was a Japanese-French actress and vedette, who had a career in both

Japanese Japanese may refer to: * Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia * Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan * Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture ** Japanese diaspor ...

and European cinema during the 1950s and '60s.

Early life

Tani was born Yōko Itani (猪谷洋子) in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

in 1928, to Japanese parents Zenichi Itani and Taeko Egi. Her father was an economist, and her mother was a longtime associate of

Oku Mumeo was an important Japanese feminist and politician who served three terms in Japan's Diet of Japan, Imperial Diet after having been a leader in the early modern Women's suffrage in Japan, women's suffrage movement in Japan. She played an importan ...

. Her maternal grandmother, Maseko, served as the model for a famous painting by Kiyokata Kaburagi. Her great-grandfather, Gakusui Egi, was a famed

Confucian Confucianism, also known as Ruism or Ru classicism, is a system of thought and behavior originating in ancient China, and is variously described as a tradition, philosophy, religion, theory of government, or way of life. Founded by Confucius ...

scholar and a feudal lord of the

Fukuyama Domain file:Abe Masahiro Portrait.png, 270px, Abe Masahiro 7th daimyo of Fukuyama was a Han (Japan), feudal domain under the Tokugawa shogunate of Edo period Japan, in what is now southeastern Hiroshima Prefecture. It controlled much of Bingo Province ...

. Tani's parents were both diplomats at the Japanese embassy, with Tani herself conceived ''en route'' during a shipboard passage from Japan to Europe in 1927 and subsequently born in Paris the following year, hence given the name ''Yōko'' (洋子), one reading of which can mean "ocean-child." Tani would later play a diplomat's daughter in '' Piccadilly Third Stop'' (1960). She has occasionally been described as 'Eurasian', 'half French', 'half Japanese' and even, in one source, 'Italian Japanese', all of which are incorrect. According to Japanese sources, the family returned to Japan in 1930, when Yoko would still have been a toddler, and she did not return to France until 1950 when her schooling was completed. Given that there were severe restrictions on Japanese travelling outside Japan directly after

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, this would have been an unusual event; however, it is known that Itani had attended an elite girls' school in Tokyo (Tokyo Women's Higher Normal School, currently Ochanomizu University Senior High School), and then graduated from Tsuda University. She subsequently secured a Catholic scholarship to study

aesthetics Aesthetics (also spelled esthetics) is the branch of philosophy concerned with the nature of beauty and taste (sociology), taste, which in a broad sense incorporates the philosophy of art.Slater, B. H.Aesthetics ''Internet Encyclopedia of Ph ...

at the

University of Paris The University of Paris (), known Metonymy, metonymically as the Sorbonne (), was the leading university in Paris, France, from 1150 to 1970, except for 1793–1806 during the French Revolution. Emerging around 1150 as a corporation associated wit ...

(Sorbonne) under

Étienne Souriau Étienne Souriau (; April 26, 1892 – November 19, 1979) was a French philosopher, best known for his work in aesthetics. Biography Son of Paul Souriau, he studied at the École Normale Supérieure and received his '' agrégation of philo ...

Career

Return to France (1950–1955)

Once back in Paris, Tani found little interest in attending university (although by her own account she persevered for two years despite understanding hardly anything that was being said). Instead, she developed a more compelling attraction to the cabaret, the nightclub, and the variety music-hall, where, setting herself up as an exotic oriental beauty, she quickly established a reputation for her provocative "geisha" dances, which generally ended with her slipping out of her kimono. It was here she was spotted by

Marcel Carné Marcel Albert Carné (; 18 August 1906 – 31 October 1996) was a French film director. A key figure in the poetic realism movement, Carné's best known films include ''Port of Shadows'' (1938), ''Le Jour Se Lève'' (1939), ''Les Visiteurs du Soi ...

, who took her into his circle of director and actor-friends, including Roland Lesaffre, whom she was later to marry. As a result, she began to get bit parts in films—starting as (perhaps predictably) a Japanese dancer, in Gréville's '' Le port du désir'' (1953–1954, released 1955)—and on the stage, with a role as ''Lotus Bleu'' in ''la Petite Maison de Thé'' (French adaptation of The Teahouse of the August Moon) at the '' Théâtre Montparnasse'', 1954–1955 season.

Lesaffre and Japan (1956)

Tani's involvement with cinema was, up to the mid-1950s, limited entirely to that of portraying stereotyped orientals in French films. With the end of the US occupation of Japan in 1952, however, postwar Japanese cinema itself burst upon the French scene, culminating in the years 1955 and 1956 when a total of six Japanese films, including

Akira Kurosawa was a Japanese filmmaker who List of works by Akira Kurosawa, directed 30 feature films in a career spanning six decades. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest and most influential filmmakers in the History of film, history of cinema ...

's ''Ikimono no Kiroku'' (

I Live in Fear is a 1955 Japanese drama film directed by Akira Kurosawa, produced by Sōjirō Motoki, and co-written by Kurosawa, Shinobu Hashimoto, and Hideo Oguni. The film is about an elderly Japanese factory owner so terrified of the prospect of a nuclea ...

生きものの記録), were entered at Cannes. It was at Cannes that Tani first made contact with Kurosawa, and the director Hisamatsu Seiji, contacts which led to a trip to Japan in 1956 by Tani and Lesaffre and their joint appearance in the

Toho is a Japanese entertainment company that primarily engages in producing and distributing films and exhibiting stage plays. It is headquartered in Chiyoda, Tokyo, and is one of the core companies of the Osaka-based Hankyu Hanshin Toho Group. ...

production '' Hadashi no seishun'' (裸足の青春 fr. ''La jeunesse aux pieds nus''), a film about the difficult lives of Catholics in the remote islands off Kyushu, in southern Japan. Tani played the part of a 'fallen woman' who has returned to the islands from Tokyo (where she had run off to become a stripper), and Lesaffre that of the local bishop. It was originally intended that the film be directed by Kurosawa himself, but in the end, it fell to his

stable-mate Taniguchi Senkichi. Tani and Lesaffre's ambition was to bring the film back to France and release it in the French market, an aim which was, however, never achieved. During the same trip, and also for

, Tani took a minor role in Hisamatsu's ''Joshū to tomo ni'' (女囚と共に), a variant on the "women in prison" theme, in which she played a westernised Japanese Catholic named Marie. This film was notable only in that it starred two veritable legends of the Japanese cinema: Hara Setsuko and

Tanaka Kinuyo was a Japanese actress and film director. She had a career lasting over 50 years with more than 250 acting credits, but was best known for her 15 films with director Kenji Mizoguchi, such as '' The Life of Oharu'' (1952) and '' Ugetsu'' (1953). ...

International period (1957–1962)

Early in 1957, Tani appeared in a small role in her first English-language film: the MGM production of Graham Greene's ''

The Quiet American ''The Quiet American'' is a 1955 novel by English author Graham Greene. Narrated in the first person by journalist Thomas Fowler, the novel depicts the breakdown of French colonialism in Vietnam and early American involvement in the Vietnam ...

'', a political drama set in French Indochina. Despite being an American production, the film was shot entirely in Rome (with location scenes of Saigon added), with Tani cast as a francophone Vietnamese nightclub hostess. But Tani's real "break" in English-language cinema came with the 1958 production ''

The Wind Cannot Read ''The Wind Cannot Read'' is a 1958 British drama film directed by Ralph Thomas and starring Dirk Bogarde, Yoko Tani, Ronald Lewis and John Fraser. It was based on the 1946 novel by Richard Mason, who also wrote the screenplay. Ralph Thom ...

''. This film, a war-time love story, had originally been a project of the British producer

Alexander Korda Sir Alexander Korda (; born Sándor László Kellner; ; 16 September 1893 – 23 January 1956)

, and was to have been directed by

David Lean Sir David Lean (25 March 190816 April 1991) was an English film director, producer, screenwriter, and editor, widely considered one of the most important figures of Cinema of the United Kingdom, British cinema. He directed the large-scale epi ...

, who in 1955 travelled to Japan with author Richard Mason and cast Japanese actress

Keiko Kishi is a Japanese actress, writer, and UNFPA Goodwill Ambassador. Life and career She made her acting debut in 1951 in Noboru Nakamura's film '' Home Sweet Home''. In the 1950s, David Lean proposed her for the main role in '' The Wind Cannot Read ...

as the female lead. Locations were scouted in India, and Ms Kishi (then 22 years old) was brought to England to learn sufficient English for the part. At a very advanced stage, the project fell apart, and a few months later Korda died. The pieces were eventually picked up by the

Rank Organisation The Rank Organisation (founded as the J. Arthur Rank Organisation) is a British entertainment conglomerate founded in 1937 by industrialist J. Arthur Rank. It quickly became the largest and most vertically integrated film company in the Uni ...

, and it was decided to produce the film using the script and locations already set out by Lean, with one of Rank's big stars,

Dirk Bogarde Sir Dirk Bogarde (born Derek Jules Gaspard Ulric Niven van den Bogaerde; 28 March 1921 – 8 May 1999) was an English actor, novelist and screenwriter. Initially a matinée idol in films such as ''Doctor in the House (film), Doctor in the Hous ...

, in the male lead,

Ralph Thomas Ralph Philip Thomas (10 August 1915 – 17 March 2001) was an English film director who directed the Doctor (film series), ''Doctor'' film series. Thomas cast the actor James Robertson Justice in many of his films. He often worked with the pr ...

to direct, and Tani, who was found in Paris, to play the leading female role. The film was a commercial success and one of the top British films of that year, and led to further roles in other British co-productions --- as the Inuit ''Asiak'' in the Anglo-French-Italian ''

The Savage Innocents ''The Savage Innocents'' is a 1960 adventure film directed and co-written by Nicholas Ray. Anthony Quinn and Yoko Tani star, with Lee Montague, Marco Guglielmi, Carlo Giustini, Anthony Chinn, and Michael Chow in supporting roles, alongsid ...

(Les Dents du diable)'' (1959 - nominated for the ''Palme d'Or'' at Cannes in 1960), and as the ingénue ''Seraphina'' in '' Piccadilly Third Stop'' (1960). Aside from ''

'', her only other "Hollywood" roles were in ''

My Geisha ''My Geisha'' is a 1962 American Comedy drama, comedy-drama film directed by Jack Cardiff, starring Shirley MacLaine, Yves Montand, Edward G. Robinson, and Bob Cummings and released by Paramount Pictures. Written by Norman Krasna, based on Krasna' ...

'' (1962, shot on location in Japan) and the Dean Martin comedy ''

Who's Been Sleeping in My Bed? ''Who's Been Sleeping in My Bed?'' is a 1963 American comedy film directed by Daniel Mann and starring Dean Martin, Elizabeth Montgomery, and Carol Burnett. Plot Jason Steel is an actor who plays a compassionate doctor on a popular TV drama. ...

'' (1963, Paramount Studios Los Angeles). Despite being type-cast as an exotic, Tani got to play some unusual roles as a result, as evidenced by her portrayal of Japanese doctor/scientist Sumiko Ogimura in the self-consciously internationalist 1959 East-German/Polish film production of

Stanisław Lem Stanisław Herman Lem (; 12 September 1921 – 27 March 2006) was a Polish writer. He was the author of many novels, short stories, and essays on various subjects, including philosophy, futurology, and literary criticism. Many of his science fi ...

's novel ''

The Astronauts ''The Astronauts'' (Polish language, Polish: ''Astronauci'') is a 1951 science fiction novel by Polish writer Stanisław Lem. It was Lem's first science fiction novel published as a whole: his earlier science fiction novel ''The Man from Mars ...

'', ''

Der schweigende Stern ''Der schweigende Stern'' or ''Milcząca Gwiazda'', literal English translation ''The Silent Star'', is a 1960 East German/ Polish color science fiction film based on the 1951 science fiction novel ''The Astronauts'' by Polish science fiction wri ...

'' (''

First Spaceship on Venus ''Der schweigende Stern'' or ''Milcząca Gwiazda'', literal English translation ''The Silent Star'', is a 1960 East German/ Polish color science fiction film based on the 1951 science fiction novel ''The Astronauts'' by Polish science fiction wri ...

''), and as Ishii Hanako, Japanese common-law wife of the German double-agent Richard Sorge in

Veit Harlan Veit Harlan (22 September 1899 – 13 April 1964) was a German film director and actor. Harlan reached the high point of his career as a director in the Nazi era; most notably his antisemitic film '' Jud Süß'' (1940) makes him controversial. W ...

's '. Perhaps even more unusual (for the time) was her trip to Vancouver, Canada in 1962 to play the role of Mary Ota in

James Clavell James Clavell (born Charles Edmund Dumaresq Clavell; 10 October 1921 – 7 September 1994) was a British and American writer, screenwriter, director, and World War II veteran and prisoner of war. Clavell is best known for his ''Asian Saga'' nov ...

's '' The Sweet and the Bitter'', which treats the aftermath of the wartime internment of Canadian Japanese and the loss of their properties and businesses. Ota, a young Japanese woman, returns to British Columbia after a twenty-year absence to avenge her father's internment-camp death, her hatred directed towards the man who stole her father's fishing boats. The film was completed in 1963, but there was no North American release due to legal and financial difficulties.

British Lion British Lion or British Lions may refer to: * British Lion, a national symbol of Great Britain Sport * British & Irish Lions, a touring side playing rugby union, known until 2001 as the British Lions * Great Britain national rugby league team, fo ...

finally underwrote a showing of the film in London in 1967.

Spies, swords and sandals (1963 onwards)

1962/63 marked a shift in Tani's career: a return (once again) to France and the definitive end of her marriage to Lesaffre. From this point on she was to be more strictly European-based and to take on work mainly in the low-budget Italian '' peplum'' cinema and in ''

femme fatale A ( , ; ), sometimes called a maneater, Mata Hari, or vamp, is a stock character of a mysterious, beautiful, and Seduction, seductive woman whose charms ensnare her lovers, often leading them into compromising, deadly traps. She is an archetype ...

'' roles in UK television dramas such as ''

Danger Man ''Danger Man'' (retitled ''Secret Agent'' in the United States for the revived series, and ''Destination Danger'' and ''John Drake'' in other overseas markets) is a British television series that was broadcast between 1960 and 1962, and again ...

'' and ''

Man in a Suitcase ''Man in a Suitcase'' is a British television private eye thriller series produced by Lew Grade's ITC Entertainment. It originally aired in the United Kingdom on ITV (TV network), ITV from 27 September 1967 to 17 April 1968. American Broadcast ...

''. Despite her involvement with film, Tani never abandoned her attachment to the nightclub and cabaret. The British producer

Betty Box Betty Evelyn Box (25 September 1915 – 15 January 1999) was a British film producer, usually credited as Betty E. Box. Early life and career Born in Beckenham, Kent, England, Betty Box initially planned to be a commercial artist or journalist. ...

, when looking for the female lead for ''

'' (''vide supra''), wrote: And, from a 1960s account of the well-known '' Le Crazy Horse de Paris'' nightclub: Even as late as 1977, we find her in São Paulo, where she had a small role in Chinese-Brazilian director Juan Bajon's sexploitation film '' O Estripador de Mulheres'': Ho Ai Li, Assistant Life Editor of 'The Straits Times', (18/10/'15), quotes Tani as saying, when she was in Singapore, to film '' Goldsnake'':

Personal life

Tani's 1956 marriage to Roland Lesaffre was childless, and ended in divorce in 1962. Lesaffre claimed in his autobiography ''Mataf'' (éditions Pygmalion, 1991), that theirs was the first Franco-Japanese marriage after World War II – conceivably true, but almost impossible to verify. In later life Tani remarried, wedding Roger Laforet, a native of

Binic Binic (; ; Gallo language, Gallo: ''Binic'') is a small fishing port north of Saint-Brieuc on the north coast of Côtes-d'Armor Departments of France, department of Brittany (administrative region), Brittany, in northwest France. Once a Communes ...

, Côtes-d'Armor (Brittany). A wealthy industrialist, Laforet was an associate of Baron Marcel Bich, co-founder of the BIC consumer products empire. Tani's later years were spent between Paris and their house in

Paimpol Paimpol (; ) is a commune in the Côtes-d'Armor department in Brittany in northwest France. It is a tourist destination, especially during the summer months when people are attracted by its port and beaches. Geography The town is located in t ...

overlooking the sea.

Death

Tani died in Paris, from cancer, but is buried in Binic together with Laforet. Their tomb carries the

Breton Breton most often refers to: *anything associated with Brittany, and generally **Breton people **Breton language, a Southwestern Brittonic Celtic language of the Indo-European language family, spoken in Brittany ** Breton (horse), a breed **Gale ...

inscription «''Ganeoc'h Bepred''» (roughly, "Always With You"). She was survived by her younger sister, Aiko.

In popular culture

Her first name inspired the Belgian comics character

Yoko Tsuno ''Yoko Tsuno'' is a comics album series created by the Belgian writer Roger Leloup published by Dupuis in '' Spirou'' magazine since its debut in 1970. Through thirty volumes, the series tell the adventures of Yoko Tsuno, a female electrical e ...

Roger Leloup Roger Leloup (; born 17 November 1933) is a Belgian comic strip artist, novelist, and a former collaborator of Hergé, who would rely upon him to create detailed, realistic drawings and elaborate decoration for ''The Adventures of Tintin''.

Film

* 1954 (France) : '' Le port du désir'' dir.

Edmond T. Gréville Edmond T. Gréville (born Edmond Gréville Thonger; 20 June 1906 – 26 May 1966) was a French film director and screenwriter. He was married to the actress Vanda Gréville. Career Gréville began his career as a film journalist and critic. ...

- ''unnamed dancer'' * 1954 (France) : '' Les Clandestines'' dir.

Raoul André Raoul André (24 May 1916 in Rabat (Morocco Morocco, officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It has coastlines on the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has ...

- ''unnamed Chinese girl'' * 1954 (France) : '' Ali Baba et les Quarante voleurs'' dir.

Jacques Becker Jacques Becker (; 15 September 1906 – 21 February 1960) was a French film director and screenwriter. His films, made during the 1940s and 1950s, encompassed a wide variety of genres, and they were admired by some of the filmmakers who led th ...

* 1954 (France) : ''

Women Without Hope ''Women Without Hope'' (French: ''Marchandes d'illusions'') is a 1954 French crime drama film directed by Raoul André and starring Gisèle Pascal, Philippe Lemaire and Louise Carletti.Rège p.16 It was shot at the Billancourt Studios in Paris. ...

'' dir.

- ''unnamed Eurasian'' * 1954 (France) : '' The Babes Make the Law'' dir.

- ''The Lotus Flower'' * 1954 (West Germany) : ' dir.

- ''Hanako (Sorge's Japanese common-law wife)'' * 1955 (France) : '' The Price of Love'' dir.

Maurice de Canonge Maurice de Canonge (March 18, 1894 – January 10, 1979) was a French actor and film director.Oscherwitz & Higgins p.222 He is also sometimes known by the name Maurice Cannon. Selected filmography Director * ''Stowaway Olive'' (1931) * ''Olive se ...

- ''unnamed dancer'' * 1955 (France) : '' Gueule d'ange'' dir. Marcel Blistène - ''Bamboo Flower'' * 1955 (France) : '' Maid in Paris'' dir.

Pierre Gaspard-Huit Pierre Gaspard-Huit (29 November 1917 – 1 May 2017) was a French film director and screenwriter. He directed the 1963 film '' Shéhérazade'', which starred Anna Karina. He was once married to actress Claudine Auger when she was 18, and he w ...

, released 1956 - ''unnamed student'' * 1955 (France) : '' À la manière de Sherlock Holmes'' dir. Henri Lepage * 1956 (Japan) : 裸足の青春 - ''Hadashi no seishun / Barefoot Youth'' dir. 谷口千吉 /

Senkichi Taniguchi (February 19, 1912 – October 29, 2007) was a Japanese film director and screenwriter. Life and career Born in Tokyo, Japan, he attended Waseda University but left before graduating due to his involvement in a left-wing theater troupe. He ...

- ''Okano Mariko (岡野マリ子)'' * 1956 (Japan) : 女囚と共に - ''Joshū to tomo ni / Women in Prison'' dir. 久松静児 /

Seiji Hisamatsu (20 February 1912 – 28 December 1990) was a Japanese film director A film director or filmmaker is a person who controls a film's artistic and dramatic aspects and visualizes the screenplay (or script) while guiding the film crew an ...

- ''Marie (マリー), a prisoner'' * 1956 (France) : ''

Mannequins of Paris ''Mannequins of Paris'' (French: ''Mannequins de Paris'') is a 1956 French drama film directed by André Hunebelle and starring Madeleine Robinson, Ivan Desny and Mischa Auer.Bessy, p. 91 It is set in the world of high fashion. The film's sets we ...

'' dir.

André Hunebelle André Hunebelle (; 1 September 1896 – 27 November 1985) was a French maître verrier (master glassmaker) and film director. Master Glass Artist After attending polytechnic school for mathematics, he became a decorator, a designer, and then a m ...

- ''Lotus'' * 1957 (France) : '' The Ostrich Has Two Eggs'' dir.

Denys de La Patellière Denys de La Patellière (8 March 1921 in Nantes, France – 21 July 2013) was a French film director and scriptwriter. He also directed Television series. He died in 2013 at the age of 92. Biography The son of an officer, Denys de La Patell ...

- ''la comtesse Yoko'' * 1957 (France) : '' La Fille de feu'' dir.

Alfred Rode Alfred Rode (born Alfred Spedaliere; 4 June 1905 – 22 July 1979) was an Italian-born French composer, musician, actor and film director. He was born in Torre del Greco. In 1936 Rode appeared in the British film ''Gypsy Melody'' alongside Lu ...

- ''Zélie'' * 1958 (Italy) : ''

'' dir.

Joseph L. Mankiewicz Joseph Leo Mankiewicz (; February 11, 1909 – February 5, 1993) was an American film director, screenwriter, and producer. A four-time Academy Award winner, he is best known for his witty and literate dialogue and his preference for voice-over ...

- ''head nightclub hostess'' * 1958 (UK) : ''

'' dir.

- ''Aiko Suzuki (Sabby)'' * 1959 (East Germany/Poland) : '' Der schweigende Stern/Milcząca Gwiazda'' - ''The Silent Star/First Spaceship on Venus'' dir.

Kurt Maetzig Kurt Maetzig (25 January 1911 – 8 August 2012) was a German film director who had a significant effect on the film industry in East Germany. He was one of the most respected filmmakers of the GDR. After his retirement he lived in Wildkuh ...

& Hieronim Przybył - ''Sumiko Ogimura MD'' * 1959 (France/Italy/UK) : ''

'' dir.

Nicholas Ray Nicholas Ray (born Raymond Nicholas Kienzle Jr., August 7, 1911 – June 16, 1979) was an American film director, screenwriter, and actor. Described by the Harvard Film Archive as "Hollywood's last romantic" and "one of postwar American cinem ...

- ''Asiak'' * 1960 (UK) : '' Piccadilly Third Stop'' dir.

Wolf Rilla Wolf Peter Rilla (16 March 1920 – 19 October 2005) was a film director and writer of German background, who worked mainly in the United Kingdom. Rilla is known for directing '' Village of the Damned'' (1960). He wrote many books for students, ...

- ''Seraphina Yokami'' * 1961 (Italy/France) : ''

Ursus and the Tartar Princess ''Ursus and the Tartar Princess'' (, , also known as ''Tartar Invasion'') is a 1961 Italian-French peplum film written and directed by Remigio Del Grosso and starring Yoko Tani and Ettore Manni. Plot The young Polish prince Stephen goes on a mis ...

'' dir. Remigio Del Grosso - ''Princess Ila'' * 1961 (Italy) : '' Samson and the Seven Miracles of the World'' - ''Samson and the Seven Miracles of the World'' dir.

Riccardo Freda Riccardo Freda (24 February 1909 – 20 December 1999) was an Italian film director. He worked in a variety of genres, including sword-and-sandal, horror film, horror, ''giallo'' and spy films. Freda began directing ''I Vampiri'' in 1956. The f ...

- ''Princess Lei Ling'' * 1961 (Italy/France) : ''

Marco Polo Marco Polo (; ; ; 8 January 1324) was a Republic of Venice, Venetian merchant, explorer and writer who travelled through Asia along the Silk Road between 1271 and 1295. His travels are recorded in ''The Travels of Marco Polo'' (also known a ...

'' dirs.

Hugo Fregonese Hugo Geronimo Fregonese (8 April 1908 – 11 January 1987) was an Argentine film director and screenwriter who worked both in Hollywood and his home country during the Golden Age of Argentine cinema, classical era of Argentine cinema.''Cine Na ...

Piero Pierotti Piero Pierotti (1 January 1912 – 4 May 1970) was an Italian director and screenwriter. Life and career Born in Pisa, Pierotti started his career as a journalist, working for '' La Nazione'' and ''Il Nuovo Corriere'', and later founding the n ...

- ''Princess Amurroy'' * 1962 (USA/Japan) : ''

'' dir.

Jack Cardiff Jack Cardiff (18 September 1914 – 22 April 2009) was a British cinematographer, film and television director, and photographer. His career spanned the development of cinema, from silent film, through early experiments in Technicolor, to film ...

- ''Kazumi Ito'' * 1962 (Canada) : '' The Sweet and the Bitter'', dir.

, released 1967 - ''Mary Ota'' * 1963 (USA) : ''

'' dir.

Daniel Mann Daniel Chugerman (August 8, 1912 – November 21, 1991), known professionally as Daniel Mann, was an American stage, film director, film and television director. Originally trained as an actor by Sanford Meisner, between 1952 and 1987 he direct ...

- ''Isami Hiroti'' * 1964 (Italy) : '' Last Plane to Baalbek'' dir.

Giuliano Carnimeo Giuliano Carnimeo (born Carmineo; 4 July 1932 – 10 September 2016) was an Italian director and screenwriter, sometimes credited as Anthony Ascott or Antony Ascot. Life and career Born in Bari, Carmineo started his career as assistant direct ...

- ''Asia'' * 1964 (West Germany) : '' The Secret of Dr. Mabuse'' dir.

- ''Mercedès'' * 1964 (Italy) : '' Bianco, Rosso, Giallo, Rosa'' - ''The Love Factory'', dir. Massimo Mida - ''Yoko'' * 1965 (Italy/France) : '' OSS 77 – Operazione fior di loto'' dir. Bruno Paolinelli * 1965 (Italy) : '' Agent Z-55, Desperate Mission'' dir.

Roberto Bianchi Montero Roberto Bianchi Montero (7 December 1907 – 7 December 1986) was an Italian actor, director and screenwriter. Life and career Born in Rome, Bianchi Montero started acting as a teenager on stage and he was a member of an amateur theater group ...

- ''Su Ling'' * 1965 (UK) : ''

Invasion An invasion is a Offensive (military), military offensive of combatants of one geopolitics, geopolitical Legal entity, entity, usually in large numbers, entering territory (country subdivision), territory controlled by another similar entity, ...

'' dir.

Alan Bridges Alan Bridges (28 September 1927 – 7 December 2013) was an English television and film director. In 1967 Bridges directed a television adaptation of Charles Dickens' ''Great Expectations'' starring Gary Bond as Pip. He won the '' Grand Pr ...

- ''Chief of the "Lystrians"'' * 1966 (Italy) : '' The Spy Who Loved Flowers'' dir.

Umberto Lenzi Umberto Lenzi (6 August 1931 – 19 October 2017) was an Italian film director, screenwriter, and novelist. A fan of film since young age, Lenzi studied at the Centro Sperimentale di Cinematografia and made his first film in 1958 which went unre ...

- ''Mei Lang'' * 1966 (Spain/Italy/France) : '' Goldsnake 'Anonima Killers''' dir.

Ferdinando Baldi Ferdinando Baldi (19 May 1927 – 12 November 2007) was an Italian film director and screenwriter. Throughout his career he used a number of pseudonyms, including Ted Kaplan, Ferdy Baldwin and Sam Livingstone. Biography Baldi was born in ...

- ''Annie Wong'' * 1967 (Italy) : '' Le 7 cinesi d'oro'' dir. Vincenzo Cascino - ''La giapponese'' * 1977 (Brazil) : '' O Estripador de Mulheres'' dir. Juan Bajon * 1978 (France) : ' dir.

- ''Youyou''

Television

* 1960 (UK) : ''Chasing the Dragon'' - BBC television (scriptwriter Colin Morris) * 1961 (UK) : ''

Rashomon is a 1950 Japanese ''jidaigeki'' film directed by Akira Kurosawa from a screenplay he co-wrote with Shinobu Hashimoto. Starring Toshiro Mifune, Machiko Kyō, Masayuki Mori, and Takashi Shimura, it follows various people who describe how a ...

'' - BBC television adaptation dir.

Rudolph Cartier Rudolph Cartier (born Rudolph Kacser, renamed himself in Germany to Rudolph Katscher; 17 April 1904 – 7 June 1994) was an Austrian television director, filmmaker, screenwriter and producer who worked predominantly in British television, excl ...

- ''The Wife'' * 1961 (USA) : ''

Here's Hollywood ''Here's Hollywood'' is an American celebrity interview program which aired on weekday afternoons on NBC at 4:30 Eastern time from September 26, 1960, to December 28, 1962. Production notes The program was a Desilu Production.Alex McNeil, ''Tota ...

'' - NBC Television; season 1, episode 28 (broadcast 26 April 1961) - ''herself'' * 1962 (USA) : ''

Ben Casey ''Ben Casey'' is an American medical drama television series that aired on ABC from 1961 to 1966. The show was known for its opening titles, which consisted of a hand drawing the symbols "♂, ♀, ✳, †, ∞" on a chalkboard, as cast member ...

'' - season 1, episode 27, "A Pleasant Thing for the Eyes" - ''Aiko Tanaka'' * 1963 (UK) : ''

Edgar Wallace Mysteries The ''Edgar Wallace Mysteries'' is a British second-feature film series mainly produced at Merton Park Studios for Anglo-Amalgamated. There were 48 films in the series, which were released between 1960 and 1965. The series was screened as ''Th ...

'' - episode 31, " The Partner" (based on ''A Million Dollar Story'' (1926)) dir. Gerard Glaister - ''Lin Siyan'' * 1964 (UK) : ''Drama '64'' - ITV; episode "Miss Hanago" (broadcast 22 November 1964) - ''Miss Hanago'' * 1966 (UK) : ''

Armchair Theatre ''Armchair Theatre'' is a British television drama anthology series of single plays that ran on the ITV network from 1956 to 1974. It was originally produced by ABC Weekend TV. Its successor Thames Television took over from mid-1968. The Ca ...

'' - Associated British Corp. - episode "The Tilted Screen" - ''Michiko'' * 1967 (UK) : ''

'' - ITV; season 4, episode 1, "Koroshi" - ''Ako Nakamura'' * 1967 (UK) : ''

'' - ITV; season 4, episode 2, "Shinda Shima" - ''Miho'' * 1967 (UK) : ''

'' - ITV; episode 5, "Variation on a Million Bucks pt. 1" - ''Taiko'' * 1967 (UK) : ''

'' - ITV; episode 6, "Variation on a Million Bucks pt. 2" - ''Taiko'' * 1968 (France/Canada) : '' Les Dossiers de l'agence O'' - episode 10, "L'arrestation du musicien" - ''Kikou - la stripteaseuse'' * 1971 (UK) : ''

Shirley's World ''Shirley's World'' is a television series aired first by ABC during the 1971–72 television season. The sitcom was co-produced by the British ITC Entertainment and American producer Sheldon Leonard, with English producer-director Ray Au ...

'' - ITV; episode 12, "A Girl Like You" (UK transmission date 23 June 1972) - ''Okiyo'' * 1972 (France/Quebec) : '' Le Fils du ciel'' - ORTF/Télévision de Radio-Canada - ''Gisèle Lelarge'' * 1991 (France) : '' Série rose (erotic anthology)'' - FR3; episode " Le lotus d'or" dir.

Walerian Borowczyk Walerian Borowczyk (21 October 1923 – 3 February 2006) was a Polish film director described by film critics as a "genius who also happened to be a pornographer". He directed 40 films between 1946 and 1988. Borowczyk settled in Paris in 1959. A ...

- ''Dame Lune''

Theatre

* 1954 (France) : ''Namouna'' by

Jacques Deval Jacques Deval (27 June 1895 – 19 December 1972) was a French playwright, screenwriter and film director. Novels *''Marie Galante'' (1931) Plays *''Une faible femme''; a comedy in three acts (1920) *''Dans sa candeur naïve''; a comedy in thre ...

- ''

Théâtre de Paris The Théâtre de Paris () is a theatre located at 15, rue Blanche in the 9th arrondissement of Paris, 9th arrondissement of Paris. It includes a second smaller venue, the Petit Théâtre de Paris. History The first theatre on the site was built b ...

'' - ''Sao-Ming'' * 1955 (France) : ''La petite maison de thé'' adapted by Albert Husson - '' Théâtre Montparnasse'' - ''Lotus Bleu'' * 1958 (France) : ''Chérie Noire'' by

François Campaux François Campaux, (14 April 1906 in Auxerre- 8 August 1983 in Paris), was a French film director, screenwriter and playwright. Filmography Director * 1946 in the movies, 1946 : ''Henri Matisse (short film)'' * 1949 in the movies, 1949 : ' ...

, '' Théâtre Michel'' - ''Chérie'' * 1965 (UK) : ''The Professor'' by

Hal Porter Harold Edward "Hal" Porter (16 February 1911 – 29 September 1984) was an Australian novelist, playwright, poet, and short story writer. He is known for his 1963 memoir, ''The Watcher on the Cast Iron Balcony''. The Hal Porter Short Story Comp ...

, ''

Royal Court Theatre The Royal Court Theatre, at different times known as the Court Theatre, the New Chelsea Theatre, and the Belgravia Theatre, is a West End theatre#London's non-commercial theatres, non-commercial theatre in Sloane Square, London, England, opene ...

'' - ''Fusehime Ishimoto (housemaid)'' * 1967 (France) : ''Une femme à louer'' by François Campaux, mise en scène Christian Alers, '' Théâtre de la Potinière''

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tani, Yoko 1928 births 1999 deaths Japanese film actresses French film actresses French stage actresses French television actresses French people of Japanese descent Actresses from Paris 20th-century French actresses 20th-century Japanese actresses Actresses from Tokyo