Kissy Suzuki is a fictional character introduced in
Ian Fleming
Ian Lancaster Fleming (28 May 1908 – 12 August 1964) was a British writer who is best known for his postwar ''James Bond'' series of spy novels. Fleming came from a wealthy family connected to the merchant bank Robert Fleming & Co., a ...
's 1964 ''
James Bond
The ''James Bond'' series focuses on a fictional British Secret Service agent created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels and two short-story collections. Since Fleming's death in 1964, eight other authors have ...
'' novel, ''
You Only Live Twice''. Despite Bond's
womanizing
Promiscuity is the practice of engaging in sexual activity frequently with different partners or being indiscriminate in the choice of sexual partners. The term can carry a moral judgment. A common example of behavior viewed as promiscuous by man ...
, Kissy Suzuki (at least the literary version) remains the only character known to the reader who bears a child by him. The treatment of Kissy varies greatly between the novel and the
film
A film also called a movie, motion picture, moving picture, picture, photoplay or (slang) flick is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, feelings, beauty, or atmosphere ...
, where she is never identified by her name, no family name appears in the closing credits and the film ends in the usual Bond-style happy ending.
Novel version
In the book, Kissy is an
Ama diver
are Japanese Underwater diving, divers famous for collecting pearls, though traditionally their main catch is seafood. The vast majority of are women.
Terminology
There are several sea occupations that are pronounced "ama" and several words th ...
and former
Hollywood
Hollywood usually refers to:
* Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California
* Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States
Hollywood may also refer to:
Places United States
* Hollywood District (disambiguation)
* Hollywood, ...
actress. She is distantly related to a local police superintendent working with
Tiger Tanaka
This is a list of allies of ''James Bond'' who appear throughout the film series and novels.
MI6
M
M is a Rear Admiral of the Royal Navy, and the head of the Secret Intelligence Service. Fleming based the character on a number of peop ...
, head of the
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 ...
ese
Secret Service
A secret service is a government agency, intelligence agency, or the activities of a government agency, concerned with the gathering of intelligence data. The tasks and powers of a secret service can vary greatly from one country to another. For ...
and is, therefore, asked to assist Bond. Bond stays with Kissy's family on an island near the castle, where
Ernst Stavro Blofeld
Ernst Stavro Blofeld is a fictional character and villain from the James Bond series of novels and films, created by Ian Fleming. A criminal mastermind with aspirations of world domination, he is the archenemy of the British Secret Service agen ...
maintains a "suicide garden" where people come to die (and are killed by the "gardeners" if they change their mind), and Bond is seeking revenge for the murder of
his wife at the conclusion of the previous novel, ''
On Her Majesty's Secret Service''. Bond enters the castle alone and succeeds in killing Blofeld and then destroying the castle.
Bond then sustains
amnesia
Amnesia is a deficit in memory caused by brain damage or disease,Gazzaniga, M., Ivry, R., & Mangun, G. (2009) Cognitive Neuroscience: The biology of the mind. New York: W.W. Norton & Company. but it can also be caused temporarily by the use ...
in the aftermath of his attack with Blofeld and is believed dead by his superiors; in reality, he comes to believe he is a fisherman and lives with Kissy for several months. Kissy decides that she will not stop him if he decides to pursue his true identity, but will encourage the cover story that allowed him to stay with her until something else happens. When Bond decides to leave for
Russia
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...
, believing the answers to his identity are there, Kissy does not follow; unknown to Bond, she is
pregnant
Pregnancy is the time during which one or more offspring develops (gestation, gestates) inside a woman, woman's uterus (womb). A multiple birth, multiple pregnancy involves more than one offspring, such as with twins.
Pregnancy usually occur ...
with his child.
Kissy Suzuki does not appear again in the Bond
canon
Canon or Canons may refer to:
Arts and entertainment
* Canon (fiction), the conceptual material accepted as official in a fictional universe by its fan base
* Literary canon, an accepted body of works considered as high culture
** Western ca ...
, and Bond's child does not appear until "
Blast From the Past", a short story published in 1996 by
Raymond Benson as a direct sequel to ''You Only Live Twice''. By the time of this story, Kissy is now dead, having died from
ovarian cancer
Ovarian cancer is a cancerous tumor of an ovary. It may originate from the ovary itself or more commonly from communicating nearby structures such as fallopian tubes or the inner lining of the abdomen. The ovary is made up of three different c ...
a few years before the story's timeline. Bond learns that she bore him a son, James Suzuki; Bond had little involvement in raising him, but paid for his university education. Bond receives a message, apparently from his son, asking him to come to New York City on an urgent matter. When Bond arrives, he finds his son murdered, having been being force-fed
fugu
The fugu (; ; ) in Japanese, ''bogeo'' (; 鰒魚) or ''bok'' () in Korean, and ''hétún'' (河豚; 河魨) in Standard Modern Chinese is a pufferfish, normally of the genus ''Takifugu'', ''Lagocephalus'', or ''Sphoeroides'', or a porcupinefish ...
syrup. With the aid of an SIS agent, Bond learns that Irma Bunt, Ernst Stavro Blofeld's henchwoman, killed James Suzuki as revenge for Blofeld's death (again in ''You Only Live Twice''). Bond ultimately kills Bunt, but his victory is hollow; he must live with having lost his son, and with the knowledge that he was never a real father to him.
Film version
In the
1967 film adaptation, Kissy is one of the
ninja
A or was a covert agent or mercenary in feudal Japan. The functions of a ninja included reconnaissance
In military operations, reconnaissance or scouting is the exploration of an area by military forces to obtain information about enem ...
agents working for Tanaka. She is introduced shortly after
Aki is killed and is first seen in a mock wedding ceremony as James goes undercover, posing as a Japanese fisherman. Bond and Kissy eventually find Blofeld's secret base, hidden within a volcano and Kissy is sent to alert Tanaka. While swimming to her destination, she is pursued and fired upon by a
SPECTRE
Spectre, specter or the spectre may refer to:
Religion and spirituality
* Vision (spirituality)
* Apparitional experience
* Ghost
Arts and entertainment Film and television
* ''Spectre'' (1977 film), a made-for-television film produced and writ ...
helicopter, but her experience as a
pearl diver
Pearl hunting, also known as pearling, is the activity of recovering pearls from wild molluscs, usually oysters or mussels, in the sea or freshwater. Pearl hunting was prevalent in the Persian Gulf region and Japan for thousands of years. On the ...
enables her to dive underwater and stay there long enough to convince her pursuers that she drowned. After alerting Tanaka, she joins the raid that manages to foil Blofeld's scheme, thereby averting the outbreak of
World War III
World War III or the Third World War, often abbreviated as WWIII or WW3, are names given to a hypothetical World war, worldwide large-scale military conflict subsequent to World War I and World War II. The term has been in use ...
.
In the movie, Kissy is played by
Mie Hama
is a former Japanese actress, television presenter, radio presenter, and author best known for playing Fumiko Sakurai in the 1962 Godzilla (franchise), ''Godzilla'' film, ''King Kong vs. Godzilla'', Kissy Suzuki in the 1967 James Bond, ''James B ...
. She was originally cast to be played by
Akiko Wakabayashi
is a retired Japanese actress.
Career
Wakabayashi is best known in English-speaking countries for her role as Bond girl Aki in the 1967 James Bond film '' You Only Live Twice''. Before this, she had made many films in her native Japan, especia ...
; however, Hama had trouble learning English for the much bigger role of Aki, so the two decided to swap their roles. When Hama became ill during shooting,
Sean Connery
Sir Sean Connery (born Thomas Connery; 25 August 1930 – 31 October 2020) was a Scottish actor. He was the first actor to portray fictional British secret agent James Bond on film, starring in seven Bond films between 1962 and 1983. Origina ...
's wife
Diane Cilento
Diane Cilento (2 April 1932 – 6 October 2011) was an Australian actress. She is best known for her film roles in ''Tom Jones'' (1963), which earned her an Academy Award nomination, '' Hombre'' (1967) and '' The Wicker Man'' (1973). She also r ...
doubled for her in the swimming sequence.
[Mie Hama (Kissy Suzuki) - Girls :: MI6 :: The Home Of James Bond 007]
/ref> Her lines were dubbed by Nikki van der Zyl
Monica "Nikki" van der Zyl (27 April 1935 – 6 March 2021) was a German actress based in the United Kingdom, known for her dubbing work on the ''James Bond'' film franchise.
Early life
Nikki van der Zyl was born on 27 April 1935 in Berlin, t ...
.
Cultural impact
A limited number of Kissy Suzuki dolls were produced in 1967; today, these dolls are valuable on the collector market.[ Mie Hama also appeared in '']Playboy
''Playboy'' is an American men's lifestyle and entertainment magazine, formerly in print and currently online. It was founded in Chicago in 1953, by Hugh Hefner and his associates, and funded in part by a $1,000 loan from Hefner's mother.
K ...
'' magazine in a 1967 nude pictorial "007's Oriental Eyefuls" as the first Asian woman to appear in the magazine, a source of controversy in Japan. Pajiba included Hama on the list of the 15 most embarrassing post-Bond roles for Bond Girls at number seven for ''King Kong Escapes
is a 1967 ''kaiju'' film directed by Ishirō Honda, with special effects by Eiji Tsuburaya. The film was a Japanese– American co-production between Toho and Rankin/Bass, and stars Rhodes Reason, Linda Miller, Akira Takarada, Mie Hama, Eise ...
''.
UGO.com
UGO Entertainment, Inc. was a website that provided coverage of online media in entertainment, targeting males aged 18–34. The company was based in New York, New York, United States.
History
The company started in 1997 as Unified Gamers Online ...
offered a mixed review of the character: "Although Mie Hama is attractive in her bikini
A bikini is a two-piece swimsuit primarily worn by women that features two triangles of fabric on top that cover the breasts, and two triangles of fabric on the bottom: the front covering the pelvis but exposing the navel, and the back coveri ...
, this also looks extremely out of place. Similarly inconsistent is her acting, which is charming but forgettable." In another article, UGO called her "sexy yet cute-as-a-kimono
The is a traditional Japanese garment and the national dress of Japan. The kimono is a wrapped-front garment with square sleeves and a rectangular body, and is worn left side wrapped over right, unless the wearer is deceased. The kimono ...
." A 2006 retrospective CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainm ...
featurette called her "stunning", ranking her as the 23rd best Bond girl.[ ()] She also placed 18th on the list of the Best Bond girls by ''LIFE
Life is a quality that distinguishes matter that has biological processes, such as signaling and self-sustaining processes, from that which does not, and is defined by the capacity for growth, reaction to stimuli, metabolism, energ ...
'',[ while ]Fandango
Fandango is a lively partner dance originating from Portugal and Spain, usually in triple meter, traditionally accompanied by guitars, castanets, or hand-clapping. Fandango can both be sung and danced. Sung fandango is usually bipartite: it has ...
ranked her as 23rd.[ ]Yahoo! Movies
Yahoo! Movies (formerly Upcoming Movies), provided by the Yahoo! network, is home to a large collection of information on movies, past and new releases, trailers and clips, box office information, and showtimes and movie theater information. Yaho ...
had her name included in the 2012 list of the best Bond girl names.
References
External links
Kissy Suzuki (Character)
at the Internet Movie Database
IMDb (an abbreviation of Internet Movie Database) is an online database of information related to films, television series, home videos, video games, and streaming content online – including cast, production crew and personal biographies, ...
KISSY SUZUKI - Bond Girls: Declassified
at Yahoo!
Yahoo! (, styled yahoo''!'' in its logo) is an American web services provider. It is headquartered in Sunnyvale, California and operated by the namesake company Yahoo Inc., which is 90% owned by investment funds managed by Apollo Global Man ...
James Bond multimedia , Mie Hama (Kissy Suzuki)
Kissy Suzuki - James Bond Wiki
{{DEFAULTSORT:Suzuki Kissy
Bond girls
Characters in British novels of the 20th century
Fictional Japanese people
Fictional female ninja
Fictional female secret agents and spies
Literary characters introduced in 1964
You Only Live Twice (film)