James Shigeta
Born June 17, 1929 (Age: 96)
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Honolulu, Oahu, Hawaii, USA
Biography
James Saburo Shigeta (June 17, 1929 – July 28, 2014) was an American actor, singer, and musician of Japanese descent. He was noted for his roles in The Crimson Kimono (1959), Walk Like a Dragon (1960), Flower Drum Song (1961), Bridge to the Sun (1961), Die Hard (1988), and Mulan (1998). In 1960, he won the Golden Globe Award for Most Promising Newcomer – Male, along with three other actors. In his early career, Shigeta often played romantic male lead roles, which were almost nonexistent for an actor of Asian descent during his time, making him a trailblazer in Asian American representation in media. The Goldsea Asian-American Daily magazine listed him as one of the "Most Inspiring Asian-Americans Of All Time". Before his Hollywood career he found success as a pop singer and performer abroad, especially in Japan and Australia.
James Saburo Shigeta (June 17, 1929 – July 28, 2014) was an American actor, singer, and musician of Japanese descent. He was noted for his roles in The Crimson Kimono (1959), Walk Like a Dragon (1960), Flower Drum Song (1961), Bridge to the Sun (1961), Die Hard (1988), and Mulan (1998). In 1960, he won the Golden Globe Award for Most Promising Newcomer – Male, along with three other actors.
In his early career, Shigeta often played romantic male lead roles, which were almost nonexistent for an actor of Asian descent during his time, making him a trailblazer in Asian American representation in media. The Goldsea Asian-American Daily magazine listed him as one of the "Most Inspiring Asian-Americans Of All Time".
Before his Hollywood career he found success as a pop singer and performer abroad, especially in Japan and Australia.
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Filmography
Yellowface: Asian Whitewashing and Racism in Hollywood
2019
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as (archive footage)
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Age: 90
Brother
2000
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as Sugimoto
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Age: 71
Mulan
1998
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as General Li (voice)
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Age: 69
Drive
1997
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as Mr. Lau
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Age: 68
Space Marines
1996
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as Ambassador Nakamura
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Age: 66
China Cry
1990
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as Dr. Sung
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Age: 61
No Image
Home from the Eastern Sea
1990
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as Narrator
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Age: 60
Cage
1989
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as Tin Lum Yin
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Age: 60
Slaying the Dragon
1988
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as
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Age: 59
Die Hard
1988
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as Joseph Yoshinobu Takagi
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Age: 59
Enola Gay: The Men, the Mission, the Atomic Bomb
1980
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as Field Marshal Abehata
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Age: 51
Midway
1976
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as Vice Admiral Chuichi Nagumo
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Age: 47
The Yakuza
1974
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as Goro
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Age: 45
The Questor Tapes
1974
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as Dr. Chen
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Age: 44
Lost Horizon
1973
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as Brother To-Lenn
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Age: 43
The Young Lawyers
1969
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as Lee Ahn
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Age: 40
Operation Heartbeat
1969
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as Chief Resident
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Age: 39
Escape to Mindanao
1968
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as Lt. Takahashi
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Age: 39
Paradise, Hawaiian Style
1966
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as Danny Kohana
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Age: 36
Carol for Another Christmas
1964
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as Japanese Doctor
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Age: 35
Flower Drum Song
1961
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as Wang Ta
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Age: 32
Bridge to the Sun
1961
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as Hidenari Terasaki
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Age: 32
Cry for Happy
1961
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as Suzuki
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Age: 31
Walk Like a Dragon
1960
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as Cheng Lu
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Age: 30
The Crimson Kimono
1959
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as Detective Joe Kojaku
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Age: 30