Nishimura Masahiko (西村雅彦) is a bald Japanese theatre and film actor. He’s known best for his tendency to act comedy roles.
Biography
Nishimura was born December 12, 1960 in Toyama Japan. He attended college in Tokyo to study photography, but never graduated, turning instead to theatre at the age of 21. After a short while he gave up and returned to Toyama, returning again at the age of 24. It was at this time he met a young Mitani Koki, who at the time was aspiring to become an actor while writing scripts for radio and theatre.
Nishimura and Mitani began the Tokyo Sunshine Boys, a comedy-based theatrical group which also included Japanese actors Kajiwara Zen and Aijima Kazuyuki. This group grew in popularity over the next ten years until it produced the immensely popular play 12 Gentle Japanese, a parody of Reginald Rose’s 12 Angry Men. This play became a movie soon after, but Nishimura was not part of the cast.
Soon after, however, in the 1990s the success of the Tokyo Sunshine Boys resulted in him being offered a number of television roles such as Furikaereba Yatsuga Iru'. His most famous role to date is that of the flamboyant character of Imaizumi Shintaro in the drama Furuhata Ninzaburo, also a Mitani Koki creation.
With the release of the Mitani Koki movie (also adapted from a play) Radio no Jikan in 1997, he won a bit of international acclaim for his portrayal of a radio producer. He was awarded Best Supporting Actor from the Japanese Academy Awards, Blue Ribbon awards and others.
The Tokyo Sunshine Boys finally disbanded in 1998, but most of its actors, including Nishimura, continue to work on television today.
Awards
- Best Supporting Actor (Japanese Academy Award) for Mitani Koki “Radio no Jikan”
- Best Supporting Actor (Japanese Academy Award) for Itami Juzo “Marutai no Onna”
- Popularity Award “Most Popular Performer” for 1997
- Blue Ribbon Award “Best Supporting Actor”
- Hochi Film Award
- Kinema Junpo Award
Filmography
Movies
- Tomoko no baai (1996)
- Shichi-gatsu nano ka, Hare (1996)
- Radio no Jikan: Welcome Back Mr. McDonald (1997)
- Princess Mononoke (1997)
- Marutai no onna (1997)
- Kuroi ie (1999)
- Godzilla 2000 (1999)
- O-juken (1999)
- GTO (1999)
- Kawa no Nagare no You ni (2000)
- Denen no yuutsu (2001)
- Ghiblies: Episode 2 (2002)
- Ganryujima (2003)
- Nin Nin the Movie (2004)
- Furyo shonen no yume (2005)
Television Dramas
- Furikaereba Yatsu ga Iru(1993)
- Furuhata Ninzaburo (1994)
- Ousama no restoran (1995)
- Otona no otoko (1997)
- Yamato nadeshiko (2000)
- Yome wa mitsuboshi (2001)
- Koi no chikara (2002)
- Itsumo futari de (2003)
- Kanojo ga shinjatta (2004)
- Wonderful Life (2004)