(December 16, 1927 – July 25, 1984), born , was a

Japanese Japanese may refer to: * Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia * Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan * Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture ** Japanese diaspor ...

film actor. While Hirata starred in many movies (including

Hiroshi Inagaki was a Japanese filmmaker best remembered for the Academy Award-winning '' Samurai I: Musashi Miyamoto'', which was released in 1954. Career Born in Tokyo as the son of a shinpa actor, Inagaki appeared on stage in his childhood before joining t ...

's ''Samurai'' trilogy), he is most well known for his work in the ''

kaiju is a Japanese media genre that focuses on stories involving giant monsters. The word ''kaiju'' can also refer to the giant monsters themselves, which are usually depicted attacking major cities and battling either the military or other monster ...

'' genre, including such films as ''

King Kong vs. Godzilla is a 1962 Japanese ''kaiju'' film directed by Ishirō Honda, with special effects by Eiji Tsuburaya. Produced and distributed by Toho Co., Ltd, it is the third film in both the ''Godzilla'' and ''King Kong'' franchises, as well as the first T ...

'', ''

The Mysterians is a 1957 Japanese tokusatsu science fiction film directed by Ishirō Honda, with special effects by Eiji Tsuburaya. The film begins with a giant fissure destroying an entire village. This leads to an investigation whereby the source is disc ...

'', ''

Terror of Mechagodzilla is a 1975 Japanese Kaiju, ''kaiju'' film directed by Ishirō Honda (his final film as a director), written by Yukiko Takayama, and produced by Tomoyuki Tanaka and Henry G. Saperstein, with special effects by Teruyoshi Nakano. Distributed by Toho ...

'', ''

Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla is a 1974 Japanese Kaiju, ''kaiju'' film directed by Jun Fukuda, with special effects by Teruyoshi Nakano. Distributed by Toho and produced under their effects subsidiary Toho–Eizo, it is the 14th film of the Godzilla (franchise), ''Godzilla ...

'', and his most famous role of Dr. Daisuke Serizawa, the brilliant but disturbed young scientist in the original ''

Godzilla is a fictional monster, or '' kaiju'', originating from a series of Japanese films. The character first appeared in the 1954 film ''Godzilla'' and became a worldwide pop culture icon, appearing in various media, including 32 films produc ...

'', released in 1954. Hirata was married to the popular actress

Yoshiko Kuga is a Japanese people, Japanese actress. Biography and personal life Kuga was born in Tokyo, Japan. Her father, , was a marquis and a member of the House of Peers (Japan), House of Peers. In 1946, while still attending Gakushuin Junior High Sc ...

from 1961 until his death. He died at age 56 in 1984 after a long battle with

lung cancer Lung cancer, also known as lung carcinoma (since about 98–99% of all lung cancers are carcinomas), is a malignant lung tumor characterized by uncontrolled cell growth in tissue (biology), tissues of the lung. Lung carcinomas derive from tran ...

Early life

Hirata was born in

Seoul Seoul (; ; ), officially known as the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea.Before 1972, Seoul was the ''de jure'' capital of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea) as stated iArticle 103 ...

Korea Korea ( ko, 한국, or , ) is a peninsular region in East Asia. Since 1945, it has been divided at or near the 38th parallel, with North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) comprising its northern half and South Korea (Republic o ...

, in 1927, into a wealthy family. He was educated at the prestigious Tokyo University's School of Interior Design. Before joining

Shintoho was a Japanese movie studio. It was one of the big six film studios (which also included Daiei, Nikkatsu, Shochiku, Toei Company, and Toho) during the Golden Age of Japanese cinema. It was founded by defectors from the original Toho company fol ...

as an assistant director (under his older brother,

Yoshiki Onoda is a Japanese film director and writer. Biography Born in Tokyo, the family then moved to Korea. In 1947, he moved back to Japan to work as an assistant director to Akira Kurosawa at the Toho studios. In 1958 he directed his first film, '' H ...

), Hirata moved into still photography, and eventually joined

Toho is a Japanese film, theatre production and distribution company. It has its headquarters in Chiyoda, Tokyo, and is one of the core companies of the Osaka-based Hankyu Hanshin Toho Group. Outside of Japan, it is best known as the producer an ...

in 1953, under the studio's "New Face" program, which would lead to his casting in ''

'' (although Hirata was originally intended for the part of Ogata, eventually played by another genre regular, Akira Takarada).

Career

Hirata's film debut came in 1953, with ''

The Last Embrace ''The Last Embrace'' is the final album released by American band Spirit Caravan. It was released on 2×CD and 2×LP in 2003 by Meteor City Records. It contains 19 songs from their two albums, ''Jug Fulla Sun'' and ''Elusive Truth'', the three ...

''. Hirata would go on to play everything from snarling villains to government officials. His long face and intense features have earned the actor a cult following. Although Hirata earned lasting fame with his part in ''

'', the role also typecast him, and the actor would go on to star in over 20 other sci-fi fantasy films for Toho (among them ''

The H-Man is a Japanese science fiction thriller film directed by Ishirō Honda, with special effects directed by Eiji Tsuburaya. Plot On a rainy night in the outskirts of Tokyo, a drug smuggler, Misaki, is killed while trying to escape in a getaway ...

'', ''

Gorath is a 1962 Japanese epic science fiction disaster film directed by Ishirō Honda, with special effects by Eiji Tsuburaya. Based on an idea by Jojiro Okami, the film is about mankind's efforts to move Earth out of its orbit to prevent it from ...

'', and ''

Prophecies of Nostradamus is a 1974 disaster film by Toshio Masuda, based on a 1973 novel by Ben Goto, itself inspired by the prophecies of Nostradamus. Plot In 1853, Genta Nishiyama begins preaching the prophecies of Michel de Nostradame using a copy of his book ''Ce ...

'', as well as an important recurring role in the original ''

Ultraman ''Ultraman'', also known as the , is the collective name for all media produced by Tsuburaya Productions featuring Ultraman, his many brethren, and the myriad monsters. Debuting with ''Ultra Q'' and then ''Ultraman'' in 1966, the series is one ...

'' series. It is fitting that in both his first and final appearances in a Godzilla film, Hirata would play mysterious and disturbed scientists, as Hirata took on the role of the tragic Dr. Mafune in 1975's ''

''.

Death

Hirata died in 1984. The actor's association with the ''kaiju'' genre continued right until his death, as he helped announce the production of ''

The Return of Godzilla is a 1984 Japanese ''kaiju'' film directed by Koji Hashimoto, with special effects by Teruyoshi Nakano. The film features the fictional monster character Godzilla. Distributed by Toho and produced under their subsidiary Toho Pictures, it is ...

'' at a Tokyo press conference, but unfortunately Hirata was too ill to appear in the film, and the part would eventually go to

Yosuke Natsuki was a Japanese actor. He had participated twice in the Dakar Rally as a racing driver. He did a lot of work for the Toho Company and made his debut in the film ''The H-Man''. He appeared in Akira Kurosawa's '' Yojimbo'' in 1961. In the same ye ...

, who had appeared alongside Hirata in ''

Ghidorah, the Three-Headed Monster is a 1964 Japanese ''kaiju'' film directed by Ishirō Honda, with special effects by Eiji Tsuburaya. Produced and distributed by Toho Co., Ltd., it is the fifth film in the ''Godzilla'' franchise, and was the second ''Godzilla'' film produced ...

'' in 1964. Hirata died on the 25th of July, 1984, after a long battle with

. His final film role was in the 1984 film '' Sayonara Jupiter''.

Selected filmography

Film

* ''

'' (1953) as Yamaoka, alias Sandaime * ''Pu-san'' (1953) * '' Girls Amongst the Flowers'' (1953) as Takamaro Kitaôji * '' Even the Mighty Shed Tears'' (1953) * '' Farewell Rabaul'' (1954) as First lieutenant Noguchi * ''Itsuko to sono haha'' (1954) as Kozo Miyoshi * '' Samurai I: Musashi Miyamoto'' (1954) as Seijuro Yoshioka * ''

'' (1954) as Dr. Daisuke Serizawa * ''Sanjusan go sha otonashi'' (1955) * '' Samurai II: Duel at Ichijoji Temple'' (1955) as Seijūrō Yoshioka * ''

The Lone Journey , also known as ''The Road'', is a 1955 black-and-white Japanese film directed by Hiroshi Inagaki. Production design was by Takeo Kita and Makoto Sono and sound recording was by Choshichiro Mikami. The lighting technician Electrical lighting ...

'' (1955) as Horikoshi no Masakichi * ''Natsume Sôseki no Sanshirô'' (1955) as Sugimoto * ''Kaettekita wakadan'na'' (1955) as Mochizuki * '' Samurai III: Duel at Ganryu Island'' (1956) as Seijūrō Yoshioka * ''Kuro-obi sangokushi'' (1956) as Shunsuke Iba * ''

Godzilla, King of the Monsters! is a 1956 '' kaiju'' film directed by Terry O. Morse and Ishirō Honda. It is a heavily re-edited American localization, commonly referred to as an "Americanization", of the 1954 Japanese film ''Godzilla''. The film was a Japanese- American c ...

'' (1956) as Dr. Serizawa * ''Furyô shônen'' (1956) * ''Harikiri shacho'' (1956) * ''Ani to sono musume'' (1956) as Michio * ''Nisshokû no natsu'' (1956) * ''

Rodan is a fictional monster, or ''kaiju'', which first appeared as the title character in Ishirō Honda's 1956 film '' Rodan'', produced and distributed by Toho. Following its debut standalone appearance, Rodan went on to be featured in numerous e ...

'' (1956) as Professor Kyouichiro Kashiwagi * ''Taian kichijitsu'' (1957) * ''Arashi no naka no otoko'' (1957) * ''Ôban'' (1957) * ''Nemuri Kyôshirô burai hikae dainibu'' (1957) * ''Ninjitsu'' (1957) as Tomonori * ''Wakare no chatsumi-uta'' (1957) * ''Waga mune ni niji wa kiezu'' (1957) as Tokuoka * ''Koto no tsume'' (1957) * ''Zoku Ôban: Fûun hen'' (1957) as Count Arishima * ''Saigo no dasso'' (1957) as Son * ''Wakare no chatsumi-uta shimai-hen: Oneesan to yonda hito'' (1957) * ''Kottaisan yori: Nyotai wa kanashiku'' (1957) as Sashichi * ''Zokuzoku Ôban: Dotô hen'' (1957) as Arishima * ''

'' (1957) as Ryōichi Shiraishi * ''Yagyû bugeichô: Sôryû hiken'' (1958) as Tomonori * ''Kiuchi yasuto'' (1958) * ''Kanai anzen'' (1958) as Yôtarô Ibuki * ''

'' (1958) as Inspector Tominaga * ''Hitokui ama'' (1958) as Detective Makino * ''Hana no bojô'' (1958) as Seigetsu Izumida * ''Josei SOS'' (1958) * ''

Varan the Unbelievable is a 1958 Japanese ''kaiju'' film directed by Ishirō Honda, with special effects by Eiji Tsuburaya. Produced and distributed by Toho Co., Ltd, it stars Kōzō Nomura, Ayumi Sonoda, and Koreya Senda, with Haruo Nakajima as Varan. In the fi ...

'' (1958) as Dr. Fujimura * ''Ankokugai no kaoyaku'' (1959) * ''Daigaku no oneechan'' (1959) as Iwafune * ''Aru kengo no shogai'' (1959) as Akaboshi * '' Submarine I-57 Will Not Surrender'' (1959) * ''Sengoku gunto-den'' (1959) as Jiro Hidekuni * ''

The Three Treasures is a 1959 Japanese film directed by Hiroshi Inagaki. The film is based on the legends ''Kojiki'' and '' Nihon Shoki'' and the origins of ''Shinto''. The film was the highest-grossing film of 1959 for Toho and the second highest grossing domestic ...

'' (1959) as Kibino Takehiko * ''The Last Gunfight'' (1960) as Susumu Tendo, the killer * ''Kuroi gashû: Aru sarariman no shôgen'' (1960) * ''Sarariman shussetai kôki daigobu'' (1960) * ''

The Secret of the Telegian () is a 1960 tokusatsu science fiction- horror and mystery film. Produced by Toho Company, Ltd., the film was directed by Jun Fukuda, with special effects by Eiji Tsuburaya. Herts-Lion International Corp. acquired the western hemisphere ...

'' (1960) as Detective Kobayashi * ''Dâisan hâtobanô kêtto'' (1960) * '' Storm Over the Pacific'' (1960) as an Officer * ''Daigaku no sanzôkutachi'' (1960) as Marukyû Department Store Manager * ''Man Against Man'' (1960) as Torimi * ''Dokuritsu gurentai nishi-e'' (1960) * Minagoroshi no uta' yori kenjû-yo saraba!'' (1960) as Kozo Kinugawa * ''

The Story of Osaka Castle is a 1961 Japanese drama film directed by Hiroshi Inagaki, with special effects by Eiji Tsuburaya. The film is based on historical events taking place in Japan during the beginning of the 17th century. Plot The plot is set about a decade aft ...

'' (1961) as Hayatonosho (Hayato) Susukida * ''Ankokugai no dankon'' (1961) * ''Nasake muyo no wana'' (1961) as Morishima * ''Kaoyaku akatsukini shisu'' (1961) * ''Ai to honoho to'' (1961) as Kyo Sawada * ''Dangai no ketto'' * ''

Mothra is a fictional monster, or ''kaiju'', that first appeared in the 1961 film '' Mothra'', produced and distributed by Toho Studios. Mothra has appeared in several Toho ''tokusatsu'' films, most often as a recurring character in the ''Godzilla'' ...

'' (1961) as Doctor * ''Kurenai no umi'' (1961) * ''Onna bakari no yoru'' (1961) * ''Kuroi gashû dainibu: Kanryû'' (1961) * ''

Sanjuro is a 1962 black-and-white Japanese ''jidaigeki'' film directed by Akira Kurosawa and starring Toshiro Mifune. It is a sequel to Kurosawa's 1961 ''Yojimbo''. Originally an adaptation of the Shūgorō Yamamoto novel ''Hibi Heian'', the script ...

'' (1962) as Samurai * ''

'' (1962) as Spaceshop Otori -X EagleCaptain Endo * ''Dobunezumi sakusen'' (1962) * ''

'' (1962) as Doctor Shigesawa * ''Yama-neko sakusen'' (1962) * ''Wakai kisetsu'' (1962) * '' Chūshingura: Hana no Maki, Yuki no Maki'' (1962) as Yasoemon Okajima * ''Varan the Unbelievable'' (1962) as Observer * ''Ankokugai no kiba'' (1962) * ''Ai no uzu shio'' (1962) * ''

Attack Squadron! is a 1963 Japanese film directed by Shue Matsubayashi, with special effects by Eiji Tsuburaya. The film is about Lt. Colonel Senda ( Toshiro Mifune) who commands three fighter squadrons, eventually being dominated by Allied forces in June 1944. ...

'' (1963) as Senda's Aide * ''Onna ni tsuyoku naru kufû no kazukazu'' (1963) as Rokusuke Sakai * ''Nippon jitsuwa jidai'' (1963) * ''Chintao yôsai bakugeki meirei'' (1963) * ''Hawai no wakadaishô'' (1963) * ''Norainu sakusen'' (1963) * ''Eburi manshi no yûga-na seikatsu'' (1963) * ''

Atragon is a 1963 Japanese tokusatsu science fiction film produced and distributed by Toho. It is based on ''The Undersea Warship: A Fantastic Tale of Island Adventure'' by Shunrō Oshikawa and ''The Undersea Kingdom'' by Shigeru Komatsuzaki. The film ...

'' (1963) as Mu Agent #23 * ''

Whirlwind A whirlwind is a weather phenomenon in which a vortex of wind (a vertically oriented rotating column of air) forms due to instabilities and turbulence created by heating and flow (current) gradients. Whirlwinds occur all over the world and i ...

'' (1964) as Ryutaro Inoue * ''Kyô mo ware ôzora ni ari'' (1964) * ''Garakuta'' (1964) * ''

'' (1964) as Chief Detective Okita * ''

Samurai Assassin is a 1965 Japanese film directed by Kihachi Okamoto and starring Toshiro Mifune, Koshiro Matsumoto, Yūnosuke Itō, and Michiyo Aratama. It is set in 1860, immediately before the Meiji Restoration changed Japanese society forever by doing awa ...

'' (1965) as Sohei Masui * ''Ankokugai gekitotsu sakusen'' (1965) as Shimada * ''Fûrai ninpôchô'' (1965) * ''Taiheiyô kiseki no sakusen: Kisuka'' (1965) as Dr. Kudo * ''Honkon no shiroibara'' (1965) as Asano * '' 100 Shot, 100 Killed'' (1965) as Komori * ''Baka to Hasami'' (1965) * ''Musekinin Shimizu Minato'' (1965) * ''Rise Against the Sword'' (1966) as Asakura * ''Kiganjô no bôken'' (1966) as Chamberlain * ''Ja ja umanarashi'' (1966) * ''Doto ichiman kairi'' (1966) as Nozaki * ''

Ebirah, Horror of the Deep is a 1966 Japanese '' kaiju'' film directed by Jun Fukuda and produced and distributed by Toho Co., Ltd. The film stars Akira Takarada, Kumi Mizuno, Akihiko Hirata and Eisei Amamoto, and features the fictional monster characters Godzilla, M ...

'' (1966) as Captain Yamoto * '' The Killing Bottles'' (1967) as Man With Turkish Hat * ''

Japan's Longest Day is a 1967 Japanese war film directed by Kihachi Okamoto. The subject of the majority of the movie is the period between noon on August 14, 1945 and noon on August 15, 1945, when Emperor Hirohito's decision to surrender to the Allies in World W ...

'' (1967) as Commander Sugahara - 302nd Air Group * ''

Son of Godzilla is a 1967 Japanese ''kaiju'' film directed by Jun Fukuda, with special effects by Sadamasa Arikawa, under the supervision of Eiji Tsuburaya. Produced and distributed by Toho Co., Ltd, it is the eighth film in the ''Godzilla'' franchise. It st ...

'' (1967) as Fujisaki * ''

'' (1968) as Professor Iwamoto * '' Isoroku'' (1968) as Staff Officer Watanabe * ''Dai bakuhatsu'' (1969) as W * '' Latitude Zero'' (1969) as Dr. Sugata; Doctor of Latitude Zero * ''Battle of the Japan Sea'' (1969) as Staff Officer Tsunoda * ''Mito Kômon man'yûki'' (1969) as Geki Kurokawa * ''Dai Nippon suri shûdan'' (1969) as Furansu * ''Nagurikomi Shimizu Minato'' (1970) * ''Kigeki: Makete tamaru ka!'' (1970) * ''Gekido no showashi 'Gunbatsu (1970) as Tomita (uncredited) * ''Kigeki kinô no teki wa kyô mo teki'' (1971) * ''Ningen kakumei'' (1973) * ''

Karei-naru Ichizoku is a 1973 novel by Toyoko Yamasaki. It has been adapted into a film in 1974 and then three times as a television series in 1974, 2007, and 2021. Plot Set in the post-World War II climate of the 1960s in Kobe, the show explores the struggle for po ...

'' (1974) (1974) as Haruta * ''

'' (1974) as Professor Hideto Miyajima * ''

'' (1974) as Environmental Scientist 1 * ''

'' (1975) as Dr. Shinji Mafune * ''Dômyaku rettô'' (1975) as Tanemura * ''Ôzora no samurai'' (1976) * '' Otoko wa tsurai yo: Torajirô to tonosama'' (1967) as Munemichi * ''

The War in Space ''The War in Space'', released in Japan as , is a tokusatsu science fiction film produced and released by Toho Studios in 1977. Plot In Autumn of the year 1988, contact with Space Station Terra is lost while sightings of UFOs are being reported ...

'' (1977) as Commander Oishi, Japan Defence Forces * ''Godzilla'' (1977) as Dr. Serizawa * ''Ôgon no inu'' (1979) as Kan Aizawa * ''Ah! Nomugi toge'' (1979) as Prince Fushiminomiya * '' Ultraman: Great Monster Decisive Battle'' (1979) * '' Port Arthur'' (1980) as

Gaishi Nagaoka Count was a Japanese military officer. He served in the First Sino-Japanese War and was Vice Chief of the General Staff in Japan during the Russo-Japanese War. He became a member of the House of Representatives in 1924. History Gaishi Nagao ...

* '' Imperial Navy'' (1981) * ''Eki'' (1981) * ''Chikagoro naze ka Charusuton'' (1981) * ''Suparuta no umi'' (1983) * '' Sayonara Jupiter'' (1984) as Doctor Inoue Ryutarou

Television

* ''

Ultra Q is a tokusatsu science fiction kaiju series made in the tradition of Toho's many tokusatsu sci-fi/horror films. Produced in black and white by Tsuburaya Productions, this is actually the first of the long-running Ultra Series, and was broadc ...

'' (1966) as Chief Hanazawa * ''

'' (1966-1967) as Dr. Iwamoto * ''

Ultraseven is a Japanese ''tokusatsu'' science fiction television series created by Eiji Tsuburaya. It is the third installment in the Ultra Series and was produced by Tsuburaya Productions. The series aired on Tokyo Broadcasting System from October 1, 19 ...

'' (1967) as Staff Officer Yanagawa * ''

Taiyō ni Hoero! , literally ''Roar at the Sun!'', was a long-running prime-time television detective series in Japan, which ran from 1972 to 1986 for a total of 718 episodes. The lead star was Yujiro Ishihara. It also helped further the career of actors such a ...

'' (1972–83) as Takayuki Nishiyama(Semi-regular) * ''

Warrior of Love Rainbowman is a tokusatsu series created by Kōhan Kawauchi. This was the first superhero TV series produced by Toho Company Ltd., and was broadcast on NET (now TV Asahi) from October 6, 1972 to September 18, 1973, with a total of 52 episodes. Mitsuru ...

'' (1972) AS Mr. K * ''

Shinsho Taikōki is a Japanese ''jidaigeki'' or period drama that was broadcast in prime-time in 1973. It is based on Eiji Yoshikawa's novel of the same title. The lead star is Takashi Yamaguchi. Plot The drama depicts the story chronicles the life of Toyotomi H ...

'' (1973) as

Hosokawa Fujitaka , also known as , was a Japanese samurai ''daimyō'' of the Sengoku period. Fujitaka was a prominent retainer of Ashikaga Yoshiaki, the last Ashikaga shōgun. When he joined the Oda, Oda Nobunaga rewarded him with the fief of Tango and went on ...

* ''

Onihei Hankachō is a series of historical novels written by Japanese author Shōtarō Ikenami. Following the character Heizo Hasegawa in the Edo period of Japan, Ikegami wrote the first story for the December 1967 issue of the light novel magazine ' published b ...

'' (1975) as Kyōgoku Bizen * ''

Daitetsujin 17 is a 1977 ''tokusatsu'' series created by Shotaro Ishinomori and produced by Toei. It revolves around a giant battle robot commanded by a young boy who fights the giant robots of an evil organization bent on world conquest. It is similar to '' ...

'' (1977) as Captain Gomez * ''

Kusa Moeru is a 1979 Japanese television series. It is the 17th NHK taiga drama. Story Kusa Moeru deals with the Kamakura period. Based on Michiko Nagai's novels "Hojo Masako" and "Enkan". The story chronicles the life of Hōjō Masako. Cast Minamoto ...

'' (1979) as Yoshiyasu Ichijo

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hirata, Akihiko 1927 births 1984 deaths Deaths from lung cancer in Japan Japanese male film actors University of Tokyo alumni 20th-century Japanese male actors