Isuzu Yamada
Isuzu Yamada (山田 五十鈴, Yamada Isuzu, 5 February 1917 – 9 July 2012) was a Japanese stage and screen actress whose career spanned seven decades.
Yamada was born in Osaka as Mitsu Yamada, the daughter of Kusudu Yamada, a shinpa actor specialising in onnagata roles, and Ritsu, a geisha. Yamada debuted as a film actress in 1930 at age twelve, appearing in the Nikkatsu film Tsurugi wo koete. She soon became one of Nikkatsu's top actresses, but it was her portrayals of strong-willed modern girls in Kenji Mizoguchi's Osaka Elegy and Sisters of the Gion in 1936 at the new Daiichi Eiga studio that earned her popularity and critical acclaim. Moving to Shinkō Kinema and then to Toho, she became a star with Mikio Naruse's Tsuruhachi and Tsurujiro (1938).
During the second half of the 1950s, Yamada's main attention shifted towards the stage, but she still appeared in a number of distinguished films like Naruse's Flowing (1956), Yasujirō Ozu's Tokyo Twilight (1957) and Akira Kurosawa's The Lower Depths (1957) and Throne of Blood (1957). Other directors she worked with during this decade include Keisuke Kinoshita, Kaneto Shindō and Shirō Toyoda. In addition to her theatre engagements, she appeared on television, including the long-running Hissatsu series. Her last TV appearance was in 2002.
Yamada died from multiple organ failure in Tokyo on 9 July 2012 at the age of 95. She was married four times, to actor Ichirō Tsukita, to producer Kazuo Takimura, to actor Yoshi Katō, and to actor Tsutomu Shimomoto. Her daughter with Tsukita, Michiko, became known as the actress Michiko Saga (1935–1992).
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Known for
Hissatsu Shigotonin
Otowa
Akō Rōshi
Riku
Minamoto no Yoshitsune
Joban
Yojimbo
Orin
Throne of Blood
Lady Asaji Washizu
Kurosawa
Self
Shogun's Samurai
Oeyo
The Lovelorn Geisha
The Shrikes
Tokyo Twilight
Kisako Soma
The Lower Depths
Osugi the Landlady
Suspicion
Tokie Horiuchi
Buddha
Kalideva
Flowing
Otsuta
The Orphan Brother
Yashio (voice)
Woman Boss
Shin Hissatsu Shigotonin
Osaka Elegy
Ayako Murai
Black River
Landlady
Bonchi
Sei
Four Sisters
Tatsuko Katagiri
Daredevil in the Castle
Yodogami
The Great Wall
Dowager Empress
Down Town
Riyo Yazawa
Hiroshima
Mineh Obah
Such is Life
Oharu
Fireworks Over the Sea
Kaoru Uozumi
The Man Who Waited
木曽路の決闘 夏祭り三度笠
Mission Accomplished
The Body
A Billionaire
Hanakuma
Fencing Master
Oharu
The Days of Evil Women
Sisters of the Gion
O-mocha
Kenji Mizoguchi: The Life of a Film Director
Self
The Spell of the Hidden Gold
The Spell of the Hidden Gold
Chizuin
風来物語 あばれ飛車
風来物語任侠篇
A Matter of Valour
Case of a Young Lord 9: Black Camellia
How Sorrowful
振袖釼法
母つじ
音楽大進軍
Isuzu Yamada
Onna keizu
Otsuta
Shinpen Tange Sazen: Sekigan no maki
Oshiho
The 26 Martyrs of Japan
Tsukigata Hanpeita
Somehachi
Satsuma-bikyaku
The Inner Palace Conspiracy
Misawa
Growing Up
荒木又右衛門
妻みね
Zoku kagebōshi ryūkoaiutsutsu
誰よりも金を愛す
Shozo, a Cat and Two Women
Shinako
Chutaro of Banba
The Undefeated Woman
Pineapple Butai
Shigeyo (Mother)
Kantaro of Ina
Tsuruhachi and Tsurujiro
Tsuruhachi
Devil’s Statue
Deep River Melody
The Siege of Osaka
Senhime
Farewell to Dream
Seiji's mother, Kiyo
Ichiyo Higuchi
Ichiyo Higuchi
The Shadow Daughter
The Stand in Hakone
Ai Sureba Koso
Yaeko (segment 3)
The Hidden Treasure
Taikoki - The Saga of Hideyoshi
Wild Lion
Schoolgirl Records
The Battle of Kawanakajima
Oshino
The Big Ambition
The Killing of Otsuya
Otsuya
Martial Arts Encyclopedia
The Horse Boy
The Greatest Man in the World
Oyae
Minamoto Yoshitsune
At the End of the Clouds
Sure Death
江戸いろは祭
女房おなか
A Boy and Three Mothers
Natsu, the Foster Mother
Sure Death! Brown, You Bounder!
Oriku
Lord for a Night
Miniature
Tamiko
大当り男一代
お吉
Princess Sen in Edo
Kisaragi
Five Men of Edo
Okane, Chobei's wife
The Man Who Disappeared Yesterday
The Song Lantern
O-Sode
The Way of Drama
Chushingura
Oishi Riku
Musashibo Benkei
Burden of Love
Some Kaita
Become a Mother, Become a Woman
Harue Yasukawa
Kagebōshi
お夏
Goodbye to Glory
Otake
The Day Before
Osaki
The Snake Princess
Oshima
A Lonely Woman in a Lonely Land
Sayo Yamada
Love in the Mountains
Keshô yuki
The Seasons of Love
Urako
Onatsu Detective Case: Mad Slasher
The Motherland Far Far Away
Masako
The Shop Curtain
風雲金毘羅山
Glory on the Summit
Taka Hirooka
Mother and Child
Arashi Tatsunari
Tatsu
The Elegant Swordsman
Until Victory Day
Actress
Sumako Matsui
The Fighting Firemen
Koina
In Search of Mother
Otose
Castle of Revenge
The Sword
Sasae Onoda
Namida no hanamichi
江戸紫女将そよ
Hinoki Butai
A Mother's Love
Hirate Miki the Swordman
The Mandarin Room
Kurama Tengu: Acrobat in a lion mask
Yataro's Hat - Comings and Goings
365 Nights
Secret
Three Loves
Mother
Happy Daughter
Michiko Yamada
Four Marriages
Christ in Bronze
Kimika
The Revenge Champion
A Man from Akagi
Japanese Ghost Story Masterpiece Theater: The Ghost of Yotsuya
Oyuki the Virgin
Oyuki
Shanghai Moon
Miss Okichi
Okichi
Modern People
Yukiko and Natsuyo
Natsuyo
假名手本忠臣蔵
Akira Kurosawa: It Is Wonderful to Create: 'Throne of Blood'
Self
Suronin Chuya
Home Sweet Home
Namiko, Kosaku's wife
Hanjiro of Kusama: Bird of Passage
Otoku
Tange Sazen - Dai-ippen
The Downfall of Osen
Osen
Bangaku no issho
Sakiko-san chotto
中川しの
Ishigassen
Karatachi no hana
The Comb of Oroku
Okinu
Banquet Under the Midnight Sun
Oichi