Chieko Baisho

Chieko Baisho (倍賞 千恵子, Baishō Chieko; born June 29, 1941) is a Japanese actress and singer.^[1][2]

Chieko Baisho
倍賞 千恵子
Chieko Baisho at the Tokyo International Film Festival in 2019
Born	(1941-06-29) June 29, 1941 (age 84) Kita, Tokyo, Japan
Occupation(s)	Actress, singer, voice actress
Years active	1961–present
Spouse	Reijiro Koroku [jp] Reijirō Koroku (Q4678162)
Website	baisho-chieko.com

In Japan, she is well known for her performance as Sakura in the Otoko wa Tsurai yo series from 1969 until 1995.^[2] In addition, she has acted in many films directed by Yōji Yamada since the 1960s. She won the award for Best Actress at the 5th Hochi Film Award for A Distant Cry from Spring.^[3]

Voice acting

She sometimes performs as a voice actress, such as "Sophie" in Howl's Moving Castle in 2004. Although different voice actresses usually played young and old Sophie in the foreign dubs of the film, Baisho performed both roles alone, as well as the film's theme song.^[2]

Singing career

She has had a career as a singer since her debut with the song "Shitamachi no Taiyō" in 1962, for which she won the "newcomer award" of the Japan Record Award.^[1][2] Her 1965 single, "Sayonara wa dance atoni", a cha-cha ballad, later had its melody inspire the 1992 song Moonlight Densetsu, the theme song of the first four seasons for the anime adaption of Sailor Moon. A cover by Mariko Takahashi would later appear in another Ghibli film, Only Yesterday.^[4]

Personal

She is the older sister of Mitsuko Baisho, who is also an actress.^[5]

She is married to the Japanese composer Reijiro Koroku [Wikidata].^[6]

Selected filmography

Chieko Baisho in 1962

Year	Film	Role	Notes	Ref
1965	Kiri no Hata
1968	I, the Executioner	Haruko
1969–2019	Otoko wa Tsurai yo series	Sakura Suwa
1970	Where Spring Comes Late	Tamiko Kazami	Lead role
1977	The Yellow Handkerchief	Mitsue Shima
1980	A Distant Cry from Spring	Tamiko Kazami
1981	Station	Kiriko Michio
	Mobile Suit Gundam - Movie I	Kamaria Ray (voice)
	Unico	West Wind (voice)
1986	Final Take	Yuki
1988	Hope and Pain	Tamiko Shima
1997	Jungle Emperor Leo	Lyre (voice)
2004	Howl's Moving Castle	Sophie (voice)
	The Hidden Blade	Mrs. Katagiri
2008	Kabei: Our Mother	Adult Hatsuko
2010	Zatoichi: The Last	Mitsu
2013	Tokyo Newcomer	Kimie Igarashi
	It All Began When I Met You	Kotoko Oshima
2014	The Little House			[7]
2019	Dad, Chibi is Gone	Yukiko Takei		[8]
	Weathering with You	Fumi Tachibana (voice)		[9]
2020	461 Days of Bento: A Promise Between Father and Son	Natsuko Suzumoto		[10]
2021	Arc	elderly Rina		[11][12]
2022	Plan 75	Michi	Lead role	[13]
2025	Tokyo Taxi	Sumire Takano	Lead role	[14]

Honours

• Kinuyo Tanaka Award (2001)^[15]
• Medal with Purple Ribbon (2005)
• Order of the Rising Sun, 4th Class, Gold Rays with Rosette (2013)