Kazuo Hasegawa

Kazuo Hasegawa was a Japanese film and stage actor He appeared in over 300 films from 1927 to 1963 Born to a sake brewing family in Kyoto he first appeared on stage at age five in a theater run by his family as a side business In 1918 he became a student of Nakamura Ganjirō I and performed kabuki in the Kansai region He joined the Shochiku studio in 1927 and made his film debut in Chigo no kenpō under the name Chōjirō Hayashi His good looks and graceful fighting style made him a major jidaigeki star and he appeared in more than 120 films for Shochiku in 11 years with the best works being directed by Teinosuke Kinugasa He moved to the Toho studio in 1937 On 11 November 1937 however he was attacked by ruffians and his face slashed with razor blades According to the historian Daisuke Miyao Even though there was no clear evidence it was widely assumed that this violent incident was Shochikus retaliatory measure against Hayashis socalled betrayal He recovered and changed his stage name to his real name Kazuo Hasegawa Hasegawa appeared in many successful films for Toho including several nationalpolicy pictures with Chinese settings such as Song of the White Orchid 1939 and China Night 1940 with costar Ri Koran He moved to Daiei Film in 1950 and continued appearing in the popular Zenigata Heiji series He also appeared in many classic films including Kozaburo Yoshimuras The Tale of Genji 1951 Kinugasas Gate of Hell 1953 and Kenji Mizoguchis The Crucified Lovers 1954 He was appointed to Daieis board of directors in 1957 To celebrate his 300th film Hasegawa appeared in a new version of Yukinojō henge known abroad as An Actors Revenge in 1963 directed by Kon Ichikawa He left Daiei that year and continued to appear on stage and television including starring in the second NHK Taiga drama Akō Rōshi in 1964 He also directed the Takarazuka Revue version of The Rose of Versailles in 1974