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Top 10 Interesting Facts about Kinuyo Tanaka

The Japanese actress and film director was born in 1909 in Shimonoseki, Yamaguchi in Japan. She was the youngest child among nine children and rose to become one of the most influential people in the acting industry. Her time in the film industry played an influential part in the early entertainment industry as she was among the pioneers in Japan.

Therefore, this article will explore some facts about the formidable actress and the impact she had on the entertainment industry. Furthermore, the article will equip the reader with knowledge of how life was during the period in which she lived.

1. Her career spanned 50 years

The actress had a fruitful and successful career that spanned 50 years. This is a lot of years for a person to stay in the entertainment industry as most actresses lose their relevance when they can no longer get roles that fit their age, personality and acting style. Kinuyo has 250 credited films in which she starred with the notable ones being The Life of Oharu and Ugetsu which were directed by the then-famous Kenji Mizoguchi. This shows how she was a great actress as it is not easy for one to appear in 250 films.

2. She is one of the most celebrated Japanese stars in history

Kinuyo Tanaka is still one of the most celebrated stars in Japan. Her years in the acting industry placed the country within the international acting community as some of the films that she did earn international recognition. Therefore, being the pioneer of the acting industry in the country qualifies her to be part of the most celebrated Japanese stars to date as what she did is still being felt even after she is dead.

3. Her debut in the film industry was in 1924

She joined the film industry in 1924 when she was 12 years old when she made an appearance in Genroku Onna which translates to A woman of Genroku Era. This was also the time she started her association with Shochiku studios as this was the film studio that produced this film. When she started her career she was a very young woman as most children of that age were not thinking of an acting career. This fact is interesting as it is iconic that she started her acting career when she was 14 years old in a male-dominated world.

4. She married the director Hiroshi Shimizu

While in Shochiku studio as an actress, she got married to the director of the studio who was Hiroshi Shimizu. This was in 1924 when she was getting married. She continued to do the films for the director until they separated in 1929 and even after they went their separate ways, she later starred in some of his later works. The actress did not get married again after their separation and did not have children up to the time of her death.

Her time with the director can be said to have been the stepping toward her successful acting career as she became known to the public when she was working for the studio.

5. She became popular in the 1930s

In 1929, she played the leading actress in a film directed by Yasujiro Ozu known as I Graduated, But… She got more roles in 1931 and 1933 which made her popular among film enthusiasts. Her fame was so great that the feature films that she starred in had her name in the title. Some of those titles include Kinuyo Monogatari, Kinuyo no Hatsukoi and Joi Kinuyo sensei.

She continued to grow in the acting industry and appeared in Aizen Katsura directed by Hiromasa Nomura which became the highest-grossing movie.

6. She was the second woman director in Japan

She was the second director in Japan after Sakane Tazuko. Her choice to venture into directing was not approved by Kenji Mizoguchi but that did not deter her.

However, it damaged her relationship with him as they were close friends. Her directing debut was in 1953 with a film known as Love Letter which had been scripted by Kinoshita. She continued with her directing career until 1962.

7. She won the Best Actress Award in the Berlin International Festival

During her acting career, she played different roles that were exceptional with one of them being an aged prostitute in Kei Kumai which was produced in 1975. The role won her the Best Actress at the 25th Berlin International Film Festival.

Her ability to win International awards means that she was an exceptional actress and director.

8. Her parents were celebrities

The actress was born to Kumekichi and Yasu Tanaka who were Kimono merchants. This means that they were wealthy people and thus make them somewhat celebrities in the field of trade. Her career in the acting industry can be attributed to her parent’s economic status in that she was able to easily get into the scene because of the influence her family had.

9. There is a homage to the films she directed

The Academy Museum made a special program that paid homage to her films as they were lost because of the high price of restoration. Her films were rediscovered during the 2019 Cannes Film Festival according to Christian Jeune. However, restorations have been made and thus make it easier to view her work.

10. Her works were centred around female individuals

Being a female director, her work reflected her gender in that most of her work was centred on female characters across time and social status. For instance, the Moon has Risen looks at the lives of sisters in a typical Japanese household as they search for their significant others in contemporary society.

She portrayed the topic of how to be a woman openly in her films which was controversial in the conservative country.