Takeshi Kaga

Takeshi Kaga (鹿賀 丈史, Kaga Takeshi), real name Shigekatsu Katsuta (勝田 薫且, Katsuta Shigekatsu, born October 12, 1950), is a well-known stage and movie actor in Japan who is best known internationally for his portrayal of Chairman Kaga in the Japanese television show Iron Chef produced by Fuji TV.^[1]

Takeshi Kaga
Born	Shigekatsu Katsuta (1950-10-12) October 12, 1950 (age 74) Kanazawa, Ishikawa, Japan
Occupation	Actor
Years active	1972–present
Children	1 son
Website	Official site

Biography

Kaga was born on October 12, 1950, in the city of Kanazawa in Ishikawa Prefecture, Japan. His first experience on stage was at the age of seven when he joined the Kanazawa City Boys choral group.

In 1972, he joined the Japanese theatrical company Gekidan Shiki. While with the company, he played the role of Jesus in the Japanese stage production of Jesus Christ Superstar (1973), and role of Tony in West Side Story (1974). In 1980 he left Shiki to play the role of Sanada in the movie The Beast To Die. He starred in several movies throughout the 1980s, but his most famous role would be that of "Chairman Kaga", the eccentric and flamboyant host of Ryōri no Tetsujin, a cooking competition show (1993–1999). It became very popular, not only in Japan, but around the English-speaking world. Previously broadcast on the Food Network, then on the Fine Living Network in the United States and on SBS in Australia, under the name Iron Chef, the show is now being carried on the Cooking Channel in the United States, and in the UK in Iron Chef UK. The host of Iron Chef America, Mark Dacascos, is claimed on ICA to be Takeshi's nephew, though the stated relationship is actually between the fictional characters played by the two men.

Despite his international fame with the show, he has not given up his love for musicals. In 1987 he starred in the popular Japanese production of Les Misérables as Jean Valjean and Javert. He reprised his role as Valjean in 1995 as the representative of Japan during the encore of the 10th Anniversary Concert of Les Misérables at the Royal Albert Hall in London. During the encore, Valjeans from 17 countries joined the cast on stage. He also starred in Macbeth in 2000, and in Jekyll & Hyde as well as in The Threepenny Opera in 2001. In 2009, he starred in a Japanese-language version of La Cage aux Folles .

He has also lent his voice to Japanese anime. Notably, he voiced Jirarudan, an antagonist, in 1999's Pokémon the Movie: Revelation Lugia, the second Pokémon movie, and also sung his theme song, "Ware Wa Collector." He also notably voiced Dr. Kiriko in 2005's Black Jack: The Two Doctors of Darkness.

After Iron Chef ended, he returned to acting in movies and dramas. He also hosted Time Shock 21, a quiz show on Asahi Television in Japan. In 2005, Kaga performed as the lead in the Japanese production of Michael Frayn's Democracy and starred in the blockbuster film Sengoku Jieitai 1549. Kaga also appeared in both installments of the highly successful Death Note film series as Soichiro Yagami.

Filmography

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes	Ref.
1978	Ōgon no Hibi	Dom Justo Takayama	Taiga drama	[2]
1983	Tokugawa Ieyasu	Ishida Mitsunari	Taiga drama	[3]
1990	Tobu ga Gotoku	Ōkubo Toshimichi	Lead role; Taiga drama	[4]
1993	Furikaereba Yatsu ga Iru	Junichi Nakagawa		[5]
1994	Furuhata Ninzaburo	Junichi Nakagawa	Episode 8	[5]
2010	Kaibutsu-kun	King Monster		[6]
2016	Pretty Proofreader	Daisaku Hongō	Special appearance	[7]
2017	Moribito: Guardian of the Spirit	Hibitonan	Season 3; substitute for Mikijirō Hira	[8]
2018	Segodon	Shimazu Narioki	Taiga drama	[9]

Films

Year	Title	Role	Notes	Ref.
1980	The Beast To Die	Tetsuo Sanada		[10]
1988	Kimurake no Hitobito	Hazime Kimura	Lead role	[11]
2005	Black Jack: Two Doctors in Black	Dr. Kiriko (voice)		[12]
2006	Death Note	Soichiro Yagami		[13]
	Death Note: The Last Name	Soichiro Yagami		[14]
2019	Whistleblower	Motonari Nashida		[15]
2025	Bullets, Bones and Blocked Noses: The Movie			[16]

Japanese dub

Year	Title	Role	Notes	Ref.
2023	Wish	Sabino		[17]

References

1. "Dansei Talent". Horipro Square. 2009. Retrieved 22 January 2010.
2. "黄金の日日". Haiyaku Jiten (in Japanese). Retrieved 15 December 2024.
3. "解説:誰が演じた石田三成 大河初代は石坂浩二 近年は"ムキムキ"な山本耕史や「悪」の田中圭も". Mantan-web. Retrieved February 5, 2024.
4. "翔ぶが如く". Haiyaku Jiten (in Japanese). Retrieved 14 December 2024.
5. "古畑任三郎:「振り返れば奴がいる」の"中川医師"鹿賀丈史が登場「オチ覚えていたけど面白かった」「古畑の色気がやばい」と視聴者沸く". Mantan-web (in Japanese). 29 May 2024. Retrieved 14 December 2024.
6. "怪物くんの出演者・キャスト一覧". The Television (in Japanese). Retrieved 15 December 2024.
7. TV 地味にスゴイ！校閲ガール・河野悦子. allcinema (in Japanese). Stingray. Retrieved 2016-11-30.
8. "NHK『精霊の守り人』平幹二朗さん代役は鹿賀丈史「想いを受け継ぎ、魂込めて務めさせていただきます」". Oricon (in Japanese). 31 October 2016. Retrieved 15 December 2024.
9. "西郷どん". Haiyaku Jiten (in Japanese). Retrieved 14 December 2024.
10. "野獣死すべし(1980／村川透監督)". eiga.com (in Japanese). Retrieved 14 December 2024.
11. "木村家の人びと". eiga.com (in Japanese). Retrieved 15 December 2024.
12. "ブラック・ジャック ふたりの黒い医者". eiga.com (in Japanese). Retrieved 15 December 2024.
13. "デスノート". eiga.com (in Japanese). Retrieved 14 December 2024.
14. "デスノート the Last name". eiga.com (in Japanese). Retrieved 14 December 2024.
15. "七つの会議". eiga.com (in Japanese). Retrieved 15 December 2024.
16. "THE オリバーな犬、(Gosh!!)このヤロウ MOVIE". eiga.com (in Japanese). Retrieved 13 December 2024.
17. "アマヤ王妃（国民思いなロサス王国の王妃）の日本版声優は檀れいさんに決定！喜びを「世界中に叫びたい！」さらに鹿賀丈史さん、蒼井翔太さん、岡本信彦さん、竹達彩奈さんら豪華声優陣も解禁！". Retrieved November 24, 2023.

External links

• Official Website (in Japanese)
• Takeshi Kaga Biography from FineLiving.com
• Takeshi Kaga at IMDb
• Daisuke & Yasuyoshi's Takeshi Kaga Unofficial Fan & Fun Page
• The Official Time Shock 21 Website