Jirō Sakagami
Encyclopedia
was a Japanese comedian
, actor
, and singer.
but spent most of his childhood in Manchukuo
. Winning an NHK
song contest at age 19, he headed to Tokyo to try to make a name in the entertainment business, eventually training as a comedian at the Asakusa
strip clubs. It was there that he met Kin'ichi Hagimoto and in 1966, the two formed the owarai
duo Konto 55-gō. Konto 55-gō became nationally famous, starring in several top-rated shows on television. Sakagami continued to release songs and branched out into acting, appearing in television dramas as well as in films such as Nagisa Ōshima
's Taboo
.
He died of a stroke on 10 March 2011 at a Tochigi Prefecture
hospital.
Comedian
A comedian or comic is a person who seeks to entertain an audience, primarily by making them laugh. This might be through jokes or amusing situations, or acting a fool, as in slapstick, or employing prop comedy...
, actor
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
, and singer.
Career
Sakagami was born in Kagoshima PrefectureKagoshima Prefecture
is a prefecture of Japan located on the island of Kyushu. The capital is the city of Kagoshima.- Geography :Kagoshima Prefecture is located at the southwest tip of Kyushu and includes a chain of islands stretching further to the southwest for a few hundred kilometers...
but spent most of his childhood in Manchukuo
Manchukuo
Manchukuo or Manshū-koku was a puppet state in Manchuria and eastern Inner Mongolia, governed under a form of constitutional monarchy. The region was the historical homeland of the Manchus, who founded the Qing Empire in China...
. Winning an NHK
NHK
NHK is Japan's national public broadcasting organization. NHK, which has always identified itself to its audiences by the English pronunciation of its initials, is a publicly owned corporation funded by viewers' payments of a television license fee....
song contest at age 19, he headed to Tokyo to try to make a name in the entertainment business, eventually training as a comedian at the Asakusa
Asakusa
is a district in Taitō, Tokyo, Japan, most famous for the Sensō-ji, a Buddhist temple dedicated to the bodhisattva Kannon. There are several other temples in Asakusa, as well as various festivals.- History :...
strip clubs. It was there that he met Kin'ichi Hagimoto and in 1966, the two formed the owarai
Owarai
is a broad word used to describe Japanese comedy as seen on television. The word owarai is the honorific form of the word warai, meaning "a laugh" or "a smile". Owarai is most common on Japanese variety shows and the comedians are referred to as owarai geinin or owarai tarento...
duo Konto 55-gō. Konto 55-gō became nationally famous, starring in several top-rated shows on television. Sakagami continued to release songs and branched out into acting, appearing in television dramas as well as in films such as Nagisa Ōshima
Nagisa Oshima
is a Japanese film director and screenwriter. After graduating from Kyoto University he was hired by Shochiku Ltd. and quickly progressed to directing his own movies, making his debut feature A Town of Love and Hope in 1959....
's Taboo
Taboo (1999 film)
is a 1999 Japanese film directed by Nagisa Ōshima. It shows life in a samurai training school during the bakumatsu period, the end of the samurai era in the mid-19th century, specifically concentrating on the issue of homosexuality in the shudō tradition in the partially-closed environment.-Plot...
.
He died of a stroke on 10 March 2011 at a Tochigi Prefecture
Tochigi Prefecture
is a prefecture located in the Kantō region on the island of Honshū, Japan. The capital is the city of Utsunomiya.Nikkō, whose ancient Shintō shrines and Buddhist temples UNESCO has recognized by naming them a World Heritage Site, is in this prefecture...
hospital.
Selected filmography
- Konto 55-gō jinrui no daijakuten (コント55号 人類の大弱点) (1969)
- Konto 55-gō uchū no daibōken (コント55号 宇宙大冒険) (1969)
- Amagigoe (天城越え Amagigoe) (1983)
- A Class to RememberA Class to Rememberis a 1993 Japanese film directed by Yōji Yamada. It was chosen as Best Film at the Japan Academy Prize ceremony.-Synopsis:A cantankerous but loveable high school teacher teaches a night school in a poor neighborhood for adult students on the fringes of Japanese society.-Cast:* Toshiyuki Nishida*...
(学校 Gakko) (1993) - TabooTaboo (1999 film)is a 1999 Japanese film directed by Nagisa Ōshima. It shows life in a samurai training school during the bakumatsu period, the end of the samurai era in the mid-19th century, specifically concentrating on the issue of homosexuality in the shudō tradition in the partially-closed environment.-Plot...
(御法度 Gohatto) (1999)