Jun Tazaki (田崎 潤, Tazaki Jun; 28 August 1913 – 18 October 1985), born Minoru Tanaka, was a Japanese actor best known for his various roles in kaiju films produced by Toho, often portraying scientists or military personnel.
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Career
Tanaka began his career as a traveling stage actor in the 1930s, performing under both his birth name and various stage names. In 1950, he changed his name to Jun Tazaki when he appeared in Shintoho's film Sasameyuki. After initially holding only small film roles, Tazaki gradually gained popularity and began playing larger roles in films produced by Toho in the 1960s. Akira Kurosawa frequently cast Tazaki in his films, but Ishirō Honda also considered him a favorite. Toho's science fiction films, particularly those directed by Honda, featured him throughout the 1960s as an authority figure with a moustache. As well as playing stern but benevolent father figures, Tazaki played villains with a ruthless streak. His defining role came in Honda's Atragon, in which he portrayed the embittered World War II veteran Hachiro Jinguji, forced to engage the submarine Gotengo, to combat an invasion by the underwater-dwelling Muans. In the 1970s, Tazaki stopped taking science fiction roles, but he continued to act until 1985, when he died of lung cancer.
Selected filmography
Television
1965: Taikōki
1966: Minamoto no Yoshitsune
1966: Ultra Q – Director General Sakamoto
1969: Ten to Chi to – Takeda Nobutora
1973: Kunitori Monogatari
1973: Jumborg Ace
1974: Kamen Rider X – Professor Keitarou Jin (Keisuke's father)
1983: Tokugawa Ieyasu – Shimazu Yoshihiro
