was a Japanese businessman and served as president of

Daiei Film Daiei Film Co. Ltd. (Kyūjitai: Shinjitai: ''Daiei Eiga Kabushiki Kaisha'') was a Japanese film studio. Founded in 1942 as Dai Nippon Film Co., Ltd., it was one of the major studios during the postwar Golden Age of Japanese cinema, producing ...

. The self-proclaimed creator of

Gamera is a fictional monster, or ''kaiju'', originating from a series of Japanese films. Debuting in the 1965 film ''Gamera, the Giant Monster'', the character and the first film were intended to compete with the success of Toho's ''Godzilla'' film ...

, he produced the kaiju's second film '' Gamera vs. Barugon'', with the remainder of the Showa ''Gamera'' films produced instead by his son

Hidemasa Nagata (1925 – October 3, 2017) was a Japanese film producer and served as vice-president of Daiei Film. Filmography * '' Brooba'' (1955) * '' Punishment Room'' (1956) * '' The Crowded Streetcar'' (1957) * '' The Kiss'' (1957) * '' The Invisible ...

Film career

Born in Kyoto, Nagata attended the Ōkura Kōtō Shōgyō Gakkō (now

Tokyo Keizai University (Tokyo University of Economics) is a private university in Tokyo, Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the w ...

), but left before graduating. He joined the

Nikkatsu is a Japanese entertainment company known for its film and television productions. It is Japan's oldest major movie studio, founded in 1912 during the silent film era. The name ''Nikkatsu'' amalgamates the words Nippon Katsudō Shashin, literally ...

studio in 1925 and, after working as a location manager, rose to become head of production at the Kyoto studio. Experiencing conflicts with the Nikkatsu president, he left the company in 1934, taking many Nikkatsu stars with him, to form Daiichi Eiga. While short-lived, that studio created such masterpieces as

Kenji Mizoguchi was a Japanese film director and screenwriter, who directed about one hundred films during his career between 1923 and 1956. His most acclaimed works include ''The Story of the Last Chrysanthemums'' (1939), '' The Life of Oharu'' (1952), ''Ugets ...

's ''

Sisters of the Gion or ''Sisters of Gion'' is a 1936 black and white Japanese drama film directed by Kenji Mizoguchi about two geisha sisters living in Kyoto's Gion district. It forms a diptych with Mizoguchi's '' Osaka Elegy'' which shares much of the same cast an ...

'' (1936) and ''

Osaka Elegy is a 1936 Japanese drama film directed by Kenji Mizoguchi. It forms a diptych with Mizoguchi's '' Sisters of the Gion'' which shares much of the same cast and production team, and is considered an early masterpiece in the director's career. Plot ...

'' (1936). When Daiichi Eiga folded, Nagata became head of the Kyoto studio of Shinkō Kinema until the government reorganized the industry during World War Two. Against a government plan to combine the fiction film companies into two studios, Nagata fought hard for the alternative option of creating a third studio. His efforts resulted in the creation of the Daiei Motion Picture Company, where he first served as an executive. He rose to become president in 1947 and, apart from a brief period when he was purged by Occupation authorities, remained in that position until 1971. Under his reign, Daiei produced

Akira Kurosawa was a Japanese filmmaker and painter who directed thirty films in a career spanning over five decades. He is widely regarded as one of the most important and influential filmmakers in the history of cinema. Kurosawa displayed a bold, dyna ...

's ''

Rashomon is a 1950 Jidaigeki psychological thriller/ crime film directed and written by Akira Kurosawa, working in close collaboration with cinematographer Kazuo Miyagawa. Starring Toshiro Mifune, Machiko Kyō, Masayuki Mori, and Takashi Shimura as v ...

'' (1950) and entered it in the

Venice Film Festival The Venice Film Festival or Venice International Film Festival ( it, Mostra Internazionale d'Arte Cinematografica della Biennale di Venezia, "International Exhibition of Cinematographic Art of the Venice Biennale") is an annual film festival h ...

, where it won the grand prize and became the first Japanese film to win an international award, thus introducing Japanese cinema to the world. Nagata also spurred the production of Teinosuke Kinugasa's '' Gate of Hell'' (1953), the first Japanese color film to be shown abroad, earning both an honorary

Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film The Academy Award for Best International Feature Film (known as Best Foreign Language Film prior to 2020) is one of the Academy Awards handed out annually by the U.S.-based Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS). It is given to a ...

and the

Palme d'Or The Palme d'Or (; en, Golden Palm) is the highest prize awarded at the Cannes Film Festival. It was introduced in 1955 by the festival's organizing committee. Previously, from 1939 to 1954, the festival's highest prize was the Grand Prix du Fe ...

at the

Cannes Film Festival The Cannes Festival (; french: link=no, Festival de Cannes), until 2003 called the International Film Festival (') and known in English as the Cannes Film Festival, is an annual film festival held in Cannes, France, which previews new films ...

. Nagata also produced such renowned films as Mizoguchi's ''

Ugetsu , is a 1953 Japanese historical drama and fantasy film directed by Kenji Mizoguchi starring Masayuki Mori and Machiko Kyō. It is based on two stories in Ueda Akinari's 1776 book of the same name, combining elements of the '' jidaigeki'' ( ...

'' (1953) and ''

Sansho the Bailiff is a 1954 Japanese period film directed by Kenji Mizoguchi. Based on a 1915 short story of the same name by Mori Ōgai (usually translated as "Sanshō the Steward" in English), which in turn was based on a folktale, it follows two aristocratic ch ...

'' (1954), as well as '' Jokyo'' (which was entered into the

10th Berlin International Film Festival The 10th annual Berlin International Film Festival was held from 24 June to 5 July 1960. The Golden Bear was awarded to the Spanish film ''El Lazarillo de Tormes'' directed by César Fernández Ardavín. Jury The following people were announce ...

). On the popular front, Nagata's Daiei was also known for such successful film series as the Zatoichi films starring Shintaro Katsu, the Sleepy Eyes of Death series featuring Raizō Ichikawa, and the

movies. Due to the decline of the film industry, and Nagata's extravagant expenditures, Daiei went bankrupt in 1971, but he continued as an independent producer for some years after that. He produced more than 160 films during his career.

Baseball

During the age when many Japanese film studios owned professional baseball teams, Nagata served as owner first of the

Daiei Stars The were a Japanese professional baseball team that was founded in 1946, and played in various incarnations until 1957, when it merged with another team. Overall, the franchise only had three winning seasons, never rising higher than third place. ...

, and then of the Daimai Orions when the Stars merged with the Mainichi Orions in 1958. He promoted the two-league system, helped build Tokyo Stadium, and became the first president of the

Pacific League The or is one of the two professional baseball leagues constituting Nippon Professional Baseball in Japan. The winner of the league championship competes against the winner in the Central League for the annual Japan Series. It currently consi ...

in Japan. He was inducted into the

Japanese Baseball Hall of Fame The is a museum which includes a library, reference rooms and . It first opened in 1959 next door to Korakuen Stadium in Tokyo, Japan. In 1988, the museum moved to a new site within the Tokyo Dome. The Hall of Fame and Museum was created as a ...

in 1988.

Selected filmography

* ''

'' (1936) * ''

'' (1950) * '' Miss Oyu'' (1951) * '' Tetsu no tsume'' (1951) aka ''Claws of Steel'' * '' The Tale of Genji'' (1951) * ''

'' (1953) aka ''Tales of Ugetsu'' * '' Gate of Hell'' (1953) * ''

'' (1954) * ''

The Crucified Lovers is a 1954 Japanese film directed by Kenji Mizoguchi. It was adapted from Monzaemon Chikamatsu's 1715 bunraku play ''Daikyōji Mukashi Goyomi''. The film was presented at the 1955 Cannes Film Festival, Plot Mohei is an apprentice to Ishun, t ...

'' (1954) * '' Princess Yang Kwei-Fei'' (1955) * '' The Phantom Horse'' (1955) * '' Shin Heike Monogatari'' (1955) * ''

Warning from Space is a Japanese ''tokusatsu'' science fiction film released in January 1956 by Daiei, and was the first Japanese science fiction film to be produced in color. In the film's plot, starfish-like aliens disguised as humans travel to Earth to warn ...

'' (1956) * '' Street of Shame'' (1956) * '' Zangiku monogatari'' (1956) * ''

Suzakumon The was the main gate built in the center of the south end of the imperial palaces in the Japanese ancient capitals of Fujiwara-kyō ( Kashihara), Heijō-kyō (Nara), and later Heian-kyō ( Kyoto). The placement followed the ancient Chinese pal ...

'' (1957) * ''

The Loyal 47 Ronin ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the ...

'' (1958) * ''

The Snowy Heron is a 1958 Japanese film directed by Teinosuke Kinugasa. It was entered into the 1959 Cannes Film Festival. Cast * Fujiko Yamamoto - Oshino * Keizo Kawasaki - Junichi Inaki * Yosuke Irie - Takashi Irie * Shūji Sano - Kumajirō Gosaka * Hit ...

'' (1958) * ''

Enjō is a 1958 Japanese film directed by Kon Ichikawa and adapted from the Yukio Mishima novel '' The Temple of the Golden Pavilion''. Its English title is ''Conflagration''. Synopsis Told in an intricate flashback structure, ''Enjō'' dramatizes ...

'' (1958) * '' Floating Weeds'' (1959) * '' Fires on the Plain'' (1959) * ''

Odd Obsession is a 1959 Japanese drama film directed by Kon Ichikawa. It was entered into the 1960 Cannes Film Festival, where it won the Jury Prize. It was based on the novel '' The Key'', by Japanese novelist Junichirō Tanizaki. Plot A man who suspects ...

'' (1959) * '' Jokyo'' (1960) * ''

Her Brother is a 1960 Japanese drama film directed by Kon Ichikawa. The film is based on the novel ''Otōto'' by Aya Koda. It was entered into the 1961 Cannes Film Festival, where it won a prize for Special Distinction. Plot 17-year-old Gen takes care ...

'' (1960) * ''

An Actor's Revenge , also known as ''Revenge of a Kabuki Actor'', is a 1963 Japanese film directed by Kon Ichikawa, based on a novel by Otokichi Mikami. Plot Japan in the late Edo period: Three men — Sansai Dobe, Kawaguchiya and Hiromiya — are responsible fo ...

'' (1963) * ''

'' (1965) * ''

The Hoodlum Soldier is a Japanese film directed by Yasuzo Masumura. ''The Hoodlum Soldier'' was the first of a series of nine films that followed two soldiers, Kisaburo Omiya (Shintaro Katsu), a former yakuza who has become a soldier, and Arita (Takahiro Tamura), an ...

'' (1965) * ''

Shiroi Kyotō is a 1965 novel by Toyoko Yamasaki. It has been adapted into a film in 1966 and then five times as a television series in 1967, 1978, 1990, 2003, and 2019. The 1966 film was entered into the 5th Moscow International Film Festival where it won a S ...

'' (1966) * '' Gamera vs. Barugon'' (1966) * '' Zatoichi the Outlaw'' (1967) * '' Nichiren'' (1979)

Bibliography

* *

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Nagata, Masaichi 1906 births 1985 deaths Japanese film producers Deaths from pneumonia in Japan Baseball executives Film studio executives People from Kyoto Recipients of the Medal with Purple Ribbon