Hanging Out with a '70s Toei Tokusatsu Icon!

Go Takashina. Photo by Brett Homenick.

On Saturday evening, May 14, I had the opportunity to meet Toei actor Go Takashina for the first time.

Go Takashina, whose real name is Masahiro Takashina (which also used to be his old stage name under a different kanji spelling), began acting professionally in 1973. He has appeared in several movies, but he is mostly known for his decades-long career in television.

Since debuting as an actor, Takashina-san has appeared in episode 14 of Iron King (1972-73) as Phantom member Minazuki, episode 26 of Kamen Rider X (1974) as the human form of a GOD agent, episode 6 of The Kagestar (1976-77), episode 11 of Toho's Super Sentai-inspired series Enban Senso Bankid (1976-77) as a police officer, and (most notably) episodes 16 through 35 of Daitetsujin 17 (1977) as Tetsugoro Iwayama.

When I sat down across from Takashina-san, he said that I had a nice face. Later on in the evening, he was looking at a poster for the James Dean epic East of Eden (1955). I asked him who directed it, but he wasn't sure. I got up to look at the poster and found the name of director, Elia Kazan. But then I quipped that it was actually "Alien" Kazan, which is a play on the katakana spelling of the two names. Well, at least he seemed to appreciate it!

All in all, Takashina-san didn't have many memories about his tokusatsu work. He was surprised to find out that I was familiar with Iron King and knew that he was in it. When I asked him about the infamous Starfish Hitler character from his episode of Kamen Rider X, he had no memory of it. But he was a lot of fun to hang out with and talked a lot about his enthusiasm for driving.

It was great to meet Takashina-san, who was quite a friendly chap to converse with.

A Very Toei Evening!

Sayoko Hagiwara. Photo by Brett Homenick.

Right ater work, I headed for Shimo-kitazawa to catch a play featuring two Toei actors: Shinzo Hotta and Sayoko Hagiwara, both of whom I've written about on this blog in the past.

 Shinzo Hotta. Photo by Brett Homenick.

When I entered the venue, I was surprised to see Shinzo Hotta hanging out in the lobby area. That's because I arrived about an hour after the production had started! He seemed to recognize me and then approached me, although he couldn't quite where he remembered me from. When I mentioned the event we last met, he remembered who I was.

As a refresher, Hotta-san's acting roles date back to the mid-1960s at Toei Studios. Among many others, his credits include: Female Convict Scorpion: Jailhouse 41 (1972), Iron King (1972-73), Ninja Captor (1976-77), and Message from Space: Galactic Wars (1978-79).

Despite having blogged about Sayoko Hagiwara countless times here, I might as well put in a reminder about her, too. Hagiwara-san essayed the role of Ryoko Hoshi, Yullian's human form, on Ultraman 80 (1980-81) from episode 43, as well as Dyna Pink in Dynaman. She also appeared on Flashman as the villain Leh Nafel.

An Evening at the Theater!

Yumi Mizusawa. Photo by Brett Homenick.

On Friday evening, immediately after work, I got on the train and headed to see actress Yumi Mizusawa in a stage performance near Ikebukuro. The play was quite interesting, and it ended in a much more violent way than I expected. Anyway, after the show, I had a great time chatting with Mizusawa-san.

As a refresher, Mizusawa-san starred in the TV series What Is Youth? (1965-66) alongside Toho star Yosuke Natsuki. While her credits are mostly non-genre, she appeared in episode 91 of Kamen Rider (1971-73) and episode 16 of Iron King (1972-73). Her most notable film appearance is in Kihachi Okamoto's Epoch of Murder Madness (1967).

Time Slip Back to Taisho!

Actress-singer Yumi Mizusawa. Photo by Brett Homenick.

I just returned from a stage performance that featured actress-singer Yumi Mizusawa in the starring role. It was an interesting show that focused on one of the central character's sudden time slip back to Japan's Taisho period. After the show, I was glad to have a nice chat with her.

Mizusawa-san starred in the TV series What Is Youth? (1965-66) alongside Toho star Yosuke Natsuki. While her credits are mostly non-genre, she appeared in episode 91 of Kamen Rider (1971-73) and episode 16 of Iron King (1972-73). Her most notable film appearance is in Kihachi Okamoto's Epoch of Murder Madness (1967).

My interview with Mizusawa-san can be read here.

Hope to see her again soon!

SHOWA HEROES OF THE 1970S! A Trio of Good Guys Joins Forces to Save the World!

From left to right: Shoji Ishibashi, Takeshi Sasaki, and Naoya Makoto. Photo by Brett Homenick.

I attended a Showa Hero event today that was headlined by three heroes of the '70s: Shoji Ishibashi, Takeshi Sasaki, and Naoya Makoto. It was a somewhat unusual grouping, as the three stars all headlined separate TV programs. But they are without a doubt three of the biggest heroes of the Henshin Boom of the '70s.

Naoya Makoto poses with his birthday cake. Photo by Brett Homenick.

Even though his actual birthday isn't until June 25, Makoto-san was presented with a birthday cake. Makoto-san commented that he will be turning 71 and that time flies. Indeed it does.

Naoya Makoto. Photo by Brett Homenick. 

For those of you not in the know, Naoya Makoto starred as the titular hero's human alter ego, Daisuke Misaki, in Tsuburaya Productions' Fireman (1973), as well as Tsuyoshi Kaijo/Akaranger in the original Super Sentai program Himitsu Sentai Goranger (1975-77).

I'd met him before at a previous Showa Hero event, and while I know he's attended other events since then, I'd never gotten a chance to see him until today. It's always a joy to meet a hero from Tsuburaya Productions.

Takeshi Sasaki. Photo by Brett Homenick.

Takeshi Sasaki was the actor who replaced the injured Hiroshi Fujioka on the original Kamen Rider (1971-73) series as Kamen Rider 2, and then teamed up with him later in the show.

It might be an exaggeration, but I'm not sure I'd ever seen a guest at any event in Japan sign as much memorabilia as Sasaki-san. Most fans in the line brought multiple (and I do mean multiple!) items for him to sign, and he took his time, carefully signing each one. It was quite interesting to see.

Shoji Ishibashi. Photo by Brett Homenick.

The final guest in the lineup was Shoji Ishibashi, who played Gentaro Shizuka on Iron King (1972-73).

He was the only guest I hadn't met before. Back in 2015, I briefly met his Iron King co-star Mitsuo Hamada at an event to which I'd arrived late. Ishibashi-san was very kind and was a great guest to meet.

And that concludes the most recent Showa Hero event.

A Stroll Around Inokashira Park!

Yumi Mizusawa. Photo by Brett Homenick. 

On Wednesday, March 6, I enjoyed a stroll around Kichijoji's Inokashira Park with actress-singer Yumi Mizusawa. Of course, it's still too early for cherry blossoms, but the weather wasn't warm enough to enjoy a lengthy walk.

By sheer coincidence, while I was waiting to meet Mizusawa-san at the train station, I spotted writer Fumio Ishimori approaching the ticket gates. We were both quite surprised and had a brief conversation.

I was happy to speak with Mizusawa-san about her acting and singing career in great detail. She began appearing on television in the early 1960s as a child actress, so her career in entertainment covers a lot of ground.

Many thanks to Mizusawa-san for the enjoyable afternoon!

Attending a Tokyo Talk Show!

Yumi Mizusawa. Photo by Brett Homenick.

On Thursday, November 29, I was invited to attend a taping of an online talk show hosted by actress Yumi Mizusawa. The taping location was quite far from my home, but thanks to an opening in my schedule, I was able to attend.

I was happy to see Mizusawa-san again, and she was eager to practice her English. I'm sure there will be more opportunities to come in the future.

TOEI VILLAIN! Attending a Special Event with Shinzo Hotta!

Shinzo Hotta. Photo by Brett Homenick.

The second event I attended today also had a Toei theme. It was headlined by Shinzo Hotta. Hotta-san's acting roles date back to the mid-1960s at Toei Studios. Among many others, his credits include: Female Convict Scorpion: Jailhouse 41 (1972), Iron King (1972-73), Ninja Captor (1976-77), and Message from Space: Galactic Wars (1978-79).

I first met Hotta-san three years ago, and haven't had a chance to see him since then. Of course, he was very friendly and approachable, which is exactly how he was when I first met him.

Returning to the Live Stage!

Yumi Mizusawa. Photo by Brett Homenick. 

On Saturday, July 14, I attended a stage performance starring actress Yumi Mizusawa.

Mizusawa-san was selected as a member of Toho New Talent's 5th class in 1965 (with Bibari Maeda) and went on to become a prolific television actress and singer. She starred in the TV series What Is Youth? (1965-66) alongside Yosuke Natsuki. While her credits are mostly non-genre, she appeared in episode 91 of Kamen Rider (1971-73) and episode 16 of Iron King (1972-73). Her most notable film appearance is in Kihachi Okamoto's Epoch of Murder Madness (1967).

I had a great conversation with Mizusawa-san after the show. She was surprised at how much I knew about her acting career. It was certainly great to see her again after meeting her for the first time last April.