Background
Denjiro Okochi was born in Fukuoka Prefecture on the 5th of February, 1899. His real name was Masuo Obe.
Denjiro Okochi was born in Fukuoka Prefecture on the 5th of February, 1899. His real name was Masuo Obe.
Denjiro Okochi graduated from a commerce school and joined the play writing section of the dramatic school of the late Shojiro Sawada, noted stage actor.
Okochi entered Shinkokugeki (New National Theatre). Shinkokugeki was known for jidaigeki the period drama genre, particularly for its realistic sword fights (tate) or swordplay (kengeki). With this background, Okochi entered the Nikkatsu studio in 1925 and soon came to fame in chanbara (sword-fighting) samurai films – a subgenre of jidaigeki emphasizing tate – playing characters such as Chuji Kunisada and Sazen Tange.
At his peak, he was one of the top jidaigeki stars alongside Tsumasaburo Bando and Chiezō Kataoka. During World War II, he also appeared in a number of war films.
He was directed by Akira Kurosawa, Daisuke Ito, Sadao Yamanaka, Teinosuke Kinugasa, Hiroshi Inagaki and Masahiro Makino.
Okochi had ceased acting by 1961, dying a year later on July 18, 1962.