Kiyoshi Atsumi

Kiyoshi Atsumi

Kiyoshi Atsumi ( Japanese 渥 美 清 , Atsumi Kiyoshi ; born March 10, 1928 in Tokyo , † August 4, 1996 ibid) was a Japanese actor .

Life

The Atsumi, who comes from the artisan milieu of Tokyo's Asakusa district ( Taitō district ), began his acting career on the stages of his home district.

His big breakthrough as an actor, however, he only achieved in his early 40s, when he embodied the character of "Torajirō Kuruma", called "Tora-san", in the film series Otoko wa tsurai yo . "Tora-San" should make him one of the most famous actors in Japan. Atsumi slipped 48 times between 1969 and 1996 into the role of the vagabond from a poor background, who tries to evade all obligations and each time proves to be an eternal loser and thus finds neither financial success nor personal happiness. Although “Tora-san” remains the same age throughout the film series, wears the same clothes - checked jacket, gray felt hat with a narrow brim and waist band - and has the same problems, its popularity continues unabated. As a kind of identification figure for the socially inferior, the figure and thus all 48 films were granted great success.

Most of the adventures were written and directed by Yōji Yamada . But Atsumi's personal experiences also flowed into the role: The fictional hometown “Tora-sans” is modeled on its own youth district with the narrow streets and the family quarrels that are fought out in public in the Asakusa district and its appearance - including a large wart above the left one Eye and narrow eyes - made for a high recognition value and identification potential for his audience.

The "Tora-san" franchise is listed by the Guinness Book of Records as the longest-running series with the same leading actor - making Kiyoshi Atsumi the actor who has played the same role in a series for the longest time. He received the Blue Ribbon Award for Best Actor in 1983 .

Web links

• Kiyoshi Atsumi in the Internet Movie Database (English)