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Katsu Shintarō
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Katsu Shintarō

Japanese actor
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Also known as: Okumura Toshio
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Article History
Quick Facts
Born:
November 29, 1931, Tokyo, Japan
Died:
June 21, 1997, Kashiwa, Chiba prefecture (aged 65)
Also Known As:
Okumura Toshio
See all related content

Katsu Shintarō (born November 29, 1931, Tokyo, Japan—died June 21, 1997, Kashiwa, Chiba prefecture) was a Japanese actor whose portrayal of Zatoichi, a blind master swordsman, in a series of motion pictures and on television brought him fame and influenced similar films in Hong Kong and Taiwan.

Katsu was perhaps the most popular star in Japanese screen history, starring in 25 Zatoichi films from 1962 to 1973. He occasionally worked as a producer—for example, for the American documentary Ali: The Man Behind the Myth (1975), which profiled the life of boxer Muhammad Ali.

This article was most recently revised and updated by Encyclopaedia Britannica.