Yoshiko Ōtaka
Yoshiko Ōtaka ( Japanese 大鷹 淑 子 , Ōtaka Yoshiko , born Yoshiko Yamaguchi ( 山口 淑 子 , Yamaguchi Yoshiko ); English name Shirley Yamaguchi , Chinese name Li Xianglan ( Chinese 李香蘭 / 李香兰 , Pinyin Lǐ Xīanglán ), Japanese pronunciation of the Chinese name: Ri Kōran ; * February 12, 1920 in Fushun , Manchuria , China ; † September 7, 2014 in Tokyo ) was a Chinese-born Japanese woman who made a career as an actress and singer in China, Japan , Hong Kong and the USA . In 1974 she was elected to the Japanese parliament, to which she belonged for 18 years.
Life
Ōtaka received classical singing training and made her debut in 1938 as a film actress and singer. She performed as Li Xiang Lan, but also used her Japanese name. It was from this mixture that she owed her appointment as Japanese-Manchurian special envoy. She became known to a broad Chinese-speaking audience in 1942 through the music for the film "A Good Name for Coming Generations" ( Chinese 萬世 流芳 ), which was shot in Shanghai . This started her career as an interpreter of “ yellow music ” who combined Eastern and Western musical styles. Many of Li Xiang Lan's songs are now evergreens in the Chinese-speaking world.
In the 1950s, Yoshiko Ōtaka began her acting career under the name Shirley Yamaguchi in Hollywood and on Broadway and also appeared in several films produced in Hong Kong. In 1958 she returned to Japan, where she worked as a television presenter and news anchor and married the diplomat Hiroshi Ōtaka ( 大鷹 弘 ). In 1974 she ran at the invitation of the then chairman of the Liberal Democratic Party , Kakuei Tanaka , successfully in the national constituency (1986: proportional representation) in the 1974 election to the second chamber of the Japanese parliament , to which she was a member for three terms . There she temporarily chaired the Okinawa Special Committee, from 1991 to 1992 the then Foreign Affairs Committee. From 1977 to 1978 ( Fukuda cabinet ) she was political state secretary in the environmental agency . In the 1992 election she withdrew from politics.
Ōtaka died on September 7, 2014 in Tokyo at the age of 94 of complications from a weak heart .
Filmography (selection)
- 1940: Shina no yoru
- 1943: Sayon no kane
- 1943: Wàn Shì Liú Fāng
- 1950: Scandal ( Sukyandaru )
- 1950: Akatsuki no daso
- 1952: Japanese War Bride
- 1955: House of Bamboo
- 1956: Byaku fujin no yoren
Web links
- Yoshiko Yamaguchi in the Internet Movie Database (English)
- Paul Vitello: Yoshiko Yamaguchi, 94, Actress in Propaganda Films, Dies. Obituary in The New York Times , September 22, 2014
- Roger Macy: Yoshiko Yamaguchi obituary . The Guardian, September 22, 2014
- Yoshiko 'Shirley' Yamaguchi - obituary . The Telegraph, Oct. 14, 2014
Individual evidence
- ↑ NHK Shutoken News Web, September 14, 2014: nhk.or.jp ( Memento from September 14, 2014 in the web archive archive.today ) 元 女優 山口 淑 子 さ ん 死去 (online for a limited period)
- ↑ Sangiin , List of former MPs: あ to お ( Memento from March 4, 2016 in the Internet Archive )
- ↑ Yoshiko Yamaguchi, Japanese film star in 1940s and '50s, dies at 94. Obituary in the Los Angeles Times of September 16, 2014 (English, accessed September 18, 2014).
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Ōtaka, Yoshiko |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | 大鷹 淑 子 (Japanese); Yamaguchi Yoshiko (maiden name); 山口 淑 子 (Japanese, maiden name); 李香蘭 (traditional Chinese); 李香兰 (simplified Chinese); Li Xiang Lan (Chinese); Yamaguchi Shirley (English) |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | Japanese singer, actress and politician |
| DATE OF BIRTH | February 12, 1920 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Fushun , China |
| DATE OF DEATH | September 7, 2014 |
| Place of death | Tokyo , Japan |