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Takashi Nagase
was a Japanese military interpreter during World War II. He worked for the Kempeitai (military secret police) at the construction of the Burma Railway in Thailand, and spent most of his later life as an activist for post-war reconciliation and against Japanese militarism. He made over a hundred visits to Thailand, and from the 1970s, arranged several meetings between former Allied prisoners of wars and their Japanese captors, in efforts to promote peace and understanding. In 1993, he met and reconciled with British former POW Eric Lomax—in whose torture sessions Nagase had been involved—an encounter retold in Lomax's 1995 autobiography '' The Railway Man''. Early life and military service Nagase was born in 1918 in Kurashiki, Okayama, Japan and learned English at an American Methodist college in Tokyo. He joined the Imperial Japanese Army during World War II, and became an interpreter for the Kempeitai at the construction of the Burma Railway, known for its brutal conditions ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kurashiki
is a historic city located in western Okayama Prefecture, Japan, sitting on the Takahashi River, on the coast of the Inland Sea. As of March 31, 2017, the city has an estimated population of 483,576 and a population density of 1,400 persons per km². The total area is 355.63 km². History The modern city of Kurashiki was founded on April 1, 1928. Previously, it was the site of clashes between the Taira and Minamoto clans during the Heian period. It gradually developed as a river port. During the Edo period, it became an area directly controlled by the shogunate. Distinctive white-walled, black-tiled warehouses were built to store goods. During the Meiji Restoration (Japan's Industrial Revolution period), factories were built, including the Ohara Spinning Mill, which still stands as the nostalgic tourist attraction Ivy Square. On August 1, 2005, the town of Mabi (from Kibi District), and the town of Funao (from Asakuchi District) were merged with Kurashiki. Geography C ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Buddhist Priest
A ''bhikkhu'' (Pali: भिक्खु, Sanskrit: भिक्षु, ''bhikṣu'') is an ordained male in Buddhist monasticism. Male and female monastics ("nun", ''bhikkhunī'', Sanskrit ''bhikṣuṇī'') are members of the Sangha (Buddhist community). The lives of all Buddhist monastics are governed by a set of rules called the prātimokṣa or pātimokkha. Their lifestyles are shaped to support their spiritual practice: to live a simple and meditative life and attain nirvana. A person under the age of 20 cannot be ordained as a bhikkhu or bhikkhuni but can be ordained as a śrāmaṇera or śrāmaṇērī. Definition ''Bhikkhu'' literally means "beggar" or "one who lives by alms". The historical Buddha, Prince Siddhartha, having abandoned a life of pleasure and status, lived as an alms mendicant as part of his śramaṇa lifestyle. Those of his more serious students who renounced their lives as householders and came to study full-time under his supervision also adopt ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Jeremy Irvine
Jeremy William Fredric Smith (born 18 June 1990), known professionally as Jeremy Irvine, is an English actor who made his film debut in the epic war film '' War Horse'' (2011). In 2012, he portrayed Philip "Pip" Pirrip in the film adaptation of ''Great Expectations''. Irvine earned a reputation as a Method actor after he went for two months without food, losing around , and performed his own torture scene stunts in '' The Railway Man'' (2013). He has since starred in '' The Woman in Black: Angel of Death'' (2015), and portrayed Daniel Grigori in the direct-to-video film adaptation of the young adult novel '' Fallen'' (2016), as well as young Sam in '' Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again'' (2018). In 2019, he starred as John Randolph Bentley in the USA Network television series '' Treadstone''. Early life Irvine was born Jeremy William Fredric Smith on 18 June 1990 in Gamlingay, Cambridgeshire, where he was raised. His mother, Bridget Smith, is a Liberal Democrat councillor on (and ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Colin Firth
Colin Andrew Firth (born 10 September 1960) is an English actor and producer. He was identified in the mid-1980s with the " Brit Pack" of rising young British actors, undertaking a challenging series of roles, including leading roles in '' A Month in the Country'' (1987), ''Tumbledown'' (1988) and '' Valmont'' (1989). His portrayal of Mr. Darcy in the 1995 television adaptation of Jane Austen's ''Pride and Prejudice'' led to widespread attention, and to roles in more prominent films such as ''The English Patient'' (1996), ''Shakespeare in Love'' (1998), ''Bridget Jones's Diary'' (2001), ''The Importance of Being Earnest'' (2002), '' Girl with a Pearl Earring'' (2003), Richard Curtis's romantic comedy ensemble film ''Love Actually'' (2003), and the musical comedy '' Mamma Mia!'' (2008) and its sequel, ''Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again!'' (2018). In 2009, Firth received international acclaim for his performance in Tom Ford's ''A Single Man'', for which he won a BAFTA Award and recei ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hiroyuki Sanada
is a Japanese actor and martial artist. He is best known to international audiences for his roles as Genbu in ''Ninja in the Dragon's Den'' (1982), Ryuji Takayama in ''Ring'' (1998), Seibei Iguchi in ''The Twilight Samurai'' (2002), Ujio in ''The Last Samurai'' (2003), Kenji in ''Rush Hour 3'' (2007), and Scorpion in ''Mortal Kombat'' (2021). His role as 'The Fool' in the Shakespeare play ''King Lear'' also gave him notable theatrical notice in the United Kingdom. In Japan, Sanada is also known for songs he recorded for movies he was in as well as songs he has performed for the public. He made his first major Hollywood appearance portraying Ujio in ''The Last Samurai'' (2003), later appearing in such films as '' Sunshine'' (2007), ''Speed Racer'' (2008), '' The Wolverine'', ''47 Ronin'' (both 2013), '' Minions'' (2015), ''Life'' (2017), '' Avengers: Endgame'' (2019), ''Army of the Dead'' (2021), and ''Bullet Train'' (2022). He also had a recurring role on the HBO series ''Westwo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tanroh Ishida
is a Japanese actor based in London, UK. Career Ishida was trained from the age of three in traditional Japanese ''Noh'' and ''Kyogen'' theater by his father and his father's master.WBMGroup profile Retrieved 27 January 2013 He has performed at theaters in Japan, and at the Carnegie Hall in New York, and Shakespeare's Globe in London. When he was 15, he moved to England to study at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama. After graduation, he formed his own theater company, "Tea Leaf Theatre". Filmography * ''Beneath (2011 shortfilm), Beneath'' (2011), as The Wolf * ''Gambit (2012 film), Gambit'' (2012), as Akihira Kontaro * ''The Railway Man (film), The Railway Man'' (2013), as the young Takashi Nagase * ' (2013)[...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Railway Man (film)
''The Railway Man'' is a 2013 war film directed by Jonathan Teplitzky. It is an adaptation of the 1995 autobiography of the same name by Eric Lomax, and stars Colin Firth, Nicole Kidman, Jeremy Irvine, and Stellan Skarsgård. It premiered at the 2013 Toronto International Film Festival on 6 September 2013. Plot During the Second World War, Eric Lomax is a British officer who is captured by the Japanese in Singapore and sent to a Japanese POW camp, where he is forced to work on the Thai-Burma Railway north of the Malay Peninsula. During his time in the camp as one of the Far East prisoners of war, Lomax is tortured by the ''Kempeitai'' (military secret police) for building a radio receiver from spare parts. The torture depicted includes beatings, food deprivation and waterboarding. Apparently, he had fallen under suspicion of being a spy, for supposedly using the British news broadcast receiver as a transmitter of military intelligence. In fact, however, his only intention h ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ciarán McMenamin
Ciarán McMenamin (born 1 October 1975) is a Northern Irish actor and author. Early life McMenamin was born in Enniskillen, County Fermanagh, Northern Ireland, where he attended St Michael's College. He earned his B.A. from the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama in 1998. He attended drama classes at Ardhowen Youth Theatre before moving on to work with the Ulster Youth Theatre. Career McMenamin has appeared on various BBC and ITV programmes, including " 4:50 From Paddington", an episode of ''Agatha Christie's Marple'', starring Geraldine McEwan, in which he played Cedric Crackenthorpe, and in the Channel 4 comedy series '' The Young Person's Guide To Becoming A Rock Star''. In 1999 he was cast in the title role of the BBC1 television movie ''David Copperfield''. He co-starred in '' The Golden Hour'' (ITV, 2005), playing a doctor. In January 2009, he appeared in a one-off special episode ("The Grinning Man") of the BBC's ''Jonathan Creek'', playing a grounds keeper. He ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ernest Gordon
Ernest Gordon (31 May 1916 – 16 January 2002) was the former Presbyterian dean of the chapel at Princeton University. A native of Greenock, Scotland, and the son of James Gordon and Sarah R MacMillan, as an officer in the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders, Gordon spent three years in a Japanese POW, prisoner of war (POW) camp during the World War II, Second World War. He chronicled his experiences on the Death Railway in his book ''Through the Valley of the Kwai''. The book served as an inspiration to the film ''To End All Wars'', where he was portrayed by actor Ciarán McMenamin. The film opened in 2001 in film, 2001, and the film's DVD release, which came out after his passing, dedicated the film to his memory. Wartime Service Captain Ernest Gordon was a company commander with the 2nd Battalion, Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders. He fought in several battles in the Malayan Campaign and the Battle of Singapore. He was one of the last Allied soldiers to cross the causeway fr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
To End All Wars
''To End All Wars'' is a 2001 war film starring Robert Carlyle, Kiefer Sutherland and Sakae Kimura and was directed by David L. Cunningham. The film is based on '' Through the Valley of the Kwai'', an autobiography of Scottish captain Ernest Gordon. Plot The film is set in a Japanese prisoner of war labour camp where the inmates are building the Burma Railway during the last three and a half years of World War II."Review: ‘To End All Wars’" ''Variety'', Dennis Harvey. June 18, 2002 Captain Ernest Gordon was a company commander with the 2nd Battalion, Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders who fought in several battles in the [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rowena Cooper
Rosemary Rowena Cooper (born 1935) is a British actress. She began her career in 1956, joining the Radio Drama Company by winning the Carlton Hobbs Bursary. In 1959 she joined the Dundee Repertory Theatre Company and went on to have an extensive career, primarily in British television, for over 50 years. Cooper starred in The Rag Trade as Mrs Fenner. Select filmography in television Personal life She married actor Terrence Hardiman Terrence Hardiman (born 6 April 1937)Biographical detail Photo of Hardiman and Cooper in role
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John Hurt
Sir John Vincent Hurt (22 January 1940 – 25 January 2017) was an English actor whose career spanned over five decades. Hurt was regarded as one of Britain's finest actors. Director David Lynch described him as "simply the greatest actor in the world". He possessed what was described as the "most distinctive voice in Britain". He's received numerous accolades and honours including the BAFTA Outstanding British Contribution to Cinema Award in 2012 and was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II in 2015 for his services to drama. He came to prominence playing Richard Rich in the film '' A Man for All Seasons'' (1966) and won the British Academy Television Award for Best Actor for '' The Naked Civil Servant'' (1975). He played Caligula in the BBC TV series ''I, Claudius'' (1976). Hurt earned Academy Award nominations for Best Supporting Actor for '' Midnight Express'' (1978), and Best Actor for ''The Elephant Man'' (1980). Other films include ''Alien'' (1979), '' Heaven's Gate'' (1 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
