'Machineman' Star Osamu Sakuta Passes Away at Age 62

Osamu Sakuta in May 2017. Photo by Brett Homenick.

Word has been circulating on Japanese social media that actor Osamu Sakuta has recently passed away at the age of 62. No further details are available at this time.

Osamu Sakuta was born on July 9, 1958, in Kagoshima, Kagoshima Prefecture, and began his professional acting career in 1971 after his family moved to Tokyo while he was in elementary school. He is best known for starring as Ken Takase, the titular character in Nebula Mask Machineman (1984), for Toei Studios. Prior to that, he could be seen in guest appearances on a variety of television tokusatsu programs as a child actor, such as episodes 38 and 39 of Spectreman (1971-72), episodes 31 and 48 of Kamen Rider (1971-73), episode 24 of Barom-1 (1972), and episode 7 of Kikaider (1972-73). He also appears as Lieutenant Oe in the Toho war epic The Imperial Navy (1981) and as Okada in the Ken Takakura drama Kaikyo (1982), directed by Shiro Moritani. In the 1990s, he became a voice actor for both TV anime shows as well as Japanese releases of American movies and TV programs.

I met Sakuta-san at an event held in May 2017. He was very friendly and approachable, and since we were connected on Facebook, I’d hoped that our paths would meet again someday. It’s a shame it was not to be.

Rest in peace, Sakuta-san.

UPDATE (12/8): Osamu Sakuta died of pancreatic cancer on December 4 at 11:59 p.m. 

Toei Heroes to the Rescue!

Hiroyuki Takano. Photo by Brett Homenick. 

Tonight, immediately after work, I made my way to Shinjuku to see a stage play starring two Toei (and even Tsuburaya Pro!) actors -- Hiroyuki Takano and Sayoko Hagiwara. These two names ought to be rather familiar by now, as I've blogged about both multiple times.

Takano-san can be seen in Ultra Seven (1967-68), Fight! Mighty Jack (1968), Operation: Mystery (1968-69), Spectreman (1971-72), Return of Ultraman (1971-72), Kamen Rider (1971-73), Silver Mask (1971-72), and Submersion of Japan (1974-75). However, his most notable role was co-starring in the Toei superhero series Barom-1 (1972) as Kentaro Shiratori.

Sayoko Hagiwara. Photo by Brett Homenick. 

Sayoko Hagiwara, who played the role of Ryoko Hoshi, Yullian's human form, on Ultraman 80 (1980-81) from episode 43, as well as Dyna Pink on Kagaku Sentai Dynaman (1983-84). She also appeared on Choushinsei Flashman (1986-87) as the villainous Leh Nafel.

I arrived rather late (due to work), so I was only able to catch the last 30 minutes or so of the play. It didn't bother me so much, as the reason I came was to visit Takano-san and Hagiwara-san, anyway. After the show, I spotted several friendly faces in the audience, and suffice it to say, it was great to see so many great people in one spot.

A great time was had by all.

BAROM-1'S NEW OPPONENT! Hiroyuki Takano Takes on Black Lizard!

With actor Hiroyuki Takano.

On Friday, July 6, I attended a stage play in Shinjuku that co-starred Hiroyuki Takano. The stage play was Kurotokage (Black Lizard), and while there were some similarities with the Kinji Fukasaku film version, it was mostly different. (For one thing, the Black Lizard was played by an actual woman in this version!) 

I had a quick chat with Takano-san after the show. He did a great job, as did the entire cast. There was quite a bit of fight choreography in the play, and given the amount of fighting happening on the stage at any given time, I'm a bit surprised there weren't a few close calls. Who knows -- maybe there were!

Anyway, it was an enjoyable show. 

Hey, Isn't That Barom-1 Crossing the Street?!

Hiroyuki Takano. Photo by Brett Homenick.

Now here's a coincidence. While crossing the street to attend Yukimura-san's concert in Shinjuku, I ran into actor Hiroyuki Takano. Actually, he stopped me as we were passing each other in the crosswalk, which made the experience that much more fun. 

Takano-san's extensive tokusatsu credits include: Ultra Seven (1967-68), Fight! Mighty Jack (1968), Operation: Mystery (1968-69), Spectreman (1971-72), Return of Ultraman (1971-72), Kamen Rider (1971-73), Silver Mask (1971-72), and Submersion of Japan (1974-75). Of course, his most notable role was co-starring in the Toei superhero series Barom-1 (1972) as Kentaro Shiratori.

Only in Tokyo!

MORE PICS! Hiroyuki Takano's Dinner Party!

Yours truly with Hiroko Saito, Yoshinobu Kaneko, and Hiroyuki Takano.

Hanging out with Yoshinobu Kaneko.

Hiroyuki Takano shows off his cake, celebrating 50 years as an actor.

Make a wish!

Hangin' with Hiroyuki Takano.

With the wonderful and talented Hiroko Saito.

Hey, look! It's Red Shadow and Blue Shadow!

Yoshinobu Kaneko strikes his famous Blue Shadow pose from Red Shadow.

Yoshinobu Kaneko poses for the camera.

50 YEARS AN ACTOR! Hiroyuki Takano Hosts a Stylish Celebration!

Child actors all grown up: Hiroyuki Takano, Hiroko Saito, and Yoshinobu Kaneko. Photo by Brett Homenick.

Last night, I attended a special dinner event as part of a celebration of Hiroyuki Takano's 50th anniversary celebration as an actor. (As you can imagine, he got started very young.) The celebration included two other former child actors: Yoshinobu Kaneko and Hiroko Saito.

With Yoshinobu Kaneko.

Yoshinobu Kaneko was a child actor with a varied career. In the West, Kaneko-san would be best known as the young boy in King Kong vs. Godzilla (1962) who begs his mother to go see Godzilla, only to be told that they're not going to the zoo. He stars in the title role of the Toei fantasy/action film Watari, Ninja Boy (1966) and co-stars as Blue Shadow in the Toei TV series Red Shadow (1967-68) and the movie spin-off Ninja Scope (1969). He also can be seen in episode 15 of Ultraman (1966-67), among numerous other TV and film appearances. Despite rumors to the contrary, he is not the younger brother of the late child actor Mitsunobu Kaneko, who starred in Johnny Sokko and His Flying Robot (1967-68). I first met Kaneko-san four years ago and never had a chance to see him again until last night. It was wonderful to see him again.

With Hiroyuki Takano.

Naturally, Hiroyuki Takano was a guest at his own celebration. Among other movie and TV appearances, Takano-san can be seen in Ultra Seven (1967-68), Fight! Mighty Jack (1968), Operation: Mystery (1968-69), Spectreman (1971-72), Return of Ultraman (1971-72), Kamen Rider (1971-73), Silver Mask (1971-72), and Submersion of Japan (1974-75). However, his most notable role was co-starring in the Toei superhero series Barom-1 (1972) as Kentaro Shiratori. It was a blast talking about San Diego and other California locations with him!

With Hiroko Saito.

Hiroko Saito has appeared in Kamen Rider (1971-73), Kamen Rider V3 (1973-74), Kikaider (1972-73), Barom-1, Inazuman (1973-74), Kamen Rider X (1974), Star Wolf (1978), Toei's Spider-Man (1978-79), and Ultraman 80 (1980-81). She was a regular on Tsuburaya Productions' Time of the Apes (1974-75) as the young girl Yurika. Saito-san is a lovely lady, and I look forward to seeing her again soon.

JAPANESE HEROES WALK THE MIRACLE MILE! A Who's Who of Fandom Celebs Attends a Jazz Concert!

Bin Furuya, Mari Shimizu, and Hiroyuki Takano pose for photographers during intermission at a jazz concert in Tokyo. Photo by Brett Homenick.

Saturday, November 21, saw a jazz concert take place at Hotel Molino near Shin-Yurigaoka Station. Mirai Miracle performed a number of jazz songs for a lively audience. In fact, toward the end of the show, most of the audience was dancing and singing right along with the music. It was truly a sight to behold!

Mirai Miracle sings jazz songs in both English and Japanese. Photo by Brett Homenick.

Although I've attended many jazz shows in Japan, the aspect that stuck out the most for me was the presence of several notable Japanese genre celebrities. Bin Furuya, Yuriko Hishimi, Hiroyuki Takano, and Mari Shimizu were all in attendance. I've talked about these folks so many times on this blog that introducing them all again seems beyond redundant. Still, if you'd like info on their careers, you'd do well to check this blog's archives.

Yours truly with the original Ultraman suit actor, Bin Furuya.

During the show, I was seated at Bin Furuya's table, and joining us were many familiar faces in Japanese fandom. We shared many laughs and great conversations.

Actress Yuriko Hishimi gets in on the fun as the audience starts dancing with the music. Photo by Brett Homenick.

As I mentioned earlier, the concert got especially fun when most of the people in the crowd began dancing and even singing with the music. That certainly never happened at any of the other jazz shows I've attended!

Japanese heroes Bin Furuya and Hiroyuki Takano shake hands and agree to save the world once again. Photo by Brett Homenick.

I was especially pleased to get to know actress Grace Mika. Even though I saw her perform on the stage last year alongside Bin Furuya, this was my first time to talk with her. She was born in Hawaii and speaks English very well (despite being raised in Japan).

Yours truly with actress-singer Grace Mika, who has co-starred with Bin Furuya onstage.

When all was said and done, many of us went to a nearby karaoke place and sang a variety of songs. We were briefly joined by Yuriko Hishimi, but Hiroyuki Takano stayed until the end and probably had more energy than the rest of us combined!

Hiroyuki Takano belts out the theme to Barom-1 during a karaoke after-party. Photo by Brett Homenick. 

As for me, I sang "We Didn't Start the Fire" by Billy Joel. Takano-san later told me that his favorite Billy Joel song is "New York State of Mind." 

It was a great evening in so many ways, and I'm very glad to have attended. I'm also glad to have caught the train home in time! We were out so late it seemed entirely possible I could have missed it!

AND THEY SAY HE'S FROM BOURBON STREET! Ultraman Suit Actor Bin Furuya Throws a Tokyo Bourbon Party!

Ultraman suit actor Bin Furuya addresses the gathered audience at the Brown Horse in Harajuku. Photo by Brett Homenick.

On Saturday, October 10, Ultraman suit actor Bin Furuya hosted a bourbon party at the Brown Horse in Harajuku, Tokyo, with an after party held at a Japanese restaurant in Naka-Meguro. Given that I usually work on Saturdays, I had to miss the first couple of hours of the shindig, and by the time I arrived, attendees were starting to make arrangements to attend the after party. Despite that, I enjoyed the evening immensely.

Astro Boy voice actress Mari Shimizu (left) poses with Barom-1 star Hiroyuki Takano (right). Photo by Brett Homenick.

In attendance were two celebrity guests: Mari Shimizu, the original voice actress who played the titular character in Astro Boy (1963-66), and Hiroyuki Takano, a former child actor who starred in the Toei tokusatsu series Barom-1 (1972) and guest-starred in episode 45 of Ultra Seven (1967-68), among other movie and TV roles.

I've met Shmizu-san several times at events over the years, and it's always great to catch up with her. She's still as energetic and lively as ever, and even when events were winding down late at night, she showed absolutely no signs of slowing down. When I get to be her age, I hope I have half her energy!

I had only met Takano-san once before, but he remembered me, and he tried out his English with me. (It's better than my Japanese, that's for sure!) Even though Takano-san is not so well known in the West, his career as a grownup and child actor touches many of the TV series that American tokusatsu fans are interested in, such as Ultraman Tiga (1996-97), Return of Ultraman (1971-72), Spectreman (1971-72) -- the list goes on!

Aside from the guests, I was saw many familiar faces who usually attend these events, and I even met new friends. Many interesting discussions were held, primarily about future events.

As always, Furuya-san was a total gentleman. I look forward to meeting him every chance I get. He went out of his way to make sure I had what I needed last night, and for that I am extremely grateful.

For a teetotaler like me, a bourbon party would be about the last place you'd find me. But if Bin Furuya is there, then there's no question that I'll show up, too. He's the real deal. In fact, he's Ultraman!

BAROM-1 TAKES THE STAGE! Hiroyuki Takano Returns with a Performance in Shinjuku!

Henshin! Actor Hiroyuki Takano and I strike a familiar pose onstage shortly after his most recent live performance in Tokyo.

Thanks to my friend Yasushi, I had the privilege of meeting actor Hiroyuki Takano earlier today. Takano-san was starring in a play at Theater Brats in Shinjuku, and following the performance, Yasushi introduced us. Even though our meeting was brief, I could tell that Takano-san was the type of actor who enjoyed meeting his fans.

Hiroyuki Takano co-starred in the Toei superhero series Barom-1 (1972) as Kentaro Shiratori. Takano-san has also appeared in episodes of Ultra Seven (1967-68), Fight! Mighty Jack (1968), Operation: Mystery (1968-69), Spectreman (1971-72), Return of Ultraman (1971-72), Kamen Rider (1971-73), Silver Mask (1971-72), and Submersion of Japan (1974-75).

Also of note was that the performance was also viewed by actress Yuriko Hishimi, one of the stars of Ultra Seven and Godzilla vs. Gigan (1972). Hishimi-san and I had a pleasant chat as well.

I look forward to meeting Takano-san again in the future!