Background
Mikuni was born the son of a woman who had become pregnant while working as an indentured servant.
三國 連太郎三国連太郎
Mikuni was born the son of a woman who had become pregnant while working as an indentured servant.
His mother then married an electrician who had learned his trade while serving in the military, the man Mikuni considered his father. He was educated to elementary school level and hoped to then start work with his father, but his father insisted that he should attend middle school. Participant way through middle school Mikuni dropped out and left home.
He was repeatedly sent home from Tokyo by the police.
Finally he escaped and from the age of sixteen to twenty he wandered around Japan and of Korea (then under Japanese control) doing a variety of jobs. At the age of twenty he received callup papers for the Japanese military.
Mikuni attempted to evade the callup but was arrested by police after his mother informed on him. Instead of being punished he was simply sent to serve in China.
He served his time in a unit of unfit and incompetent soldiers, and never fired a weapon at the enemy.
After returning to Japan, he drifted between odd jobs. His career as an actor started when he was asked to do a screen test by a scout. At the time he had no intention of becoming an actor and did the test merely because he was promised some meal tickets.
He died in 2013 of acute cardiac failure.