Personal Info
Known For
Acting
Birthdate
1933-03-01
Day of Death
2009-10-21
Place of Birth
Tokyo, Japan
Yōko Minamida
Biography
Yōko Minamida (南田 洋子, Minamida Yōko, March 1, 1933 – October 21, 2009) was a Japanese actress. Born in Tokyo, Minamida made her screen debut in 1953 for the Daiei studio and quickly rose to stardom, working with Kenji Mizoguchi on two films: “A Story from Chikamatsu” and “Princess Yang Kwei-fei.” In 1955, she moved to the Nikkatsu studio, where she starred in Takumi Furukawa’s “Season of the Sun” (1956), a smash hit that launched the so-called “Sun Tribe” boom for films about rebellious youth looking for sex and kicks on Shonan Beach — Japan’s nearest equivalent to Malibu. Minamida acted in dozens of movies for Nikkatsu, working with Shohei Imamura, Seijun Suzuki, and other directors. In 1961 she married her co-star on “Season of the Sun,” Hiroyuki Nagato. As she acted in fewer movies after the mid-1960s, Minamida made a smooth and successful transition to TV as both an actress and MC. She also continued to appear occasionally in movies, with the last being Nobuhiko Obayashi’s “Song of Goodbye” in 2006. She was diagnosed with Alzheimer's in November 2008, and a TV documentary was made about her condition and the efforts of her husband to care for her. She died in Tokyo.
Filmography (110)
Song of Goodbye
2007
The Motive
2004
Salaryman Senka
1995Ai yo, Nemuranaide
1993
Yellow Fangs
1990
This Story of Love
1987
Zero
1984
At Noon
1978
Take Me Away!
1978
House
1977
The Wild Daisy
1977
Japanese Humanity and Justice
1977
Ame no meguri ai
1977
Time of First Love
1975
