was a Japanese stage and film

actress An actor or actress is a person who portrays a character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. The analogous Greek term is (), lit ...

, best known for her appearances in the films of

Yasujirō Ozu was a Japanese film director and screenwriter. He began his career during the era of silent films, and his last films were made in colour in the early 1960s. Ozu first made a number of short comedies, before turning to more serious themes in t ...

and

Mikio Naruse was a Japanese filmmaker who directed 89 films spanning the period 1930 to 1967. Naruse is known for imbuing his films with a bleak and pessimistic outlook. He made primarily shomin-geki ("common people drama") films with female protagonists, ...

from the late 1940s to the early 1960s.

Biography

Sugimura was born in Nishi-ku, Hiroshima. After the death of her parents, she was adopted at an early age by affluent lumber dealers, only learning much later that they were not her biological parents. (Sugimura reputedly claimed that she was the illegitimate child of a

geisha {{Culture of Japan, Traditions, Geisha {{nihongo, Geisha, 芸者 ({{IPAc-en, ˈ, ɡ, eɪ, ʃ, ə; {{IPA-ja, ɡeːɕa, lang), also known as {{nihongo, , 芸子, geiko (in Kyoto and Kanazawa) or {{nihongo, , 芸妓, geigi, are a class of female ...

.) Her adoptive parents took her to performances of both classical Japanese stage arts like

kabuki is a classical form of Japanese dance-drama. Kabuki theatre is known for its heavily-stylised performances, the often-glamorous costumes worn by performers, and for the elaborate make-up worn by some of its performers. Kabuki is thought ...

and

bunraku (also known as ) is a form of traditional Japanese puppet theatre, founded in Osaka in the beginning of the 17th century, which is still performed in the modern day. Three kinds of performers take part in a performance: the or ( puppeteer ...

, and western ballet and opera. They also encouraged her to enroll at the Tokyo Ongaku Gakko (now

Tokyo University of the Arts or is the most prestigious art school in Japan. Located in Ueno Park, it also has facilities in Toride, Ibaraki, Yokohama, Kanagawa, and Kitasenju and Adachi, Tokyo. The university has trained renowned artists in the fields of painting, sc ...

), where she failed the exams. She then joined the Tsukiji Shōgekijō (Tsukiji Little Theatre),

Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and List of cities in Japan, largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, ...

, in 1927, and later the

Bungakuza is a Japanese theatre company. Along with the Mingei Theatre Company and the Haiyuza Theatre Company it is considered one of the "Big Three" among Shingeki theatre troupes. History The company was founded by Kunio Kishida, Mantarō Kubota and ...

theatre company, which she remained affiliated with from 1937 until her retirement in 1996. She gave her film debut in 1932 in

Eizo Tanaka is a Japanese visual technology company, founded in March 1968, which manufactures display products and other solutions for markets such as business, healthcare, graphics, air traffic control, and maritime. The company is headquartered in Hak ...

's ''Namiko'' (1932). Between 1937 and the end of the war, she acted in about 20 films, including works by directors

Yasujirō Shimazu was a Japanese film director and screenwriter, and a pioneer of the '' shomin-geki'' (common people drama) genre at the Shōchiku studios in pre-World War II Japan. Biography Shimazu was born in Tokyo, the second son of merchant Otojirō Shima ...

and Shirō Toyoda. Notable post-war film appearances were in

Keisuke Kinoshita was a Japanese film director and screenwriter. Ronald Berganbr>"A satirical eye on Japan: Keisuke Kinoshita" ''The Guardian'', 5 January 1999. While lesser-known internationally than contemporaries such as Akira Kurosawa, Kenji Mizoguchi and ...

's ''Morning for the Osone Family'' (1946) and in Ozu's ''

Late Spring is a 1949 Japanese drama film directed by Yasujirō Ozu and written by Ozu and Kogo Noda, based on the short novel ''Father and Daughter'' (''Chichi to musume'') by the 20th-century novelist and critic Kazuo Hirotsu. The film was written and s ...

'' (1949). Her most important film roles included that of Shige, the elderly couple's hairdresser daughter in Ozu's '' Tokyo Story'' (1953), Naruse's ''

Late Chrysanthemums is a 1954 Japanese drama film directed by Mikio Naruse. It follows four retired geisha and their struggles to make ends meet in post World War II Japan. The film is based on three short stories by female author Fumiko Hayashi. Plot ''Late Ch ...

'' (1954), and Tadashi Imai's ''

An Inlet of Muddy Water ''An Inlet of Muddy Water'' ( ja, にごりえ, Nigorie) is a 1953 Japanese drama film based on short stories by Ichiyō Higuchi and directed by Tadashi Imai. It was entered into the 1954 Cannes Film Festival and awarded numerous national film p ...

'' (1953). For her film performances, she received the Blue Ribbon Award, the Kinema Junpo Award and the

Mainichi Film Award The are a series of annual film awards, sponsored by Mainichi Shinbun (毎日新聞), one of the largest newspaper companies in Japan, since 1946. It is the first film festival in Japan. History The origins of the contest date back to 193 ...

. On stage, she was successful as Blanche Dubois in ''

A Streetcar Named Desire ''A Streetcar Named Desire'' is a play written by Tennessee Williams and first performed on Broadway on December 3, 1947. The play dramatizes the experiences of Blanche DuBois, a former Southern belle who, after encountering a series of pe ...

'', Gertrude in ''

Hamlet ''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play, with 29,551 words. Set in Denmark, the play depi ...

'' and Asako Kageyama in

Yukio Mishima , born , was a Japanese author, poet, playwright, actor, model, Shintoist, nationalist, and founder of the , an unarmed civilian militia. Mishima is considered one of the most important Japanese authors of the 20th century. He was considered fo ...

's Rokumeikan. Her most popular and often repeated stage role was Kei Nunobiki in Kaoru Morimoto's '' A Woman's Life'', for which she received numerous awards, including the

Japan Art Academy Prize 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 west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

and the

Asahi Prize The , established in 1929, is an award presented by the Japanese newspaper ''Asahi Shimbun'' and Asahi Shimbun Foundation to honor individuals and groups that have made outstanding accomplishments in the fields of arts and academics and have greatl ...

. In 1992, she was awarded the honorary citizenship of the city of Tokyo. In 1995, she refused the

Order of Culture The is a Japanese order, established on February 11, 1937. The order has one class only, and may be awarded to men and women for contributions to Japan's art, literature, science, technology, or anything related to culture in general; recipient ...

award. The same year saw the release of her last film, Kaneto Shindō's '' A Last Note''.

Filmography

Film

* ''Namiko'' (1932) * ''Asakusa no hi'' (1937) * ''Uguisu'' (1938) * '' Wedding Day'' (1940) * ''Okumura Ioko'' (1940) * ''

Spring on Leper's Island ''Spring on Leper's Island'' ( ja, 小島の春, Kojima no haru, Spring on a Small Island) is a 1940 Japanese drama film directed by Shirō Toyoda. It is based on the memoir of Masako Ogawa, a Japanese doctor who specialised in leprosy treatment ...

'' (1940) – Yokogawa's wife * ''Ōhinata-mura'' (1940) * ''Waga ai no ki'' (1941) * ''Shirasagi'' (1941) * ''Jirō monogatari'' (1941) * ''Nankai no hanataba'' (1942) – Nobuko Hotta * ''Haha no chizu'' (1942) – Isano Kishi * ''Gekiryu'' (1944) * ''

Army An army (from Old French ''armee'', itself derived from the Latin verb ''armāre'', meaning "to arm", and related to the Latin noun ''arma'', meaning "arms" or "weapons"), ground force or land force is a fighting force that fights primarily on ...

'' (1944) – Setsu * ''Kanjōkai no bara'' (1945) * ''Umi no yobu koe'' (1945) * ''Ōsone-ke no ashita'' (1946) – Fusako Ōsone * ''Urashima Tarō no kōei'' (1946) * '' No Regrets for Our Youth'' (1946) – Madame Noge, Ryukichi's mother * ''Yottsu no koi no monogatari'' (1947) – Yukiko's mother (episode 1) * ''Joen'' (1947) * ''Haru no mezame'' (1947) * ''Sanbon yubi no otoko'' (1947) – Itoko * ''Yuwaku'' (1948) – Tokie * ''Te o tsunagu kora'' (1948) * ''Idainaru X'' (1948) – Taka * ''Toki no teizo: zengohen'' (1948) * ''Kurogumo kaido'' (1948) * ''Koku'un kaido'' (1948) * ''Beni imada kiezu'' (1949) * ''Yotsuya kaidan'' (1949) – Omaki * ''Shinshaku Yotsuya kaidan: kōhen'' (1949) – Omaki * ''

'' (1949) – Masa Taguchi * ''Onna no shiki'' (1950) * '' Until We Meet Again'' (1950) – Ono Suga * '' Listen to the Voices of the Sea'' (1950) – Kohagi Nakamura * ''Eriko to tomoni'' Part I + II (1951) – Harue Matsumura * ''Jiyū gakkō'' (1951) * '' Early Summer'' (1951) – Tami Yabe * ''

Fireworks Over the Sea is a 1951 Japanese drama film written and directed by Keisuke Kinoshita. Plot In Yobuko, Southern Japan, brothers Tarobei and Jinkichi are running a fishing business with two ships of their own. As the catch is too low to cover the expenses, c ...

'' (1951) – Kono Kujirai * '' Repast'' (1951) – Matsu Murata, Michiyo's mother * ''Inochi uruwashi'' (1951) – Mine Imura * ''Seishun kaigi'' (1952) – Tamiyo * ''Genroku suikoden'' (1952) – Onui * ''Kaze futatabi'' (1952) * ''Kin no tamago: Golden girl'' (1952) – Tsuruko Fujimura * ''Wakai hito'' (1952) * ''Senba zuru'' (1953) – Chikako Kurimoto * ''Montenrupa: Bokyo no uta'' (1953) * ''Kimi ni sasageshi inochi nariseba'' (1953) * '' Tokyo Story'' (1953) – Shige Kaneko * '' Life of a Woman'' (1953) – Tamae, Shintaro's mother * ''

'' (1953) – O-Hatsu (story 3) * ''Geisha Konatsu'' (1954) – Raku Kamioka * ''

'' (1954) – Kin * ''Shunkin monogatari'' (1954) – Oei * ''Kunsho'' (1954) * ''Meiji ichidai onna'' (1955) – Ohide * '' Keisatsu Nikki'' (1955) – Moyo Sugita, a go-between * '' Princess Yang Kwei-Fei'' (1955) – Princess Yen-chun * ''Geisha Konatsu: Hitori neru yo no Konatsu'' (1955) – Raku Kamioka * '' She Was Like a Wild Chrysanthemum'' (1955) – Masao's mother * ''Aogashima no kodomotachi – Onna kyōshi no kiroku'' (1956) – Chie Yamada * '' Early Spring'' (1956) – Tamako Tamura * ''Yonjū-hassai no teikō'' (1956) – Satoko, Kotaro's wife * ''

Nagareru is a 1956 Japanese drama film directed by Mikio Naruse. It is based on the novel ''Nagareru'' by Aya Kōda. Plot Widow Rika starts working as a maid in the okiya (geisha lodging house) of geisha Otsuta, who lives with her daughter Katsuyo, her ...

'' (1956) – Someka * ''Onna no ashi ato'' (1956) * ''The Crowded Streetcar'' (1957) – Otome, the mother * '' Tokyo Twilight'' (1957) – Shigeko Takeuchi * ''Kanashimi wa onna dakeni'' (1958) – Chiyoko * ''Hana no bojō'' (1958) – Rie Ikegami * ''

Summer Clouds is a 1958 Japanese drama film directed by Mikio Naruse. It was Naruse's first film in colour and in widescreen format. Plot Journalist Okawa interviews farming woman Yae for his article on the present situation of farmers under the new constitu ...

'' (1958) – Toyo * ''Nemuri Kyōshirō burai hikae: Maken jigoku'' (1958) – Sonoe * ''

Good Morning "Good morning" is a common greeting in the English language. It may also refer to: Television * ''Good Morning!!!'' (Australian show), a children's show * ''Good Morning'' (New Zealand show), a daytime talk show * ''Good Morning'' (Russian ...

'' (1959) – Kikue Haraguchi * ''Bibō ni tsumi ari'' (1959) – Fusa Yoshino * ''Anyakōro'' (1959) – Osai * ''Kashimanada no onna'' (1959) * '' The Three Treasures'' (1959) – Narrator * '' Floating Weeds'' (1959) – Oyoshi * ''Tenpō rokkasen – Jigoku no hanamichi'' (1960) – Okuma * ''Musume tsuma haha'' (1960) – Kayo Tani * '' Daughters, Wives and a Mother'' (1960) – Kayo Tani * ''Ashi ni sawatta onna'' (1960) – Pickpocket Haruko * ''Furyu fukagawata'' (1960) * ''Banana'' (1960) * ''Kutsukake Tokijirō'' (1961) – Oroku * '' The End of Summer'' (1961) – Katou Shige * ''Buddha'' (1961) – Vaidehi * '' Hangyakuji'' (1961) * ''Katei no jijō'' (1962) – Mrs. Yoshii * ''Onna no za'' (1962) – Aki, Ishikawa-ke no gosai * ''Ashita aru kagiri'' (1962) * ''Musume to watashi'' (1962) – Kiyo Kitagawa * ''The Outcast'' (1962) – School master's wife * '' An Autumn Afternoon'' (1962) – Tomoko * ''Kaigun'' (1963) * ''

Mother ] A mother is the female parent of a child. A woman may be considered a mother by virtue of having given birth, by raising a child who may or may not be her biological offspring, or by supplying her ovum for fertilisation in the case of ge ...

'' (1963) – Yoshie * '' The Scent of Incense'' (1964) – Taromaru * ''Akujo'' (1964) – Hatsu Mimura * ''

Kwaidan is a Japanese word consisting of two kanji: 怪 (''kai'') meaning "strange, mysterious, rare, or bewitching apparition" and 談 (''dan'') meaning "talk" or "recited narrative". Overall meaning and usage In its broadest sense, ''kaidan'' refer ...

'' (1964) – Madame (story 4) * '' Samurai Assassin'' (1965) – Tsuru * '' With Beauty and Sorrow'' (1965) – Otoko's mother * '' Red Beard'' (1965) – Kin, the madam * ''Daikon to ninjin'' (1965) * ''Dark the Mountain Snow'' (1966) – Ine's mother * ''Jinchoge'' (1966) – Aki Ueno, Daphne * ''Hanaoka Seishū no tsuma'' (1967) – Narrator * ''Hitorikko'' (1969) * ''Kaseki no mori'' (1973) * ''Akumyo: shima arashi'' (1974) – Ito * '' Kaseki'' (1974) – Mother-in-law * ''Bokuto kidan'' (1992) – Kafu's mother * '' A Last Note'' (1995) – Yoko Morimoto

Television (selected)

* ''Sekigahara'' (1981) - Kita no mandokoro

Awards (selected)

* 1948:

for '' A Woman's Life'' * 1951:

Blue Ribbon Awards The are film-specific prizes awarded solely by movie critics and writers in Tokyo, Japan. The awards were established in 1950 by which is composed of film correspondents from seven Tokyo-based sports newspapers. In 1961, the six major Japane ...

for Best Supporting Actress for '' Repast'' and '' Early Summer'' * 1954: Mainichi Film Concours Best Supporting Actress for ''

'' and '' Tokyo Story'' * 1968:

for '' A Woman's Life'' * 1974:

Person of Cultural Merit is an official Japanese recognition and honor which is awarded annually to select people who have made outstanding cultural contributions. This distinction is intended to play a role as a part of a system of support measures for the promotion of ...

* 1996: Mainichi Film Concours Best Actress for '' A Last Note'' * 1996: Kinema Junpo Awards for Best Actress for '' A Last Note'' * 1998: Mainichi Film Concours Special Award * 1998: Japanese Academy Prize Special Award

Notes

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Sugimura, Haruko 1909 births 1997 deaths Actors from Hiroshima 20th-century Japanese actresses Persons of Cultural Merit