
Yōko Minamida
Biography
Yōko Minamida (南田 洋子, Minamida Yōko, March 1, 1933 – October 21, 2009) was a Japanese actress. Born in Tokyo, Minamida made her screen debut in 1953 for the Daiei studio and quickly rose to stardom, working with Kenji Mizoguchi on two films: “A Story from Chikamatsu” and “Princess Yang Kwei-fei.” In 1955, she moved to the Nikkatsu studio, where she starred in Takumi Furukawa’s “Season of the Sun” (1956), a smash hit that launched the so-called “Sun Tribe” boom for films about rebellious youth looking for sex and kicks on Shonan Beach — Japan’s nearest equivalent to Malibu. Minamida acted in dozens of movies for Nikkatsu, working with Shohei Imamura, Seijun Suzuki, and other directors. In 1961 she married her co-star on “Season of the Sun,” Hiroyuki Nagato. As she acted in fewer movies after the mid-1960s, Minamida made a smooth and successful transition to TV as both an actress and MC. She also continued to appear occasionally in movies, with the last being Nobuhiko Obayashi’s “Song of Goodbye” in 2006.
She was diagnosed with Alzheimer's in November 2008, and a TV documentary was made about her condition and the efforts of her husband to care for her. She died in Tokyo.
Acting (102 movies)

Pigs and Battleships
1961

A Modern Samurai Village
1963

Tale of the Last Japanese Yakuza
1969

Otoko to otoko no ikiru machi
1962

Chikamatsu Monogatari
1954

Zoku jūdai no seiten
1953

Black Dice
1962

Okashina yatsu
1963

Salaryman Senka
1995

A Young Man's Stronghold
1970

Princess Yang Kwei-fei
1955

A Sun-Tribe Myth from the Bakumatsu Era
1957

Ankoku gai jingi
1965

Umi no jōji ni kakero
1960

Sun and Stars
1962

He Killed Dad
1961

Streetlights
1957

Last Round
1962

The Soundless Cry
1965

Yellow Fangs
1990

The Wild Daisy
1977

Season of the Sun
1956

The Crimson Plains
1961

Yuganda tsuki
1959

The Doctor
1955

The Kingdom of Jirocho 4
1965

Jūdai no seiten
1953

Return of the Vagabond
1960

The Guys Who Put Money on Me
1962

The Rambler Rides Again
1960

Voice Without a Shadow
1958

Love Comes with Youth
1963

Chivalrous Pride
1969

Wind and waves of the South
1961

I Have the Sun in My Back
1963

Our Town
1956

An Outlaw
1964

Time of First Love
1975

Beyond the Green Hills
1963

Glorious Fights
1966

The Barefoot Girl
1957

The Poem of the Blue Star
1960

This Story of Love
1987

Glass-Hearted Johnny
1962

Jakoman and Tetsu
1964

Tokyo Knights
1961

The Domain
1964

Ame no meguri ai
1977

The Kanto Scarlet Cherry Gang
1972

Portrait of Chieko
1967

House
1977

The Champion
1957

The Man with a Shotgun
1961

Kyu-chan, Draw Your Sword
1963

A Turning to Hell
1959

Stolen Desire
1958

At Noon
1978

Quick Draw Joe
1961

But the Flesh is Weak
1957

Hungry Soul
1956

The Domain: Kanto Legends of Chivalry
1965

Farewell to Southern Tosa
1959

Jungle Block
1960

Dancing Sisters
1957

Karafuto 1945 Summer
1974

Song of Goodbye
2007

Hungry Soul, Part II
1956

The Gambling Monk
1963

The Rambler Returns Home
1962

Showdown of Men
1966

Zero
1984

The Domain: The Naniwa Story
1965

A Girl Isn't Allowed to Love
1955

Prison Gambler
1964

Gambler
1964

The Law's Bloody Wounds
1960

Jūdai no yūwaku
1953

The Tattooed Lord
1965

Wounded Beast
1959

Umi wa kurutte iru
1959

Osaka no kaze
1958

When a Man Risks His Life
1959

Taiyō o buchi otose
1958

Joe of Aces: Gambling for a Living
1961

Lone Wolf
1960

Zoku zoku Jûdai no seiten
1953

Nosappu no jū
1961

To Your Majesty, The Emperor 2
1964

The Motive
2004

Take Me Away!
1978

The Domain: Where The Blade Enters
1967

The Domain: White Blade
1967

Tales of a Gunman: The Man Without Tomorrow
1960

Elegy to Youth
1959

Mountain Pass
1957

The Awakening
1957

Kamen no Onna
1959

We Live Today
1959

Japanese Humanity and Justice
1977

Kiriko's Tango
1963
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