Back كينپاكيرو ساتسوما ARZ Kenpaçiro Satsuma Azerbaijani Kenpachiro Satsuma Spanish Kenpachiro Satsuma ID Kenpachiro Satsuma Italian 薩摩剣八郎 Japanese 사츠마 켄파치로 Korean Kenpachirō Satsuma Polish Kenpachiro Satsuma Swedish Kenpachiro Satsuma Turkish

Kenpachiro Satsuma

Kenpachiro Satsuma
Born
Yasuaki Maeda

(1947-05-27)27 May 1947
Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan
Died16 December 2023(2023-12-16) (aged 76)
Other namesRyūma Kusaka[1]
Kengo Nakayama[2]
(former stage names)
Occupation(s)Actor, stuntman
Years active1967–2023
Notable workGodzilla
Children1

Yasuaki Maeda (前田 靖昭, Maeda Yasuaki, 27 May 1947 – 16 December 2023),[3][4] known professionally as Kenpachiro Satsuma (薩摩 剣八郎, Satsuma Kenpachirō), was a Japanese actor and stuntman. He is best known for portraying Godzilla in all seven of the Heisei films,[5] from The Return of Godzilla (1984) to Godzilla vs. Destoroyah (1995).

Born in Kagoshima Prefecture, Satsuma began his acting career in the 1960s with small roles in samurai films. In 1971 he was offered the role of the smog monster antagonist Hedorah in Godzilla vs. Hedorah, opposite Haruo Nakajima as Godzilla. He went on to play Gigan in two further Godzilla films. When Nakajima retired from the Godzilla role in 1972, substitutes were hired between 1973 and 1975 until Satsuma took over permanently in 1984.[6] His portrayal took the character away from the humor of the character's portrayals over the past decades, returning to the more animalistic Godzilla persona of the original 1954 film.[6]

While filming Godzilla movies, Satsuma would regularly pass out on the set due to lack of oxygen while wearing the poorly ventilated and rubber suits; this was especially a problem during the production of Godzilla vs. Destoroyah, in which the steam effect on the suit (meant to represent Godzilla undergoing a nuclear meltdown) was achieved using pure carbon dioxide.[7] He also authored books detailing his experiences working on Godzilla movies and Pulgasari (1985).

Satsuma died from pneumonia on 16 December 2023, at the age of 76.[8][9]

  1. ^ 久坂 龍馬, Kusaka Ryūma
  2. ^ 中山 剣吾, Nakayama Kengo
  3. ^ Nishimura, Yuji; Yamada, Masami (1995). 幻想映画美術体系 大ゴジラ図鑑 (in Japanese). Tokio: Hobby Japan. p. 173. ISBN 4-89425-059-4.
  4. ^ "GODZILLA2代目スーツアクターの薩摩剣八郎さん死因は間質性肺炎の為死去". 16 December 2023.
  5. ^ "July Monster-Mania Convention Home to a Kaiju Reunion". DC. 26 October 2012. Retrieved 26 October 2012.
  6. ^ a b Ryfle, Steve (1998). Japan's Favorite Mon-star: The Unauthorized Biography of "The Big G". ECW Press. p. 261. ISBN 978-1-55022-348-4.
  7. ^ "Split Screen: The men behind the masks". Yahoo! Movies. 26 October 2012. Retrieved 26 October 2012.
  8. ^ GODZILLA2代目スーツアクターの薩摩剣八郎さん死因は間質性肺炎の為死去 (in Japanese)
  9. ^ "Godzilla suit actor passes away, carried the series though the Heisei era". SoraNews24 -Japan News-. 18 December 2023. Retrieved 11 July 2024.

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