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Jerry Fujikawa

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Jerry Fujikawa
Fujikawa in 1976
Born
Hatsuo Fujikawa

(1912-02-18)February 18, 1912
Monterey County, California, U.S.
DiedApril 30, 1983(1983-04-30) (aged 71)
Los Angeles County, California, U.S.
OccupationActor
Years active1950–1983
Spouses
  • Emily Elizabeth Grinnell
Marion "Skeeter" Gates
​
​
(m. 1953)​
Children6

Hatsuo "Jerry" Fujikawa (Feb 18, 1912 — Apr 30, 1983) was an American stage, screen and television actor known most notably as the gardener in Roman Polanski's film Chinatown.

Personal life

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Fujikawa was born on February 18, 1912, in Monterey County, California. During early publicity surrounding his career, he was said to be a native of Salinas.[1] When he was younger, he adopted the western nickname Harlan, the name under which he was known when he, along with other Japanese-Americans on the west coast, were summarily detained in concentration camps following the Attack on Pearl Harbor and the subsequent issuance of Executive Order 9066 in February 1942. At the time, he was living in Los Angeles.[2] Fujikawa was detained at Manzanar War Relocation Center.[3]

He was first married to Emily Elizabeth (née Grinnell). They had three children together: one daughter, Tirsa Meiko, twin boys (Gerald Matsuo and Eugene Takeo.[4][5] Before he and his family were interned, Fujikawa listed his former occupations as a gardener, in agriculture, and as a salesman.[6]

While interned at Manzanar, Fujikawa volunteered for the United States Army,[7] joining as a messenger of Charlie Company in the 100th Infantry Battalion in June 1943.[8] Fujikawa's family moved to Longmont, Colorado, and his young son Gerald was killed in an automobile accident in Denver on June 5. His wife and children had planned to meet him in Denver prior to his induction ceremony in Salt Lake City.[3][4] During his service, Fujikawa was wounded on July 9, 1944 near Castellina, Italy. Although his service record contains no further entries until his discharge date (May 17, 1945), Fujikawa participated in operations in France later in 1944.[8] Fujikawa's first marriage disintegrated soon after he returned from the war in Europe.[9]

After the war, Fujikawa adopted the stage name Jerry and married Marion "Skeeter" Gates, a Broadway actress, in 1953. Together they had three children: Charles, Peter, and Cynthia.[10] Fujikawa and Gates were married until his death in 1983.[11]

Career

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Fujikawa initially gained publicity for his stage roles: debuting as a villager in the original Broadway production of The Teahouse of the August Moon (1953).[11][12] Other stage appearances included a role in Ted Pollack's Wedding in Japan (1957, off-Broadway),[13][14] as the butler Toy in The Pleasure of His Company (1958),[1][15] and as Father Ling in It's a Bird... It's a Plane... It's Superman (1966).[16]

Fujikawa in Go for Broke! (1951)

During the early part of his career, Fujikawa also appeared in the films Go For Broke! (1951) and The Journey (1959).[17] At the time, he was known primarily as a character actor, wearing special effects makeup for varied television roles in The Twilight Zone, The Untouchables, Bachelor Father, and The Man from U.N.C.L.E.[16] His career would go on to include numerous guest roles on other prominent television shows, including seven appearances on M*A*S*H,[18] and single roles for Taxi (S4E7, 1981) and The Winds of War (1983).

Fujikawa had a recurring role as Matsu, the uncle of the eponymous Mr. Takahashi played by Pat Morita in the short-lived sitcom Mr. T and Tina (1976).

Legacy

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In 1991, Fujikawa's daughter Cynthia began researching her father's life, which led to her reuniting in 1993 with her half-sister Tirsa from Jerry's first marriage.[19] The research eventually was developed into the solo play Old Man River, first workshopped in 1995. It debuted in 1997 at the New Victory Theater[9] and was filmed in 1998, directed by Allan Holzman;[20] based on his work, Holzman would later receive an American Cinema Editors Eddie Award in 2000 for Documentaries.[21][22]

Filmography

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Year Title Role Notes
1950 Three Came Home Japanese Soldier Uncredited
1951 Halls of Montezuma Japanese Soldier Uncredited
1951 I Was an American Spy Japanese Guard Uncredited
1951 Go for Broke! Communications Sergeant Uncredited
1952 Japanese War Bride Man at Fish Market
1959 The Journey Mitsu
1961 Bachelor Flat Frank - Gardener Uncredited
1962 A Girl Named Tamiko Manager Uncredited
1968 Nobody's Perfect Watanabe
1969 The Extraordinary Seaman Admiral Shimagoshi
1970 Which Way to the Front? Japanese Naval Officer Uncredited
1971 The Million Dollar Duck Japanese Official Uncredited
1971 Made for Each Other Vietnamese Man Uncredited
1972 The King of Marvin Gardens Agura
1974 Chinatown Gardener
1975 Farewell, My Lovely Fence
1975 I Wonder Who's Killing Her Now? Roulette Winner
1976 Eat My Dust! Chou Lick
1976 Midway Japanese Gentleman Uncredited
1978 The End Japanese Gardener
1978 The Cat from Outer Space 2nd E.R.L. Expert
1979 Scavenger Hunt Sakamoto
1981 There Was a Little Girl Mr. Kimura
1983 Second Thoughts Yamashiro (final film role)

References

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  1. ^ a b Taomae, Fred (November 20, 1958). "More Names In Broadway's Oriental Fling". Shin Nichi-Bei. Archived from the original on December 17, 2019. Retrieved August 1, 2019.
  2. ^ "Whereabouts Sought by L.A. Evacuation Claims". Shin Nichi-Bei. January 17, 1953. Archived from the original on December 17, 2019. Retrieved August 1, 2019.
  3. ^ a b "Child Crushed to Death Under Auto in Denver". Rocky Shimpo. June 7, 1943. Retrieved August 1, 2019.
  4. ^ a b "Detailed Accounts of Auto Accident Told By Newspapers". Manzanar Free Press. June 19, 1943. Retrieved July 30, 2019.
  5. ^ "Tirsa M. Bartley DeJong | 1941 - 2011 | Obituary". Forest Funeral Homes & Cemetery. Retrieved August 1, 2019.
  6. ^ "Japanese-American Internee Data File: Hatsuo H. Fujikawa". The National Archives. 1942. Retrieved August 2, 2019.
  7. ^ "Manzanar National Historic Site" (PDF). National Park Service. Retrieved August 1, 2019. "Jerry Fujikawa volunteered for the US Army while confined in Manzanar
  8. ^ a b Iwai, Warren (September 1996). "Charlie Chapter News" (PDF). Puka-Puka Parade. 100th Infantry Battalion Veterans Club. Retrieved July 30, 2019.
  9. ^ a b Graeber, Laurel (April 4, 1997). "For Children". The New York Times. Retrieved August 1, 2019.
  10. ^ "Obituary: Marion Gates Fujikawa". Los Angeles Times (Obituaries). 2010. Retrieved August 1, 2019.
  11. ^ a b Gates-Fujikawa, Cynthia (February 11, 2013). "Cindy Fuj's Vaudeville Family #5: Marion 'Skeeter' Gates and Jerry Fujikawa". Travalanche. Trav S.D. Retrieved August 1, 2019.
  12. ^ "The Teahouse of the August Moon". Playbill. 1953. Retrieved August 1, 2019.
  13. ^ "'Wedding in Japan' Play to Have Revision". Shin Nichi-Bei. March 5, 1957. Retrieved August 1, 2019.
  14. ^ "'Wedding in Japan' Pertinent in View of Present Segregation Issue in South". Shin Nichi-Bei. March 21, 1957. Retrieved August 1, 2019.
  15. ^ "The Pleasure of His Company". Playbill. 1958. Retrieved August 1, 2019.
  16. ^ a b "It's a Bird...It's a Plane...It's Superman". Playbill. 1966. Retrieved August 1, 2019.
  17. ^ Taomae, Fred (February 18, 1959). "file thirteen". Shin Nichi-Bei. Retrieved August 1, 2019.
  18. ^ Solomonson, Ed; O'Neill, Mark (2015). TV's M*A*S*H: The Ultimate Guide Book. Albany, Georgia: BearManor Media. p. 178. ISBN 978-1-59393-501-6.
  19. ^ Cynthia Gates-Fujikawa. "Cyndy Fuj's Vaudeville Family #6: Cynthia Fujikawa!". Travalanche (Interview). Interviewed by Trav S.D. Retrieved August 2, 2019.
  20. ^ Kam, Nadine (February 16, 2001). "Bittersweet 'River' honors dad's memory". Honolulu Star-Bulletin. Retrieved August 1, 2019.
  21. ^ Feiwell, Jill (February 27, 2000). "'Matrix,' 'Malkovich' hold biggest of ACEs". Variety. Retrieved August 2, 2019.
  22. ^ Mori, Darryl (August 25, 2010). "Behind the Scenes of 'Old Man River' (DVD)". Discover Nikkei. Japanese American National Museum. Retrieved August 2, 2019.
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