Ken Takakura Biography

Fast Facts

• Won five Japanese Academy Awards, including a Lifetime Achievement Award in 2014
• Won a Montreal World Film Festival Award for Best Actor for "Railroad Man" in 1999
• Won four Asia-Pacific Film Festival Awards for Best Actor for "The Yellow Handkerchief" in 1978, "Station" in 1982, "Buddies" in 1990, and "Railroad Man" in 1999
• Earned a bachelor's degree from Meiji University in Tokyo in 1955
• Was married to screen actress and singer Chiemi Eri from 1959 to 1971
• Got his big break when he decided to look in on an audition at Toei Film Company in 1955
• Had his breakout role as an escaped prisoner in the hit film "Abashiri Prison" in 1965
• Best known for his role as Masahiro in "Black Rain" and as Gou-ichi Takata in "Riding Alone for Thousands of Miles․"