(Dai Chushingura) is a Japanese television dramatization of the events of the

Forty-seven Ronin 47 (forty-seven) is the natural number following 46 and preceding 48. It is a prime number. It is the adopted favorite number of Pomona College, a liberal arts college in Southern California, whose alumni have added cultural references to it in ...

. The first episode aired on January 5, 1971, and the 52nd and final episode appeared on December 28 of the same year. The NET network broadcast it in the Tuesday evening 9:00–9:56 prime-time slot in Japan. The series featured an all-star cast. The central actor was

Toshiro Mifune was a Japanese actor and producer. The recipient of numerous awards and accolades over a lengthy career, he is widely considered one of the greatest actors of all time. He often played hypermasculine characters and was noted for his commandin ...

, who portrayed

Ōishi Kuranosuke Oishi may refer to: * Ōishi (surname), a Japanese surname * Oishi (Philippine brand), a snack company from the Philippines * Oishi Group, a Thai food-and-drink company * Ōishi Station, a train station in Nada-ku, Kobe, Hyōgo Prefecture, Japa ...

; Yoko Tsukasa his wife; and

kabuki is a classical form of Theatre of Japan, Japanese theatre, mixing dramatic performance with Japanese traditional dance, traditional dance. Kabuki theatre is known for its heavily stylised performances, its glamorous, highly decorated costumes ...

actor Onoe Kikugorō VII their son Chikara. Ichikawa Chūsha VIII took the part of

Kira Yoshinaka (October 5, 1641 – January 30, 1703) was a Japanese ''kōke'' (master of ceremonies). His court title was ''Kokushi (officials), Kōzuke no suke (上野介)''. He is famous as the adversary of Asano Naganori in the events of the forty-seven ...

, but died after the filming of Episode 47; his brother Kodayū replaced him. Many actors appeared as guest stars in only a few episodes. Among them were many known to audiences outside Japan. These included superstar Kinnosuke Nakamura as Wakisaka Awaji-no-kami, Matsumoto Kōshirō, Shintaro Katsu (of

Zatoichi is a fictional character created by Japanese novelist Kan Shimozawa. He is an itinerant blind masseur and swordsman of Japan's late Edo period (1830s and 1840s). He first appeared in the 1948 essay ''Zatoichi Monogatari'', part of Shimozawa's '' ...

fame), Mifune's frequent co-star

Takashi Shimura was a Japanese actor who appeared in over 200 films between 1934 and 1981. He appeared in 21 of Akira Kurosawa's 30 films (more than any other actor), including as a lead actor in '' Drunken Angel'' (1948), '' Rashomon'' (1950), '' Ikiru'' (1952) ...

, Eiji Okada, Yukiyo Toake,

Kinichi Hagimoto is a Japanese comedian. He is active as a stage performer, emcee, and manager of the amateur Ibaraki, Ibaraki, Ibaraki Golden Golds (''ibaraki goruden gōruzu'') of the Japanese Baseball Association (''nippon yakyuu renmei''). Born in the Tait ...

, Terumi Niki, Masaaki Sakai, and Shinji Maki. The series has been rerun during the more than 35 years that have passed since it was first aired. It is available in several DVD sets.

Cast

Ōishi Yoshio 24 April 1659 – 20 March 1703 was the chamberlain ('' karō'') of the Akō Domain in Harima Province (now Hyōgo Prefecture), Japan (1679 - 1701). He is known as the leader of the Forty-seven Rōnin in their 1703 vendetta and thus the he ...

Tetsuya Watari born (December 28, 1941 – August 10, 2020) was a Japanese film, stage, and television actor. Life He graduated from Aoyama Gakuin University. Watari belonged to the karate club at university. He made his screen debut in 1964, in Isamu Kosu ...

as Horibe Yasubei * Yoko Tsukasa as Ōishi Riku * Go Wakabayashi as Maebara Isuke *

Shinjirō Ehara was a Japanese actor. Ehara joined Toei Company and began his acting career with"Nagurikomi Nijyuohachinin shu". In 1957, he won Elan d'or Award for Newcomer of the Year. He died on 27 September 2022, aged 85. Selected filmography Film *'' Jun' ...

as Kataoka Gengoemon * Yūnosuke Itō as Ōno Kurobei * Masakazu Tamura as Yato Emohichi * Takahiro Tamura as Takadaya Gunbei * Tetsuro Tamba as Chisaka Takafusa * Shigeru Tsuyuguchi as Usuke * Ichiro Arishima *

Etsushi Takahashi was a Japanese actor from Kishiwada, Osaka Prefecture. Takahashi often worked with Kihachi Okamoto and Satsuo Yamamoto. After graduating from Rikkyo University, Takahashi joined NHK acting school. In 1964, he joined Bungakuza Theatre Company ...

as Mori Koheita *

Kōji Ishizaka is a Japanese actor. Ishizaka graduated from Keio University with a Bachelor of Laws, B.L. degree. He serves as a special advisor for the Japan Plamodel Industry Association, and on 23 February 2009, he founded Rowguanes, a plastic model enthus ...

as Kayano Sanppie * Yoko Yamamoto as Okei * Kunio Murai * Takeo Chii as Minagawa Shoroku *Yoshiko Sakuma *Miyoko Akaza *

Ryosuke Kagawa was a Japanese actor. His son was child actor Sō Shuntarō. He appeared in more than 400 films between 1928 and 1986. His final film role was in the 1986 film ''Dixieland Daimyō'' directed by Kihachi Okamoto. Selected filmography * '' Sto ...

as Hara Sōemon * Kenji Imai as Saitō Seizaemon * Nobuo Kawai as Endō Sanzaemon *

Tamao Nakamura (born July 12, 1939 in Kyoto, Japan) is a Japanese actress. Her father is kabuki is a classical form of Theatre of Japan, Japanese theatre, mixing dramatic performance with Japanese traditional dance, traditional dance. Kabuki theatre is k ...

as Aiba Shino * Frankie Sakai as Akabane Genzo * Yoshi Kato as Yato Chosuke *

Yoshio Tsuchiya was a Japanese actor who appeared in such films as Toshio Matsumoto's surreal ''Bara No Soretsu'' (a.k.a. '' Funeral Parade of Roses'') and Akira Kurosawa's ''Seven Samurai'' (as the firebrand farmer Rikichi) and '' Red Beard'', and Kihachi Okam ...

as Tsuchiya Shuzen * Yoshio Inaba * Katsumasa Uchida as Gojō Ryuta * Isao Yamagata * Shigeru Kōyama as Yanagisawa Yoshiyasu *

Akiji Kobayashi , sometimes credited as Shōji Kobayashi, was a Japanese actor. He attended Nihon University College of Art, but withdrew before completing his degree and joined the Haiyuza Theatre Company in 1949. He made his film debut with ''Satsujin Yogisha' ...

as Terasaka Kichiemon *

Katsuo Nakamura is a Japanese actor. Nakamura is a former Kabuki actor as well as his older brother Kinnosuke Nakamura. His first film appearance was in the 1955 film ''Furisode Kenpo''. He won the award for best supporting actor at the 5th Japan Academy Prize ...

as Okano Kingoemon * Shinsuke Ashida as Kobayashi Haihachi * Shigeru Amachi as Shimizu Ichigaku * Junzaburo Ban as Onodera Junai * Jun Tazaki * Hideo Takamatsu as Rinzo Kakui * Toru Abe *

as Horiuchi Denbeiemon * Akihiko Hirata as Horiuchi Gentaemon * Shintaro Katsu as Tawaraboshi Genba *

Kōji Mitsui was a Japanese actor. He appeared in more than 150 films from 1925 to 1975, including 29 of ''Kinema Junpo''’s annual Top-10 winners and three of its 10 best Japanese films of all time. In 2000 the magazine named him one of the 60 most impor ...

as Hirakichi

References

External links

"Dai Chûshingura"
at IMDb

''Jidaigeki Hour: Daichūshingura'' at TV-Tokyo
DVD announcement (includes English)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Daichushingura 1971 Japanese television series debuts 1971 Japanese television series endings Jidaigeki television series TV Asahi original programming Works by Ichirô Ikeda Television series set in the 17th century