Kato Daisuke

Other Name: 加東大介

Age: 113

Birthday: February 8, 1911

Nationality: Japanese

Gender: Male

Kato Daisuke, whose real name was Kato Tokunosuke (加藤徳之), was a Japanese actor born in Asakusa, Tokyo, Japan. He graduated from Tokyo Prefectural Seventh Junior High School. After working as a kabuki actor, he made his debut in films. His father was Takejima Denzo, a resident playwright and assistant director at the Miyato Theater. His brother was the fourth generation Sawamura Kunitaro, and his sisters were the welfare activists Yajima Seiko and Sawamura Sadako. His nephew includes Nagato Hiroshi, a member of the Tsukawa family of actors. His son, Kato Haruyuki, was married to Kurosawa Kazuko, daughter of Kurosawa Akira, and they had a grandson, Kato Takayuki, also an actor, but they later divorced. Following his father's wish to "make all of his children actors," he and his brother entered the world of kabuki. After graduating from Tokyo Prefectural Seventh Junior High School, he joined the Kabuki world in 1929. In 1933, he joined the Zenshinza theater company. In the same year, he made his film debut in "Dan Shichishigure". Having completed his military service as a corporal in 1933, he was discharged from duty. However, in 1943, he was called up for military service again as a corporal in the Army Medical Corps. While serving in the New Guinea campaign, he was tasked with forming a theatrical troupe to uplift the morale of soldiers. After being demobilized in 1946, he suffered a recurrence of malignant malaria contracted during his wartime service. Upon recovery, he resumed his acting career but grew disillusioned with the leftist-leaning Zenshinza and left the company. Alongside his brother Kunitaro and sister Sadako, he founded the Kamigiza theater company, but their efforts struggled to succeed, prompting him to decide to pursue a career in films. In 1948, he signed an exclusive contract with Daiei Kyoto Studios. He became a freelancer in the autumn of 1951 and transferred to Toho Studios. In 1971, he returned to the stage of the Zenshinza theater for the first time in 28 years. In February 1975, he was hospitalized due to colon cancer, unaware of his condition. Despite being hospitalized, he continued to visit the recording studio for his regular appearances in a drama series. However, after five months of hospitalization, he passed away on July 31 at the age of 64. (Source: Japanese = Wikipedia || Translation = MyDramaList).