is a Japanese actor, singer and

Media Personality Celebrity is a condition of fame and broad public recognition of a person or group as a result of the attention given to them by mass media. An individual may attain a celebrity status from having great wealth, their participation in sports ...

. He was born to English-Japanese parents. A pivotal figure in Japanese popular music, Mickey is considered one of the three big Japanese names in rock music, helping to popularize the genre in the 1950s where he began as a rockabilly singer. In 1967, he became internationally known for his

avant-garde The avant-garde (; In 'advance guard' or ' vanguard', literally 'fore-guard') is a person or work that is experimental, radical, or unorthodox with respect to art, culture, or society.John Picchione, The New Avant-garde in Italy: Theoretical ...

rock band "Mickey Curtis & The Samurai". After five years Mickey disbanded the group and returned to Japan in 1972, where he began producing other musicians. As an actor his first role was as a rock singer in the 1958 film ''All About Marriage'' by

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 ...

and he has since gone on to star in more than 70 feature films. At over 70 years of age he is one of the oldest major celebrities in Japan and a regular TV personality. Apart from his entertainment career he has also been a race car driver and owns a motorcycle shop in

Meguro is a special ward in Tokyo, Japan. The English translation of its Japanese self-designation is Meguro City. The ward was founded on March 15, 1947. Meguro is predominantly residential in character, but is also home to light industry, corporate ...

, Tokyo. He speaks Japanese, English, French, German, Italian and Thai.

Selected filmography

Film

Television

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Curtis, Mickey 1938 births Living people Japanese male film actors Japanese people of English descent Singers from Tokyo