John Mamoru Fujioka (June 29, 1925 – December 13, 2018)"John 'Mamo' Mamoru Fujioka"
''Honolulu Star-Advertiser''. June 2, 2019. p. B6. Retrieved January 23, 2024. was an American actor of Japanese descent. He was particularly known for performing the role of a Japanese holdout soldier in '' The Last Flight of Noah's Ark'', '' Who Finds a Friend Finds a Treasure'', and '' American Ninja''. He died in December 2018 at the age of 93.

Early life and career

Born in Ola'a,

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; ) is an island U.S. state, state of the United States, in the Pacific Ocean about southwest of the U.S. mainland. One of the two Non-contiguous United States, non-contiguous U.S. states (along with Alaska), it is the only sta ...

, Fujioka attended Hilo High School,

University of Hawaii A university () is an educational institution, institution of tertiary education and research which awards academic degrees in several Discipline (academia), academic disciplines. ''University'' is derived from the Latin phrase , which roughly ...

, and

Elmhurst College Elmhurst University is a private university in Elmhurst, Illinois, United States. It has a tradition of service-oriented learning and an affiliation with the United Church of Christ. The university changed its name from Elmhurst College on July ...

, graduating with a degree in Sociology.

Personal life

Fujioka, who was openly gay, was survived by his life partner, Gerald Lentes.

Partial filmography

* 1962 '' Confessions of an Opium Eater'' as Auctioneer * 1962 '' A Girl Named Tamiko'' as Minya * 1963 ''

The Rifleman ''The Rifleman'' is an American Western television series starring Chuck Connors as rancher Lucas McCain and Johnny Crawford as his son Mark McCain. It was set in the 1880s in the fictional town of North Fork, New Mexico Territory. The show ...

'' (TV Series) as Hikaru Yamanaka * 1964 ''

McHale's Navy ''McHale's Navy'' is an American sitcom starring Ernest Borgnine that aired 138 half-hour episodes over four seasons, from October 11, 1962, to April 12, 1966, on the American Broadcasting Company, ABC television network. The series was filmed i ...

'' as Japanese J.G. * 1973 '' Submersion of Japan'' as Narita * 1974 Hawaii Five-O as Kayata * 1975 '' Six Million Dollar Man'' (TV Series) as Kuroda * 1976 '' Midway'' as Rear Admiral Tamon Yamaguchi * 1976 ''

Futureworld ''Futureworld'' is a 1976 American science fiction thriller film directed by Richard T. Heffron and written by Mayo Simon and George Schenck. It is a sequel to the 1973 Michael Crichton film '' Westworld'', and is the second installment in ...

'' as Mr. Takaguchi * 1980 '' The Private Eyes'' as Mr. Uwatsum * 1980 '' The Last Flight of Noah's Ark'' as Cleveland * 1980 ''

The Octagon The Octagon may refer to: *The Octagon, Christchurch, a former church in the central city of Christchurch, New Zealand *The Octagon, Dunedin, the city centre of Dunedin, New Zealand *The Octagon (Egypt), the headquarters of the Egyptian Ministry of ...

'' as Master Isawa * 1981 '' Who Finds a Friend Finds a Treasure'' as Kamasuka * 1982 '' Some Kind of Hero'' as Captain Tan Tai * 1982 '' They Call Me Bruce?'' as Master * 1985 '' American Ninja'' as Shinyuki * 1986 ''

Body Slam Professional wrestling throws are the application of professional wrestling techniques that involve lifting the opponent up and throwing or slamming them down. They are sometimes also called "power" maneuvers, as they are meant to emphasize a wrest ...

'' as Mr. Kim * 1987 '' Steel Dawn'' as Cord * 1988 '' Noble House'' as Baldhead Kin * 1988 ''The Last Samurai'' as Yasujiro Endo * 1989 '' Paint It Black'' as Mr. Lee * 1990 ''

Martial Law Martial law is the replacement of civilian government by military rule and the suspension of civilian legal processes for military powers. Martial law can continue for a specified amount of time, or indefinitely, and standard civil liberties ...

'' as Chang * 1990 '' Friday the 13th: The Series'' (TV Series) as Sensei Musashi * 1991 '' V.I. Warshawski'' as Sumitora * 1992 '' American Samurai'' as Tatsuya Sanga * 1993 '' American Yakuza'' as Isshin Tendo * 1995 ''

Mortal Kombat ''Mortal Kombat'' is an American media franchise centered on a series of fighting game, fighting video games originally developed by Midway Games in 1992. The original ''Mortal Kombat (1992 video game), Mortal Kombat'' arcade game spawned Lis ...

'' as Chief Priest * 1997 ''Tear It Down'' * 2001 ''

Pearl Harbor Pearl Harbor is an American lagoon harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, west of Honolulu. It was often visited by the naval fleet of the United States, before it was acquired from the Hawaiian Kingdom by the U.S. with the signing of the Reci ...

'' as Nishikura

External links

References

1925 births 2018 deaths 20th-century American male actors American male actors of Japanese descent American male film actors American LGBTQ male actors University of Hawaiʻi alumni {{US-film-actor-1920s-stub