Fujiko Yamamoto

Acting Dec 11, 1931 (95 years old) Itachibori, Nishi, Osaka, Osaka, Japan

Fujiko Yamamoto (山本富士子, Yamamoto Fujiko) (born 11 December 1931) is a Japanese stage, film and television actress. She was the winner of the first Miss Nippon Grand Prix in 1950, and appeared in over 100 films between 1953 and 1963, including works by directors Yasujirō Ozu, Kon Ichikawa, Shirō Toyoda and Kōzaburō Yoshimura.

Yamamoto was born on 11 December 1931 in Nishi ward, Osaka. In 1953, she made her film debut at Daiei Film, and became one of the studio's top actresses. Yamamoto was considered one of Japan's most beautiful women, with, in the words of film historian Catherine Russell, "noble" features that represented the classic ideal of Japanese beauty. As such, she was well-suited for costumed parts in the era's popular period dramas, with her less-frequent modern roles (in films like Ozu's Equinox Flower and Ichikawa's Being Two Isn't Easy) often shot in "movie star" closeups that placed her apart from the films' contemporary storytelling.

In 1963, when her contract came up for renewal, she insisted on changes. The head of Daiei, Masaichi Nagata, refused, dismissed her, and prevented her from finding work at other film studios via the Five-Company Agreement. After the Daiei dismissal, Yamamoto acted in the TV series Toshiba Sunday Theatre and on Fuji TV. Even though she has appeared frequently on stage and on television, she has not appeared in a film since then.

73 Acting Credits

Fujiko Yamamoto

Acting

Equinox Flower

Picnic

An Actor's Revenge

Secret of Naruto

Being Two Isn't Easy

Ghost Soup

Undercurrent

The Demon of Mount Oe

Satan's Sword

Ten Dark Women

Satan's Sword: The Dragon God

The Loyal 47 Ronin

A Woman's Testament

Seijuu Sentai Gingaman

Jirocho Fuji

Night Butterflies

The Snowy Heron

The Great Wall

Bridge of Japan

Three Women Around Yoshinaka

The Makioka Sisters

The Twilight Story

Hunting Rifle

Tsukigata Hanpeita