, also known by the stage name , was a Japanese comedian, singer, and

voice actor Voice acting is the art of Acting, performing a character or providing information to an audience with one's voice. Performers are often called voice actors/actresses in addition to other names. Examples of voice work include animation, animated, ...

Early life

Saitō was born in

Kanagawa Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Kantō region of Honshu. Kanagawa Prefecture is the List of Japanese prefectures by population, second-most populous prefecture of Japan at 9,221,129 (1 April 2022) and third-dens ...

to Mitsuru and Misao Saitō on 24 September 1976. He had a younger brother named Masashi and graduated from Nihon University's College of Art. As a teenager, he was an active Johnny's member.

Career

In 1999, Saitō formed a comedy duo called Abare Nunchaku with fellow up-and-coming comedian Kosuke Takeuchi. The team broke up in 2005, but they reunited in 2006 on the show ''Enta no kami-sama'', where Saitō appeared for the first time as Sukeban Kyoko, a

delinquent Delinquent may refer to: * Delinquent (royalist) In 1643, near the start of the English Civil War, Parliament set up two committees: the Sequestration Committee, which confiscated the estates of the Royalists who fought against Parliament, and ...

schoolgirl always seen carrying

shinai A is a Japanese sword typically made of bamboo used for practice and competition in '' kendō''. ''Shinai'' are also used in other martial arts, but may be styled differently from ''kendō shinai'', and represented with different characters. ...

bamboo sword. He appeared as Sukeban on ''

Quiz $ Millionaire , sometimes referred to as ''Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?'', is a Japanese quiz show based on the original program of the latter title created by Celador International and later 2waytraffic. It premiered on Fuji Television on April 20, 2000, ...

'' in 2007, where he answered incorrectly in the final round, decreasing his earnings from ¥10,000,000 to ¥1,000,000. He made his musical debut in 2006 with the release of the single ''Geki Maji Mukatsuku''. By the time of his death, he had released seven albums: ''Gekimajimukatsuku'', ''1000% SO Zakune?'', ''Christmaster'', ''Doonacchattendayo'', ''Kaisou Rasputin'', ''Sakura Revolution'', and ''Aserunda Joshi Ha Itsumo Medatanai K''. He also sang with the band Bijomen Z, a musical group where all its members dressed as women. As a voice actor, Saitō starred in shows such as ''

Detective Conan ''Case Closed'', also known as , is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Gosho Aoyama. It has been serialized in Shogakukan's manga magazine ''Weekly Shōnen Sunday'' since January 1994; its chapters are collected in 107 ...

'' and ''

Inazuma Eleven is an association football Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 Football player, players who almost exclusively use their feet to propel a Ball (association football ...

'', sometimes using the stage name Hiromi Ueda. He published his first book, ''桜塚やっくんの都市伝説工場'' (''Cleavage'' or, literally, ''Urban Legend Factory''), in 2008.

Controversy

In 2011, the

Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department The , known locally as simply the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD), is the prefectural police of Tokyo, Tokyo Metropolis, Japan. Founded in 1874, the TMPD is the largest police force in Japan by number of officers, with a staff of more than 4 ...

contacted Saitō regarding the alleged rape of a drunk college student in 2010. He denied the accusations. It was later reported that a settlement had been reached between Saitō and the woman.

Death

Saitō was killed in a traffic accident on October 5, 2013, aged 37, on the Chugoku Expressway in

Mine, Yamaguchi file:Mine city office.jpg, 270px, Mine city hall is a Cities of Japan, city located in Yamaguchi Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 21,919 in 10661 households and a population density of 46 persons per km2. The total ar ...

, while en route to a concert in

Kumamoto Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located on the island of Kyūshū. Kumamoto Prefecture has a population of 1,748,134 () and has a geographic area of . Kumamoto Prefecture borders Fukuoka Prefecture to the north, Ōita Prefecture t ...

. He was hit by another car and killed when exiting his car after colliding with the

median The median of a set of numbers is the value separating the higher half from the lower half of a Sample (statistics), data sample, a statistical population, population, or a probability distribution. For a data set, it may be thought of as the “ ...

Discography

Filmography

Dubbing

*''

The Cabin in the Woods ''The Cabin in the Woods'' is a 2011 science fiction comedy horror film directed by Drew Goddard in his directorial debut, produced by Joss Whedon, and written by Whedon and Goddard. It stars Kristen Connolly, Chris Hemsworth, Anna Hutchis ...

'' (Marty Mikalski (

Fran Kranz Francis Elliott Kranz is an American actor and film director. He is known for his portrayal of Topher Brink in the science fiction drama series ''Dollhouse''. Kranz had prominent roles in the films ''The Cabin in the Woods'' and ''Much Ado About ...

))

References

External links

*
Official blog

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sakurazuka, Yakkun 1976 births 2013 deaths Japanese male comedians Japanese male voice actors Male voice actors from Kumamoto Prefecture Road incident deaths in Japan Male-to-female cross-dressers 20th-century Japanese musicians 20th-century Japanese male singers 20th-century Japanese singers