese Alain Delon.

He appeared in many period dramas (jidaigeki) such as Naruto Hichō on NHK and most of his roles were skilled swordsmen. He played the role of "Nemuri Kyoshirō" and won great popularity in 1972; it is Tamura's most famous role in jidaigeki. Later, five special version of the drama were made. He played the same role on the stage in 1973 and 1981. From 1963 to 1967, Tamura appeared in the Taiga drama 5 years in a row. He also appeared in the Taiga drama in Haru no Sakamichi (1971) and Shin Heike Monogatari (1972).

From the late 1980s he began to appear in comedy dramas such as Papa wa Newscaster or home dramas and gained new popularity.

In 1993, Tamura played the role of "Ogami Ittō" in Akira Inoue's film Lone Wolf and Cub: Final Conflict by Kazuo Koike's strong request. His photo book of the film was also released.

He is most famous for his role as the polite and highly idiosyncratic police detective "Furuhata Ninzaburō" in a self-titled drama by Japanese playwright Kōki Mitani. This drama was one of the most popular in its time and one of the most popular dramas in the history of Japanese television. The drama started in 1994 and Tamura continued playing Detective Furuhata until 2006.( In 1997, Tamura and Mitani worked together again in Sōrito Yobanaide on Fuji TV.)

In 2007, Tamura appeared in the film for the first in 14 years in Last Love.

Tamura won "Outstanding Actor" at the Monte-Carlo Television Festival for his work in the TV special Ah, You're Really Gone Now in 2009. Tamura appeared in several television dramas related to Chushingura and finally he played the role of "Ōishi Kuranosuke" for the first time in the special drama Chushingura Sono Otoko Ōishi Kuranosuke in 2010.

In 2018, he played the role of "Nemuri Kyoshirō" for the first time in about 20 years in Nemuri Kyoshirō The Final on Fuji TV. But he hinted at his retirement from acting soon after appearing in that TV movie.

He died of heart failure on 3 April 2021 at the age of 77.

Selected filmography

Films

Television dramas

Awards

References

1. ^ "俳優の田村正和さん死去、77歳 「古畑任三郎」などで人気". Tokyo Shimbun (in Japanese). 18 May 2021. Retrieved 18 May 2021.
2. ^ "Masakazu Tamura biography". Kinema Junpo. Retrieved 27 December 2020.
3. 鳴門秘帖　ガイドブック　上　NHKドラマ制作班　1977 p.149
4. "Masakazu Tamura". kotobank. Retrieved 1 November 2020.
5. ^ 日本映画人名事典 1996年度　下 P.150-151 キネマ旬報社 ISBN 4873761891
6. 　役者は一日にしてならず　春日太一　田村亮インタビュー　p.271ISBN 978-4093798693
7. "Masakazu Tamura profile". VIPTIMES. Retrieved 10 August 2021.
8. 昭和の名優100列伝　P.278北辰堂出版 ISBN 4864271852
9. "テレビの中心に居続ける美学 京都撮影所で語った田村正和さん". 47NEWS. Retrieved 10 August 2021.
10. "女囚さそり 701号怨み節". 日本映画情報. Retrieved 1 November 2020.
11. 週刊Heibon 1983年　第1232号　p.24-25
12. "「無名の兄」が明かす 弟・田村正和との「帰らざる日々」". Shūkan Gendai. Retrieved 10 August 2021.
13. ^ 昭和の名優100列伝　P.278-279 北辰堂出版 ISBN 4864271852
14. "Kozure Ōkami: Sono chiisaki te ni". 一般社団法人 日本映画製作者連盟. Retrieved 13 February 2019.
15. 子連れ狼 その小さき手に Official pamphlet P.4
16. 田村正和 子連れ狼その小さき手に 1992 Shueisha, Noriaki Yokosuka ISBN 9784087801736
17. 現代日本映画人名事典　男優篇 キネマ旬報社　2012　P.180-181 ISBN 978-4873763873
18. 総理と呼ばないで (in Japanese). ファミリー劇場. Retrieved 1 November 2019.
19. "ラストラブ". 日本映画情報. Retrieved 1 November 2020.
20. "『そうか、もう君はいないのか』主演の田村正和さんが「モンテカルロ・テレビ祭」で最優秀男優賞を受賞". Retrieved 18 October 2018.
21. "ドラマスペシャル 忠臣蔵〜その男、大石内蔵助". ザテレビジョン. Retrieved 1 November 2019.
22. "田村正和「眠狂四郎The Final」始動 "最後"の当たり役に入魂". 産経新聞. 11 July 2017. Retrieved 14 August 2017.
23. "俳田村正和が本誌に引退宣言 僕はもう十分にやったよ". Friday. 20 April 2018. Retrieved 16 July 2021.
24. "Actor Masakazu Tamura, star on TV and in film over 60-year career, dies at 77". Japantimes. 19 May 2021. Retrieved 3 June 2021.
25. "Popular Japanese actor Masakazu Tamura with 60-year career dies at 77". The Mainichi. 19 May 2021. Retrieved 3 June 2021.
26. "Hatamoto Gurentai". Schochiku. Retrieved 10 August 2021.
27. "東シナ海". 日本映画情報システム. Retrieved 13 February 2019.
28. "Curse of the Blood". eiga.com. Retrieved 11 December 2021.

External links

• Masakazu Tamura at IMDb
• NHK Archives Actor /Masakazu Tamura人物録 田村正和 俳優
• Masakazu Tamura, Agency for Cultural Affairs

• 1943 births
• 2021 deaths
• Male actors from Kyoto
• Seijo University alumni