CINEFILER

James Shigeta

Born
June 17, 1929
Died
July 28, 2014
James Saburo Shigeta (June 17, 1929 – July 28, 2014) was an American actor, singer, and musician of Japanese descent. He was noted for his roles in The Crimson Kimono (1959), Walk Like a Dragon (1960), Flower Drum Song (1961), Bridge to the Sun (1961), Die Hard (1988), and Mulan (1998). In 1960, he won the Golden Globe Award for Most Promising Newcomer – Male, along with three other actors. In his early career, Shigeta often played romantic male lead roles, which were almost nonexistent for an actor of Asian descent during his time, making him a trailblazer in Asian American representation in media. The Goldsea Asian-American Daily magazine listed him as one of the "Most Inspiring Asian-Americans Of All Time". Before his Hollywood career he found success as a pop singer and performer abroad, especially in Japan and Australia.
Known For
Die Hard
(1988)
Joseph Yoshinobu Takagi
Mulan
(1998)
General Li (voice)
Midway
(1976)
Vice Admiral Chuichi Nagumo
Drive
(1997)
Mr. Lau
Lost Horizon
(1973)
Brother To-Lenn
Brother
(2000)
Sugimoto
The Yakuza
(1974)
Goro
Flower Drum Song
(1961)
Wang Ta
Cage
(1989)
Tin Lum Yin
Full Filmography
Acting
The Crimson Kimono
(1959)
Detective Joe Kojaku
Walk Like a Dragon
(1960)
Cheng Lu
Flower Drum Song
(1961)
Wang Ta
Cry for Happy
(1961)
Harue
Bridge to the Sun
(1961)
Hidenari Terasaki
Carol for Another Christmas
(1964)
Japanese Doctor
Paradise, Hawaiian Style
(1966)
Danny Kohana
Death Walks in Laredo
(1967)
Lester Koto
The Hardy Boys: The Mystery of the Chinese Junk
(1967)
George Ti Ming
Nobody's Perfect
(1968)
Diver Toshi O'Hara
Manila, Open City
(1968)
Captain Murakami
Escape to Mindanao
(1968)
Lt. Takahashi
The Young Lawyers
(1969)
Lee Ahn
Operation Heartbeat
(1969)
Chief Resident
Lost Horizon
(1973)
Brother To-Lenn
The Yakuza
(1974)
Goro
The Questor Tapes
(1974)
Dr. Chen
Matt Helm
(1975)
Tom McCauley
Midway
(1976)
Vice Admiral Chuichi Nagumo
The Killer Who Wouldn't Die
(1976)
David Lao
Samurai
(1979)
Takeo Chisato
Enola Gay: The Men, the Mission, the Atomic Bomb
(1980)
Field Marshal Abehata
Tomorrow's Child
(1982)
Donald Shibura
The Renegades
(1982)
Jimmy Lee
Die Hard
(1988)
Joseph Yoshinobu Takagi
Slaying the Dragon
(1988)
Cage
(1989)
Tin Lum Yin
China Cry
(1990)
Dr. Sung
Home from the Eastern Sea
(1990)
Narrator
Hart to Hart: Old Friends Never Die
(1994)
Det. Whoo
Cage II: The Arena of Death
(1994)
Tin Lum Yin
Midnight Man
(1995)
Mao Mak
Space Marines
(1996)
Ambassador Nakamura
Drive
(1997)
Mr. Lau
Mulan
(1998)
General Li (voice)
Qigong: Ancient Chinese Healing for the 21st Century
(1999)
Narrator
Brother
(2000)
Sugimoto
The Slanted Screen
(2006)
Himself
Hollywood Chinese
(2007)
Self
The People I've Slept With
(2009)
Charles Yang
Yellowface: Asian Whitewashing and Racism in Hollywood
(2019)
(archive footage)
Yorktown: A Time to Heal
(2022)
Admiral Heilachiro Nogura
Data provided by TMDB