A photo of Linda Hardisty (1947-1986) is situated between two Kobe Port Tower candles at Asian Taipei in honor of her memory. Photo by Brett Homenick.
Tonight I was part of an incredibly special dinner at Asian Taipei, the restaurant owned by actress Yuriko Hishimi (
Ultra Seven,
Godzilla vs. Gigan) in Chofu, Tokyo. Hishimi-san organized the dinner for those who helped in the search to locate Linda Hardisty. As I wrote about on this blog, Hishimi-san was very interested to reunite with her former
Ultra Seven colleague. Unfortunately, Ms. Hardisty passed away almost three decades ago of natural causes.
Yours truly sat next to Yuriko Hishimi during the celebratory dinner at Asian Taipei.
Although we met under sad circumstances, many laughs were had throughout the evening, which lasted nearly four hours. Hishimi-san was very friendly and open with her thoughts and memories, and while she regaled us with stories and answered her questions, we dined on her restaurant's trademark Indian food.
Posing with Hishimi-san and a photo of the late Linda Hardisty.
It's been a long time since I last met Hishimi-san, so it was very enjoyable to catch up with her again. She thanked me for my role in finding out what became of the former
Ultra Seven guest star, but it was truly a group effort. The fans in Japan did their part, and I had an assist from Mike Barnum and Jacob Dow. We all pulled together and accomplished something significant.
We hope to continue to celebrate the life of Linda Hardisty. Many thanks to Hishimi-san for graciously hosting this private event.
I miss her terribly. I was introduced to Linda by my cousin, who was Linda's best friend in high school. This was after Linda returned to the US from her time in making Green Slime and Ultra Seven. It was a special time and, although we did not stay together, I have life-long memories of what we did have. She is always in my heart - especially as we approach the 30th anniversary of getting a phone call that is burned in my memory.
ReplyDeleteBrett-san, Thank you for your thorough investigation into Ms. Hardisty's premature departure. Her double roles in the "Ultra Seven" episodes left me a potent impression when I was a junior high school student in Tokyo back then. To me it is a consolation that so many Japanese people still remember her and cherish the precious memories about her associated with this sci-fi masterpiece...
ReplyDeleteRegards,
Takashi Kato
Hereford, AZ.
Thank you very much, Takashi. Please feel free to get in touch with me any time you'd like.
Delete