Makoto Fujita


Makoto Fujita, born Makoto Harada, was a Japanese actor. He was born in Ikebukuro, Tokyo, the son of silent-film actor Rintarō Fujima, and started his career as a comedian in 1952.

Acting Roles

Fujita appeared in both jidaigeki and contemporary roles. He starred as Nakamura Mondo, a samurai, in sixteen Hissatsu series on Asahi Broadcasting Corporation from 1973. He also portrayed Nakamura on stage and in film; for example, the 1984 film, the 1987 film Sure Death! Brown, You Bounder!, the film , the 1991 film Sure Death 5, and the 1996 film Hissatsu! Mondo Shisu. Fujita's last appearance was in 2009 Hissatsu Shigotonin 2009, although in January 2010 he had returned to the Hissatsu series as a narrator.
He also starred in the contemporary detective drama series Hagure Keiji Junjōha, also on the Asahi network.
Returning to jidaigeki he played the lead role in the remake of Kenkaku Shōbai with Megumi Ōji. He also took the role of Sen no Rikyū and in 2008 Tokugawa Mitsukuni.
Makoto's film credits number at least 57 and he also starred in a number of TV commercials.

Singing and writing

Makoto's talents extended beyond acting. He also sang, and released nine recordings, including a duet with Azusa Mano, and with The Peanuts twins. He also published several essays, the last of which was Saigo.

Pacifism

A committed pacifist, Fujita always carried a letter from his elder brother, who died in the Battle of Okinawa during World War II. It took him over 60 years, Fujita revealed, before he could finally visit Okinawa, where he threw rice balls into the ocean as an offering to the war victims.
To convey his antiwar message, Fujita devoted all his energy into the 2007 movie Best Wishes for Tomorrow, in which he portrayed a class-B war criminal sentenced to death following Japan's surrender.

Death

On February 16, 2010 at approximately 9:00 P.M. in his home in Minoh, Osaka, Fujita suddenly vomited blood and was transported to the Osaka University Hospital in Suita. The following day at 7:25 am, Fujita suffered an aortic aneurysm, resulting in his death. He was 76 years old.

Honours