Bin Furuya

Satoshi Furuya (古谷 敏（さとし）, Furuya Satoshi),^[2] known professionally as Bin Furuya (古谷 敏（びん）, Furuya Bin), is a Japanese actor best known for his portrayal of the title character in the 1966 series Ultraman.^[3] Furuya would later portray the character Amagi in the sequel series Ultraseven.^[2][4] Furuya has also made appearances in Mothra (1961), Gorath (1962), High and Low (1963), Ghidorah, the Three-Headed Monster (1964), Ultraman Zearth (1996), Mega Monster Battle: Ultra Galaxy (2009), and Shin Ultraman (2022).

Bin Furuya
古谷敏
Furuya at the 2019 GalaxyCon Louisville
Born	Satoshi Furuya (1943-07-05) July 5, 1943 (age 81) Nishiazabu, Minato, Tokyo, Japan[1]
Nationality	Japanese
Occupation	Actor
Years active	1961-present
Known for	Ultraman
Website	https://shinbin.jp/
Signature

Life

Furuya was born in Nishiazabu, Minato, Tokyo, the fifth son of a door merchant. When he was young, he often went to watch movies at a nearby temple.^[1] After finishing middle school,^[1] Furuya studied acting at Toho Geino School.^[2] He was inspired by actors Akira Takarada and Yūjirō Ishihara to pursue a career in acting.^[1]

In 1960, he entered Toho.^[1] His first role in a motion picture was in the 1961 film Mothra. He began his career as a crowd actor for Toho.

At the age of 22,^[1] in 1966, Furuya was chosen for the role as a suit actor to portray an alien named Kemur in Ultra Q.^[5] His height at 181 cm (5 ft 11 in), slim body and body type "different from regular Japanese people in the 1960s" are said to have matched with the requirements for the role. At first, he refused to take the role because he was embarrassed to wear the costume, but gave in after being persuaded by the movie staff.^[1]

His Japanese-language autobiography, The Man Who Became Ultraman, was published in 2009.^[2]

Filmography

Film

Year	Title	Role	Ref(s)
1961	Mothra	Infant Island dancer	[5]
1961	The Last War	Kasagi Maru sailor	[5]
1962	Gorath	Reporter at Antarctic Base	[5]
1962	King Kong vs. Godzilla	JSDF correspondent
1963	High and Low	Train Station employee / Drunk	[5]
1963	Atragon	JSDF Soldier	[5]
1964	Tiger Flight	Pilot
1964	Mothra vs. Godzilla	Police Officer
1964	You Can Succeed, Too	Towa Tourism employee
1964	Dogora	JSDF Soldier
1964	Ghidorah, the Three-Headed Monster	Researcher / Matsumoto Evacuee / Observation Platform Tourist / Police Officer	[5]
1965	Frankenstein Conquers the World	Man in Okayama Crowd	[5]
1965	The Crazy Adventure	Weekly Top Reporter / Guest at Club Sahara / Man at Hotel Meriken
1965	Invasion of Astro-Monster	Xilien	[5]
1966	The War of the Gargantuas	Coast Guard Official	[5]
1979	Ultraman	Ultraman	[5]
2008	Monster X Strikes Back: Attack the G8 Summit	Officer Takamine	[5]
2009	Mega Monster Battle: Ultra Galaxy	Inhabitant of the Land of Light
2013	The Intermission	Member of the cinema audience
2014	Earth Defense Widow	Yanagi
2016	Kaiju Mono	Defense Minister Yukio Kamikura
2018	The Great Buddha Arrival	Kazuyoshi Edamasa	[6][7]
2021	Nezura 1964	Oyaji	[8][9]
2022	Shin Ultraman	Ultraman (motion capture)	[10]

Television

Year	Title	Role	Ref(s)
1966	Ultra Q	Guy in Crowd [episode 4] / Kemur Man [episode 19] / Ragon [episode 20] / Hachi [episode 24]	[5][11]
1966	Ultraman	Ultraman	[11][12]
1967	Ultraseven	Amagi	[11][12]
2011	Ultra Zone	Akio [episode 12]
2024	The Tiger and Her Wings	Takekichi Wakashima	[13]

References

1. "ウルトラマン、前屈みポーズは理由なき反抗 光線の意味：朝日新聞デジタル". 朝日新聞デジタル (in Japanese). 26 December 2020. Retrieved 2021-10-23.
2. "Affiliated Artist". shinbin.jp. Archived from the original on 2018-09-02. Retrieved 2021-10-23.
3. "Satoshi "Bin" Furuya « Kirk von Hammett's Fear FestEvil". Archived from the original on 2014-03-02. Retrieved 2014-02-27.
4. Ragone, August (2007-11-01). Eiji Tsuburaya: Master of Monsters: Defending the Earth with Ultraman, Godzilla in the Golden Age of Japanese Science Fiction Film. Chronicle Books. pp. 128–. ISBN 9780811860789. Retrieved 2 March 2014.
5. Homenick, Brett (2019-08-20). "THE ROAD TO M78! Bin Furuya on His Early Toho and Suit-Acting Roles!". Vantage Point Interviews. Retrieved 2021-05-10.
6. "古谷敏". 映画『大仏廻国』公式サイト (in Japanese). Retrieved 2021-05-09.
7. Inc, Natasha. "「大仏廻国」2020年版が9月公開、新シーンに古谷敏と佐野史郎（動画あり）". 映画ナタリー (in Japanese). Retrieved 2021-05-10. {{cite web}}: |last= has generic name (help)
8. "古谷敏インタビュー". 映画『ネズラ1964』公式サイト (in Japanese). Archived from the original on 2023-03-16. Retrieved 2021-05-09.
9. Inc, Natasha. "「ネズラ1964」に佐野史郎と古谷敏が出演、「いちファンとして楽しみ」（動画あり）". 映画ナタリー (in Japanese). Retrieved 2021-05-09. {{cite web}}: |last= has generic name (help)
10. Toho Stella, ed. (May 13, 2022). Shin Ultraman (Film Pamphlet) (in Japanese). Toho. Archived from the original on May 12, 2022. Retrieved May 16, 2022.
11. Doyle, Billy "TaJa" (2020-10-31). "[Interview] Actor Bin Furuya, Ultraman & Ultraseven Star". Hero Club. Retrieved 2021-05-10.
12. "ULTRAMAN Q&A Write Up From Monsterpalooza 2013 – Henshin Justice Unlimited". Retrieved 2021-05-09.
13. "虎に翼:「黒幕的な？」"モロボシ・ダン"森次晃嗣が登場！ 古谷敏も並んでクレジット！！ ファンから驚きの声". Mantan-web. Retrieved April 30, 2024.

External links

• Official website
• Bin Furuya on Facebook
• Bin Furuya on Twitter
• Bin Furuya at IMDb