is an American-born Japanese actress. She is best known for playing the lead role of Gorgeous in the 1977 film ''

House A house is a single-unit residential building. It may range in complexity from a rudimentary hut to a complex structure of wood, masonry, concrete or other material, outfitted with plumbing, electrical, and heating, ventilation, and air condi ...

''.

Early life

Born in

Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

to Japanese parents, she moved to

Kyoto Kyoto (; Japanese: , ''Kyōto'' ), officially , is the capital city of Kyoto Prefecture in Japan. Located in the Kansai region on the island of Honshu, Kyoto forms a part of the Keihanshin metropolitan area along with Osaka and Kobe. , the ci ...

at age 3. Kimiko graduated from

Horikoshi High School is a private high school in Nakano, Tokyo is a special ward in Tokyo, Japan. The English translation of its Japanese self-designation is Nakano City.Nakano, Tokyo is a special ward in Tokyo, Japan. The English translation of its Japanese self-designation is Nakano City.Tamagawa University is a Japanese university in Machida, Tokyo, Japan. The university consists of 16 departments in seven faculties (undergraduate), as well as seven programs leading to a master's degree and four programs leading to a doctorate degree. Part of th ...

. She is closely related to the Bandō Mitsugorō

kabuki is a classical form of Japanese dance-drama. Kabuki theatre is known for its heavily-stylised performances, the often-glamorous costumes worn by performers, and for the elaborate make-up worn by some of its performers. Kabuki is thought to ...

actors: her grandfather was the eighth, her uncle the ninth (later Bandō Minosuke VII), her cousin (Bandō Yasosuke V) the tenth to take that name. With the encouragement of that cousin, Kimiko turned to acting.

Career

She made her television debut in 1975 in the

NHK , also known as NHK, is a Japanese public broadcaster. NHK, which has always been known by this romanized initialism in Japanese, is a statutory corporation funded by viewers' payments of a television license fee. NHK operates two terrestr ...

show ''Maboroshi no Pen Friend,'' and in that year also appeared in ''Ai to Makoto'' on

TV Tokyo JOTX-DTV (channel 7), branded as and known colloquially as , is a television station headquartered in the Sumitomo Fudosan Roppongi Grand Tower in Roppongi, Minato, Tokyo, Japan, owned and operated by the subsidiary of listed certified b ...

. Her entry into film came in 1975, when she appeared in ''Hadashi no Seishun'' (

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 Taiga drama series, Kimiko portrayed Ōhime ''Kusa Moeru'' (1979) Chacha (later named

Yodo-Dono or (1569 – June 4, 1615) was a prominently placed figure in the late-Sengoku period. She was the daughter of Oichi and sister of Ohatsu and Oeyo. She was a concubine and second wife of Toyotomi Hideyoshi, who was then the most powerful man ...

) in the 1981 ''Onna Taikō-ki,''

Lady Tsukiyama Lady Tsukiyama or (d. 9 September 1579) was a Japanese noble lady and aristocrat from the Sengoku period. She was the chief consort of Tokugawa Ieyasu, the ''daimyō'' who would become the founder and first ''shōgun'' of the Tokugawa shogunat ...

(the wife of the title character) in ''

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 fellow ...

'' (1983), and Eri (Lady Aburakawa, concubine of the title character) in ''

Takeda Shingen , of Kai Province, was a pre-eminent ''daimyō'' in feudal Japan. Known as the "Tiger of Kai", he was one of the most powerful daimyō with exceptional military prestige in the late stage of the Sengoku period. Shingen was a warlord of great ...

.'' Other ''

jidaigeki is a genre of film, television, video game, and theatre in Japan. Literally meaning "period dramas", they are most often set during the Edo period of Japanese history, from 1603 to 1868. Some, however, are set much earlier—''Portrait of Hel ...

'' roles have included Sumi in the 1988 NHK ''

Miyamoto Musashi , also known as Shinmen Takezō, Miyamoto Bennosuke or, by his Buddhist name, Niten Dōraku, was a Japanese swordsman, philosopher, strategist, writer and rōnin, who became renowned through stories of his unique double-bladed swordsmanship a ...

'' Okon in ''

Tōyama no Kin-san is a popular character based on the historical Tōyama Kagemoto, a samurai and official of the Tokugawa shogunate during the Edo period of Japanese history. In kabuki and kōdan, he was celebrated under his childhood name, Kinshirō, shortened to ...

'' (1989), and Nami in the 2003 TV Tokyo '' Chūshingura: Ketsudan no Toki''. Contemporary roles include 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 '' Gokudō no Onna-tachi Revenge'' (the thirteenth in the series) and the female lead in ''Shiroi Kyotō'' (

TV Asahi JOEX-DTV (channel 5), branded as (also known as EX and and stylized as TV asahi), is a television station that is owned and operated by the subsidiary of certified broadcasting holding company , itself controlled by The Asahi Shimbun Compan ...

, 1990). She appears frequently as a guest star on television series such as ''

Mito Kōmon is a Japanese ''jidaigeki'' or period drama that was on prime-time television from 1969 to 2011, making it the longest-running ''jidaigeki'' in Japanese television history. The title character is the historic Tokugawa Mitsukuni, former vice-''sh ...

.'' Kimiko also recorded a song, ''Nagasarete'', on the

Victor Entertainment , also known as in Japan, is a subsidiary of JVCKenwood that produces and distributes music, movies and other entertainment products such as anime and television shows in Japan. It is known as JVC Entertainment in countries where Sony Music Ent ...

label. The 1984 release (as of 2006, out of print) was the theme song for the show ''Kiryūin Hanako no Shōgai.'' Her honors include the 1990 Japan Jewellery Association Best Dresser Award.

Filmography

Films

*''

'' (1977) - Gorgeous * ''

Nichiren Nichiren (16 February 1222 – 13 October 1282) was a Japanese Buddhist priest and philosopher of the Kamakura period. Nichiren declared that the Lotus Sutra alone contains the highest truth of Buddhist teachings suited for the Third Age of B ...

'' (1979) *''

Taiyō o Nusunda Otoko , also known as ''The Man Who Stole the Sun'', is a 1979 Japanese political satire spy film, directed by Hasegawa Kazuhiko and written by Leonard Schrader. Plot Makoto Kido, a high school science and chemistry teacher, has decided to build his o ...

'' (1979) – Zero Sawai *''

The Geisha ''The Geisha, a story of a tea house'' is an Edwardian musical comedy in two acts. The score was composed by Sidney Jones to a libretto by Owen Hall, with lyrics by Harry Greenbank. Additional songs were written by Lionel Monckton and James Ph ...

'' - (1983) *'' A Chaos of Flowers'' (1988) *''

Edo Jō Tairan ''Edo Jō Tairan'' ( ja, 江戸城大乱) also known as "Edo castle rebellion is a 1991 Japanese jidaigeki film, directed by Toshio Masuda. The film depicts political conflict during the Tokugawa shogunate. Plot The 4th Tokugawa Shogun Tokugaw ...

'' (1991) * '' Kozure Ōkami: Sono Chiisaki Te ni'' (1993)

Television

*''

Fumō Chitai is a novel by Toyoko Yamasaki. It has been adapted into a movie in 1976 and then twice as a television mini-series in 1979 and 2009. Relationship with actual events *The main character Tadashi Iki is widely seen as based on the real life Ryuzo ...

'' (1979) – Naoko Iki *''Onna Taikōki'' (1981, NHK) –

Yodo-dono or (1569 – June 4, 1615) was a prominently placed figure in the late-Sengoku period. She was the daughter of Oichi and sister of Ohatsu and Oeyo. She was a concubine and second wife of Toyotomi Hideyoshi, who was then the most powerful man ...

*''

'' (1983, NHK) –

*''Miyamoto Musashi'' (1984–85, NHK) – Akemi *''Tokugawa Ieyasu'' (1988, TBS) – Yodo-dono

References

External links

*
JDorama
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ikegami, Kimiko 1959 births Living people Horikoshi High School alumni Tamagawa University alumni Citizens of Japan through descent 20th-century Japanese actresses 21st-century Japanese actresses Japanese television actresses Japanese film actresses