Sunday, January 15, 2017

SONNY CHIBA: Master of Japanese Mobsters!

Japanese action star Sonny Chiba poses for photos among the gathered fans. Photo by Brett Homenick.

Today, I attended a fun event at the Sun Plaza in Nakano, Tokyo. The guest of honor was Toei action star Shinichi "Sonny" Chiba, who's headlined everything from the bloody actioner The Street Fighter (1974) to the tokusatsu cult classic Invasion of the Neptune Men (1961). Around the world, Chiba-san is best known for his yakuza (Japanese mobster) movies.


Chiba-san impressed the audience with his stories, and he shared his memories of becoming a Toei New Face and working with directors as varied as Kinji Fuksasaku and Quentin Tarantino.


It was a blast seeing Chiba-san again. He's always in great spirits and has a warm personality, a trait not often shared with other international movie stars. A fun time was most certainly had by all who were there.

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