Osami Nabe (real name ''Shuzo Watanabe'', May 2, 1939 -) is a Japanese

comedian A comedian or comic is a person who seeks to entertain an audience by making them laugh. This might be through jokes or amusing Amusement is the state of experiencing humorous and entertaining events or situations while the person or a ...

and

actor An actor or actress is a person who portrays a character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. The analogous Greek term is (), li ...

Early life and education

Nabe was born in Omori, Tokyo. He graduated from Tokyo Metropolitan Omori High School and attended

Meiji University , abbreviated as Meiji (明治) or Meidai (明大'')'', is a private research university located in Chiyoda City, the heart of Tokyo, Japan. Established in 1881 as Meiji Law School (明治法律学校, ''Meiji Hōritsu Gakkō'') by three Meiji-er ...

beginning in 1958, where he studied drama. While he was still in school, he wrote a radio script as a disciple of Toriro Miki. However, aspiring to be a comedian, he became an attendant to Shintaro Katsu and Hiroshi Mizuhara, and he and Mizuhara entered

Watanabe Productions is a multimedia management company in Japan dealing in recordings, films, television, music publishing and artist management as well as the main subsidiary of the Watanabe Production Group. Formed by bandleader Shin Watanabe and his wife Misa ...

at the same time. Mizuhara would leave Watanabe Productions, but Nabe remained and became Hajime Hana's attendant. From the time he was his attendant, he had his own business cards that he gave out to people in the television industry.Nobuhiko Kobayashi "Nihon no Kigekijin" P182 Watanabe Productions paid for his tuition while he was in college. Nabe graduated from Meiji University in 1962 with a graduation thesis titled "Public Laughter in ''Comedy Trio''".

Career

During his time working as an attendant, Nabe was a radio disc jockey, a composer, and a host of a jazz cafe. In 1968, he was selected to star in the movie "Onsen Guerrilla", and received praise for his performance. Subsequently, he was given the leading role in director

Yoji Yamada is a Japanese film director best known for his ''Otoko wa Tsurai yo'' series of films and his Samurai Trilogy (''The Twilight Samurai'', ''The Hidden Blade'' and '' Love and Honor''). Biography He was born in Osaka, but due to his father's job ...

's "If you blow it, you'll fly, man", and again performed well. After this, he left Watanabe Productions due to a conflict with Susumu Watanabe, a teacher from his school days. After serving as an attendant of

Hisaya Morishige was a Japanese actor and comedian. Born in Hirakata, Osaka, he graduated from Kitano Middle School (now Kitano High School), and attended Waseda University. He began his career as a stage actor, then became an announcer for NHK, working in ...

, he moved to

Nippon Television JOAX-DTV (channel 4), branded as , is the flagship station of the Nippon News Network and the Nippon Television Network System, owned-and-operated by the which is a subsidiary of the certified broadcasting holding company , itself a listed su ...

in 1978, where he worked on the "Women's Nodo Jiman" section of Wide Show Look Look Hello; he made it one of the most popular corners of the show. In 1991, suspicions about his son's Meiji University entrance examination were raised. He admitted to wrongdoing and apologized, saying, "I was approached by an acquaintance". Several members of the Meiji University Athletic Association were arrested in this incident, and former sumo club coaches were sentenced to prison. Nabe stepped back from his entertainment activities, including 'Look Look Hello', and was criticized by the media. In December 1994, Nabe resumed his entertainment activities at Somid Hall in

Ginza Ginza ( ; ja, 銀座 ) is a district of Chūō, Tokyo, located south of Yaesu and Kyōbashi, west of Tsukiji, east of Yūrakuchō and Uchisaiwaichō, and north of Shinbashi. It is a popular upscale shopping area of Tokyo, with numerous intern ...

. After 2001, he worked for

Yoshimoto Kogyo is a major Japanese entertainment conglomerate. It was founded in 1912, Osaka, as a traditional theatre, and has since grown to be one of the most influential companies in Japan, employing most of Japan's popular owarai (comedy) talent, produci ...

for a time and appeared in Lumine the Yoshimoto, a comedy. In addition, he seems to have a wide range of personal connections in various fields, and in Atsushi Mizoguchi's non-fiction "Emperor of meat", he is depicted as an aide to the former chairman of Hannan Group Mitsuru Asada.

Personal life

His wife is Rumiko Sasa, and he has a son, Nabe Yakan, who is a comedian and former member of the Japanese powerlifting team. Yakan joined the

Takeshi Corps Takeshi ( in hiragana or in katakana) is a masculine Japanese given name. Possible writings *武, "warrior" *毅, "strong" *猛, "fierce" *健, "healthy" *剛, "sturdy" *彪, "spotted" *威, "intimidate" *壮, "robust" *丈, "length" *雄, "mascu ...

and started performing arts activities as Nabe Yakan. He was in a car accident in 2001.

Filmography

Movies

Television

References

{{Authority control 1939 births Living people 20th-century Japanese male actors Male actors from Tokyo Meiji University alumni