Yōko Minamida
Acting
Biography
Yōko Minamida (南田 洋子, Minamida Yōko, March 1, 1933 – October 21, 2009) was a Japanese actress. Born in Tokyo, Minamida made her screen debut in 1953 for the Daiei studio and quickly rose to stardom, working with Kenji Mizoguchi on two films: “A Story from Chikamatsu” and “Princess Yang Kwei-fei.” In 1955, she moved to the Nikkatsu studio, where she starred in Takumi Furukawa’s “Season of the Sun” (1956), a smash hit that launched the so-called “Sun Tribe” boom for films about rebellious youth looking for sex and kicks on Shonan Beach — Japan’s nearest equivalent to Malibu. Minamida acted in dozens of movies for Nikkatsu, working with Shohei Imamura, Seijun Suzuki, and other directors. In 1961 she married her co-star on “Season of the Sun,” Hiroyuki Nagato. As she acted in fewer movies after the mid-1960s, Minamida made a smooth and successful transition to TV as both an actress and MC. She also continued to appear occasionally in movies, with the last being Nobuhiko Obayashi’s “Song of Goodbye” in 2006. She was diagnosed with Alzheimer's in November 2008, and a TV documentary was made about her condition and the efforts of her husband to care for her. She died in Tokyo.
Born: March 1, 1933
Place of Birth: Tokyo, Japan
Known For
Filmography
as Kyoko Tanabe
as Kinue Ishida
as Eto Kuniko
as Kiyo
as Atsuko Kawata
as Ine Hamada
as 栄市の母・せい
as Tomi Oguchi
as Hausu Karei
as Fuki - Masao's Mother
as 三谷かな子
as Kazuko Tsubaki
as Akemi
as Tokie Matsuura
as Kimura Uta
as Kimura Uta
as Masa
as Misato
as Fujiko, Shuntô
as Sachiko
as Yasu Tajima
as Umetaro
as Sanae Kitazawa
as Yumi
as Yasuko, Kazuo's foster mother
as Sakie Yazaki
as Harue
as Jane, the dancer
as Yuri Harada
as Koji's Mother
as Katsuyo
as Naomi
as Kayoko Komuro
as 榎本吟子
as Takako
as Namiko Eda
as Asako Kotani
as Chidori Yamamura
as Natsuko Miyagawa
as 早川千鶴子
as Reiko Shiba
as Reiko Shiba
as Otsuru / Kimie
as Eiko Takeda
as Hung-tao
as Otama
as Akiko Yasutomi