Kyōko Kagawa


Kyōko Kagawa is a Japanese actress known for her roles in films like Tokyo Story, Sansho the Bailiff, Mothra, and High and Low. She has appeared in 118 films. Her most recent film was Ballad in 2009.

Biography

Kagawa was born in Tokyo in 1931. She originally wanted to become a ballerina. She was discovered by a film studio after winning a beauty contest and began a career in acting. Her first major film role was in a movie Mado Kara Tobidase.
She became a household name for her role in Tokyo Story in 1953. She also appeared in the famous film Sansho the Bailiff. Akira Kurosawa made her one of his regular performers. She played the love interest of Toshiro Mifune, Kurosawa's favorite leading man, several times. Kurosawa used her in The Bad Sleep Well, High and Low and Red Beard.
In 1965, Kagawa married and followed her husband to New York City. From this point, she began to act more in television than on the big screen. She later returned to the cinema, with films like Madadayo and Ballad.
In late 2011, the National Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo, honored her long career and her contribution to Japanese cinema with an exhibition titled 'Kyoko Kagawa, Film Actress.'

Selected filmography

Films