In Remembrance: Eiji Funakoshi

     Eiji Funakoshi, the Japanese actor who career spanned three decades, has passed away on March 17, 2007 in Shizuoka, Japan. He was 84.

     Born on March 17, 1923 in Tokyo, Japan, Funakoshi signed with the Daiei Motion Picture Company in 1947. He made his motion picture debut the following year in the drama Beautiful Enemy. Although many of his early roles were handsome, lead characters, Funakoshi transitioned into a character actor who delivered solid performances throughout his three decades long career.

     In 1957, Funakoshi appeared in director Kon Ichikawa’s romantic drama Ninonbashi (Bridge Of Japan), the first of 11 collaborations between the two. Their most critically acclaimed film was 1959’s Fires On The Plain in which Funakoshi portrayed a Japanese Army private who witnesses the aftermath of Japan’s three year occupation of the Philippines.

     Even when Funakoshi wasn’t cast in what could be considered A-list features, he still brought a professionalism to his work as exemplified by his work in Daiei’s 1965 giant monster movie Gamera in which he played a scientist tasked with finding a way to stop the monster’s rampage. Funakoshi would return to the popular franchise for its fifth installment Gamera Vs. Guiron (1969) in a similar role.

     His final film was the 1977 drama Seinen No Ki.