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is a historical novel by Japanese novelist
Ryōtarō Shiba , also known as , was a Japanese author. He is best known for his novels about historical events in Japan and on the Northeast Asian sub-continent, as well as his historical and cultural essays pertaining to Japan and its relationship to the r ...
. It was serialised in Sunday Mainichi (Mainichi Shimbun Publishing Inc.) from August 1963 to June 1966. It consists of a first part starring Saito Dōsan and a second part starring
Oda Nobunaga was a Japanese ''daimyō'' and one of the leading figures of the Sengoku period, Sengoku and Azuchi-Momoyama periods. He was the and regarded as the first "Great Unifier" of Japan. He is sometimes referred as the "Demon Daimyō" and "Demo ...
and
Akechi Mitsuhide , first called Jūbei from his clan and later from his title, was a Japanese ''samurai'' general of the Sengoku period. Mitsuhide was originally a bodyguard of the last Ashikaga shogunate, Ashikaga ''shōgun'' Ashikaga Yoshiaki and later, one of ...
. Initially, Shiba planned to write only the story of Dōsan, but the series was too popular to be finished and Shiba was forced to write the second part, the story of Nobunaga and Mitsuhide. Shiba skilfully incorporated the results of post-war historical studies into his novels, positioning Nobunaga as a revolutionary with a clear will, a rarity in Japanese history, and establishing an image of Nobunaga in which light and shadow coexist by not only evaluating his innovativeness but also criticising his brutality. Thanks in part to Shiba's contributions, Nobunaga, who had not always been popular before, became one of the most popular historical figures in Japan. Two TV drama adaptations have been produced by
NHK , also known by its Romanization of Japanese, romanized initialism NHK, is a Japanese public broadcasting, public broadcaster. It is a statutory corporation funded by viewers' payments of a television licence, television license fee. NHK ope ...
and
TV Tokyo JOTX-DTV (channel 7), branded as is a Japanese television station that serves as the flagship of the TX Network.NHK , also known by its Romanization of Japanese, romanized initialism NHK, is a Japanese public broadcasting, public broadcaster. It is a statutory corporation funded by viewers' payments of a television licence, television license fee. NHK ope ...
''taiga'' drama. It had an average viewing rating of 22.4, peaking at 29.9%. All footage of the regular broadcast is lost. In 2015, videotape recordings of episodes 37 and 38 were recovered.


Plot

The series is set in the
Sengoku period The was the period in History of Japan, Japanese history in which civil wars and social upheavals took place almost continuously in the 15th and 16th centuries. The Kyōtoku incident (1454), Ōnin War (1467), or (1493) are generally chosen as th ...
. Based on
Ryōtarō Shiba , also known as , was a Japanese author. He is best known for his novels about historical events in Japan and on the Northeast Asian sub-continent, as well as his historical and cultural essays pertaining to Japan and its relationship to the r ...
's novel of the same name. The story chronicles the lives of Dosan Saito and Nobunaga Oda.


Production

Production Credits *Original story –
Ryōtarō Shiba , also known as , was a Japanese author. He is best known for his novels about historical events in Japan and on the Northeast Asian sub-continent, as well as his historical and cultural essays pertaining to Japan and its relationship to the r ...
*Music –
Hikaru Hayashi was a Japanese composer, pianist and Conducting, conductor. Hayashi is considered to be one of the most renowned and accomplished Japanese composers of the postwar Japan, postwar period. In particular, Hayashi was noted for his choral suite ''Sc ...
*Sword fight arranger - Kunishirō Hayashi


Cast

Starring role *
Mikijirō Hira was a Japanese actor. Starting as a stage actor in the 1950s, he also worked in film and television and was active until the time of his death. From the 1970s he starred in several of Yukio Ninagawa's productions, including an acclaimed role a ...
as
Saitō Dōsan , also known as Saitō Toshimasa (斎藤 利政), was a Japanese samurai lord and daimyo during the Sengoku period.Louis-Frédéric, Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005)"Saitō Dōsan"in ''Japan Encyclopedia'', p. 809. He was also known as the f ...
*
Hideki Takahashi is a Japanese people, Japanese actor. Born in Kisarazu, Chiba near Tokyo, he attended Ichikawa Gakuen and later Nihon University. Career Takahashi made his debut with Nikkatsu Corporation, Nikkatsu and acted in youth-oriented films. Takahashi ma ...
as
Oda Nobunaga was a Japanese ''daimyō'' and one of the leading figures of the Sengoku period, Sengoku and Azuchi-Momoyama periods. He was the and regarded as the first "Great Unifier" of Japan. He is sometimes referred as the "Demon Daimyō" and "Demo ...


Saitō clan

*
Yoshiko Mita (born October 8, 1941) is a Japanese actress. Born in the city of Osaka, she graduated from Joshibi High School of Art and Design in Suginami, Tokyo. In 1960, she was hired by Toei and made her acting debut. She remained with Toei until 1967, t ...
as Miyoshino *
Keiko Matsuzaka (born July 20, 1952) is a Japanese actress. Early life Born in Ōta, Tokyo, her father was a naturalized South Korean while her mother was Japanese. Career In the 1960s, Matsuzaka became a child actress. Matsuzaka grew into adulthood in fil ...
as
Nōhime , also known as was a Japanese woman from the Sengoku period to the Azuchi–Momoyama period. She was the daughter of Saitō Dōsan, a Sengoku Daimyō of the Mino Province, and the lawful wife of Oda Nobunaga, a Sengoku Daimyō of the Owari Prov ...
* Gō Wakabayashi as
Saitō Yoshitatsu or Toki Yoshitatsu was a Japanese samurai and ''daimyō'' during the Sengoku period. Papinot, Jacques Edmond Joseph. (1906). ''Dictionnaire d’histoire et de géographie du Japon''; Papinot, (2003)">DF 54 of 80">"Saitō," ''Nobiliare du Ja ...
*Gorō Ōishi as
Saitō Tatsuoki was a daimyō in Mino Province during the Sengoku period and the third generation lord of the Saitō clan. He was a son of Saitō Yoshitatsu. His mother was daughter of Azai Hisamasa and nephew of Azai Nagamasa, a grandson of Saitō Dōs ...


Oda clan

*
Minoru Chiaki was a Japanese actor who appeared in eleven of Akira Kurosawa's films, including ''Rashomon'', ''Seven Samurai'', ''Throne of Blood'', and ''The Hidden Fortress''. He was also one of Kon Ichikawa's favorite actors. He attended, but did not grad ...
as
Oda Nobuhide was a Japanese ''daimyō'' and magistrate of the Sengoku period known as "Tiger of Owari" and also the father of Oda Nobunaga, the first "Great Unifier" of Japan. Nobuhide was a deputy ''shugo'' (Shugodai) of lower Owari Province and head of t ...
*Yōko Minamikaze as Dota Gozen *
Chieko Matsubara is a Japanese actress. She is best known for her roles in '' Tokyo Drifter'' (1966) and the ''Outlaw'' series. Matsubara was born in Nagoya. Spotted at a beauty contest sponsored by the Nikkatsu is a Japanese film studio located in Bunky� ...
as
Oichi was a female historical figure in the late Sengoku period. She is known primarily as the mother of three daughters who became prominent figures in their own right – Yodo-dono, Ohatsu
*
Jun Tazaki , born Minoru Tanaka, was a Japanese actor best known for his various roles in kaiju films produced by Toho, often portraying scientists or military personnel. Career Tanaka began his career as a traveling stage actor in the 1930s, performi ...
as
Hirate Masahide was a Japanese samurai who served the Oda clan for two generations. His original name was . Life Masahide first served Oda Nobuhide and then become one of the Four karōs that helped Oda Nobunga in his early life. He was a talented samurai as ...
*
Joe Shishido was a Japanese actor recognizable for his intense, eccentric yakuza film roles. He appeared in some 300 films but is best known in the West for his performance in the cult film ''Branded to Kill'' (1967). In Japan, he is also known by the nickna ...
as
Shibata Katsuie or was a Japanese samurai and military commander during the Sengoku period. He was retainer of Oda Nobuhide. He served Oda Nobunaga as one of his trusted generals, was severely wounded in the 1571 first siege of Nagashima, but then fought ...
*
Yūki Meguro Yūki Meguro () is a Japanese actor. He is the son of jidaigeki actor Jūshirō Konoe and had an older brother Hiroki Matsukata. He was nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Limited Series or a Special for h ...
as
Maeda Toshiie was one of the leading generals of Oda Nobunaga following the Sengoku period of the 16th century extending to the Azuchi–Momoyama period. His preferred weapon was a yari and he was known as "Yari no Mataza" (槍の又左), Matazaemon (又左 ...


Akechi clan

*
Masaomi Kondō is a Japanese actor. Career Born in Kyoto, Kondō made his film debut in Shohei Imamura's '' The Pornographers'' in 1966. Filmography Films Television References External links Official profile * {{DEFAULTSORT:Kondo, Masaomi 1942 bi ...
as
Akechi Mitsuhide , first called Jūbei from his clan and later from his title, was a Japanese ''samurai'' general of the Sengoku period. Mitsuhide was originally a bodyguard of the last Ashikaga shogunate, Ashikaga ''shōgun'' Ashikaga Yoshiaki and later, one of ...
* Ryoko Nakano as Mitsuhide's wife * Hiroko Hayashi as Tama, Mitsuhide's daughter * Akira Kume as Akechi Mitsuyasu *Seiichiro Kameishi as Saitō Toshimitsu


Hashiba clan

* Shôhei Hino as
Hashiba Hideyoshi , otherwise known as and , was a Japanese samurai and ''daimyō'' (feudal lord) of the late Sengoku and Azuchi-Momoyama periods and regarded as the second "Great Unifier" of Japan.Richard Holmes, The World Atlas of Warfare: Military Innov ...
*
Kiwako Taichi was a Japanese film actress. She appeared in 20 films between 1967 and 1985. Biography Kiwako Taichi was born in Tokyo on 2 December 1943. She graduated Shoin Junior and Senior High School and, after training in the Haiyuza Theatre Compan ...
as Nene *Goichi Yamada as
Hachisuka Koroku , also known Hachisuka Koroku (蜂須賀小六), was a ''daimyō'', retainer and adviser of Toyotomi Hideyoshi during the Azuchi–Momoyama period of Japanese history. He was the son of Hachisuka Masatoshi. The Hachisuka clan were the ''kok ...
*
Masakane Yonekura Masakane Yonekura (; 7 October 1934 – 26 August 2014) was a Japanese stage director, actor, author and illustrator who was one of the central members of the Gekidan Mingei theatre company. Death On 26 August 2014, Yonekura died of an abdominal ...
as
Takenaka Hanbei , who was also known as Hanbei (半兵衛), was a Japanese people, Japanese samurai during the Sengoku period of the 16th century. Hanbei was the castle lord in command of Bodaiyama Castle. He was a chief strategist and adviser of Toyotomi Hideyos ...
*Taizō Sayama as Sakichi


Kuroda clan

*
Tōru Emori is a Japanese actor, voice actor, and theater director. He has appeared in more than sixty films since 1965. Career Emori entered the acting school at the Bungakuza theater troupe in 1962 and came to fame with the play ''Ōmugiiri no chikin s� ...
as
Kuroda Kanbei , also known as , was a Japanese ''daimyō'' of the late Sengoku through the early Edo period. Renowned as a man of great ambition, he succeeded Takenaka Hanbei as a chief strategist and adviser to Toyotomi Hideyoshi. Kuroda became a Christia ...
*Iroha as Shōjumaru *Sumio Takatsu as Mori Tahei *Hiroshi Iwashita as Kuriyama Zensuke


Tokugawa clan

*
Akira Terao is a Japanese musician, singer and actor. As of 2012, he is the only male actor to have received both the Japan Record Award and the Japan Academy Award for Outstanding Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role. Early life Terao was born in Yo ...
as
Tokugawa Ieyasu Tokugawa Ieyasu (born Matsudaira Takechiyo; 31 January 1543 – 1 June 1616) was the founder and first ''shōgun'' of the Tokugawa shogunate of Japan, which ruled from 1603 until the Meiji Restoration in 1868. He was the third of the three "Gr ...
*Jō Kurashima as
Honda Tadakatsu , also called Honda Heihachirō (本多 平八郎) was a Japanese samurai, general, and daimyo of the late Sengoku through early Edo periods, who served Tokugawa Ieyasu. Honda Tadakatsu was one of the Tokugawa Four Heavenly Kings (Shitennō) a ...


Azai clan

*
Ryōtarō Sugi (born 14 August 1944, Kobe) is a Japanese singer and actor. He is the father of actor Jundai Yamada. He appeared in ''Sukima Kaze'', which sold over a million copies. His acting credits include 18 films. On television, he specialized in ''jid ...
as
Azai Nagamasa was a Japanese ''daimyō'' of the Sengoku period known as the brother-in-law and enemy of Oda Nobunaga. Nagamasa was head of the Azai clan seated at Odani Castle in northern Ōmi Province and married Nobunaga's sister Oichi in 1564, fathering ...
*Shoko Nakazawa as
Chacha Cha-Cha, Cha Cha, ChaCha or Chacha may refer to: Music *Cha-cha-cha (dance), a dance of Cuban origin *Cha-cha-cha (music), a genre of Cuban music *Cha Cha (album), ''Cha Cha'' (album), a 1978 album by Herman Brood & His Wild Romance *Cha Cha (sou ...
*Rieko Sugai as Hatsu


Toki clan

*Ryūnosuke Kaneda as Toki Yorinari *Noboru Nakaya as Toki Yoritake, Yorinari's brother


Ashikaga shogunate

* Muga Takewaki as
Ashikaga Yoshiteru , also known as Yoshifushi or Yoshifuji, was the 13th ''shōgun'' of the Ashikaga shogunate who reigned from 1546 to 1565 during the late Muromachi period of Japan. He was the eldest son of the 12th ''shōgun'', Ashikaga Yoshiharu, and his moth ...
*
Juzo Itami , born , was a Japanese actor, screenwriter and film director. He directed eleven films (one short and ten features), all of which he wrote himself. He is the namesake of the Juzo Itami Award, founded in 2009 to honor his legacy. Early life ...
as
Ashikaga Yoshiaki "Ashikaga Yoshiaki" in '' The New Encyclopædia Britannica''. Chicago: Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., 15th edn., 1992, Vol. 1, p. 625. was the 15th and final ''shōgun'' of the Ashikaga shogunate in Japan who reigned from 1568 to 1573 when he ...
*
Goro Ibuki is a Japanese actor. He is known for his parts in jidaigeki television dramas, especially Kakusan in the Mito Kōmon series. He appeared in ''Samurai Sentai Shinkenger'' as Hikoma Kusakabe. Filmography Film *'' Bohachi Bushido: Code of the For ...
as
Hosokawa Fujitaka , also known as , was a Japanese ''daimyō'' and prominent samurai lord of the Sengoku period. A former senior retainer of Ashikaga Yoshiaki, the fifteenth and final Ashikaga shōgun, Fujitaka later aligned with Oda Nobunaga. As a reward fo ...
*Nobuyuki Ishida as
Hosokawa Tadaoki was a Japanese samurai lord and daimyo of the late Sengoku period and early Edo period. He was the son of Hosokawa Fujitaka and Numata Jakō, and the husband of the famous Christian convert Hosokawa Gracia. For most of his life, he went b ...


Others

* Shigeru Tsuyuguchi as Iga
Ninja A , or was a spy and infiltrator in pre-modern Japan. The functions of a ninja included siege and infiltration, ambush, reconnaissance, espionage, deception, and later bodyguarding.Kawakami, pp. 21–22 Antecedents may have existed as ear ...
: Tsuzura Juzo *
Ryūtarō Ōtomo (5 June 1912 – 27 September 1985) was a Japanese film and television actor most famous for his starring roles in jidaigeki. In 1936, he made his debut in movies with the film ''Aozura Roshi''. Overall Ryūtarō Ōtomo appeared in more than 100 ...
as
Takeda Shingen was daimyō, daimyo of Kai Province during the Sengoku period of Japan. Known as "the Tiger of Kai", he was one of the most powerful daimyo of the late Sengoku period, and credited with exceptional military prestige. Shingen was based in a p ...
*Ritsu Ishiyama as
Takeda Katsuyori was a Japanese ''daimyō'' (military lord) of the Sengoku period, who was famed as the head of the Takeda clan and the successor to the legendary warlord Takeda Shingen. He was son-in-law of Hojo Ujiyasu, ''daimyō'' of Hojo clan. Early life H ...
, Shingen's heir *Yoshiaki Hanayagi as
Imagawa Yoshimoto was a Japanese ''daimyō'' (feudal lord) of the Sengoku period. Based in Suruga Province, he was known as ; he was one of the three ''daimyō'' that dominated the Tōkaidō region. He died in 1560 while marching to Kyoto to become Shogun. He ...
*Ryūzō Hayashi as
Suzuki Magoichi , better known as , ( – ) was the name given to the leader of the Saika Ikki. He is famous for arming his troops with arquebuses and donning the Three-legged crow, yatagarasu as his family crest. There were three people known as Saika (S ...
*Takahiko Tōno as
Yamauchi Kazutoyo , also pronounced Yamanouchi (1545/1546? – November 1, 1605), was a retainer of Oda Nobunaga and later Toyotomi Hideyoshi. His father Yamauchi Moritoyo was a descendant of Fujiwara no Hidesato, a senior retainer of the Iwakura Oda clan (op ...
*
Fumie Kashiyama is a Japanese actress who is a member of the Mingei Theatre Company. In 1966, she played the protagonist in the NHK morning drama (Asadora) series '' Ohanahan''. She has also performed in other television dramas and comedy films such as the r ...
as Chiyo, Kazutoyo's wife * Akira Nagoya as Gonzō Kani


Shinshun Wide Jidaigeki

The drama was broadcast on 2 January 2005 in the Shinshun Wide Jidaigeki slot as part of TV Tokyo's 40th anniversary celebrations. The broadcast time was over 12 hours for the entire episode.


References


External links


NHK,Kunitori Monogatari official site
{{Taiga drama Novels by Ryōtarō Shiba Japanese historical novels 1963 novels Works about Oda Nobunaga Taiga drama 1973 Japanese television series debuts 1973 Japanese television series endings 1970s drama television series Cultural depictions of Oda Nobunaga Cultural depictions of Toyotomi Hideyoshi Cultural depictions of Tokugawa Ieyasu Cultural depictions of Akechi Mitsuhide Cultural depictions of Takeda Shingen Jidaigeki television series Television shows based on Japanese novels