is a Japanese actress. Ashikawa was called the Japanese

Audrey Hepburn Audrey Hepburn (born Audrey Kathleen Ruston; 4 May 1929 – 20 January 1993) was a British actress and humanitarian. Recognised as both a film and fashion icon, she was ranked by the American Film Institute as the AFI's 100 Years...100 Stars, t ...

. In 1953, Ashikawa was scouted by director

Yuzo Kawashima was a Japanese film director, most famous for making tragi-comic films and satires. Career Kawashima was born in Mutsu, Aomori in the Shimokita Peninsula. From his youth, he suffered from a paralysis that affected his right leg and arm. He was ...

and joined the

Shochiku () 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 all ...

studio. She made her film debut with ''Tokyomadamu to Osakafujin'' directed by Yuzo Kawashima. In 1955, she moved to the

Nikkatsu is a Japanese entertainment company known for its film and television productions. It is Japan's oldest major movie studio, founded in 1912 during the silent film era. The name ''Nikkatsu'' amalgamates the words Nippon Katsudō Shashin, literally ...

studio and gained popularity. In 1968, Ashikawa married actor

Tatsuya Fuji is a Japanese actor. He was born in Beijing and raised in Yokohama. In 1962, Fuji joined Nikkatsu Company and began his acting career with small roles in Nikkatsu film. In 1968, Fuji married actress Izumi Ashikawa. He gained popularity throu ...

and retired. She made her final film appearance in the 1968 film ''Koto no Taiyo''.

Selected filmography

*''Tokyomadamu to Osakafujin'' (1953) * ''

The Baby Carriage is a 1956 black-and-white Japanese film directed by Tomotaka Tasaka. Cast * Yujiro Ishihara as Muneo Aizawa * Michiyo Aratama was a Japanese film and stage actress. Biography After graduating from the Takarazuka Music and Dance Schoo ...

'' (1956) * '' The Balloon'' (1956) * ''

Sun in the Last Days of the Shogunate is a 1957 Japanese comedy film directed by Yūzō Kawashima with a screenplay by Kawashima, Shōhei Imamura and Keiichi Tanaka. It was voted the fifth best Japanese film of all time in a poll of 140 Japanese critics and filmmakers conducted by ...

'' (1957) * '' Suzaki Paradise: Akashingō'' (1957) * ''

Man Who Causes a Storm , or ''A Storming Drummer'', or ''The Stormy Man'', is a 1957 color Cinema of Japan, Japanese film directed by Umetsugu Inoue. The film is one of the most famous films for Yujiro Ishihara, who plays the main role of Kokubun Eiji, an unknown drumme ...

'' (1957) * ''The Perfect Game'' (1958) * '' Kurenai no Tsubasa'' (1958) * ''

A Slope in the Sun aka ''A Slope in the Sun'' is a 1958 black-and-white Japanese film drama directed by Tomotaka Tasaka.日活アクションの華麗な世界：1954-1971 第四章言語のユートピア-裕次郎の青春ドラマの意味 2「一緒にいるた ...

'' (1959) * ''

Mutekiga Ore o Yondeiru also known as ''The Call of the Foghorn'' is a 1960 Japanese film directed by Yamazaki Tokujirō. It was the final film of young star Akagi Keiichiro before his death, and considered his most famous work. Plot Sugi is a navigator of the ship Su ...

'' (1960) * ''

Man with a Shotgun is a 1961 Japanese Western film directed by Seijun Suzuki in the vein of the Nikkatsu Studio's "borderless action cinema". Hideaki Nitani stars as a singing cowboy and trucker who seeks revenge after his girlfriend is raped and murdered. Cast ...

'' (1961) * (1961) * (1962) * (1965) * '' Outlaw:Gangster VIP 2'' (1968) * ''Koto no Taiyo'' (1968)

References

External links

1935 births Living people Japanese film actresses Actresses from Tokyo {{Japan-film-actor-stub