was a Japanese actor who, in a career lasting 65 years, appeared in over 160 films and about 70 television productions.

Early life

Ryū was born in Tamamizu Village, Tamana County, a rural area of

Kumamoto Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located on the island of Kyūshū. Kumamoto Prefecture has a population of 1,748,134 () and has a geographic area of . Kumamoto Prefecture borders Fukuoka Prefecture to the north, Ōita Prefecture to ...

Kyushu is the third-largest island of Japan's five main islands and the most southerly of the four largest islands ( i.e. excluding Okinawa). In the past, it has been known as , and . The historical regional name referred to Kyushu and its surroun ...

, the most southerly and westerly of the four main islands of

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

. His father was chief priest of Raishōji (来照寺), a temple of the

Honganji , also archaically romanized as Hongwanji, is the collective name of the largest school of Jōdo Shinshū Buddhism (which further sub-divides into the Nishi and Higashi branches). 'Hongan-ji' may also refer to any one of several actual temple bu ...

School of

Pure Land Buddhism Pure Land Buddhism (; ja, 浄土仏教, translit=Jōdo bukkyō; , also referred to as Amidism in English,) is a broad branch of Mahayana Buddhism focused on achieving rebirth in a Buddha's Buddha-field or Pure Land. It is one of the most wid ...

. Ryū attended the village elementary school and a prefectural middle school before entering the Department of Indian Philosophy and Ethics at Tōyō University to study Buddhism. His parents hoped he would succeed his father as priest of Raishōji, but Ryū had no wish to do so and in 1925 dropped out of university and enrolled in the acting academy of the

Shōchiku () is a Japanese film and kabuki production and distribution company. It also produces and distributes anime films, in particular those produced by Bandai Namco Filmworks (which has a long-time partnership—the company released most, if not ...

motion picture company's

Kamata Kamata can refer to: Places *Kamata, Tokyo, a neighborhood in Ōta, Tokyo, Japan **Kamata High School, a school located in the Kamata neighborhood, Ōta, Tokyo, Japan * Kamata Kingdom, a 13th-century kingdom in Assam, India * Kamata, New Zealand ...

Studios. Shortly afterwards, his father died and Ryū returned home to take on the role of priest. Within half a year or so, however, he passed the office to his older brother and returned to Kamata.

Career

For about ten years, he was confined to walk-on parts and minor roles, often uncredited. During this time he appeared in fourteen films directed by

Yasujirō Ozu was a Japanese film director and screenwriter. He began his career during the era of silent films, and his last films were made in colour in the early 1960s. Ozu first made a number of short comedies, before turning to more serious themes in t ...

, beginning with the college comedy ''Dreams of Youth'' (1928). His first big part was in Ozu's ''College is a Nice Place'' (1936) and he made his mark as an actor in Ozu's '' The Only Son'' (also 1936), playing a failed middle-aged school-teacher in spite of the fact that he was only 32. This was his break-through role, and he now began to get major parts in other directors' films. He first played the lead in

Torajirō Saitō was a Japanese film director known for his comedy films. Born in Akita Prefecture, he entered Shōchiku's Kamata studio in 1922 and debuted as a director in 1926. He later worked at the Shintoho and Toho studios. He became known as the "god of c ...

's ''Aogeba tōtoshi'' (仰げば尊し 1937). His first leading role in an Ozu film was in the ''

There Was a Father is a 1942 Japanese film directed by Yasujirō Ozu. Plot summary Shuhei Horikawa (Chishū Ryū) works as a mathematics school-teacher in a middle school. A widower, he has a ten-year-old son named Ryohei ( Haruhiko Tsuda), who studies in the sam ...

'' (父ありき 1942). This was another "elderly" part: he played the father of Shūji Sano, who was only seven years his junior. He was by now undoubtedly Ozu's favourite actor: he eventually appeared in 52 of Ozu's 54 films. He had a role (not always the lead) in every one of Ozu's post-war movies, from ''

Record of a Tenement Gentleman is a Japanese film written and directed by Yasujirō Ozu in 1947. The film was Ozu's first after World War II. Synopsis Tashiro ( Chishū Ryū), Tamekichi (Reikichi Kawamura), and O-tane (Chōko Iida) are among the residents of a poor district o ...

'' (1947) to ''

An Autumn Afternoon is a 1962 Japanese drama film directed by Yasujirō Ozu for Shochiku Films. It stars Ozu regular Chishū Ryū as the patriarch of the Hirayama family who eventually realises that he has a duty to arrange a marriage for his daughter Michiko (Shim ...

'' (1962). He played his most famous "elderly" role in ''

Tokyo Story is a 1953 Japanese drama film directed by Yasujirō Ozu and starring Chishū Ryū and Chieko Higashiyama about an aging couple who travel to Tokyo to visit their grown children. Upon release, it did not immediately gain international recogni ...

'' (1953). Ryū appeared in well over 100 films by other directors. He was in Keisuke Kinoshita's ''

Twenty-four Eyes is a 1954 Japanese drama film directed by Keisuke Kinoshita, based on the 1952 novel of the same name by Sakae Tsuboi. The film stars Hideko Takamine as a schoolteacher named Hisako Ōishi, who lives during the rise and fall of Japanese nati ...

'' (1954) and played wartime Prime Minister

Kantarō Suzuki Baron was a Japanese general and politician. He was an admiral in the Imperial Japanese Navy, member and final leader of the Imperial Rule Assistance Association and Prime Minister of Japan from 7 April to 17 August 1945. Biography Early l ...

Kihachi Okamoto was a Japanese film director who worked in several different genres. Career Born in Yonago, Okamoto attended Meiji University, but was drafted into the Air Force 1943 and entered World War II, an experience that had a profound effect on his l ...

's ''

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 ...

'' (1967). From 1969 until his death in 1993, he played a curmudgeonly but benevolent Buddhist priest in more than forty of the immensely popular ''

It's Tough Being a Man (Am I Trying) (Tora-san Our Lovable Tramp) is a 1969 Japanese comedy film directed by Yoji Yamada and starring Kiyoshi Atsumi. It is the first entry in the popular, long-running ''Otoko wa Tsurai yo'' series. Plot Torajiro Kuruma returns for th ...

'' (''

Otoko wa tsurai yo is a Japanese film series starring Kiyoshi Atsumi as , a kind-hearted vagabond who is always unlucky in love. The series itself is often referred to as "Tora-san" by its fans. Spanning 48 installments released between 1969 and 1995, all of the ' ...

'') series starring

Kiyoshi Atsumi Kiyoshi Atsumi (渥美清 ''Atsumi Kiyoshi''), born Yasuo Tadokoro (田所康雄 ''Tadokoro Yasuo'', 10 March 1928 – 4 August 1996), was a Japanese actor. He was born in Tokyo, and started his career in 1951 as a comedian at a strip-show the ...

as the lovable pedlar/conman Tora-san. Ryū parodied this role in Jūzō Itami's comedy '' The Funeral'' (1984). Ryū's last film was ''It's Tough Being a Man: Torajirō's Youth'' (男はつらいよ　寅次郎の青春: ''Otoko wa tsurai yo: Torajirō no seishun'' 1992). Between 1965 and 1989 he appeared in about 90 TV productions.

Accent

Ryū retained the rural Kumamoto accent of his childhood throughout his life. It may have held him back early in his career, but became part of his screen persona, denoting reliability and simple honesty. When the columnist Natsuhiko Yamamoto published a deliberately provocative piece called "I Can't Stand Chishū Ryū", in which he derided Ryū's accent, there was a furious reaction, and his magazine ''

Shūkan Shinchō is a Japanese conservative weekly news magazine based in Tokyo, Japan. It is considered one of the most influential weekly magazines in the country and is the first Japanese weekly magazine founded by a publishing company which does not own a ma ...

'' (週刊新潮) was inundated with letters of protest.

Selected filmography

* ''Dreams of Youth'' (Ozu, 1928) * ''Wife Lost'' (Ozu, 1928) * '' Days of Youth'' (Ozu, 1929) * ''I Flunked, But ...'' (Ozu, 1930) * '' That Night's Wife'' (Ozu, 1930) * '' I Was Born, But...'' (Ozu, 1932) * ''Where now are the Dreams of Youth?'' (Ozu, 1932) * ''

Dragnet Girl is a 1933 Japanese silent gangster film directed by Yasujirō Ozu. Written by Tadao Ikeda, the film tells the story of a gangster and his girlfriend finding redemption through the actions of an innocent girl and her not-so-innocent brother. P ...

'' (Ozu, 1933) * ''

Woman of Tokyo is a 1933 Japanese film directed by Yasujirō Ozu. The film's working title was ''Her Case, For Example'' (例えば彼女の場合 ''Tatoeba kanojo no baai'') The film tells of a student whose sister supports his studies by moonlighting as a tr ...

'' (Ozu, 1933) * '' Passing Fancy'' (Ozu, 1933) * ''

A Story of Floating Weeds is a 1934 silent film directed by Yasujirō Ozu which he later remade as ''Floating Weeds'' in 1959 in color. It won the Kinema Junpo Award for best film. Plot The film starts with a travelling kabuki troupe arriving by train at a provincial se ...

'' (Ozu, 1934) * ''A Mother should be Loved'' (Ozu, 1934) * ''

An Inn in Tokyo is a 1935 silent film directed by Yasujirō Ozu. The film is Ozu's last extant silent film. The screenplay is credited to Uinzato Mone or Winthat Monnet ("Without Money"). In fact, the screenplay was written by Ozu, Masao Arata and Tadao Iked ...

'' (Ozu, 1935) * ''College is a Nice Place'' (Ozu, 1936) * '' The Only Son'' (Ozu, 1936) * ''Ornamental Hairpin'' (Shimizu, 1941) * ''

Brothers and Sisters of the Toda Family is a 1941 Japanese film directed by Yasujirō Ozu. Plot The upper-class Toda family celebrates the 69th birthday of their father with a commemorative photoshoot at their outdoor garden. Unfortunately, shortly after the photo session, the father ...

'' (Ozu, 1941) * ''

'' (Ozu, 1942) * ''

Army An army (from Old French ''armee'', itself derived from the Latin verb ''armāre'', meaning "to arm", and related to the Latin noun ''arma'', meaning "arms" or "weapons"), ground force or land force is a fighting force that fights primarily on ...

'' ( Keisuke Kinoshita, 1944) * ''

'' (Ozu, 1947) * ''

A Hen in the Wind is a 1948 Japanese drama film directed by Yasujirō Ozu, starring Kinuyo Tanaka and Shūji Sano. Plot The film is set in immediate postwar Japan, Tokyo. Tokiko (Kinuyo Tanaka), a twenty-nine-year-old mother of a young boy of four, is waiting f ...

'' (Ozu, 1948) * ''

Late Spring is a 1949 Japanese drama film directed by Yasujirō Ozu and written by Ozu and Kogo Noda, based on the short novel ''Father and Daughter'' (''Chichi to musume'') by the 20th-century novelist and critic Kazuo Hirotsu. The film was written and s ...

'' (Ozu, 1949) * ''

The Munekata Sisters is a 1950 drama film directed by Yasujirō Ozu and starring Kinuyo Tanaka and Hideko Takamine was a Japanese actress who began as a child actress and maintained her fame in a career that spanned 50 years. She is particularly known for her co ...

'' (Ozu, 1950) * ''Home Sweet Home'' (1951) * ''

Early Summer is a 1951 Japanese drama by Yasujirō Ozu. Like most of Ozu's post-war films, ''Early Summer'' deals with issues ranging from communication problems between generations to the rising role of women in post-war Japan. The plot concerns Noriko, who ...

'' (Ozu, 1951) * '' Carmen Comes Home'' (1951) * ''

The Flavor of Green Tea over Rice is a 1952 Japanese film directed by Yasujirō Ozu. The screenplay concerns a wealthy middle-aged couple (played by Shin Saburi and Michiyo Kogure) who have marital difficulties, and their niece who uses the couple's troubles as her excuse for no ...

'' (Ozu, 1952) * ''

'' (Ozu, 1953) * ''

Twenty-Four Eyes is a 1954 Japanese drama film directed by Keisuke Kinoshita, based on the 1952 novel of the same name by Sakae Tsuboi. The film stars Hideko Takamine as a schoolteacher named Hisako Ōishi, who lives during the rise and fall of Japanese nati ...

'' ( Keisuke Kinoshita, 1954) * ''

She Was Like a Wild Chrysanthemum , also known as ''You Were Like a Wild Chrysanthemum'' or ''My First Love Affair'', is a 1955 Japanese drama film directed by Keisuke Kinoshita. It is based on a novel by Saicho Ito. Plot 73-year-old Masao is taking a river boat to pay his remote ...

'' (Keisuke Kinoshita, 1955) * ''

Arashi is a Japanese boy band consisting of five members formed under the Johnny & Associates talent agency. The members are Satoshi Ohno, Sho Sakurai, Masaki Aiba, Kazunari Ninomiya, and Jun Matsumoto. Arashi officially formed on September 15, 1999 ...

'' (

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 ...

, 1956) * '' Early Spring'' (Ozu, 1956) * ''

Tokyo Twilight is a 1957 Japanese drama film by Yasujirō Ozu. It is the story of two sisters (played by Ineko Arima and Ozu regular Setsuko Hara) who are reunited with a mother who left them as children. The film is considered amongst Ozu's darkest postwar ...

'' (Ozu, 1957) * ''

Rickshaw Man , also released as ''Muhomatsu, the Rickshaw Man'' or ''The Rikisha-Man'', is a 1958 color Japanese film directed by Hiroshi Inagaki. It is a remake of his own 1943 film. In the 1943 version Tsumasaburo Bando played the role of Muhōmatsu. In Oct ...

'' (Hiroshi Inagaki, 1958) * ''

Equinox Flower is a 1958 color Japanese film directed by Yasujirō Ozu which is based on a novel by Ton Satomi. Plot Wataru Hirayama (Shin Saburi) is a wealthy Tokyo businessman. When an old schoolmate Mikami ( Chishū Ryū) approaches him for help concerning ...

'' (Ozu, 1958) * ''

Good Morning "Good morning" is a common greeting in the English language. It may also refer to: Television * ''Good Morning!!!'' (Australian show), a children's show * ''Good Morning'' (New Zealand show), a daytime talk show * ''Good Morning'' (Russian ...

'' (Ozu, 1959) * ''

Floating Weeds is a 1959 Japanese drama directed by Yasujirō Ozu, starring Nakamura Ganjirō II and Machiko Kyō. It is a remake of Ozu's own black-and-white silent film '' A Story of Floating Weeds'' (1934) and considered one of the greatest films ever made. ...

'' (Ozu, 1959) * '' Late Autumn'' (Ozu, 1960) * ''

The Bad Sleep Well is a 1960 Japanese crime mystery film directed by Akira Kurosawa. It was the first film to be produced under Kurosawa's own independent production company. It was entered into the 11th Berlin International Film Festival. The film stars Toshiro ...

'' (

Akira Kurosawa was a Japanese filmmaker and painter who directed thirty films in a career spanning over five decades. He is widely regarded as one of the most important and influential filmmakers in the history of cinema. Kurosawa displayed a bold, dyna ...

, 1960) * '' The Human Condition III: A Soldier's Prayer'' (

Masaki Kobayashi was a Japanese film director and screenwriter, best known for the epic trilogy ''The Human Condition'' (1959–1961), the samurai films '' Harakiri'' (1962) and '' Samurai Rebellion'' (1967), and the horror anthology ''Kwaidan'' (1964). ''Sens ...

, 1961) * '' The Last War'' (

Shūe Matsubayashi (born July 7, 1920 - August 15, 2009, Shimane Prefecture, Japan) was a Japanese film director. He is best known for films in the comedy and war genres. He was also an ordained Shin Buddhist priest. His final work as director was in the 1992 fi ...

, 1961) * ''

The End of Summer is a 1961 Japanese film directed by Yasujirō Ozu for Toho Films. It was entered into the 12th Berlin International Film Festival. The film was his penultimate; only '' An Autumn Afternoon'' (1962) followed it, which he made for Shochiku Films. P ...

'' (Ozu, 1961) * ''

'' (Ozu, 1962) *''

Love Under the Crucifix is a 1962 Japanese jidaigeki film directed by Kinuyo Tanaka. Love Under the Crucifix is the last film Tanaka directed. The film was adapted from Tōkō Kon's novel '' Ogin-sama''. The film is a bittersweet love story between Sen no Rikyū's da ...

'' (

Kinuyo Tanaka was a Japanese actress and film director. She had a career lasting over 50 years with more than 250 acting credits, but was best known for her 15 films with director Kenji Mizoguchi, such as ''The Life of Oharu'' (1952) and ''Ugetsu'' (1953). W ...

, 1962) * ''

Red Beard is a 1965 Japanese ''jidaigeki'' film co-written, edited, and directed by Akira Kurosawa, in his last collaboration with actor Toshiro Mifune. Based on Shūgorō Yamamoto's 1959 short story collection, '' Akahige Shinryōtan'', the film takes p ...

'' (

, 1965) - Mr. Yasumoto * ''

'' (

, 1967) - Prime Minister Baron Kantaro Suzuki * '' The Human Bullet'' (Kihachi Okamoto, 1968) * ''

Otoko wa Tsurai yo is a Japanese film series starring Kiyoshi Atsumi as , a kind-hearted vagabond who is always unlucky in love. The series itself is often referred to as "Tora-san" by its fans. Spanning 48 installments released between 1969 and 1995, all of the ' ...

'' (

Yoji Yamada is a Japanese film director best known for his ''Otoko wa Tsurai yo'' series of films and his Samurai Trilogy (''The Twilight Samurai'', ''The Hidden Blade'' and '' Love and Honor''). Biography He was born in Osaka, but due to his father's job ...

, 1969; and 42 other films in this series, 1969-1991) * '' Battle of the Japan Sea'' (1969) as

Maresuke Nogi Count , also known as Kiten, Count Nogi (December 25, 1849September 13, 1912), was a Japanese general in the Imperial Japanese Army and a governor-general of Taiwan. He was one of the commanders during the 1894 capture of Port Arthur from Chin ...

* ''

Where Spring Comes Late is a 1970 Japanese film directed by Yoji Yamada. Plot The Kazami family live on the island of Iōjima, Nagasaki, where Seiichi Kamazi works in a coal mine. With the coal mine closing, Seiichi decides to move to Hokkaido and become a dairy farm ...

'' (Yoji Yamada, 1970) * ''

Castle of Sand is a 1974 Japanese police procedural film directed by Yoshitarō Nomura, based on the novel '' Suna no Utsuwa'' by Seicho Matsumoto. Plot Yoshitaro Nomura's 1974 film of Seicho Matsumoto's immensely popular detective story tells the tale of two ...

'' (

Yoshitarō Nomura was a prolific Japanese film director, film producer, and screenwriter. His first accredited film, , was released in 1953; his last, , in 1985. He received several awards during his career, including the Japanese Academy Award for "Best Directo ...

, 1974) * '' The Funeral'' (

Juzo Itami , born , was a Japanese actor, screenwriter and film director. He directed eleven films (one short and ten features), all of which he wrote himself. Early life Itami was born Yoshihiro Ikeuchi in Kyoto. The name Itami was passed on from his fath ...

, 1984) * ''

Tokyo-Ga ''Tokyo-Ga'' is a 1985 documentary film directed by Wim Wenders, about Japanese filmmaker Yasujirō Ozu. An international co-production of the United States and West Germany, the film was shot in spring 1983. Its focus ranges from explicit explora ...

'' ( Wim Wenders documentary about Ozu & Tokyo, 1985) * '' Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters'' (

Paul Schrader Paul Joseph Schrader (; born July 22, 1946) is an American screenwriter, film director, and film critic. He first received widespread recognition through his screenplay for Martin Scorsese's ''Taxi Driver'' (1976). He later continued his collabo ...

, 1985) * ''

Sorekara is a novel written by Natsume Sōseki in 1909, first published in serial form in the Japanese newspaper ''Asahi Shimbun''. It was translated into English by Norma Moore Field in 1978. Plot The novel starts off with Daisuke, the protagonist, wa ...

'' (1985) * ''

Final Take is a 1986 Japanese drama film directed by Yoji Yamada. It was Japan's submission to the 59th Academy Awards for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film, but was not accepted as a nominee. Cast * Kiyoshi Atsumi as Kihachi * Kiichi Naka ...

'' (1986) * ''

A Taxing Woman's Return is a 1988 Japanese comedy film written and directed by Juzo Itami. It is the sequel to Itami's 1987 comedy ''A Taxing Woman''. Nobuko Miyamoto plays female government tax investigator Ryoko Itakura. She investigates a religious sect, led by Te ...

'' (Juzo Itami, 1988) * ''

Dreams A dream is a succession of images, ideas, emotions, and sensations that usually occur involuntarily in the mind during certain stages of sleep. Humans spend about two hours dreaming per night, and each dream lasts around 5 to 20 minutes, althou ...

'' (Akira Kurosawa, 1990) * ''

Until the End of the World ''Until the End of the World'' (german: Bis ans Ende der Welt; french: Jusqu'au bout du monde) is a 1991 science fiction adventure drama film directed by German filmmaker Wim Wenders. Set at the turn of the millennium in the shadow of a world ...

'' (Wim Wenders, 1991) * '' Luminous Moss'' (

Kei Kumai was a Japanese film director from Azumino, Nagano prefecture. After his studies in literature at Shinshu University, he began work as a director's assistant. He won the Directors Guild of Japan New Directors Award for his first film, '' Nihon ...

, 1992)

Awards

* 1949: Mainichi Film Concours - Best Actor (''Te o Tsunagu Kora'') * 1952: Mainichi Film Concours - Best Actor (''Inochi Uruwashi'') * 1967:

Medal with Purple Ribbon are medals awarded by the Government of Japan. They are awarded to individuals who have done meritorious deeds and also to those who have achieved excellence in their field of work. The Medals of Honor were established on December 7, 1881, and we ...

* 1971: Mainichi Film Concours - Best Supporting Actor (''Where Spring Comes Late'') * 1975: Order of the Rising Sun, 4th Class, Gold Rays with Rosette * 1987:

Kikuchi Kan Prize The honors achievement in all aspects of Japanese literary culture. It was named in honor of Kikuchi Kan. The prize is presented annually by the literary magazine ''Bungei Shunjū'' and the Society for the Promotion of Japanese Literature. Histor ...

* 1990: Kawakita Award * 1991: Mainichi Film Concours - Special Award * 1994:

Elan d'or Awards The are awards presented annually by the All Nippon Producers Association (ANPA) in Japan to recognize outstanding achievements in domestic motion pictures and television. The first ceremony was held in 1956. Up until 1960, the Elan d'or Awar ...

- Special Award * 1994: Japan Academy Prize - Special Award

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Ryu, Chishu Japanese male film actors 1904 births 1993 deaths Japanese male silent film actors Japanese male television actors Asadora lead actors People from Kumamoto Prefecture 20th-century Japanese male actors Actors from Kumamoto Prefecture Recipients of the Medal with Purple Ribbon Recipients of the Order of the Rising Sun, 4th class