Portrait of Tanie Kitabayashi

Tanie Kitabayashi

Acting

Biography

Tanie Kitabayashi (北林谷栄, Kitabayashi Tanie, May 21, 1911 – April 27, 2010) was a Japanese actress and voice actress. Born Reiko Ando in Tokyo, she began as a stage actress. Early in her career, she became well known for portraying older women. Kitabayashi was a founding member of the famed Mingei Theatre, founded in 1950. In 1960, she won best actress awards at the 10th Blue Ribbon Awards and at the Mainichi Film Awards for Kiku to Isamu. She also won the Japan Academy Prize for best actress in Rainbow Kids (1991), a film that also earned her honors from the Mainichi Film Awards and from Kinema Junpo. She died on April 27, 2010, of pneumonia at a Tokyo hospital. She was 98.

Born: May 21, 1911

Place of Birth: Tokyo, Japan

Filmography

2003
Resurrection

as Saki Naito

1991
Rainbow Kids

as Mrs. Toshiko 'Toji' Yanagawa

1989
Rikyu

as Mother

1988
My Neighbor Totoro

as Granny (voice)

1987
1985
The Burmese Harp

as Old Woman

1985
Dangerous Women

as Mrs. Kinumura

1983
Amagi Pass

as Tea house's old woman

1982
Suspicion

as Harue Shirakawa

1981
Station

as Masayo Mikami

1981
1980
Writhing Tongue

as Akira's mother

1979
1978
Never Give Up

as Kiyo Matsushita

1978
The Incident

as Kane Shinozaki

1977
The Wild Daisy

as Tamiko's Grandmother

1971
1971
Mayuko hitori

as 加野のぶ

1970
Pure Land, Poisoned Sea

as Goze / Narrator (voice)

1970
おくさまは18歳

as Asuka's grandmother

1970
1970
Apart from Life

as Matsuko Fukuji

1969
1967
1967
1966
Wrath of Daimajin

as Old Woman Kane

1965
A Chain of Islands

as Kikuko Sasaki

1965
Tale of Japanese Burglars

as Hayashida's mother

1965
The Start of Life

as Tomi Ishiguro

1964
Intentions of Murder

as Kinu Takahashi

1964
Only on Mondays

as Yuka's mother

1964
Welcome, My Baby

as Yuki Nishizaka

1963
Daybreak Chorus

as Old Woman

1963
1963
1963
All My Children

as Fusakichi's mother

1963
Beyond the Green Hills

as Shiraki, Teacher

1962
1961
Buddha

as Sumi

1961
1960
1960
1959
1958
Conflagration

as Aki, Goichi's mother

1958
Chance Meeting

as Tetsu Koyanagi

1957
Hole in One

as Suga Akabane

1956
Summer Storm

as Mitsu Asai

1956
Our Town

as Otaka

1956
Darkness at Noon

as Satoe Miyazaki

1956
Love is Lost

as Nobuyo

1955
The Heart

as Hioki's mother

1955
Ghost Story of Youth

as Nanny at Okumura's

1954
The Street Without Sun

as Aunt of Matsutaro

1953
Before Dawn

as Ofuki

1953
A Japanese Tragedy

as Ichizo's wife

1953
1952
1952
Beauty and the Thief

as Mrs. Inokuma

1952
Farewell to Spring

as Old woman

1951
The Bitch

as Tami

1951
Koibito

as Mrs. Saeki

1950
Scandal

as Yasu Hiruta