Toshiro Mifune

Toshiro Mifune (三船 敏郎 Mifune Toshirō) (April 1, 1920 - December 24, 1997) was a Japanese actor who appeared in almost 170 feature films.

Marriage

One of Mifune's fellow performers, one of the 32 women chosen during the new faces contest, was Sachiko Yoshimine. Eight years Mifune's junior, she came from a respected Tokyo family. They fell in love and Mifune soon proposed marriage.

Related Topics:
Tokyo - Marriage

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Yoshimine's parents were strongly opposed to the idea of marriage. Mifune was doubly an outsider, being a non-Buddhist as well as coming from Manchuria (which, to mainland Japanese, was associated with misfits and eccentrics). His profession also suggested financial instability and overall irresponsibility.

Related Topics:
Buddhist - Manchuria

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Director Senkichi Taniguchi, with the help of Akira Kurosawa, convinced the Yoshimine family to allow the marriage. It took place in February of 1950. In November of the same year, their first son Shiro was born. In 1955, they had a second son, Takeshi. Mifune's daughter Mika was born in 1981.

Related Topics:
February - 1950 - November - Shiro - 1955 - Mika - 1981

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