Yōko Tsukasa

Yoko Tsukasa is one of those names that means everything or nothing depending on how much classic Japanese cinema you have seen. Look at who she worked with and the argument settles itself: Yasujiro Ozu, Mikio Naruse, Akira Kurosawa. Not one prestige credit but a career spread across the directors who defined the medium in Japan, over roughly sixty years. Her performance in The Kii River in 1966 swept the Blue Ribbon, Mainichi Film and Kinema Junpo awards for Best Actress, and in 2003 she received the Medal with Purple Ribbon. She also took the Kikuta Kazuo Drama Award for her stage work. What strikes me is how little of her reputation rests on anecdote or scandal. Born in Tottori in 1934, she simply kept showing up in the rooms where the best work was being made, and the filmography does the persuading. For anyone curious, start with an Ozu or a Naruse and watch what she does with stillness. That is the whole case for her.

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Name (English)

Yōko Tsukasa

Name (Japanese)

司葉子

Reading

つかさ ようこ

Born

August 20, 1934 (age 92)

Origin

Tottori Prefecture, Japan

Occupation

actor

Zodiac / Chinese zodiac

Leo / Dog

Blood type

AB

Agency

Toho Entertainment

Active years

1954 -

Awards & achievements

• 2003 Medal with Purple Ribbon
• 1967 Blue Ribbon Awards for Best Actress
• Kikuta Kazuo engeki shō
• Mainichi Film Award for Best Actress

Works summary

Appearances

144 (1954–2011)

By year (titles with a known year)

1954: 1, 1955: 4, 1956: 4, 1957: 7, 1958: 5, 1959: 7, 1960: 6, 1961: 4, 1962: 7, 1963: 2, 1964: 6, 1965: 7, 1966: 4, 1967: 7, 1968: 7, 1969: 4, 1970: 7, 1971: 3, 1972: 1, 1973: 3, 1974: 4, 1975: 1, 1977: 4, 1978: 4, 1979: 2, 1980: 2, 1983: 2, 1984: 1, 1986: 2, 1987: 1, 1989: 1, 1992: 1, 1993: 1, 2001: 1, 2003: 1, 2009: 1, 2010: 1, 2011: 1, year unknown: 17

Debut work

君死に給うことなかれ

Filmography / notable works

• Wikipedia (English)https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yoko%20Tsukasa
• Wikipedia (Japanese)https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E5%8F%B8%E8%91%89%E5%AD%90
• Wikidatahttps://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q8054591

Tags

• Tottori Prefecture
• actor

Last updated

September 29, 2026

Facts are limited to publicly available information up to 2024; non-public or unconfirmed items are omitted. Works and profile fields sourced from Wikipedia reflect content as of 2026-08-26. English text is machine-assisted (facts translated by Sonnet, "My Take" written by Opus 4.8). The Japanese page is the source of record.