was a Japanese

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 (), lit ...

who appeared in 253 films in a career spanning 67 years. Born in

Gunma Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Kantō region of Honshu. Gunma Prefecture has a population of 1,937,626 (1 October 2019) and has a geographic area of 6,362 km2 (2,456 sq mi). Gunma Prefecture borders Niigata Prefecture and Fuku ...

, he began acting at the

Nikkatsu is a Japanese entertainment company known for its film and television productions. It is Japan's oldest major movie studio, founded in 1912 during the silent film era. The name ''Nikkatsu'' amalgamates the words Nippon Katsudō Shashin, literally ...

studio after

dropping out Dropping out refers to leaving high school, college, university or another group for practical reasons, necessities, inability, apathy, or disillusionment with the system from which the individual in question leaves. Canada In Canada, most ind ...

Nihon University , abbreviated as , is a private research university in Japan. Its predecessor, Nihon Law School (currently the Department of Law), was founded by Yamada Akiyoshi, the Minister of Justice, in 1889. It is one of Japan's leading private universit ...

and made his film debut in 1942. In 1956 he moved to

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 ...

film company. In a career that spanned 65 years, he appeared in over 250 films, most famously in the "Company President" (Shachō) comedy films made at

, where he worked alongside

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 ...

Daisuke Katō was a Japanese actor. He appeared in over 200 films, including Akira Kurosawa's ''Seven Samurai'', ''Rashomon'', '' Yojimbo'', and ''Ikiru''. He also worked repeatedly for noted directors such as Yasujirō Ozu, Mikio Naruse and Kenji Mizoguchi ...

, Norihei Miki, and others. There he helped define the popular image of the postwar

salaryman In Japan, a is a salaried worker. In Japanese popular culture, this is embodied by a white-collar worker who shows overriding loyalty and commitment to the corporation where he works. Salarymen are expected to work long hours, to put in addit ...

. He also won many awards for his acting, including best actor awards at the Mainichi Film Awards for '' The Naked General'' in 1958 (where he played

Kiyoshi Yamashita was a Japanese artist. He is famous for his wanderings throughout Japan, during which he often wore a sleeveless undershirt, garnering the nickname "The Naked General." Early life Yamashita was born in Asakusa, Tokyo. At the age of three, he ...

), for '' Kuroi gashū'' in 1960, and for ''

The Elegant Life of Mr Everyman is a 1963 Japanese satirical comedy film directed by Kihachi Okamoto and based on the Naoki Prize winning novel by Hitomi Yamaguchi. Plot Eburi, an advertising department employee, promises two women's magazine editors to write a masterpiece o ...

'' in 1963. Kobayashi appeared in films made by such notable directors as

Akira Kurosawa was a Japanese filmmaker and painter who directed thirty films in a career spanning over five decades. He is widely regarded as one of the most important and influential filmmakers in the history of cinema. Kurosawa displayed a bold, dyna ...

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 ...

, Mikio Naruse, and Kihachi Okamoto. He continued to give powerful performances after largely moving to television in the late 1960s. He also portrayed the voice of the "Shirō Nishi" in the original Japanese version of the

Studio Ghibli is a Japanese animation studio headquartered in Koganei, Tokyo."Studio Ghibli Collection - Madman Entertainment". ''Studio Ghibli Collection - Madman Entertainment''. Retrieved 2020-12-14. It is best known for its animated feature films, and h ...

anime film

Whisper of the Heart is a 1995 Japanese Anime, animated romantic drama film directed by Yoshifumi Kondō and written by Hayao Miyazaki based on the #Background, 1989 manga of the same name by Aoi Hiiragi. It was animated by Studio Ghibli for Tokuma Shoten, Nippon T ...

in 1995. He died on 16 September 2010 of heart failure at the age of 86.

Selected filmography

Film

*''

The Rainbow Man ''The Rainbow Man'' (known as ''La valle delle rose'' in Italy) is a 1929 American pre-Code musical drama film. A copy of ''The Rainbow Man'' is preserved by the Library of Congress Packard Campus. Cast *Eddie Dowling as Rainbow Ryan *Mari ...

'' (1949) - Ryosuke Akashi *'' Husband and Wife'' (1953) *''

Night School A night school is an adult learning school that holds classes in the evening or at night to accommodate people who work during the day. A community college or university may hold night school classes that admit undergraduates. Italy The Scuola ...

'' (1956) *''

Shūu is a 1956 Japanese comedy-drama film directed by Mikio Naruse. It is based on a play by Kunio Kishida. Plot The marriage of Fumiko and Ryōtarō Namiki has gone stale, with both of them constantly arguing about what to do on a day off, or her c ...

'' (1956) * (1958) * (1958) * (1960) *''

The End of Summer is a 1961 Japanese film directed by Yasujirō Ozu for Toho Films. It was entered into the 12th Berlin International Film Festival. The film was his penultimate; only '' An Autumn Afternoon'' (1962) followed it, which he made for Shochiku Films. P ...

'' (1961) *''

Burari Bura-bura Monogatari ''Burari Bura-bura Monogatari'' ( ja, ぶらりぶらぶら物語) is a 1962 Japanese comedy film directed by Zenzo Matsuyama. It was Matsuyama's second film as a director. Plot Komako (Hideko Takamine) is a confidence trickster who pretends to ...

'' (1962) *''

'' (1963) *''

Sanjuro is a 1962 black-and-white Japanese ''jidaigeki'' film directed by Akira Kurosawa and starring Toshiro Mifune. It is a sequel to Kurosawa's 1961 ''Yojimbo''. Originally an adaptation of the Shūgorō Yamamoto novel ''Hibi Heian'', the script ...

'' (1962) *''

The Sword The Sword was an American heavy metal band from Austin, Texas. Formed in 2003, the band was composed of vocalist and guitarist John D. Cronise, guitarist Kyle Shutt, bassist Bryan Richie and drummer Santiago "Jimmy" Vela III for most of its t ...

'' (1964) *''

Samurai Assassin is a 1965 Japanese film directed by Kihachi Okamoto and starring Toshiro Mifune, Koshiro Matsumoto, Yūnosuke Itō, and Michiyo Aratama. It is set in 1860, immediately before the Meiji Restoration changed Japanese society forever by doing awa ...

'' (1965) *''

Japan's Longest Day is a 1967 Japanese war film directed by Kihachi Okamoto. The subject of the majority of the movie is the period between noon on August 14, 1945 and noon on August 15, 1945, when Emperor Hirohito's decision to surrender to the Allies in World ...

'' (1967) *'' Shinsengumi: Assassins of Honor'' (1969) *'' The Militarists'' (1970),

Hideki Tojo Hideki Tojo (, ', December 30, 1884 – December 23, 1948) was a Japanese politician, general of the Imperial Japanese Army (IJA), and convicted war criminal who served as prime minister of Japan and president of the Imperial Rule Assistan ...

*''

Bakumatsu was the final years of the Edo period when the Tokugawa shogunate ended. Between 1853 and 1867, Japan ended its isolationist foreign policy known as and changed from a feudal Tokugawa shogunate to the modern empire of the Meiji governm ...

'' (1970) *''

Battle of Okinawa The , codenamed Operation Iceberg, was a major battle of the Pacific War fought on the island of Okinawa by United States Army (USA) and United States Marine Corps (USMC) forces against the Imperial Japanese Army (IJA). The initial invasion of ...

'' (1971) * ''

Submersion of Japan is a 1973 film directed by Shiro Moritani. It is based on the 1973 novel ''Japan Sinks'' by Sakyo Komatsu. The film stars Keiju Kobayashi, Hiroshi Fujioka and Ayumi Ishida. Synopsis Two hundred million years ago, the Earth was a single conti ...

'' (1973) *''

Tora-san, the Intellectual ''aka'' ''Tora-san Meets a Lady Scholar'' is a 1975 Japanese comedy film directed by Yoji Yamada. It stars Kiyoshi Atsumi as Torajirō Kuruma (Tora-san), and Fumie Kashiyama as his love interest or "Madonna". ''Tora-san, the Intellectual'' is th ...

'' (1975) *'' Mount Hakkoda'' (1977) – Tsumura *'' Imperial Navy'' (1981) –

Isoroku Yamamoto was a Marshal Admiral of the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) and the commander-in-chief of the Combined Fleet during World War II until he was killed. Yamamoto held several important posts in the IJN, and undertook many of its changes and reor ...

*''

Okinawan Boys is a 1983 Japanese film directed by Taku Shinjō based on a novel by Mineo Higashi. Awards and nominations 26th Blue Ribbon Awards * Won: Best Actor - Ken Ogata , better known by his stage name , was a Japanese actor. Life Ogata was born in ...

'' (1983) *''

The Return of Godzilla is a 1984 Japanese ''kaiju'' film directed by Koji Hashimoto, with special effects by Teruyoshi Nakano. The film features the fictional monster character Godzilla. Distributed by Toho and produced under their subsidiary Toho Pictures, it is th ...

'' (1984) *'' Tree Without Leaves'' (1986) *''

A Taxing Woman is a 1987 Japanese film written and directed by Juzo Itami. It won numerous awards, including six major Japanese Academy awards. The title character of the film, played by Nobuko Miyamoto, is a tax investigator for the Japanese National Tax Ag ...

'' (1987) *''

'' (1995) – Shirō Nishi (voice) *'' Vengeance for Sale'' (2002) *''Koi Suru Kanojo, Nishi e'' (2008) *''Hoshino Kunikara Magofutari'' (2009) Genichi Kuwano(Final film role)

Television

*''

Katsu Kaishū Count , best known by his nickname , was a Japanese statesman and naval engineer during the late Tokugawa shogunate and early Meiji period. Kaishū was a nickname which he took from a piece of calligraphy (Kaishū Shooku ) by Sakuma Shōzan. H ...

'' (1975, Taiga drama) - Tadahiro Okubo *''

Kaze to Kumo to Niji to is a 1976 Japanese historical television series. It is the 14th NHK taiga drama. Kaze to kumo to Niji to deals with the Heian period in Japan. Based on Chōgorō Kaionji's novels ''Taira no Masakado'' and ''Umi to Kaze to Niji to''. The drama wa ...

'' (1975, Taiga drama) - Taira no Yoshimasa *''

Edo no Kaze was a Japanese jidaigeki (period drama) broadcast on prime-time television that ran from 1975 to 1981. Its lead star was Yūzō Kayama. The series was based on Kazuo Shimada's novel of the same title. It became a popular broadcast, leading to the ...

'' (1975~1981, Edo series) - Magobei Hayashida *'' Edo no Uzu'' (1978, Edo series) - Hanbei Karaki *''

Edo no Gekitou is a Japanese jidaigeki or period drama that was broadcast in 1979. It aired on Nippon Golden Network as The Fierce Battles of Edo. This drama was inspired by Akira Kurosawa's 1954 film ''Seven Samurai'' and produced by the same film company. The ...

'' (1979, Edo series) - Chobei Hanasaka *''

Tokugawa Ieyasu was the founder and first ''shōgun'' of the Tokugawa Shogunate of Japan, which ruled Japan from 1603 until the Meiji Restoration in 1868. He was one of the three "Great Unifiers" of Japan, along with his former lord Oda Nobunaga and fello ...

'' (1983, Taiga drama) - Taigen Sessai *''Haru no Hatō'' (1985, Taiga drama) -

Fukuzawa Yukichi was a Japanese educator, philosopher, writer, entrepreneur and samurai who founded Keio University, the newspaper '' Jiji-Shinpō'', and the Institute for Study of Infectious Diseases. Fukuzawa was an early advocate for reform in Japan. Hi ...

*''Muta Kenji Jikenfailu'' (1983-2007) - Ichiro Muta *''Haikei Chichiuesama'' (2007) -Seisiro Kumazawa

Honours

* Medal with Purple Ribbon (1985) * Order of the Rising Sun, 4th Class, Gold Rays with Rosette (1994)

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Kobayashi, Keiju Japanese male film actors People from Gunma Prefecture 1923 births 2010 deaths Nihon University alumni 20th-century Japanese male actors 21st-century Japanese male actors Recipients of the Medal with Purple Ribbon Recipients of the Order of the Rising Sun, 4th class