Kenichi Hagiwara (萩原 健一, Hagiwara Ken'ichi, 26 July 1950 – 26 March 2019) was a Japanese singer and actor.

Ken'ichi Hagiwara
萩原健一
Born
Keizō Hagiwara

(1950-07-26)26 July 1950
Died26 March 2019(2019-03-26) (aged 68)
Tokyo, Japan
Occupation(s)Actor, singer
Years active1966–2019
Height1.74 m (5 ft 8+12 in)
Spouses
  • Hitomi Koizumi
    (m. 1975; div. 1978)
  • (m. 1980; div. 1984)
  • Yuki
    (m. 1996; div. 2006)
  • Rika Tomita
    (m. 2011)

Music career

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Also known as Sho-Ken, he was the lead singer of The Tempters,[1] which was a blues-rock band connected to the Group Sounds scene, and gained big hits in the late 1960s. Hagiwara was known for his good looks and wild vocals, which appealed to young male and female fans.[2] After The Tempters, he formed the band PYG along with Kenji Sawada, the first true Japanese supergroup, a unit which included members of The Tigers, The Tempters, and The Spiders.[3] He was in the Donjuan R&R Band with Hideki Ishima, formerly of The Flowers Travelln' Band.[4]

Acting career

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After being highly praised for his acting in the film The Rendezvous (1972), he appeared in many films and television shows, including many films directed by Tatsumi Kumashiro and such hit TV dramas as Taiyō ni hoero!, Kizudarake no tenshi, and Zenryaku ofukurosama.[5] He was still popular as an actor in the early 2000s,.[6]

Death

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On 26 March 2019, Hagiwara died of a gastrointestinal stromal tumor at the age of 68 in a hospital in Tokyo. He had been fighting the disease since 2011, but declined to publicize the name of the illness.[7]

Filmography

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Film

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Year Title Role Notes
1969 Za temputazu Kenichi Yamakawa (Shôken)
1971 Kigeki: Inochi no nedan
1972 The Rendezvous Burglar
Niji wo watatte
1973 The Wanderers Mokutaro
Kaseki no mori
1974 Seishun no satetsu Kenichiro Eto
1975 Ame no Amsterdam Sakuda
Afurika no hikari Jun
1975 Yatsuhaka-mura Tatsuya Terada
1979 Sono go no jingi naki tatakai Customer
1980 Kagemusha Takeda Katsuyori
1981 Masho no natsu – 'Yotsuya kaidan' yori Iemon Tamiya
1982 To Trap a Kidnapper Kazuo Furuya Lead role
1983 Modori-gawa Gakuyo Sonoda
1985 Capone Cries a Lot Umiemon Lead role
Seburi Monogatari Hajime Kinoshita Lead role
Love Letter Shoichi Takehara Lead role
1986 Minami e Hashire, Umi no Michi o! Ryuji Gondo
Rikon shinai onna Keiichi Iwatani
1987 Yogisha Masahiko Tamura
The Man Who Assassinated Ryoma
1989 Gokudo no onna-tachi: San-daime ane Testuro Akamatsu
226 Shirō Nonaka
1990 Gekido no 1750 nichi
1991 Jutai Rinzo Fuji, Father
1992 The Triple Cross Kanzaki Lead role
1994 Ghost Pub Sotaro Lead role
1998 Joker Murakoshi
2001 Daburusu Key
Desert Moon Keechie's boss
2009 Tajomaru Ashikaga Yoshimasa
2013 Natsuyasumi no chizu

Television

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Year Film Role Notes
1973 Taiyō ni Hoero! Jun "Macaroni" Hayami 6 episodes
1974 Katsu Kaishū Okada Izo Taiga drama
1999 Genroku Ryōran Tokugawa Tsunayoshi Taiga drama
2001 Fighting Girl Yūzō Yoshida
2002 Toshiie and Matsu Akechi Mitsuhide Taiga drama
2018 The Rootless Land Shigeru Yoshida
2019 Idaten Takahashi Korekiyo Taiga drama

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "The Tempters". Discogs.
  2. ^ Martin, Ian F. (2016). Quit Your Band: Musical Notes From the Japanese Underground. Awai Books. p. 42. ISBN 978-1-937220-05-1.
  3. ^ "Pyg (2)". Discogs.
  4. ^ ""First I had the idea, nobody cared. They said 'you're crazy!'"". jrawk.com. Archived from the original on 20 May 2009. Retrieved 3 February 2016.
  5. ^ "萩原健一が68歳で死去、「傷だらけの天使」「青春の蹉跌」などに出演". 映画ナタリー (in Japanese). Retrieved 4 April 2019.
  6. ^ "Ken'ichi Hagiwara". IMDb.
  7. ^ "萩原健一さん死去 68歳 「太陽にほえろ!」「傷だらけの天使」など – スポニチ Sponichi Annex 芸能".
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