Native Name: | 池内 淳子 |
Native Name Lang: | ja |
Birth Date: | 4 November 1933 |
Birth Name: | Sumiko Nakazawa |
Birth Place: | Honjo, Tokyo, Japan |
Death Place: | Tokyo, Japan |
Occupation: | Actress |
Years Active: | 1955–2010 |
, known professionally as, was a Japanese actress. She joined the film studio Shintoho after being recruited from Mitsukoshi's Nihonbashi store, and subsequently starred in films and television series like Super Giant (1957), The Ghost of Yotsuya (1959), A Woman and the Beancurd Soup (1965), Illusion of Blood (1965), and Tora-san's Love Call (1971). Gaining popularity on television dramas, she also earned the nicknames "20% Actress" and "Queen of TV Dramas".
Sumiko Nakazawa was born on 4 November 1933 in Higashi-Ryōgoku, an area in Honjo, Tokyo, the eldest of the four daughters of an umbrella plating businessman.[1] She attended kindergarten at, where she started a long friendship with Tetsuko Kuroyanagi.[2]
After graduating from in 1952, she passed the Mitsukoshi entrance exam, but encountered opposition from her parents and grandfather.[3] However, after receiving an employment offer at the company's Nihonbashi store, she began working without incident. She was assigned to work at the store's kimono section, before she left the company in 1958.
in 1954, Ikeuchi joined Shintoho after their advertising staff noticed her working at Mitsukoshi, and she made her film debut in the 1955 film Kōtaishi no Hanayome. In 1956, she made her first starring role in and was awarded the Newcomer Award. She subsequently appeared in the, the, Super Giant (1957), and The Ghost of Yotsuya (1959).[4] She married actor in 1956, but the next year they divorced and she temporarily left the film industry.[5]
In 1960, she returned from her hiatus due to encouragement from her Shintoho peers, appearing in . Shintoho's president was reported to have subjected her to mistreatment after her comeback, a fact denied by others. She later appeared in the films (1961), (1964; Ikeuchi was a fan of the Yomiuri Giants), (1965), Illusion of Blood (1965), (1966), Tora-san's Love Call (1971), (1986), and (1993).[6] In 1961, she moved to after Shintoho closed, before becoming freelance in 1970. In 1962, she was awarded the Actress Award.
In addition to her film appearances, she starred in TV dramas such as Nemuri Kyōshirō: Burai-hikae, Kyou wo Ikiru,,,,,, and . She was known as the "Queen of TV Dramas" from the 1960s to the 1980s,[5] and she was nicknamed the "20% Actress" after the high ratings of her appearances wearing kimonos in the 1965 drama A Woman and the Beancurd Soup. In 1966, she visited Argentina to attend the 8th Mar del Plata Film Festival.[7] She attended Shintoho president 's funeral after he died in 1978.
In 1969, she began starring in theatrical productions, including The Doctor's Wife,,, and . She won the twice: in 1982 and 2000. In 2007, she was awarded the for Best Actress.
Her Japanese traditional dance teacher was Sumiko Kurishima, through which she acquired the name in 1970.[8]
In 1999, she was awarded the and . In 2002, she received the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology Award and Medal with Purple Ribbon. In 2008, she was awarded the Order of the Rising Sun, Gold Rays with Rosette. In November 2009, she attended the ceremony commemorating the twentieth anniversary of the reign of Emperor Akihito as the entertainment field representative.[9]
In April 2007, she was hospitalized for testing and diagnosed with interstitial pneumonia, lung cancer, and pleural effusion; therefore she stepped down from the national performance of Botan Dōrō, which was scheduled to begin on 25 May. She was discharged from the hospital in June and subsequently resumed acting, appearing in .[10] From April until May 2010, she appeared in the play Sanbaba at the Chunichi Theatre in Nagoya,[11] but afterwards she was readmitted to the hospital following a relapse of cancer.[11] About four months later, on 26 September 2010, she died of adenocarcinoma of the lung in Tokyo.[11] She was 76.[11]
Her farewell party was held on 4 November 2010, on what would have been her 77th birthday.[12] It was hosted by Jun Inoue and . In addition to immediate relatives,[11] guests included:
Burai-hikae (1958)