Isao Kimura
Biography
Isao Kimura was a Japanese actor. He was born on June 22, 1923, in Senda, Hiroshima, Japan. Kimura appeared in more than one hundred films, collaborating with directors such as Akira Kurosawa and Mikio Naruse. He was also involved in the famous Lone Wolf and Cub film series. Kimura's acting career spanned almost thirty years. He founded and directed an acting company, which ultimately went bankrupt. Kimura died of esophageal cancer on July 4, 1981, at the age of 58.
Career overview
Isao Kimura, also known as Ko Kimura, was a Japanese stage and film actor born on June 22, 1923, in Senda, Hiroshima, Japan. During a career that spanned nearly thirty years, he appeared in more than one hundred films. His filmography included work with several notable directors, most prominently Akira Kurosawa and Mikio Naruse.
Kimura appeared in several films directed by Akira Kurosawa. His first collaboration with Kurosawa was the 1949 film Stray Dog, in which he played the criminal Yusa. Perhaps his most notable collaboration with Kurosawa was in Seven Samurai, where he portrayed Katsushiro, the youngest of the samurai. He also appeared in other Kurosawa works including Throne of Blood and High and Low. In addition to his collaborations with Kurosawa and Naruse, Kimura appeared in the Lone Wolf and Cub film series and founded and directed an acting company which ultimately went bankrupt.
Kimura passed away from esophageal cancer on July 4, 1981.
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Frequent co-stars
Career timeline
Full Filmography
104 titles- Akira Kurosawa: It Is Wonderful to Create: 'Stray Dog' (2002) as Self
- Nukata no Ōkimi (1980)
- Ayu no uta (1979) as 木島先生
- Seishi Yokomizo Series II Masquerada (1978)
- Invitation from the Beach (1978) as Toshihiko Kurahashi
- Fuyu no Undokai (1977)
- My Brother (1976) as Father
- 遺書 白い少女 (1976)
- Pastoral: To Die in the Country (1974) as Film Critic
- Lone Wolf and Cub: White Heaven in Hell (1974) as Tsuchigumo Hyoei
- Confessions Among Actresses (1971) as Director Nose
- Pleasure Resort Troubadour's Song (1970)
- Sky Scraper! (1969)
- Fill the Cup with Blood (1969)
- Secret Information (1968) as Goro Izawa
- Black Lizard (1968) as Kogoro Akechi / Matsukichi
- Affair in the Snow (1968) as Kazuo Imai
- Where did Sharaku go? (1968)
- The Affair (1967) as Mitsuhuru
- Rusty Pendant (1967)
- Journey (1967)
- Impasse (1967) as Shingo, Ibuki
- Look Up, Noble One (1966) as Tatsuo Kurokawa
- Sazen Tange and The Secret of the Urn (1966) as Yagyu Genzaburo
- Conquest (1965) as Inspector Enya
- Miyamoto Musashi V: Musashi vs Kojiro (1965) as Hon'iden Matahachi
- Snow Country (1965) as Shimamura
- Assassination (1964) as Tadasaburo Sasaki
- Miyamoto Musashi IV: The Duel at Ichijo-ji Temple (1964) as Hon'iden Matahachi
- The Shape of Night (1964) as Saitô
- Cruel Story of the Shogunate's Downfall (1964)
- High and Low (1963) as Detective Arai
- Yakuza of Seki (1963) as Morisuke of Hakoda
- Bushido: The Cruel Code of the Samurai (1963) as Hirotaro Iguchi
- Miyamoto Musashi III: Birth of Two Sword Style (1963) as Hon'iden Matahachi
- Cases of Umon: The Woman with an Umbrella (1963) as Tomokichi
- Bloody Record of the Shinsengumi (1963)
- Our Marriage (1962) as Yutaka Matsumoto
- Miyamoto Musashi: Showdown at Hannyazaka Heights (1962) as Hon'iden Matahachi
- Nippon no obaachan (1962)
- The Temple of Wild Geese (1962) as Atsumichi Uda
- Four Sisters (1962) as Shoji Ohtsu
- The Thinking Leaf (1962)
- Knightly Advice (1962)
- Hokkaido, My Love (1962)
- The Harbor Lights (1961)
- Miyamoto Musashi (1961) as Hon'iden Matahachi
- Beware of The Gunman (1961)
- City (1961)
- Daigaku buyū-den (1961)
- The Prickly-Mouthed Geisha Goes to Sado (1961)
- Young Lord Yakuza (1961)
- The Eighth Enemy (1961) as Kutsuda
- Hero of the Red Light District (1960)
- The Brass General (1960)
- White Cliffs (1960)
- The Stragglers (1960)
- The Woman and the Pirate (1959) as 幸七
- Hahakogusa (1959) as Yoshihiko Takayama
- Police Precinct: Nothing Left at the Scene (1959)
- Tokyo Detective Girl (1959)
- Summer Clouds (1958) as Okawa
- Little Peach (1958) as Ryokichi Urushiyama, the husband
- Beyond the Seasonal Wind (1958)
- Vice (1958) as Iwase Shichiro
- Throne of Blood (1957) as Phantom samurai
- The Story of Pure Love (1957) as Segawa Hospital doctor
- Showdown in Blood (1957)
- Police Precinct: Crime at High Noon (1957)
- Rice (1957)
- Price of Beauty (1957) as Kazuhiko Uematsu
- I Saw the Killer (1956) as Takeo Fujisaki
- Avalanche (1956)
- Tengoku wa doko da (1956)
- The Wife is a University Student (1956) as Noboru Hiyoshi (Keiko’s Husband)
- Yukiko (1955)
- The Sacrifice of the Human Torpedoes (1955) as Ensign Tamai
- Beautiful Days (1955) as Imanishi
- Ofukuro (1955)
- Tomorrow I'll Be a Fire-Tree (1955) as Kashima
- Seven Samurai (1954) as Katsushiro Okamoto
- Cape Ashizuri (1954)
- A Billionaire (1954) as Koroku Tate
- The Valley Between Love and Death (1954) as Kanji Sakata
- The End of a Day (1954)
- Student Double Suicide (1954)
- At the End of the Clouds (1953)
- Mr. Pu (1953)
- A Lonely Woman in a Lonely Land (1953)
- Ikiru (1952) as Intern
- The Yamabiko School (1952)
- Vacuum Zone (1952) as Kitani
- Violence (1952)
- Weeping Doll (1951) as Nomine
- The Love Letter Trial (1951)
- Elegy (1951)
- Still I Live On (1951) as Mizuno
- Dancing Girl (1951) as Nozu
- Beyond Love and Hate (1951)
- Sekidô matsuri (1951)
- The Angry Street (1950)
- Stray Dog (1949) as Yusa
- The Love of the Actress Sumako (1947)
- The War at Sea from Hawaii to Malaya (1942)
Frequently Asked Questions
What movies or TV shows is Isao Kimura best known for?
Isao Kimura is widely recognized for notable roles and projects including Casino Tycoon II (1992), Pastoral: To Die in the Country (1974), Black Lizard (1968), High and Low (1963).
When and where was Isao Kimura born?
Isao Kimura was born on June 22, 1923 in Senda, Hiroshima, Japan. They passed away on July 4, 1981.
How many credits does Isao Kimura have?
Isao Kimura has accumulated over 104 film and television credits across a career spanning from 1942 to 2002.
What is Isao Kimura's background in cinema and television?
Isao Kimura was a Japanese actor. He was born on June 22, 1923, in Senda, Hiroshima, Japan. Kimura appeared in more than one hundred films, collaborating with directors such as Akira Kurosawa and Mikio Naruse. He was also involved in the famous Lone Wolf and Cub film series. Kimura's acting career spanned almost thirty...
Isao Kimura by the numbers
Age in their best-rated roles
- High and Low (1963) as Detective Arai — aged about 40
- Seven Samurai (1954) as Katsushiro Okamoto — aged about 31
- Ikiru (1952) as Intern — aged about 29
- Throne of Blood (1957) as Phantom samurai — aged about 34
- Stray Dog (1949) as Yusa — aged about 26
- Pastoral: To Die in the Country (1974) as Film Critic — aged about 51
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