Robert Dunham (July 6, 1931 – August 6, 2001) was an American actor, entrepreneur, writer,

racecar driver Auto racing (also known as car racing, motor racing, or automobile racing) is a motorsport involving the racing of automobiles for competition. In North America, the term is commonly used to describe all forms of automobile sport including non ...

, journalist, and a

US Marine The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines or simply the Marines, is the Marines, maritime land force service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is responsible for conducting expedi ...

. He is probably best known for his role as Antonio, Emperor of Seatopia in '' Godzilla vs. Megalon'' (1973); Dunham's biggest role would be that of Mark Jackson in the Japanese film, ''

Dogora is a 1964 Japanese Kaiju, ''kaiju'' film directed by Ishirō Honda, with special effects by Eiji Tsuburaya. Produced and distributed by Toho, Toho Studios, the film stars Yosuke Natsuki, Nobuo Nakamura, Hiroshi Koizumi, and Akiko Wakabayashi, a ...

'' (1964) and Captain Martin in '' The Green Slime'' (1968). Dunham was an American living in Japan during most of the country's "Golden Age" of cinema, and worked in films directed by

Ishirō Honda was a Japanese filmmaker who directed 46 feature films in a career spanning five decades. He is acknowledged as the most internationally successful Japanese filmmaker prior to Hayao Miyazaki and one of the founders of modern disaster film, wit ...

Jun Fukuda was a Japanese film director, screenwriter, and producer. He is best known for directing five entries in the ''Godzilla'' series starting with '' Ebirah, Horror of the Deep'' (1966) as well as the spy films The spy film, also known as the ...

, and

Kinji Fukasaku was a Japanese film director and screenwriter. Known for his "broad range and innovative filmmaking", Fukasaku worked in many different genres and styles, but was best known for his gritty Yakuza film, yakuza films, typified by the Battles With ...

. He sometimes was billed as Dan Yuma or Danny Yuma. Born in

Maine Maine ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the United States, and the northeasternmost state in the Contiguous United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Provinces and ...

, to an affluent family, his parents were Earl and Charlotte Dunham. He has a sister named Patricia June. Robert grew up in Wellesley Hills, Massachusetts. He attended

Noble and Greenough School The Noble and Greenough School, commonly known as Nobles, is a coeducational, nonsectarian day and five-day boarding school in Dedham, Massachusetts, a suburb of Boston. It educates 638 boys and girls in grades 7–12. The school's campus border ...

Dedham, Massachusetts Dedham ( ) is a New England town, town in, and the county seat of, Norfolk County, Massachusetts, United States. Located on Boston's southwestern border, the population was 25,364 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. First settled by E ...

. Dunham was later accepted into

Williams College Williams College is a Private college, private liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Williamstown, Massachusetts, United States. It was established as a men's college in 1793 with funds from the estate of Ephraim ...

, in

Williamstown, Massachusetts Williamstown is a town in Berkshire County, Massachusetts, United States. It shares a border with Vermont to the north and New York to the west. Located in Berkshire County, the town is part of the Pittsfield, Massachusetts metropolitan statis ...

, where he received his Bachelor of Arts degree in Art History. After graduating college, Dunham joined the

United States Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines or simply the Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is responsible for conducting expeditionar ...

. He was stationed in

Yokohama, Japan is the second-largest city in Japan by population as well as by area, and the country's most populous municipality. It is the capital and most populous city in Kanagawa Prefecture, with a population of 3.7 million in 2023. It lies on Tokyo B ...

and served for two years as a lieutenant. Later, he attended correspondence school to learn how to speak Japanese. After being honorably discharged from the Marine Corps., Dunham decided to stay in Japan and opened up his own import/export business. Dunham lived in Tokyo for 22 years, with a Japanese wife Keiko, and their two children, Barbara Ann and Daniel. They later divorced. He met a Japanese model, Setsuko Sazawa, whom he married in 1969. They had two children, Emiko (Emmy) and Marcia. Dunham and his wife Setsuko, moved to

Den-en-chōfu is a residential neighborhood located in western Ōta in southern Tokyo, Japan. It is known as one of the most exclusive neighborhoods in Tokyo. History Den-en-chōfu was built based on the " Garden City" idea originally developed by the Brit ...

, an affluent suburb of Tokyo, where they lived from 1970 to 1975. In 1975, Dunham decided to move his family to the United States and moved to

Cape Cod, Massachusetts Cape Cod is a peninsula extending into the Atlantic Ocean from the southeastern corner of Massachusetts, in the northeastern United States. Its historic, maritime character and ample beaches attract heavy tourism during the summer months. The ...

. He became a freelance writer, often contributing material to magazines such as ''

Car and Driver ''Car and Driver'' (''CD'' or ''C/D'') is an American automotive enthusiast magazine first published in 1955. In 2006 its total circulation was 1.23 million. It is owned by Hearst Magazines, who purchased it from its prior owner Hachette Fi ...

''. Unlike many other Westerners in Japanese films at the time, Dunham spoke fluent Japanese and as such, was one of few foreign actors who would maintain their real voice in the released product without the need of over-dubbing by a Japanese actor. Dunham admitted to having had a "torrid love affair" with his co-star of many films, Linda Miller. The relationship ended after Miller moved back to the United States and Dunham claimed to have "lost track of her" after having kept up correspondence via postal mail for a time. He had worked as a security guard for the Sarasota, Florida, ''Herald-Tribune'', and performed in the Players Theatre of Sarasota and Venice Little Theater. He also had formed his own production company, Suncoast/Yuma Productions, writing, producing and directing a full-length film, "Samantha."

Filmography

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dunham, Robert 1931 births 2001 deaths American male actors American expatriates in Japan People from Wellesley, Massachusetts Sportspeople from Dedham, Massachusetts Williams College alumni United States Marines People from Williamstown, Massachusetts People from Barnstable County, Massachusetts Noble and Greenough School alumni Military personnel from Dedham, Massachusetts Businesspeople from Dedham, Massachusetts Writers from Dedham, Massachusetts