Akihiko Onoda (小野田昭彦, Onoda Akihiko; December 16, 1927 – July 25, 1984), known professionally as Akihiko Hirata (平田昭彦, Hirata Akihiko), was a Japanese film actor.
He is known for his work in the kaiju genre, including such films as King Kong vs. Godzilla, The Mysterians, Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla, Terror of Mechagodzilla, and his most famous role of Dr. Daisuke Serizawa, the brilliant but disturbed young scientist in the original Godzilla, released in 1954. He starred in many movies, including Hiroshi Inagaki's Samurai trilogy.
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Early life
Hirata was born in Seoul, Korea, in 1927, into a wealthy family. He was educated at the prestigious Tokyo University's School of Law. Before joining Shintoho as an assistant director (under his older brother, Yoshiki Onoda), Hirata moved into still photography, and eventually joined Toho in 1953, under the studio's "New Face" program, which would lead to his casting in Godzilla (although Hirata was originally intended for the part of Ogata, eventually played by another genre regular, Akira Takarada).
Career
Hirata's film debut came in 1953, with The Last Embrace. Hirata would go on to play everything from snarling villains to government officials. His long face and intense features have earned the actor a cult following. Although Hirata earned lasting fame with his part in Godzilla, the role also typecast him, and the actor would go on to star in over 20 other sci-fi fantasy films for Toho among them The H-Man, Gorath, and Prophecies of Nostradamus, as well as an important recurring role in the original Ultraman series. In both his first and final appearances in a Godzilla film, Hirata played mysterious and disturbed scientists, as Hirata took on the role of the tragic Dr. Mafune in 1975's Terror of Mechagodzilla.
Hirata's association with the kaiju genre continued right until his death, as he helped announce the production of The Return of Godzilla at a Tokyo press conference, but unfortunately Hirata was too ill to appear in the film, and the part would eventually go to Yosuke Natsuki, who had appeared alongside Hirata in Ghidorah, the Three-Headed Monster in 1964. Hirata's final film role was in the 1984 film Sayonara Jupiter.
Personal life and death
Hirata was married to actress Yoshiko Kuga from 1961 until his death.
On July 25, 1984, Hirata died from lung cancer at the age of 56.
Selected filmography
Television
Ultra Q (1966) as Chief Hanazawa
Ultraman (1966-1967) as Dr. Iwamoto
Ultraseven (1967) as Staff Officer Yanagawa
Taiyō ni Hoero! (1972–83) as Takayuki Nishiyama(Semi-regular)
Warrior of Love Rainbowman (1972) AS Mr. K
Shinsho Taikōki (1973) as Hosokawa Fujitaka
Onihei Hankachō (1975) as Kyōgoku Bizen
Daitetsujin 17 (1977) as Captain Gomez
Kusa Moeru (1979) as Yoshiyasu Ichijo
