{{Short description|Japanese actor (1926–1964)}} {{Infobox person | image = Sada-Keiji-1.jpg | caption = Keiji Sada in 1955 | native_name = 佐田 啓二 | native_name_lang = ja | birth_name = Kanichi Nakai | birth_date = {{Birth date|1926|12|09}} | birth_place = [[Shimogyō-ku, Kyoto]], Japan | death_date = {{Death date and age|1964|08|17|1926|12|09}} | death_place = [[Nirasaki, Yamanashi]], [[Japan]] | education = [[Waseda University]] | occupation = Actor | years_active = 1947–1964 | children = {{hlist|[[Kie Nakai|Kie]]|[[Kiichi Nakai|Kiichi]]}} }}
{{Nihongo|'''Keiji Sada'''|佐田 啓二|Sada Keiji|extra=December 9, 1926 – August 17, 1964}} is the [[stage name]] for a Japanese cinema [[actor]] active from the late-1940s to the early 1960s. His real name was '''Kanichi Nakai'''.<ref name=kotoba/> He won the award for best actor at the 7th [[Blue Ribbon Awards]] for {{Transliteration|ja|Anata Kaimasu}} (''[[I Will Buy You]]'') and {{Transliteration|ja|Taifū Sōdōki}}.<ref>{{Cite web|url= http://cinemahochi.yomiuri.co.jp/b_award/1956/|script-title= ja:ブルーリボン賞ヒストリー|access-date= 2010-12-15|language= ja|publisher= Cinema Hochi|url-status= dead|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20131018020040/http://cinemahochi.yomiuri.co.jp/b_award/1956/|archive-date= 2013-10-18}}</ref> He was the father of the actor [[Kiichi Nakai]] and actress [[Kie Nakai]].<ref name=kotoba>{{cite web|url=https://kotobank.jp/word/%E4%BD%90%E7%94%B0%E5%95%93%E4%BA%8C-171511|title=Keiji Sada|publisher=Kotobank|accessdate=27 December 2020}}</ref>
==Biography== Sada was born in [[Shimogyō-ku, Kyoto|Shimogyō-ku]], [[Kyoto]], to a merchant class family. After graduating from the 2nd Kyoto Municipal Commercial School, he entered the School of Political Science and Economics at [[Waseda University]] in [[Tokyo]].<ref name=kotoba/> While a student, he roomed at a boarding house owned by the actor Shuji Sano, and on graduation was offered a position at [[Shochiku|Shochiku Studios]] in [[Kamakura, Kanagawa|Kanagawa]]. He also was given his stage name by Shugi Sada.
In his debut appearance in 1947, ''Phoenix'', directed by [[Keisuke Kinoshita]], Sada was paired with [[Kinuyo Tanaka]] in a love scene.<ref name=kotoba/> As Tanaka was already a big-name movie star, this was an immediate boost for Sada's career. Later that year, he was selected for the lead role in {{Transliteration|ja|Kane no Naru Oka}} ({{lang|ja|鐘の鳴る丘}}), a movie adaptation of a popular [[NHK]] [[radio drama]].
Sada's career took off in the 1950s, and he starred in an average of eight to ten movies per year. In 1956, he was awarded the [[Mainichi Film Award]] and [[Blue Ribbon Awards]] for Best Actor for his role as a talent scout in ''[[I Will Buy You]]'', [[Masaki Kobayashi|Masaki Kobayashi's]] critical study of the institutional ethics of [[Nippon Professional Baseball|Japanese baseball]].
Sada was killed<ref name=kotoba/> on August 17, 1964, while returning with his family from their summer cottage in the Tateshina Mountains of [[Nagano Prefecture]] when their chauffeur collided with a taxi on a bridge in [[Nirasaki, Yamanashi]].<ref>{{cite news |author=<!--not stated--> |date=August 17, 1964 |title=Crash Kills Japan Star Keiji Sada |url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/261063383/?terms=%22keiji%20sada%22&match=1 |work=The Honolulu Advertiser |location=Hawaii |access-date=March 30, 2023}}</ref> His wife and two children were unhurt. His memorial services were held in [[Aoyama Cemetery]] in Tokyo with thousands of fans attending; however, his grave is at the temple of [[Engaku-ji]] in [[Kamakura, Kanagawa|Kamakura]].
==Selected filmography== {{Div col}} * ''{{ill|Fushichō (film)|lt=Fushichō|jp|不死鳥 (映画)|vertical-align=sup}}'' (1947) - Shinichi Yasaka * {{Transliteration|ja|Akai kuchibiru imada kiezu}} (1947) * {{Transliteration|ja|Shozo}} (1948) * {{Transliteration|ja|Hi no bara}} (1948) * {{Transliteration|ja|Kane no naru oka - Dai ippen: Ryūta no maki}} (1948) - Shūhei Kagami * {{Transliteration|ja|Kane no naru oka - Dai nihen: Shukichi no maki}} (1949) * {{Transliteration|ja|Ojōsan kanpai}} (1949) - Gorō * {{Transliteration|ja|Beni imada kiezu}} (1949) * {{Transliteration|ja|Yotsuya kaidan}} (1949) - Kohei Kobotoke * {{Transliteration|ja|Shinshaku Yotsuya kaidan: kōhen}} (1949) - Kohei Kobotake * {{Transliteration|ja|Mahiru no embukyoku}} (1949) - Hidetaka * {{Transliteration|ja|[[Kane no naru oka: Dai san hen, kuro no maki]]}} (1949) * {{Transliteration|ja|Kikenna ninrei}} (1950) * {{Transliteration|ja|Nanatsu no hōseki}} (1950) * {{Transliteration|ja|Oboro kago}} (1950) * ''[[Home Sweet Home (1951 film)|Home Sweet Home]]'' (1951) – Saburo Uchiyama, Tomoko's boyfriend * ''[[Carmen Comes Home]]'' (1951) – Mr. Ogawa, the young school master * {{Transliteration|ja|Jiyū gakkō}} (1951) * {{Transliteration|ja|Tenshi mo yume o miru}} (1951) * {{Transliteration|ja|Yume ōki koro}} (1951) - Shūji Takaishi * ''[[Fireworks Over the Sea]]'' (1951) – Tamihiko Kujirai * {{Transliteration|ja|Inochi uruwashi}} (1951) - Shuji Imura * {{Transliteration|ja|Honjitsu kyūshin}} (1952) - Haruzo Yukawa * {{Transliteration|ja|[[Hibari no Circus kanashiki kobato]]}} (1952) * {{Transliteration|ja|Uzushio}} (1952) * {{Transliteration|ja|Nihon no higeki}} (1953) - Tatsuya, street musician * {{Transliteration|ja|Tabiji}} (1953) * {{Transliteration|ja|Kimi no na wa}} (1953-1954, part 1-3)<!--『君の名は』 NHKのラジオドラマの映画化。三部作。--> * {{Transliteration|ja|Ojōsan Shachō}} (1953) - Goro Akiyama * {{Transliteration|ja|Yassamossa}} (1953) * {{Transliteration|ja|Shinjitsu ichiro}} (1954) * {{Transliteration|ja|Kono hiroi sora no dokoka ni}} (1954) - Ryoichi Morita * {{Transliteration|ja|Seishun no oto}} (1954) * {{Transliteration|ja|Kunsho}} (1954) * {{Transliteration|ja|Bomeiki}} (1955) - Akimasa * {{Transliteration|ja|Uruwashiki saigetsu}} (1955) * {{Transliteration|ja|Tōkyō-Honkon mitsugetsu ryokō}} (1955) * {{Transliteration|ja|Tooi kumo}} (1955) - Shunsuke, Fuyuko's brother-in-law * {{Transliteration|ja|Kakubō sambagarasu}} (1956) - (uncredited) * {{Transliteration|ja|Izumi}} (1956) * ''[[I Will Buy You]]'' (1956) – Daisuke Kishimoto * {{Transliteration|ja|Taifū Sōdōki}} (1956) * {{Transliteration|ja|Onna no ashi ato}} (1956) * {{Transliteration|ja|Namida}} (1956) * {{Transliteration|ja|Seigiha}} (1957) * {{Transliteration|ja|[[Doshaburi (film)|Doshaburi]]}} (1957) - Kazuo * {{Transliteration|ja|Xiang Gang Dong Jing mi yue lu xing}} (1957) * {{Transliteration|ja|Tadaima zero hiki}} (1957) - Yoshizawa, Diet member * ''[[Times of Joy and Sorrow]]'' (1957) - Shiro Arisawa, Kiyoko's husband * {{Transliteration|ja|Shukin ryoko}} (1957) * ''[[Danger Stalks Near]]'' (1957) - Kaneshige Satō * {{Transliteration|ja|Kuroi kafun}} (1958) - Takashi Kiso * {{Transliteration|ja|Onboro jinsei}} (1958) * {{Transliteration|ja|Hibi no haishin}} (1958) * {{Transliteration|ja|Kamitsukareta kaoyaku}} (1958) * ''[[Equinox Flower]]'' (1958) - Masahiko Taniguchi * {{Transliteration|ja|Me no kabe}} (1958) * {{Transliteration|ja|Haru o matsu hitobito}} (1959) * ''[[The Human Condition (film series)|The Human Condition]]'' (1959) - Kageyama * {{Transliteration|ja|Sekishunchō}} (1959) - Eitarō Makita * ''[[Good Morning (1959 film)|Good Morning]]'' (1959) - Heiichirō Fukui * ''High Teen'' (1959) - Shin'ichi Teras'aki * {{Transliteration|ja|Yonman-nin no mokugekisha}} (1960) - Masashi Takayama * {{Transliteration|ja|Irohanihoheto}} (1960) * {{Transliteration|ja|Onna no saka}} (1960) * ''[[Blood Is Dry]]'' (1960) - Takashi Kiguchi * ''[[Late Autumn (1960 film)|Late Autumn]]'' (1960) - Shotaru Goto * {{Transliteration|ja|Saigo no kiri fudâ}} (1960) * {{Transliteration|ja|Enraptured}} (1961) - Shōzō Nishikawa * {{Transliteration|ja|Kumo ga chigireru toki}} (1961) * ''[[Immortal Love (film)|Immortal Love]]'' (1961) - Takashi * {{Transliteration|ja|Tsuma ari ko ari tomo arite}} (1961) - Yonesaku Nihei * {{Transliteration|ja|Uzu}} (1961) * ''[[Hunting Rifle (film)|Hunting Rifle]]'' (1961) - Kadota * {{Transliteration|ja|Kyōgeshō}} (1961) * {{Transliteration|ja|Senkyaku banrai}} (1962) * {{Transliteration|ja|Aizen Katsura}} (1962) * {{Transliteration|ja|Kaasan nagaiki shitene}} (1962) * {{Transliteration|ja|Zoku aizen katsura}} (1962) * ''[[An Autumn Afternoon]]'' (1962) - Koichi * {{Transliteration|ja|Futari de aruita iku haru aki}} (1962) - Yoshio Nonaka, Torae's husband * {{Transliteration|ja|Utae Wakōdotachi}} (1963) - Singer at the ceremony * {{Transliteration|ja|Mushukunin-betsuchō}} (1963) - Yajuro * {{Transliteration|ja|Kaze no shisen}} (1963) - Shunsuke Kuze * {{Transliteration|ja|[[Hana no Shōgai]]}} (1963, TV Series) * {{Transliteration|ja|Kekkonshiki Kekkonshiki}} (1963) - Jirō Okuyama * {{Transliteration|ja|Odoritai yoru}} (1963) - Tadao Tsumura * {{Transliteration|ja|Zoku Haikei Tenno Heika Sama}} (1964) - Ryosuke * ''[[Assassination (1964 film)|Assassination]]'' (1964) * {{Transliteration|ja|Aku no monsho}} (1964) - Shigeharu Takazawa * ''[[Sweet Sweat]]'' (1964) - Tatsuoka * {{Transliteration|ja|Monro no youna onna}} (1964) - (final film role) {{div col end}}
==References== {{reflist}}
==External links== {{commons category}} * {{IMDb name|0755401}} * {{jmdb name|0125640}}
{{Blue Ribbon Award for Best Actor}} {{Mainichi Film Award for Best Actor}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sada, Keiji}} [[Category:1926 births]] [[Category:1964 deaths]] [[Category:Japanese male film actors]] [[Category:Male actors from Kyoto]] [[Category:People from Shimogyō, Kyoto]] [[Category:20th-century Japanese male actors]] [[Category:Road incident deaths in Japan]] [[Category:Waseda University alumni]]