Summary
He was known as one of the leading figures in the Japanese voice acting industry, with numerous roles including Isono Namihei in "Sazae-san." He was beloved by many juniors due to his humble and approachable personality, and was also a master of consideration, often easing the atmosphere around him.
He debuted in 1956 with the radio drama "Shonen Miyamoto Musashi." His voice acting career began when he appeared as part of a unit in the dubbing of the movie "Superman." Later, he became known in the dubbing industry as someone who could play old man roles, especially with the role of Wishbone in the 1959-started foreign drama "Rawhide," which became his breakout role and led him to specialize in elderly roles. Eventually, his schedule became so filled with voice acting work that he could no longer take on stage or film roles, leading him naturally to focus solely on voice acting.
In anime, his first role was Ahmad in the 1962 theatrical film "Arabian Nights: Sinbad's Adventures." He made his TV anime debut in "Sen'nin Buraku" and appeared in "Astro Boy." His first regular role was as a doctor in "Big X" in 1964, marking his active participation from the dawn of anime. His long-standing role as Isono Namihei in "Sazae-san" from 1969 became one of his most iconic roles.
His voice type was a low baritone. He often played the roles of middle-aged to elderly men, known as the "elderly role voice actor." He was adept at using his deep voice to play supporting characters with a presence that often surpassed that of the main characters.