Actor Tamba Tetsuro died late Sunday night of pneumonia at a Tokyo hospital. He was 84. Born in the Okubo area of Tokyo in 1922, his real name was Tamba Shosaburo. He was one of the busiest stars of the postwar Japanese movie industry, making his debut in 1952 at the late age of 30 but still managing to cram over 300 movies into his long career. The best known include “Suna no Utsuwa” (The Castle of Sand, 1974) and “Ningen Kakumei” (The Human Revolution, 1973). But the one that stands out for western movie fans is his role as Tiger Tanaka in the 1967 James Bond flick “You Only Live Twice” (photo). His final appearance was in the currently showing “Nihon Chinbotsu” (Japan Sinks), and he also played a major role in the 1973 original.
A fluent English speaker, he worked as an interpreter at the U.S. military’s GHQ in Tokyo while studying at Chuo University. He made his debut with a big role in the Shin Toei studio production “Satsujin Yogisha” (Murder Suspect), but would be stuck in supporting roles for the next decade. The 1963 Fuji TV series “Sanbiki no Samurai” (The Three Samurai) finally brought him stardom. The rest of the decade saw him play a series of yakuza and gang bosses in what was the most popular genre of the 60s. His best work came in the 70s, including the definitive TV detective series “G-Men 75”. In his later years, he turned to the spiritual world and started proclaiming himself to be a medium and making several documentaries in the 1980s. Dapper up until the end, he always appeared immaculately dressed and wearing his signature sunglasses. But in his final public appearances, years of battling heart disease were clearly taking their toll and he looked increasingly gaunt. He was hospitalized at the beginning of this month with pneumonia and appeared to be making a recovery when he suddenly suffered heart failure. His son, actor Tamba Yoshitaka, said, “He passed away peacefully. It was very much like him to spend his last hours without bothering anyone.”