, better known by his stage name , was a Japanese actor and singer. He appeared in almost 260 feature films and had a unique style of singing. His daughter, Sayaka Tsuruta, is an actress.

Career

Born in

Hamamatsu, Shizuoka is a city located in western Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan. the city had an estimated population of 791,707 in 340,591 households, making it the prefecture's largest city, and a population density of . The total area of the site was . Overview H ...

, Tsuruta was raised in

Osaka is a designated city in the Kansai region of Honshu in Japan. It is the capital of and most populous city in Osaka Prefecture, and the third most populous city in Japan, following Special wards of Tokyo and Yokohama. With a population of 2. ...

by his grandmother, following his parents' divorce. A delinquent in high school, he finished second from the bottom of his class. Tsuruta was studying at

Kansai University , abbreviated as or , is a private non-sectarian and coeducational university with its main campus in Suita, Osaka, Japan and two sub-campuses in Sakai and Takatsuki, Osaka. Founded as Kansai Law School in 1886, It has been recognized as one of t ...

when he was drafted into the

Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service The was the Naval aviation, air arm of the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN). The organization was responsible for the operation of naval aircraft and the conduct of aerial warfare in the Pacific War. The Japanese military acquired their first air ...

in 1944. After the war he joined Hirokichi Takada's theater troupe and made his film debut at

Shochiku () is a Japanese film and kabuki production and distribution company. It also produces and distributes anime films, in particular those produced by Bandai Namco Filmworks (which has a long-time partnership—the company released most, if not all ...

in 1948 with '' Yūkyō no mure'', gaining a female following for playing handsome leads. He left Shochiku in 1952 to start his own production company. Prior, a romance with actress

Keiko Kishi is a Japanese actress, writer, and UNFPA Goodwill Ambassador. Life and career She made her acting debut in 1951. In the 1950s, David Lean had proposed her for the main role in ''The Wind Cannot Read'', which is about a Japanese language instruc ...

made headlines and Shochiku forced the two to end the relationship. He was attacked by the

Yakuza , also known as , are members of transnational organized crime syndicates originating in Japan. The Japanese police and media, by request of the police, call them , while the ''yakuza'' call themselves . The English equivalent for the term ...

in 1953. He notably played

Sasaki Kojirō was a Japanese swordsman who may have lived during the Azuchi–Momoyama and early Edo periods and is known primarily for the story of his battle with Miyamoto Musashi in 1612, where Sasaki was killed. Although suffering from defeat as well ...

Toho is a Japanese film, theatre production and distribution company. It has its headquarters in Chiyoda, Tokyo, and is one of the core companies of the Osaka-based Hankyu Hanshin Toho Group. Outside of Japan, it is best known as the producer an ...

's ''

Samurai Trilogy The ''Samurai Trilogy'' is a film trilogy directed by Hiroshi Inagaki and starring Toshiro Mifune as Musashi Miyamoto and Kōji Tsuruta as Kojirō Sasaki. The films are based on '' Musashi'', a novel by Eiji Yoshikawa about the famous duelist and ...

'' (1954–1956), opposite

Toshirō Mifune was a Japanese actor who appeared in over 150 feature films. He is best known for his 16-film collaboration (1948–1965) with Akira Kurosawa in such works as ''Rashomon'', ''Seven Samurai'', ''The Hidden Fortress'', ''Throne of Blood'', and '' ...

. He joined Toei in 1960, and found success with 1963's ''Jinsei Gekijo: Hishakaku''. In his book ''The Yakuza Movie Book : A Guide to Japanese Gangster Films'',

Mark Schilling Mark Schilling (born 1949) is an American film critic, journalist, translator, and author based in Tokyo, Japan. He has written for ''The Japan Times'', ''Variety'', and ''Screen International''. Biography Schilling began working for ''The Japan ...

cites this film for starting the ''

ninkyo eiga is a popular film genre in Japanese cinema which focuses on the lives and dealings of ''yakuza'', Japanese organized crime syndicates. In the silent film era, depictions of ''bakuto'' (precursors to modern yakuza) as sympathetic Robin Hood-li ...

'' trend of chivalrous

yakuza , also known as , are members of transnational organized crime syndicates originating in Japan. The Japanese police and media, by request of the police, call them , while the ''yakuza'' call themselves . The English equivalent for the term ...

films. For the next decade Tsuruta was Toei's leading and hardest working star of yakuza films, starring or guest-starring in a different film every month at his peak. Memorable films include ''Bakuto'' (1964) and ''Nihon Kyokakuden Ketto Kanda Matsuri'' (1966). Tsuruta was also a successful singer, scoring hits with such songs as "Kizudarake no Jinsei". However, in the 1970s he struggled and his performances were criticized when the yakuza genre shifted to a modern more realistic setting. He made his last film in 1985, ''Saigo no Bakuto''. Kōji Tsuruta died from lung cancer on June 16, 1987 at the age of 62.

Selected filmography

Films

* ''Eden no Umi'' (1950) – directed by

Noboru Nakamura was a Japanese film director and screenwriter. Biography After graduating from Tokyo Imperial University in 1936, Nakamura joined the Shochiku film studios, working as an assistant director for Torajirō Saitō and Yasujirō Shimazu. He debute ...

* ''

Battle of Roses }) is a 1950 Japanese drama film directed by Mikio Naruse. It is based on a novel by Fumio Niwa. Cast *Kuniko Miyake *Setsuko Wakayama * Yōko Katsuragi *Kōji Tsuruta * Tōru Abe *Mitsuo Nagata *Yōko Wakasugi *Shirō Ōsaka *Noriko Sengoku *Hansh ...

'' (1950) * '' Tea Over Rice'' (1952) – directed by

Yasujirō Ozu was a Japanese film director and screenwriter. He began his career during the era of silent films, and his last films were made in colour in the early 1960s. Ozu first made a number of short comedies, before turning to more serious themes in t ...

* ''A Night in Hawaii'' (Hawai no yoru) (1953) * ''

'' (1954–1956) – directed by

Hiroshi Inagaki was a Japanese filmmaker best remembered for the Academy Award-winning '' Samurai I: Musashi Miyamoto'', which was released in 1954. Career Born in Tokyo as the son of a shinpa actor, Inagaki appeared on stage in his childhood before joining t ...

** '' Samurai II: Duel at Ichijoji Temple'' (1955) ** '' Samurai III: Duel at Ganryu Island'' (1956) * ''A Man Among Men'' (1955) – directed by Kajiro Yamamoto * ''Nemuri Kyôshirô Burai Hikae'' (1956) – directed by Shigeaki Hidaka * ''

Yagyu Secret Scrolls is a 1957 color Japanese film directed by Hiroshi Inagaki. Other English titles include: ''Yagyu Bugeicho – Ninjitsu part 1'', ''Secret Scrolls'', ''Yagyu Secret Scrolls Part I''. It was followed by a sequel in 1958, . Cast * Toshirō Mifun ...

'' (1957) – directed by Hiroshi Inagaki * ''Oshidori Kenkagasa'' (1957) * '' Yagyu Secret Scrolls Part 2'' (1958) – directed by Hiroshi Inagaki * ''

The Loyal 47 Ronin ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...

'' (1958) – directed by Kunio Watanabe * ''Boss of the Underworld'' (Ankokugai no kaoyaku) (1959) – directed 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 late ...

* ''

The Birth of Japan is a 1959 Japanese film directed by Hiroshi Inagaki. The film is based on the legends ''Kojiki'' and '' Nihon Shoki'' and the origins of ''Shinto''. The film was the highest-grossing film of 1959 for Toho and the second highest grossing domestic ...

'' (1959) – directed by Hiroshi Inagaki * '' Secret of the Telegian'' (1960) – directed by

Jun Fukuda was a Japanese film director, screenwriter, and producer. He is best known for directing five entries in the ''Godzilla'' series starting with ''Ebirah, Horror of the Deep'' (1966) as well as the spy films ''Ironfinger is a 1965 Japanese ac ...

* ''

Gang vs. G-Men is a 1962 Japanese color crime film, crime thriller film directed by Kinji Fukasaku starring Kōji Tsuruta, Shinichi Chiba, and Tetsurō Tamba. In an interview with Chris Desjardins contained in the book ''Outlaw Masters of Japanese Film'', Fuka ...

'' (1962) - directed by

Kinji Fukasaku was a Japanese film director and screenwriter. Known for his "broad range and innovative filmmaking," Fukasaku worked in many different genres and styles, but was best known for his gritty yakuza films, typified by the ''Battles Without Honor ...

* '' Chūshingura: Hana no Maki, Yuki no Maki'' (1962) – directed by Hiroshi Inagaki * '' Jinsei Gekijo: Hisha Kaku'' (1963) – directed by

Tadashi Sawashima (19 May 1926 – 27 January 2018) was a Japanese film director and theatre director. He directed films from the 1950s to the 1970s. He died on 27 January 2018 of multiple organ failure at the age of 91. Career Sawashima was born in Kotō, Shiga, ...

* ''Bakuto'' (1964) – directed by

Shigehiro Ozawa was a Japanese film director and screenwriter. He directed more than thirty films and is best known for his film ''The Street Fighter''. He directed in over 110 films between 1954 and 1976. Selected filmography * ''Kunisada Chūji'' (1958) * ''T ...

* ''Meiji Kyokyakuden – Sandaime Shumei'' (1965) – directed by

Tai Kato was a Japanese film director and screenwriter. He was best known for making yakuza films at the Toei Company in 1960s. Biography Born in Hyōgo Prefecture, Kato was the nephew of the film director Sadao Yamanaka. He entered the Toho studio in ...

* ''Nihon Kyokakuden Ketto Kanda Matsuri'' (1966) * ''

Ceremony of Disbanding , also known as ''Dissolution Ceremony'' and ''The Breakup'', is a 1967 in film, 1967 ''ninkyo eiga'' film directed by Kinji Fukasaku and starring Koji Tsuruta. It was produced by Toei Studios. Fukasaku later directed Koji Tsuruta in a similarly t ...

'' (1967) - directed by Kinji Fukasaku * ''Bakuchi-uchi: Socho Tobaku'' (1968) – directed by Kōsaku Yamashita * ''

Bloodstained Clan Honor is a 1970 Japanese yakuza film directed by Kinji Fukasaku. Plot In the year 1965, with the post-WWII era now in the past, police crack down on the criminal organizations which had thrived during that turbulent era and numerous gangs are disband ...

'' (1970) – directed by Kinji Fukasaku * ''

Sympathy for the Underdog ''Sympathy for the Underdog'', known in Japan as , is a 1971 Japanese yakuza film directed and co-written by Kinji Fukasaku and starring Kōji Tsuruta and Noboru Ando. It is director Fukasaku's (''Battles Without Honor and Humanity'', '' Battle Roy ...

'' (1971) – directed by Kinji Fukasaku * ''Kizudarake no Jinsei'' (1971) – directed by Shigehiro Ozawa * '' Golgo 13: Assignment Kowloon'' (1977) * ''Yakuza senso: Nihon no Don'' (1977) – directed by

Sadao Nakajima is a Japanese film director and screenwriter (born 8 August, 1934) known for his work in yakuza films and jidaigeki. Career Born in Chiba Prefecture, he attended Hibiya High School and then the University of Tokyo before joining the Tōei studi ...

* '' Imperial Navy'' (1981) – directed by

Shūe Matsubayashi (born July 7, 1920 - August 15, 2009, Shimane Prefecture, Japan) was a Japanese film director. He is best known for films in the comedy and war genres. He was also an ordained Shin Buddhist priest. His final work as director was in the 1992 fi ...

* ''Conquest'' (1982) * ''Saigo no Bakuto'' (1985) – directed by Kosaku Yamashita

Television

* ''

Ōgon no Hibi is a 1978 Japanese television series. It is the 16th NHK taiga drama, and is based on Saburo Shiroyama's novel of the same title. The series is the first ''taiga'' drama to focus on the lives of commoners and merchants, and the first ''taiga'' d ...

'' (1978) – as

Sen no Rikyū , also known simply as Rikyū, is considered the historical figure with the most profound influence on ''chanoyu,'' the Japanese "Way of Tea", particularly the tradition of '' wabi-cha''. He was also the first to emphasize several key aspects ...

* ''

Sanga Moyu ''Sanga Moyu'' (山河燃ゆ) is a Japanese television drama based on the 1983 novel ''Futatsu no Sokoku'' (二つの祖国) by Toyoko Yamazaki. It was NHK's taiga drama in 1984. Synopsis The Amo family lives in Los Angeles, California. Two of ...

'' (1984) – as

Shigenori Tōgō (10 December 1882 – 23 July 1950), was Minister of Foreign Affairs for the Empire of Japan at both the start and the end of the Axis–Allied conflict during World War II. He also served as Minister of Colonial Affairs in 1941, and assume ...

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Tsuruta, Koji Japanese male film actors 1924 births 1987 deaths People from Hamamatsu 20th-century Japanese male actors Japanese military personnel of World War II Musicians from Shizuoka Prefecture Deaths from lung cancer Kansai University alumni 20th-century Japanese male singers 20th-century Japanese singers