Michi Kobi (2 November 1924 – 1 March 2016), born Machiko Kobinata Okamoto, was an American actress.
Life
Kobi was born 2 November 1924 in
Sacramento, California
)
, image_map = Sacramento County California Incorporated and Unincorporated areas Sacramento Highlighted.svg
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, map_caption = Location within Sacramento ...
as Machiko Kobinata Okamoto. Her father, Rikikazu Okamoto, came to America at age 17 in 1902 and became a doctor. In 1923 her father went to Japan, married Ito Kobinata, and brought her to Sacramento.
During
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...
, following the signing of
Executive Order 9066, Kobi and her mother were sent to
Tanforan Assembly Center and then
Topaz War Relocation Center
The Topaz War Relocation Center, also known as the Central Utah Relocation Center (Topaz) and briefly as the Abraham Relocation Center, was an American concentration camp which housed Americans of Japanese descent and immigrants who had come t ...
.
After the war she went to New York City, seeking to become an actor, and lived there the rest of her life. She studied acting at
New York University
New York University (NYU) is a private research university in New York City. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded by a group of New Yorkers led by then- Secretary of the Treasury Albert Gallatin.
In 1832, th ...
. In addition to acting on stage, screen, and television, she worked as a model, secretary, and translator. As a translator she worked for the
Japan External Trade Organization
is an Independent Administrative Institution established by Japan Export Trade Research Organization as a nonprofit corporation in Osaka in February 1952, reorganized under the Ministry of International Trade and Industry (MITI) in 1958 (later the ...
(JETRO). She was very outspoken about the sanitized depictions of the conditions in the World War II internment camps and also campaigned for an apology and reparations. She left acting due to the few quality roles for Asian women. She died in
Manhattan
Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...
, New York City on 1 March 2016.
Filmography
* 1954: "The New Adventures of China Smith" (TV)
* 1959: ''
Tokyo After Dark'' playing Sumi Fukita
* 1960: ''
12 to the Moon
''12 to the Moon'' is a 1960 independently made American black-and-white science fiction film, produced and written by Fred Gebhardt, directed by David Bradley and starring Ken Clark, Michi Kobi, Tom Conway and Anna-Lisa. The film was distribu ...
'' playing Dr. Hideko Murata
* 1960: ''
Hell to Eternity
''Hell to Eternity'' is a 1960 American World War II film starring Jeffrey Hunter, David Janssen, Vic Damone and Patricia Owens, directed by Phil Karlson. This film biopic is about the true experiences of Marine hero Pfc. Guy Gabaldon (played b ...
'' playing Sono
* 1961: ''
Cry for Happy
''Cry for Happy'' is a 1961 American CinemaScope comedy film directed by George Marshall and starring Glenn Ford and Donald O'Connor. It is a service comedy set in Japan and largely filmed there. The title song is sung during the opening credits ...
'' playing Hanakichi
* 1991: ''
American Rickshaw
''American Rickshaw'' ( it, American risciò), also known as ''American Tiger'', is a 1989 action fantasy film directed by Sergio Martino under the pseudonym of Martin Dolman. An international co-production of Italy and the United States, it star ...
'' playing Old Madame Luna
* 2004: ''
Law & Order'' (TV) episode "Gaijin", playing Mrs. Ito
Theater
*1963–1964: original Broadway production of "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest" playing 'Nurse Nakamura'
See also
*
Hiroaki Sato Hiroaki Sato may refer to:
*, Japanese fighter and wrestler with ring name Hikaru Sato
*, Japanese figure skater
*, Japanese footballer
*, Japanese poet and translator
* Hiroaki Sato (animation director) (born 1959)
{{hndis, Sato, Hiroaki ...
, who knew Kobi for 30 years and wrote an article upon her death
References
External links
*
Michi Kobi Papers Tamiment Library and Robert F. Wagner Labor Archives at New York University Special Collections
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kobi, Michi
1924 births
2016 deaths
20th-century American actresses
Actors from Sacramento, California
American actresses of Japanese descent
American film actors of Asian descent
American film actresses
American television actresses
Japanese-American internees
21st-century American women