![Tetsuro Tamba](https://image.tmdb.org/t/p/w300//ihugQ2afio03fcKSGXdkcQKTVmt.jpg)
Tetsuro Tamba
Tetsuro Tamba (July 17, 1922 – September 24, 2006) was a distinguished Japanese actor known for his versatile talent across five decades. Recognized globally for his portrayal of Tiger Tanaka in the iconic 1967 James Bond film "You Only Live Twice," Tamba's cinematic journey was a remarkable blend of cultural bridges. Before embarking on his acting career, Tamba worked as an interpreter for the Allied Powers' Supreme Commander. Graduating from Chuo University in 1948, he later joined Shintoho company, making his debut in the film Satsujin Yougishain in 1951. Tamba's impact on Western audiences extended beyond Bond, with standout performances in films like Bridge to the Sun and The 7th Dawn. He earned acclaim in Japan as well, most notably as the lead in police dramas like Key Hunter and G-Men '75. His talents weren't confined to the screen alone. Tamba lent his voice to characters like the Cat King in Studio Ghibli's The Cat Returns and graced historical roles in television dramas, leaving an indelible mark on period pieces. In 2005, Tamba faced health challenges but continued to contribute until the end. Sadly, he passed away in Tokyo at 84 due to pneumonia on September 24, 2006. His legacy lives on through his son, actor Yoshitaka Tamba, while his last appearances in the 2005 Taiga drama Yoshitsune and the 2006 film Sinking of Japan remain a testament to his enduring impact on Japanese cinema and beyond.
Known For
Credits
- 2006 · The Exotic Locations of 'You Only Live Twice' as Tiger Tanaka (archive footage)
- 2004 · Capone: Roppongi Renkin no Teio as
- 2003 · Yakuza Demon as
- 2001 · The Making Of The Katakuris as
- 1999 · Japanese Hell as Asu Shino
- 1994 · Psychic: Traveler to the Unknown as
- 1992 · Taira no Kiyomori as
- 1991 · Minamoto Yoshitsune as
- 1991 · The Hitman Blood Smells Like Roses as
- 1990 · School Be-In Bully as Ryotaro Sakurazawa
- 1989 · Tokyo: The Last War as
- 1989 · The Political Game as
- 1987 · Shinran: Path to Purity as
- 1987 · Night Train as Isaburo Tamura
- 1985 · Vendetta of Obligation as
- 1985 · The Last True Yakuza as Kazumasa Tashiro
- 1985 · The Sound of the Waves as
- 1984 · Kōgen ni ressha ga hashitta as
- 1984 · Choshichiro's Edo Diaries: The Yagyu Conspiracy as Yagyu Munefuyu
- 1983 · L・O・V・I・N・G as
- 1983 · A Madcap Corporation as
- 1983 · The Duel in the forbidden territory as
- 1983 · Samon’s Hell Revenge: Unauthorised Jutte Records 2 - The Assassination of the Shogun as
- 1980 · Drive for the Future as Akiji Nishikawa
- 1980 · The Sand Boat as
- 1978 · Monument to Holy Service as
- 1977 · The Alaska Story as Arashuk
- 1976 · Murderer! as Nīto Kouken
- 1976 · The Classroom of Terror as
- 1976 · Human Revolution II as
- 1974 · Secret Prophecies of Nostradamus as Himself
- 1973 · Japan's Top Gangster as Noboru Yamaguchi
- 1973 · The School Deviate Waru as
- 1972 · Informal Dress as
- 1972 · Shadow Hunters 2: Echo of Destiny as Kagemetsuke
- 1972 · New Abashiri Prison Story: Honor and Humanity, Ammunition That Attracts the Storm as
- 1971 · Troops of Darkness as
- 1971 · The Armed Organization as
- 1971 · King of Pornography as
- 1970 · Postwar Secrets as Kuroki
- 1970 · Cherry Blossoms in the Air - The Suicide Raiders - Oh, Buddies! as
- 1969 · Penitentiary Brothers as
- 1968 · Snake Woman's Curse as Commander
- 1968 · The Young Eagles of the Kamikaze as
- 1968 · The Code of Man as
- 1967 · The Return of the Filthy Seven as
- 1967 · Hawk of the Harbour as
- 1967 · Organized Violence II as Police Inspector Kitagawa
- 1967 · Portrait of Chieko as Kotaro Takamura
- 1967 · Once and For All as
- 1967 · Gamblers: The Dragon Tattoo as
- 1967 · Dissolution Rites as Sakai
- 1966 · The Kii River as Shintani Kosaku
- 1965 · Blood and Law as
- 1965 · Abashiri Prison as Tsumaki
- 1964 · Gamblers and Racketeers as
- 1964 · Samurai from Somewhere as
- 1964 · Homicide as Lieutenant Aikawa
- 1964 · Jakoman and Tetsu as Jakoman
- 1963 · Tokyo Untouchable: Escape as Goro Kawamoto
- 1963 · Kizu-darake no futeki-sha as
- 1963 · Gang and G-Men Part 2 as 手塚徹
- 1962 · Tokyo Untouchable as Goro Kawamoto
- 1962 · Hell's Kitchen as
- 1962 · Gang vs. Gang as
- 1962 · Zankokuna tsuki as
- 1962 · All Rascals as
- 1961 · Greed in Broad Daylight as Miyahara
- 1961 · Bridge to the Sun as Jiro
- 1961 · The Yellow Climate as
- 1961 · Dai shinrin ni mukatte tatsu as
- 1961 · Mist and Shadows as Yusuke Komiya
- 1961 · Kaachan as
- 1960 · Get 'em All as Tanabe
- 1960 · The Gambling Samurai as Fumizo Mitsuki
- 1958 · Emperor & Empress Meiji and the Sino-Japanese War as Keisuke Otori
- 1957 · The Ghost of Kasane as Jinjûrô Ômura
- 1956 · Speed King as
- 1955 · Twilight Saloon as Morimoto
- 1955 · The Sacrifice of the Human Torpedoes as
- 1954 · Submarine Ro Hasn't Surfaced as
- Future · Shura Group Part 2 as
- 2006 · Teruo Ishii Fan Club as
- 2005 · Demon Pond as
- 2005 · Yoshitsune as Minamoto no Yorimasa (Gen-ji)
- 2004 · Order Made ~Shiawase Iro no Shinshi Fuku Mise~ as
- 2004 · The Thousand Year Fire as
- 2003 · Yumemiru Budo as
- 2003 · Gozu as
- 2003 · A Case of Murder by the Atami Station Taxi Stand as
- 2003 · T.R.Y. as
- 2002 · Best Ever Bond as Tiger Tanaka (archive footage) (uncredited)
- 2002 · Bond Girls Are Forever as Tiger Tanaka (archive footage) (uncredited)
- 2002 · The Twilight Samurai as Tozaemon Iguchi
- 2002 · Deadly Outlaw: Rekka as Sanada
- 2002 · The Cat Returns as Cat King (voice)
- 2002 · Graveyard of Honor as Tetsuji Tokura
- 2002 · The Happiness of the Katakuris as Granpa Jinpei Katakuri
- 2002 · Shura Group as
- 2002 · Toshiie and Matsu as Tarozaemon Iguchi
- 2001 · Ino Tadataka: Meridian dreams as
- 2001 · Blind Beast vs Dwarf Killer as
- 2000 · Sakuya: The Slayer of Demons as Old Master
- 2000 · A Class to Remember IV: Fifteen as Tetsuo Hatake
- 2000 · The Stupid Teacher as Utaemon Baba
- 1999 · The Veteran Trio as Inui Sanshiro
- 1999 · Jubaku: Spellbound as Tajiro Kawakami
- 1999 · Crayon Shin-chan: Explosion! The Hot Spring's Feel Good Final Battle as Tamba (voice)
- 1998 · Screwed as Landlord
- 1997 · The Peking Man as Osone
- 1997 · Kaseifu wa mita! as
- 1995 · Hashiran ka! as 前田米吉
- 1995 · Gokenin Zankuro as
- 1991 · Female Neo-Ninjas as Time Patrol leader
- 1986 · April Fish as Panapora Chief Handa
- 1984 · Nezumi Kozō kaitō den as
- 1984 · Kukai as
- 1973 · Wild Cop 2 as
- 1973 · Quarreling with Yakuza as
- 1972 · Yakuza Skirmishes as
- 1972 · Shōwa Gokudōshi as
- 1972 · Organized Crime: Killer's Glory as
- 1971 · The Gambler's Counterattack as Chief Inspector
- 1970 · Crimson Bat - Oichi: Wanted, Dead or Alive as Hyoe
- 1967 · King of the Gang as
- 1967 · Abashiri Prison: Duel in Hokkaido as
- 1964 · Destroyer Yukikaze as
- Future · Shura Group Part 1 as
- 1994 · Tetsuro Tamba’s Great Spiritual World 3: Amazing Reincarnation Story That Ran Around the Whole as
- 1994 · Coming Home as Shirota Fukuzo
- 1993 · 新幹線物語'93夏 as
- 1993 · The Supernormal II as
- 1992 · Hanshichi Torimonochō as
- 1991 · The Tale of Genji as
- 1991 · The Great Shogunate Battle as
- 1991 · Yakuza Warfare as
- 1991 · Riki-Oh: The Story of Ricky as Master Zhang
- 1991 · Kim's War as
- 1991 · Heat Wave as Denkichi Tsuzaki
- 1990 · Yonimo Kimyou na Monogatari Tokubetsuhen as
- 1990 · 1750 Days of Turbulence as
- 1990 · Aurora Borealis as Tsuneiro Kamisaka
- 1990 · 13 Assassins as
- 1990 · Tetsuro Tamba's Great Spirit World 2: I was surprised when I died!! as Ryo Okamoto
- 1990 · HOTEL as Ohara Tetsutaro
- 1989 · Four Days of Snow and Blood as Jinzaburi Shinzaki
- 1989 · Yakuza Ladies 3 as Takeo Sakanishi
- 1989 · 長七郎江戸日記スペシャル 長七郎 大奥まかり通る as
- 1989 · Shogun's Shadow as Hotta Masamori
- 1989 · Tetsuro Tamba's Great Spirit World: What Happens When You Die as 吉野博士
- 1988 · Tokugawa Ieyasu – TBS Warlord Special as
- 1988 · Tokyo Pop as Mr. Dota
- 1988 · A Taxing Woman's Return as Sadohara
- 1987 · Tabaruzaka as
- 1987 · There Goes Benio, the Smart Girl as
- 1987 · Twilight of the Cockroaches as Grandpa (voice)
- 1987 · You're My Destiny as
- 1987 · Ronin on a Mission as Ōishi Kuranosuke
- 1986 · Byakkotai as Jinbo Kuranosuke
- 1986 · The White Tiger Battalion as
- 1986 · Be Free! as Keizo Hasegawa
- 1986 · Cabaret as Yakuza boss
- 1986 · Inochi as Takahara Masamichi
- 1986 · Tokugawa Chronicles: Ambition of the 3 Branches as Naruse Hayatonosho
- 1985 · Sanada Taiheiki as Sanada Masayuki
- 1985 · Love: Starting on a Journey as
- 1984 · The Story of a Man Among Men as
- 1984 · Fireflies in the North as Ishikura
- 1984 · Zero as Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto
- 1984 · 水曜ドラマ 宮本武蔵 as 平田無二斎
- 1983 · The Tale of Saikaido as
- 1983 · The Geisha as Kochi Notable
- 1983 · Battle Anthem as Yamamoto
- 1982 · Marco Polo as Vasaio
- 1982 · To Trap a Kidnapper as
- 1982 · Suspicion as Kanetaka Okamura
- 1982 · The Imperial Japanese Empire as Hideki Tojo
- 1982 · The Villain from Edo Kochiyama Soshun as
- 1982 · Onimasa: A Japanese Godfather as Uichi Suda, The Big Boss
- 1982 · Matsudaira Ukon Jikencho as
- 1981 · Call from Darkness as Sugibayashi
- 1981 · The Imperial Navy as Jisaburo Ozawa
- 1981 · The Wild Daisy as Gozaburo Saito
- 1981 · The Bushido Blade as Lord Yamato
- 1981 · Samurai Reincarnation as Muramasa
- 1981 · Flames of Blood as
- 1980 · Shogun's Ninja as Tozawa Hakuunsai
- 1980 · Port Arthur as Gentaro Kodama
- 1980 · Battles Without Honor and Humanity: The Complete Saga as Tatsuo Akashi
- 1980 · The Way to The Gold Medals as President Sakakibara
- 1979 · The Shogun Assassins as Kato Kiyomasa
- 1979 · Dead Angle as
- 1979 · Hunter in the Dark as Okitsugu Tanuma
- 1979 · Nichiren as
- 1978 · The Fall of Ako Castle as Yanagisawa
- 1978 · August without Emperor as Army General Mikami
- 1978 · Bandits vs. Samurai Squadron as Kichibei
- 1978 · The Incident as Lawyer Kikuchi
- 1978 · Message from Space as Ernest Noguchi
- 1978 · Shogun's Samurai as Ogasawara Gensinsai
- 1978 · Ōgon no Hibi as Imai Sōkyū
- 1977 · Sugata Sanshiro as Iinuma
- 1977 · High Seas Hijack as Captain Munekata
- 1977 · Mount Hakkoda as Colonel Kojima
- 1977 · Flickering Flames as
- 1976 · Zero Fighter as Captain Saito
- 1976 · The Corporation as
- 1976 · Seven Nights in Japan as Terrorist Leader (uncredited)
- 1976 · Operation Plazma in Osaka as
- 1975 · The International Gang of Kobe as Rinsei
- 1975 · Company Buggers as
- 1975 · Conflagration as Captain Munekata
- 1975 · The Bullet Train as Sunaga
- 1975 · All Men Are Brothers as Lu Chun I
- 1975 · 雪夫人繪圖 as
- 1974 · The Executioner II: Karate Inferno as Shugi
- 1974 · The Castle of Sand as Detective Eitaro Imanishi
- 1974 · Karafuto 1945 Summer as
- 1974 · Prophecies of Nostradamus as Dr. Nishiyama
- 1974 · Zero Woman: Red Handcuffs as Nagumo
- 1974 · Violent Streets as Shimamura Kansai
- 1973 · Submersion of Japan as Prime Minister Yamamoto
- 1973 · The Ando Gang Documentary Film as
- 1973 · Battles Without Honor and Humanity: Proxy War as Tatsuo Akashi
- 1973 · The Human Revolution as
- 1973 · Bohachi Bushido: Code of the Forgotten Eight as Shino
- 1972 · Shadow Hunters as
- 1972 · The Water Margin as Jade Unicorn, Lu Chun I
- 1972 · Under the Flag of the Rising Sun as Sergeant Katsuo Togashi
- 1971 · Silence as Cristóvão Ferreira
- 1971 · The Wolves as Genryu Asakura
- 1971 · The Battle of Okinawa as Lieutenant General Isamu Cho
- 1970 · Men and War I: Prelude to Destiny as
- 1970 · The Scandalous Adventures of Buraikan as Soshun Kochiyama
- 1970 · Rise and Fall of Chivalry as
- 1969 · Japan's Violent Gangs: The Boss and the Killers as
- 1969 · The Five Man Army as Samurai
- 1969 · Red Peony Gambler: Biographies of a Gambling Room as
- 1969 · Lone Rebel as
- 1969 · The Private Police as
- 1969 · Sky Scraper! as
- 1969 · Goyokin as Rokugo Tatewaki
- 1968 · Black Lizard as Kuroki
- 1968 · The Bad Boss as
- 1968 · Blackmail Is My Life as
- 1968 · Gambler's Farewell as Tetsuji Kasai
- 1968 · Army Intelligence as Lieutenant Colonel Akiyama
- 1967 · Game of Chance 3 as
- 1967 · You Only Live Twice as Tiger Tanaka
- 1967 · Organized Violence as
- 1966 · Spycatcher J3: SOS Close Shave as J1 (TULIP Japan Branch Chief)
- 1966 · Tokyo Drifters as
- 1966 · Greatest Boss of the Showa Era as
- 1966 · Sazen Tange and The Secret of the Urn as Lord Tsushima Yagyu
- 1966 · Thirst for Love as Kosuke Aso
- 1965 · Blood of Revenge as Yutaro Nomura
- 1965 · The Domain: Kanto Legends of Chivalry as
- 1965 · Samurai Spy as Sakon Takatani
- 1965 · The Gambler as
- 1965 · Ankoku gai jingi as
- 1965 · Tale of Ninja Duty as Mumyo Tsunataro
- 1965 · Kwaidan as Warrior (segment "Hoichi the Earless")
- 1964 · Detective as
- 1964 · Revenge as Shume Okuno
- 1964 · The Great Duel as
- 1964 · The 7th Dawn as Ng
- 1964 · The Shogun's Vault as
- 1964 · Assassination as Hachiro Kiyokawa
- 1964 · Samurai from Nowhere as Gunjuro Ohba
- 1964 · Three Outlaw Samurai as Sakon Shiba
- 1964 · An Outlaw as
- 1964 · The Kingdom of Jirocho 3 as
- 1964 · Tokyo Gang Vs. Hong Kong Gang as
- 1963 · 13 Assassins as Doi Ōkō Toshi
- 1963 · Tange Sazen as
- 1963 · Gang Loyalty and Vengeance as Gu Shimizu
- 1963 · Element of Surprise as
- 1963 · Futari dake no toride as
- 1963 · Eleven Gangsters as
- 1962 · Uragirimono wa jigoku daze as
- 1962 · Operation Diamond as Kazuo Kasami
- 1962 · Umineko ga tonde as
- 1962 · Gang vs. G-Men as Toru Tezuka
- 1962 · A Flame at the Pier as
- 1962 · Harakiri as Hikokuro Omodaka
- 1962 · Four Sisters as Masao Igarashi
- 1962 · G-Men in the Pacific as Mizuhara
- 1962 · The Challenge as Takayama
- 1962 · Tales of Young Genji Kuro 3 as
- 1962 · Kuro to aka no hanabira as
- 1962 · South Pacific Waves Are High as
- 1961 · Red Flowers of Hell as
- 1961 · Pigs and Battleships as Slasher Tetsuji
- 1961 · Daredevil in the Castle as Sadamasa Ishikawa
- 1960 · Zero sen no jorō gun as
- 1960 · Female Slave Ship as
- 1959 · 金語楼の海軍大将 as
- 1959 · Mukeisatsu as
- 1959 · Rajo to satsujin-meiro as Senba
- 1959 · The Pacific War and the International Military Tribunal as
- 1958 · Kyōen Kobanzame as
- 1958 · Underwater Murder as
- 1958 · Quick on the Trigger as
- 1958 · A Wicked Woman as Ihei Ôsawa
- 1957 · Queen of Asia as
- 1957 · Hibari no san'yaku: Zoku Kei tsuya yuki no jôhenge as
- 1957 · Hibari no san'yaku: Kei tsuya yuki no jôhenge as
- 1957 · 剣聖 暁の三十六番斬り as
- 1957 · Emperor Meiji and the Great Russo-Japanese War as Rear Admiral Shimamura
- 1957 · Mysterious Clouds: Legend of Satomi's Heroic Deed as Aboshi Samajirô
- 1956 · 鬼姫競艶録 as
- 1956 · The Ceiling at Utsunomiya as Kurozumi Tenzen
- 1956 · 金語楼の雷社長 as
- 1956 · Admiral Yamamoto and the Allied Fleets as
- 1956 · 検事とその妹 as
- 1956 · Kingoro's Soldier as
- 1956 · The Fencing Collegian as
- 1956 · Kuronekokan ni Kieta Otoko as
- 1955 · 花眞珠 as
- 1955 · Mysterious Pygmy as
- 1954 · Hanran as Captain Koda