A Farewell to Arthur "Chico" Lourant, 1929-2015

Actor Arthur Lourant (left) in a behind-the-scenes shots from the TV drama Shiiku. Photo courtesy of Ebony magazine.

I'm very sad to report the passing of former actor Arthur "Chico" Lourant, who passed away on July 20, 2015. Mr. Lourant, who was born on March 30, 1929, was 86 years old.

Best known to Japanese cult film fans in America as the Wester Island ambassador in Gamera vs. Jiger (a.k.a. Gamera vs. Monster X, 1970), as well as for his tour-de-force portrayal of Charlie in War of the Insects (a.k.a. Genocide, 1968), Mr. Lourant's acting career in Japan encompasses a much broader array of films, such as the gritty postwar drama Gate of Flesh (1964) and the envelope-pushing thriller Black Sun (1964), both of which were made at Nikkatsu Studios.

Mr. Lourant meets his fans in Japan. Photo courtesy of Ebony magazine.

The longtime resident of Tucson, AZ, was a Korean War veteran who found himself in Japan after the war, making his living by playing the trumpet before switching to becoming an actor. After being temporarily mistaken for Sidney Poitier by a Toho director, Mr. Lourant began his stint as an actor and became in demand in Japanese films in just about every genre there was at the time.

While not much has ever been known about his background, a July 1963 edition of Ebony magazine (Vol. 18, #9) surfaced in recent years that has filled in many blanks. (Information culled from the article, which can be retrieved on Google here, is used in this blog post.) For many years, most writers in the West referred to him by the erroneous name Chico "Roland," which is likely a result of the katakana rendering of his name. But let's make it clear that his name is actually Arthur Lourant.

In 2010, I wrote a letter to Mr. Lourant, requesting an interview. I received a friendly call from Mr. Lourant's daughter, who told me that he read my letter more than once and was very surprised anyone would be so interested in his acting career. At that time, it seemed like an interview would be a sure bet, but unfortunately his health began to decline, so it never happened. I will always regret never having had a chance to speak directly with him.

Rest in peace, Chico-san.

Horan the Unbelievable

Your humble blog-meister meets SFX film star Kathy Horan for the first time. (Photo was originally published in G-FAN #84.)

In July 2007, I was able to meet Kathy Horan, who appeared in several Japanese science fiction films in the 1960s (Goke Body Snatcher from Hell, War of the Insects, The Green Slime, etc.). I interviewed her over the telephone in 2006 about her various genre roles, but we didn't discuss meeting until I learned something very interesting...

Several months after the interview, I learned that Ms. Horan was friends with my stepmother. They'd known each other since the '70s and '80s when they were both flight attendants for Braniff Airlines. All these years, my stepmother knew a star of tokusatsu films, and I was totally unaware!

When I visited family in Colorado in '07, I was able to meet Ms. Horan. I gave her a copy of Weekly World News (then edited by Jeff Rovin) in which her name appears in an ad promoting G-FAN. Suffice it to say, she was very friendly, and she had more stories for me about her time in Japan.

All in all, a very cool experience. I guess this is a small world after all.