Sadako Sawamura

Biography

Sadako Sawamura (沢村貞子, Sawamura Sadako; 11 November 1908 – 16 August 1996) was a Japanese stage and film actress and essayist who appeared in more than 350 films between 1935 and 1976. Sawamura was born in the Asakusa district of Tokyo. After dropping out of Japan Women's University, she was active in left-wing theatre groups and was twice arrested for her political beliefs, spending over a year in prison with much of it in solitary confinement. She started acting in films in 1934, first at the Nikkatsu studio, later at Toho. She appeared in many supporting roles after the war, often working with director Mikio Naruse. Sawamura also acted in films by directors including Kenji Mizoguchi, Yasujirō Ozu, Keisuke Kinoshita and Kaneto Shindō. Her brothers were the actors Daisuke Katō and Kunitarō Sawamura. Her autobiography Watashi no Asakusa has been translated into English as My Asakusa. She was married three times: to actor Shigeo Imamura (1931-33), actor Kamatari Fujiwara (1936-46) and subsequently to film magazine editor and critic Yasuhiko Ohashi (1968-96, though domestic partners from 1946 onward).

Most Known For

Love Letter

as Bookstor's owner

Good Morning

as Kayoko Fukui

Daikazoku

おれの義姉さん

Hero of the Red Light District

Late Autumn

as Fumiko

Late Chrysanthemums

as Nobu

When a Woman Ascends the Stairs

as Toshiko

A Pebble by the Wayside

as Sumie

The Life of Oharu

as Sasaya's wife Owasa

A Fugitive from the Past

as Motojima's Wife

Zero Focus

as Mrs. Sotaro Uhara

Chûshingura

Mother

as Osei

Street of Shame

as Tatsuko Taya

365日の献立日記

as 献立

Snow Country

as Dance teacher

A Story from Echigo

Tale of Army Brutality

as Toki, Yahichi's mother

Bellflower

as Mother