Emerging from Osaka’s Kita Ward, he attended schools in Tokyo and Miyagi before enrolling in Nihon University’s theatre program and, two years later, winning a place in Nikkatsu’s highly competitive New Face contest, which led him to abandon his studies and begin a film career. After signing a contract with Nikkatsu in 1954, he earned his first notable part in Policeman’s Diary (1955) and, followi…
