was a Japanese singer and actor. As a singer, he was known as one of the three "''Gosanke''" (referring to ''

gosanke The , also called simply , or even , were the most noble three branches of the Tokugawa clan of Japan: Owari, Kii, and Mito, all of which were descended from clan founder Tokugawa Ieyasu's three youngest sons, Yoshinao, Yorinobu, and Yorifusa ...

'', the three great Tokugawa houses), along with Yukio Hashi and Kazuo Funaki. The stage name was based on the

Meiji Restoration The , referred to at the time as the , and also known as the Meiji Renovation, Revolution, Regeneration, Reform, or Renewal, was a political event that restored Imperial House of Japan, imperial rule to Japan in 1868 under Emperor Meiji. Althoug ...

one of three heroes, but also the Kagoshima Local hero Takamori Saigo.

Career

Saigō made his debut in 1964 with the song "Kimi Dake o", for which he won a

Japan Record Award is a major music awards show, held annually in Japan that recognizes outstanding achievements in the Japan Composer's Association. Established in 1959, the Japan Record Awards are one of the oldest and most prestigious music awards in the count ...

for best new artist.History
Japan Record Awards. Accessed May 12, 2008. As an actor, he has portrayed people as varied as 20th century Prime Minister

Kakuei Tanaka was a Japanese politician who served as Prime Minister of Japan, prime minister of Japan from 1972 to 1974. Known for his background in construction and earthy and tenacious political style, Tanaka is the only modern Japanese prime minister who ...

(in the 1983 film ''Shōsetsu Yoshida Gakkō'') and 16th century samurai Katakura Kagetsuna (in the 1987 NHK ''

Taiga drama is the name NHK gives to the annual year-long historical drama television series it broadcasts in Japan. Beginning in 1963 with the black-and-white ''Hana no Shōgai'', starring kabuki actor Onoe Shoroku II and Awashima Chikage, the network regul ...

'' ''Dokuganryū Masamune''). A native of

Kagoshima , is the capital Cities of Japan, city of Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 583,966 in 285,992 households, and a population density of 1100 persons per km2. The total area of the city is . Etymology While the ...

, he has played the roles of native sons such as

Kuroda Kiyotaka Count was a Japanese politician and general who served as prime minister of Japan from 1888 to 1889. He was one of the '' genrō'', or senior statesman of the Meiji era. Born in the Satsuma Domain to a samurai family, Kuroda was involved in t ...

and

Saigō Tsugumichi Saigō may refer to: Places * Saigō, Shimane * Saigō, Miyazaki People * Saigō-no-Tsubone (Lady Saigō) (1552–1589), consort of Tokugawa Ieyasu, the samurai lord and shōgun * Saigō Takamori * Saigō Tanomo was a Japanese samurai ...

, but his characters also include

Tokugawa Ieyasu Tokugawa Ieyasu (born Matsudaira Takechiyo; 31 January 1543 – 1 June 1616) was the founder and first ''shōgun'' of the Tokugawa shogunate of Japan, which ruled from 1603 until the Meiji Restoration in 1868. He was the third of the three "Gr ...

, Yagyū Jūbei and

Hattori Hanzō or ''Second Hanzō'', nicknamed , was a famous samurai of the Sengoku era, who served the Tokugawa clan as a general, credited with saving the life of Tokugawa Ieyasu and then helping him to become the ruler of united Japan. He is often a ...

. His roles in

Chūshingura is the title given to fictionalized accounts in Japanese literature, theater, and film that relate to the historical incident involving the forty-seven ''rōnin'' and their mission to avenge the death of their master, Asano Naganori. Including ...

tales have included Mōri Koheita (1985). Saigō has starred in various prime-time television series. These include '' Edo o Kiru,'' ''Genkurō Tabi Nikki Aoi no Abarenbō,'' '' Abare Hasshū Goyō Tabi,'' and ''Abare Isha Ranzan.'' NHK has tapped him for various ''Taiga drama'' roles as well. Among them are Mōri Hiromoto (in ''

Mōri Motonari was a prominent ''daimyō'' (feudal lord) in the western Chūgoku region of Japan during the Sengoku period of the 16th century. The Mōri clan claimed descent from Ōe no Hiromoto (大江広元), an adviser to Minamoto no Yoritomo. Motonari w ...

'', 1997),

Sanada Yukimura , also known as , was a Japanese samurai warrior of the Sengoku period. He was especially known as the leading general on the defending side of the Siege of Osaka. Yukimura was called "A Hero who may appear once in a hundred years", "Crimson D ...

(''

Aoi Tokugawa Sandai is a 2000 Japanese historical drama television series and the 39th NHK taiga drama. The series respectively stars Masahiko Tsugawa, Toshiyuki Nishida, and Onoe Tatsunosuke II as the first three Tokugawa shōguns. It aired from January 9 to Dec ...

'', 2000), and

Honda Masanobu was a commander and ''daimyō'' in the service of Tokugawa Ieyasu in Japan during the Azuchi-Momoyama and Edo periods. In 1563, when an uprising against Ieyasu occurred in Mikawa Province, Masanobu took the side of the peasants against Ieyasu ...

(NHK's

''Musashi'', 2003) in addition to Katakura Kagetsuna. Other NHK roles have included the contemporary daytime drama ''Niji no Sekkei'' (1964) and the uncle of the title character in the ''

asadora , colloquially known as , is a serialized, 15 minutes per episode, Japanese television drama program series broadcast in the mornings by Japanese public broadcaster NHK. The first such series aired in 1961 with the black-and-white , starring Ta ...

'' ''Wakaba'' (2004–05). On 21 February 2022, Sun Music, Saigo's management company, made an announcement that he died after a long battle with

prostate cancer Prostate cancer is the neoplasm, uncontrolled growth of cells in the prostate, a gland in the male reproductive system below the bladder. Abnormal growth of the prostate tissue is usually detected through Screening (medicine), screening tests, ...

in Tokyo, on 20 February.

Filmography

Films

* ''

The Last Samurai ''The Last Samurai'' is a 2003 American epic period action drama film directed and produced by Edward Zwick, who also co-wrote the screenplay with John Logan and Marshall Herskovitz from a story devised by Logan. The film stars Tom Cruise, ...

'' (1974) *'' The Fall of Ako Castle'' (1978) – Asano Takumi no Kami *''

Shogun's Samurai ''Shogun's Samurai'', known in Japan as , is a 1978 Japanese historical martial arts period film directed and co-written by Kinji Fukasaku. The film is the first of two unrelated Fukasaku films to star Shinichi "Sonny" Chiba as Jūbei Mitsuyos ...

'' (1978) –

Tokugawa Tadanaga was a Japanese ''daimyō'' of the early Edo period. The son of the second ''shōgun'' Tokugawa Hidetada, his elder brother was the third ''shōgun'' Tokugawa Iemitsu. Biography Often called ''Suruga Dainagon'' (the major counsellor of Su ...

*' (1983) –

*'' Gray Sunset'' (1985) – Haruo Takano *'' Ruten no umi'' (1990) *'' Listen to My Heart'' (2009) – Kengo Nakakura

Television

*'' Edo o Kiru'' (TBS, 1975–81) –

Tōyama Kagemoto was a hatamoto and an official of the Tokugawa shogunate during the Edo period of Japanese history. His ancestry was of the Minamoto clan of the Mino Province. His father, Kagemichi, was the magistrate of Nagasaki. Biography During his youth, K ...

*'' Shadow Warriors'' (1980) – Tsutusmi Kyonosuke *'' Hissatsu Masshigura!'' (1986) *''

Dokuganryū Masamune is a 1987 Japanese historical television series. It is the 25th NHK ''taiga'' drama. The broadcast received an average viewer rating of 39.7 percent in the Kanto area with the highest viewing rating of 47.8%. The drama was adapted from the novel ...

'' (NHK, 1987) – Katakura Kagetsuna *'' Abare Hasshū Goyō Tabi'' (TV Tokyo, 1990–94) – Tōdō Heihachirō *''Mōri Motonari'' (NHK, 1997) – Mōri Hiromoto *'' Aoi'' (NHK, 2000) –

*''Musashi'' (NHK, 2003) –

*''

Bar Lemon Heart , sometimes referred to as "Bar Lemon Heart," is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Mitsutoshi Furuya and Family Kikaku and published by Futabasha from 1985 to 2021. A Japanese television drama series based on the manga premie ...

'' (BS Fuji, 2016) – Shingo Makita *''No Side Manager'' (TBS, 2019) – Hiroshi Shimamoto *''The Yagyu Conspiracy'' (NHK, 2020) – Narrator

References

External links

*
Japan Record Awards for 1964
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Saigo, Teruhiko 1947 births 2022 deaths Japanese male film actors Japanese male television actors 20th-century Japanese male actors 21st-century Japanese male actors 20th-century Japanese singers 20th-century Japanese male singers Japanese male pop singers Japanese lyricists Japanese male composers Japanese television presenters Singers from Kagoshima Deaths from prostate cancer in Japan