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Koichi Ose

Koichi Ose

Acting

Biography

Ose Koichi was born 27th October 1937 in Yokohama. His real name is Ose Kazunari. He graduated from Keio University School of Foreign Languages. In 1952 he entered the Daiei film company (they made Rashomon among other films) and appeared in a number of films. In 1958 he starred in the TV series Gekko kamen where he gained tremendous popularity with children as the mysterious masked hero. This series was made by Senkosha Productions and directed by Funatoko Sadao. Its two theme songs became big hits. Next he was directed by Funatoko in Jaga no me which proved to be another hit. Then came The Samurai which further increased his popularity with the younger set. Throughout the 60s he appeared in various movies apart from the two Samurai spin-offs, some period pieces and gangster films. He also appeared on stage. In 1969 he retired from acting and from 1971 he concentrated on the management of an acting agency and in 1977 finally left show business altogether. He now runs a promotion and property company that includes a chain of noodle shops. In April 1964 he married actress, Hizuru Takachiho and they have one son, Yasuhiro, born in October 1965. Ose had his share of accidents, falling and injuring himself during some swordplay at a theatre. He now lives in Tokyo and is an expert in iaido.

Known For

The Samurai
10.0

The Samurai is a Japanese historical fiction television series made by Senkosha Productions during the early 1960s. Its original Japanese title was Onmitsu Kenshi. The series premiered in 1962 on TBS and ran continuously until 1965 for ten self-contained story arcs, usually of 13 episodes each. Also created were two black-and-white feature films by Toei Company, made in 1964 by the same crew which has created the TV series, and a stage show. The Samurai proved to be highly successful despite its initially very limited budget. It was the first Japanese TV program ever screened in Australia, where it premiered in 1964 and built up a remarkably large fan-base among the local young audience at the time, rapidly becoming a cult favourite. Despite its massive popularity in Australia as well as success in Japan, New Zealand and the Philippines, the series was not widely screened elsewhere and its fame remains largely restricted to those countries.

The Samurai

1962Series