Matsunosuke Onoe
Matsunosuke Onoe during the filming of Chushin-gura (1910).
Born	September 12, 1875
Died	September 11, 1926
Other name(s)	Yukio Koki, Tamijaku Onoe, Tsunusaburo Onoe
Years active	1909-1926

Matsunosuke Onoe (尾上 松之助, Onoe Matsunosuke^?) (September 12, 1875 – September 11, 1926), sometimes known as Medama no Matchan ("Eyeballs" Matsu), was a Japanese actor. He is sometimes credited as Yukio Koki, Tamijaku Onoe, or Tsunusaburo Onoe. He gained great popularity, appearing in over 1,000 films, and has been called the first superstar of Japanese cinema. Incense burns at the burial graves of the 47 Ronin at Sengakuji. ... Portal:Currentevents September 12 is the 255th day of the year (256th in leap years). ... 1875 (MDCCCLXXV) was a common year starting on Friday (see link for calendar). ... This article is about the date September 11 in general. ... Year 1926 (MCMXXVI) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar). ... See also: 1908 in film 1909 1910 in film years in film film Events none Births January 1 - Dana Andrews, actor (d. ... // August - Warner Brothers debuts the first Vitaphone film, Don Juan. ... Portal:Currentevents September 12 is the 255th day of the year (256th in leap years). ... 1875 (MDCCCLXXV) was a common year starting on Friday (see link for calendar). ... This article is about the date September 11 in general. ... Year 1926 (MCMXXVI) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar). ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Cinema has a history in Japan that spans more than 100 years. ...

Career

Onoe was initially an actor with an itinerant kabuki troupe. His troupe regularly performed at a theater in Kyoto owned by Shozo Makino. In 1909, Makino was approached by a film import company and requested to produce movies, and he began to film scenes from the theater's performances. Onoe made his movie debut in Goban Tadanobu that year.^[1] Onoe's troupe proved consistently popular, and Makino chose Onoe to star in his future movies.^[2] The Kabukiza in Ginza is one of Tokyos leading kabuki theaters. ... Location of Kyoto, on the main island of Japan Kyoto (Japanese: 京都市; Kyōto-shi) is a city in Japan that has a population of 1. ...

Onoe starred in hundreds of films.^[3] He played the lead characters in almost all dramatizations of stories published by Tachikawa Bunko, which at the time was a best-selling publisher. He and his troupe also remained closely associated with Makino for over a decade, and Makino directed Onoe in 60 to 80 films per year.^[1] In addition to films based on kabuki, he and Makino pioneered the jidai-geki (historical film) genre. Onoe also popularized the sub-genre of ninja films. Jidaigeki (時代劇) is a genre of film and television or theater play in Japan. ... This article refers to Japanese spies and assassins known as Ninja. For other uses, see Ninja (disambiguation) This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ...

Onoe's films were well-received, earning him the affectionate nickname "Medama no Matchan" ("Eyeballs" Matsu), after his large eyes. He was especially popular among children, who took to imitating his ninja performances in their games.^[1] Many film historians consider him the first superstar of Japanese cinema because of his prolific output and his constant popularity.^[4][3][1]

His films were silent, voiced-over by a narrator. Many of them were short films; however, he also starred in feature-length movies. One of these, the 1910 Chushin-gura, is believed to be the oldest existing feature film, although the print is not complete: it is missing four scenes.^[2] Incense burns at the burial graves of the 47 Ronin at Sengakuji. ...

In 1926, while on the set of Kyokotsu Mikajiki, Onoe collapsed. He died later that year of heart disease.

Notes

1. ^ ^{a b c d} Who's Who in Japanese Silent Films (html). Matsuda Film Productions. Retrieved on 2007-01-05.
2. ^ ^{a b} Tadao, Sato. An Introduction to Early Japanese Cinema (html). The Beginnings and Development of Early Asian Film. Retrieved on 2007-01-05.
3. ^ ^{a b} Tanaka, Junzo. Kyoto: Once Japan's Hollywood (html). Kippo News Vol.13 No.518 (April 19, 2006). Retrieved on 2007-01-05.
4. ^ Irie, Yoshiro. Silent Japanese Films: What Was the Right Speed? (pdf). Journal of Film Preservation 65 (December 2002). Retrieved on 2007-01-05.

2007 (MMVII) is a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar. ... January 5 is the 5th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... 2007 (MMVII) is a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar. ... January 5 is the 5th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... April 19 is the 109th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (110th in leap years). ... 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 2007 (MMVII) is a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar. ... January 5 is the 5th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... 2007 (MMVII) is a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar. ... January 5 is the 5th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ...

References

Richard Abel, ed. Encyclopedia of Early Cinema. London and New York, 2005

External link

• IMDb entry for Matsunosuke Onoe