was a Japanese Kabuki actor and Living National Treasures of Japan. Tomijūrō work in Kabuki included the role of

Musashibō Benkei , popularly known as simply Benkei, was a Japanese warrior monk ('' sōhei'') who lived in the latter years of the Heian Period (794–1185) ">/sup>. Benkei led a varied life, first becoming a monk, then a mountain ascetic, and then a rogue wa ...

, a Japanese warrior monk, in the drama, Kanjinchō. Outside Japan, Tomijūrō toured performed in the United States and Europe. Tomijūrō was born Hajime Watanabe to Nakamura Tomijūrō IV and dancer, Tokuho Azuma. He made his theater debut in 1943 using the stage name, Bandō Tsurunosuke. In 1964, he became the sixth Ichimura Takenojō, another stage name. He further became the fifth Nakamura Tomijuro in 1972, succeeding his father's stage title. In addition to Kabuki, Tomijūrō also appeared in film and television roles during his career. His film roles included '' Sharaku'' in 1995 and ''

Gakko II is a 1996 Japanese film directed by Yoji Yamada. It is a sequel to Yamada's 1993 film ''A Class to Remember''. The film was Japan's submission to the 69th Academy Awards for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film, but was not accepted ...

'' in 1996. Tomijūrō's television credits included 1980's ''Shishi no Jidai'' (''The Era of Lion'') and the 1974 television series, ''Katsu Kaishū'', based on the life of Katsu Kaishū. Tomijūrō was named a Living National Treasures of Japan in 1994. He was inducted into the

Japan Art Academy is the highest-ranking official artistic organization in Japan. It is established as an extraordinary organ of the Japanese Agency for Cultural Affairs (文化庁, Bunkacho) in the thirty-first article of the law establishing the Ministry of Ed ...

in 1996 and was further honored as a

Person of Cultural Merit is an official Japanese recognition and honor which is awarded annually to select people who have made outstanding cultural contributions. This distinction is intended to play a role as a part of a system of support measures for the promotion of ...

in 2008. A native of Tokyo, Tomijūrō stopped performing Kabuki in November 2010 due to declining health. He died from rectal cancer at a hospital in Tokyo on January 3, 2011, at the age of 81. He was survived by a son,

Nakamura Takanosuke Nakamura may refer to: Places *Nakamura, Kōchi, a former city in Kōchi Prefecture, Japan *Nakamura-ku, Nagoya, a ward in Nagoya city in Aichi Prefecture, Japan People *Nakamura (surname), a list of people with the surname Other uses *Nakamura s ...

, who was born in 1999, when Tomijūrō was 70 years old, and a daughter, born in 2003, when he was 74.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Nakamura, Tomijuro V 1929 births 2011 deaths Kabuki actors Living National Treasures of Japan Japanese male film actors Japanese male television actors Japanese male stage actors Male actors from Tokyo 20th-century Japanese male actors 21st-century Japanese male actors