Shinichi Chiba, known internationally as Sonny Chiba, was a Japanese actor and martial artist.
29 Facts About Sonny Chiba
2.
Sonny Chiba practiced gymnastics and participated at the National Sports Festival of Japan in his third year.
3.
Sonny Chiba's career began in the 1960s, when he starred in two tokusatsu superhero shows.
4.
Sonny Chiba died from the complications of COVID-19 Delta variant on 19 August 2021, at age 82.
5.
Sonny Chiba was born in Fukuoka, the third of five children.
6.
Sonny Chiba's father was a pilot for the Imperial Japanese Army Air Service; his mother, originally from Kumamoto Prefecture, had competed in track and field in her youth.
7.
Sonny Chiba was passionate about track and field sports, baseball, and volleyball.
8.
Sonny Chiba participated in those four sports championships of Chiba Prefecture.
9.
In high school, Sonny Chiba dedicated himself to artistic gymnastics and won the National Sports Festival of Japan while in his third year.
10.
Sonny Chiba enjoyed watching movies, including Western movies such as Shane and High Noon.
11.
Sonny Chiba went to the Nippon Sport Science University in 1957.
12.
Sonny Chiba was a serious candidate for a place in the Japanese Olympic team in his late teens until he was sidelined by a back injury.
13.
Sonny Chiba starred in the 1961 science fiction movie Invasion of the Neptune Men and the first Kinji Fukasaku film, Drifting Detective: Tragedy in the Red Valley, which marked the beginning of a long series of collaborations for the two.
14.
Sonny Chiba starred in Karate Kiba in 1973, which was his first martial arts movie.
15.
Sonny Chiba occasionally returned to the science fiction genre, in movies such as Message from Space.
16.
Sonny Chiba was executive producer and director for Yellow Fangs and directed and starred in Oyaji.
17.
Sonny Chiba portrayed Yagyu Jubei Mitsuyoshi multiple times, first in the 1978 film Shogun's Samurai and in its TV series remake The Yagyu Conspiracy, which aired from 1978 to 1979.
18.
Sonny Chiba then appeared as Jubei in the TV series Yagyu Abaretabi, which aired from 1980 to 1981 and in the 1981 film Samurai Reincarnation and its theatrical musical version Yagyu Jubei Makai Tensho.
19.
Sonny Chiba then reprised his role as Jubei in the second season of Yagyu Abaretabi, this time entitled Yagyu Jubei Abaretabi, which aired from 1982 to 1983.
20.
Sonny Chiba was even busier in the 1980s, doing dozens of movies as well as making forays into television, and with roles in such high-profile adventures as the popular Hong Kong comic-based movie The Storm Riders, starring alongside Ekin Cheng and Aaron Kwok.
21.
At the dawn of the 21st century, Sonny Chiba was as busy as ever in feature films and starring in his own series in Japan.
22.
Sonny Chiba's enduring onscreen career received a tribute when he appeared in a key role as Hattori Hanzo, the owner of a sushi restaurant and retired samurai sword craftsman, in director Quentin Tarantino's bloody revenge epic Kill Bill: Volume I in 2003.
23.
Sonny Chiba starred in more than 125 films for Toei Studios and has won numerous awards in Japan for his acting.
24.
Sonny Chiba divorced his first wife, actress Yoko Nogiwa, with whom he had a daughter, Juri Manase, who is an actress.
25.
Sonny Chiba had two sons from his second marriage to Tamami Chiba.
26.
Sonny Chiba's younger brother, Jiro Yabuki, was an actor.
27.
In early August 2021, Sonny Chiba became ill with COVID-19 Delta variant.
28.
Sonny Chiba died on 19 August 2021, at the age of 82.
29.
Sonny Chiba's body was cremated at the crematorium on 20 August 2021.