Tetsuro Tamba

Tetsuro Tamba (July 17, 1922 – September 24, 2006) was a distinguished Japanese actor known for his versatile talent across five decades. Recognized globally for his portrayal of Tiger Tanaka in the iconic 1967 James Bond film "You Only Live Twice," Tamba's cinematic journey was a remarkable blend of cultural bridges. Before embarking on his acting career, Tamba worked as an interpreter for the Allied Powers' Supreme Commander. Graduating from Chuo University in 1948, he later joined Shintoho company, making his debut in the film Satsujin Yougishain in 1951. Tamba's impact on Western audiences extended beyond Bond, with standout performances in films like Bridge to the Sun and The 7th Dawn. He earned acclaim in Japan as well, most notably as the lead in police dramas like Key Hunter and G-Men '75. His talents weren't confined to the screen alone. Tamba lent his voice to characters like the Cat King in Studio Ghibli's The Cat Returns and graced historical roles in television dramas, leaving an indelible mark on period pieces. In 2005, Tamba faced health challenges but continued to contribute until the end. Sadly, he passed away in Tokyo at 84 due to pneumonia on September 24, 2006. His legacy lives on through his son, actor Yoshitaka Tamba, while his last appearances in the 2005 Taiga drama Yoshitsune and the 2006 film Sinking of Japan remain a testament to his enduring impact on Japanese cinema and beyond.

Known For: Acting

Born: Tokyo, Japan, 1922-07-17

Died: 2006-09-24

Film

No.	Year	Title	Role	Vote Average
1	1954	Hanran	Captain Koda	0
2	1954	Submarine Ro Hasn't Surfaced		0
3	1955	The Sacrifice of the Human Torpedoes		0
4	1955	Mysterious Pygmy		0
5	1955	Twilight Saloon	Morimoto	80
6	1955	花眞珠		0
7	1956	Kuronekokan ni Kieta Otoko		0
8	1956	The Fencing Collegian		0
9	1956	Speed King		0
10	1956	Kingoro's Soldier		0
11	1956	The Prosecutor and His Sister		0
12	1956	Admiral Yamamoto and the Allied Fleets		50
13	1956	金語楼の雷社長		0
14	1956	The Ceiling at Utsunomiya	Kurozumi Tenzen	58
15	1956	Devil Princess’ Beauty Competition		0
16	1957	Mysterious Clouds: Legend of Satomi's Heroic Deed	Aboshi Samajirô	0
17	1957	Emperor Meiji and the Great Russo-Japanese War	Rear Admiral Shimamura	0
18	1957	剣聖　暁の三十六番斬り		0
19	1957	The Ghost of Kasane	Jinjûrô Ômura	67
20	1957	Hibari no san'yaku: Kei tsuya yuki no jôhenge		0
21	1957	Hibari no san'yaku: Zoku Kei tsuya yuki no jôhenge		0
22	1957	Queen of Asia		60
23	1958	A Wicked Woman	Ihei Ôsawa	65
24	1958	Emperor & Empress Meiji and the Sino-Japanese War	Keisuke Otori	0
25	1958	Quick on the Trigger		80
26	1958	Underwater Murder		0
27	1958	Kyōen Kobanzame		0
28	1959	The Pacific War and the International Military Tribunal		0
29	1959	Rajo to satsujin-meiro	Senba	0
30	1959	Mukeisatsu		0
31	1959	Kingorō no kaigun taishô		0
32	1960	Female Slave Ship		60
33	1960	Zero sen no jorō gun		0
34	1960	The Gambling Samurai	Fumizo Mitsuki	63
35	1960	Get 'em All	Tanabe	60
36	1961	Daredevil in the Castle	Sadamasa Ishikawa	74
37	1961	Pigs and Battleships	Slasher Tetsuji	71
38	1961	Kaachan		0
39	1961	Red Flowers of Hell		0
40	1961	Mist and Shadows	Yusuke Komiya	0
41	1961	Dai shinrin ni mukatte tatsu		0
42	1961	The Yellow Climate		0
43	1961	Bridge to the Sun	Jiro	68
44	1961	Greed in Broad Daylight	Miyahara	70
45	1962	South Pacific Waves Are High		0
46	1962	Kuro to aka no hanabira		0
47	1962	Tales of Young Genji Kuro 3		72
48	1962	All Rascals		0
49	1962	The Challenge	Takayama	70
50	1962	G-Men in the Pacific	Mizuhara	60
51	1962	Zankokuna tsuki		0
52	1962	Four Sisters	Masao Igarashi	60
53	1962	Gang vs. Gang		70
54	1962	Harakiri	Hikokuro Omodaka	84
55	1962	A Flame at the Pier		60
56	1962	Hell's Kitchen		0
57	1962	Tokyo Untouchable	Goro Kawamoto	0
58	1962	Gang vs. G-Men	Toru Tezuka	60
59	1962	Umineko ga tonde		0
60	1962	Operation Diamond	Kazuo Kasami	0
61	1962	Uragirimono wa jigoku daze		0
62	1963	Eleven Gangsters		0
63	1963	Gang and G-Men Part 2	手塚徹	0
64	1963	Kizu-darake no futeki-sha		0
65	1963	Tokyo Untouchable: Escape	Goro Kawamoto	0
66	1963	Futari dake no toride		0
67	1963	Element of Surprise		0
68	1963	Gang Loyalty and Vengeance	Gu Shimizu	50
69	1963	Tange Sazen		0
70	1963	13 Assassins	Doi Ōkō Toshi	75
71	1964	Tokyo Gang Vs. Hong Kong Gang		0
72	1964	The Kingdom of Jirocho 3		0
73	1964	Jakoman and Tetsu	Jakoman	60
74	1964	Destroyer Yukikaze		0
75	1964	An Outlaw		48
76	1964	Three Outlaw Samurai	Sakon Shiba	75
77	1964	Samurai from Nowhere	Gunjuro Ohba	71
78	1964	Homicide	Lieutenant Aikawa	0
79	1964	Assassination	Hachiro Kiyokawa	71
80	1964	The Shogun's Vault		65
81	1964	The 7th Dawn	Ng	64
82	1964	The Great Duel		60
83	1964	Revenge	Shume Okuno	75
84	1964	Detective		0
85	1964	Samurai from Somewhere		70
86	1964	Gamblers and Racketeers		0
87	1965	Kwaidan	Warrior (segment "Hoichi the Earless")	77
88	1965	Tale of Ninja Duty	Mumyo Tsunataro	10
89	1965	Abashiri Prison	Tsumaki	70
90	1965	Ankoku gai jingi		0
91	1965	Samurai Spy	Sakon Takatani	66
92	1965	The Gambler		0
93	1965	The Domain: Kanto Legends of Chivalry		60
94	1965	Blood and Law		0
95	1965	Blood of Revenge	Yutaro Nomura	66
96	1965	High-Ranking Yakuza		0
97	1966	Thirst for Love	Kosuke Aso	55
98	1966	Sazen Tange and The Secret of the Urn	Lord Tsushima Yagyu	66
99	1966	Greatest Boss of the Showa Era		0
100	1966	The Kii River	Shintani Kosaku	80
101	1966	Continental Drifter		0
102	1966	Spycatcher J3: SOS Close Shave	J1 (TULIP Japan Branch Chief)	60
103	1967	Organized Violence		60
104	1967	Dissolution Rites	Sakai	60
105	1967	Abashiri Prison: Duel in Hokkaido		0
106	1967	Gamblers: The Dragon Tattoo		0
107	1967	Once and For All		0
108	1967	You Only Live Twice	Tiger Tanaka	66
109	1967	Portrait of Chieko	Kotaro Takamura	0
110	1967	Organized Violence II	Police Inspector Kitagawa	60
111	1967	Hawk of the Harbour		0
112	1967	King of the Gang		0
113	1967	The Return of the Filthy Seven		0
114	1967	Game of Chance 3		60
115	1968	Army Intelligence	Lieutenant Colonel Akiyama	0
116	1968	Gambler's Farewell	Tetsuji Kasai	60
117	1968	The Code of Man		0
118	1968	Blackmail Is My Life		64
119	1968	Diamonds of the Andes		0
120	1968	The Bad Boss		0
121	1968	The Young Eagles of the Kamikaze		60
122	1968	Snake Woman's Curse	Commander	61
123	1968	Black Lizard	Kuroki	67
124	1969	Goyokin	Rokugo Tatewaki	75
125	1969	Sky Scraper!		0
126	1969	Penitentiary Brothers		0
127	1969	The Private Police		70
128	1969	Lone Rebel		0
129	1969	Red Peony Gambler: Biographies of a Gambling Room		59
130	1969	The 5-Man Army	Samurai	66
131	1969	Japan's Violent Gangs: The Boss and the Killers		0
132	1970	Rise and Fall of Chivalry		65
133	1970	Crimson Bat - Oichi: Wanted, Dead or Alive	Hyoe	73
134	1970	The Scandalous Adventures of Buraikan	Soshun Kochiyama	68
135	1970	Cherry Blossoms in the Air - The Suicide Raiders - Oh, Buddies!		0
136	1970	Postwar Secrets	Kuroki	100
137	1970	Men and War I: Prelude to Destiny		66
138	1971	King of Pornography		59
139	1971	The Battle of Okinawa	Lieutenant General Isamu Cho	75
140	1971	The Gambler's Counterattack	Chief Inspector	70
141	1971	The Wolves	Genryu Asakura	74
142	1971	The Armed Organization		80
143	1971	Troops of Darkness		60
144	1971	Silence	Cristóvão Ferreira	72
145	1972	Under the Flag of the Rising Sun	Sergeant Katsuo Togashi	75
146	1972	The Water Margin	Jade Unicorn, Lu Chun I	65
147	1972	Organized Crime: Killer's Glory		0
148	1972	Shadow Hunters		65
149	1972	Shōwa Gokudōshi		0
150	1972	New Abashiri Prison Story: Honor and Humanity, Ammunition That Attracts the Storm		0
151	1972	Yakuza Skirmishes		0
152	1972	Shadow Hunters 2: Echo of Destiny	Kagemetsuke	70
153	1972	Informal Dress		0
154	1973	Battles Without Honor and Humanity		74
155	1973	Bohachi Bushido: Code of the Forgotten Eight	Shino	66
156	1973	Quarreling with Yakuza		50
157	1973	The School Deviate Waru		0
158	1973	Japan's Top Gangster	Noboru Yamaguchi	0
159	1973	The Human Revolution		0
160	1973	Battles Without Honor and Humanity: Proxy War	Tatsuo Akashi	72
161	1973	The Ando Gang Documentary Film		60
162	1973	Wild Cop 2		65
163	1973	Submersion of Japan	Prime Minister Yamamoto	67
164	1974	Violent Streets	Shimamura Kansai	65
165	1974	Zero Woman: Red Handcuffs	Nagumo	64
166	1974	Secret Prophecies of Nostradamus	Himself	0
167	1974	Prophecies of Nostradamus	Dr. Nishiyama	60
168	1974	Karafuto 1945 Summer		85
169	1974	The Castle of Sand	Detective Eitaro Imanishi	74
170	1974	The Executioner II: Karate Inferno	Shugi	56
171	1975	雪夫人繪圖		0
172	1975	All Men Are Brothers	Lu Chun I	68
173	1975	Tidal Wave	Prime Minister Yamato	0
174	1975	The Bullet Train	Sunaga	67
175	1975	Conflagration	Captain Munekata	40
176	1975	Company Buggers		70
177	1975	The International Gang of Kobe	Rinsei	57
178	1976	Operation Plazma in Osaka		65
179	1976	Human Revolution II		0
180	1976	The Classroom of Terror		60
181	1976	Seven Nights in Japan	Terrorist Leader (uncredited)	65
182	1976	The Corporation		10
183	1976	Zero Fighter	Captain Saito	42
184	1976	Murderer!	Nīto Kouken	70
185	1977	The Alaska Story	Arashuk	60
186	1977	Flickering Flames		100
187	1977	Mount Hakkoda	Colonel Kojima	64
188	1977	High Seas Hijack	Captain Munekata	100
189	1977	Sugata Sanshiro	Iinuma	0
190	1978	Shogun's Samurai	Ogasawara Gensinsai	71
191	1978	Message from Space	Ernest Noguchi	58
192	1978	The Incident	Lawyer Kikuchi	63
193	1978	Bandits vs. Samurai Squadron	Kichibei	62
194	1978	Monument to Holy Service		0
195	1978	August without Emperor	Army General Mikami	70
196	1978	Never Give Up	General Wada	57
197	1978	The Fall of Ako Castle	Yanagisawa	66
198	1979	Nichiren		0
199	1979	Hunter in the Dark	Okitsugu Tanuma	65
200	1979	Dead Angle		70
201	1979	The Shogun Assassins	Kato Kiyomasa	50
202	1980	Battles Without Honor and Humanity: The Complete Saga	Tatsuo Akashi	67
203	1980	The Way to The Gold Medals	President Sakakibara	0
204	1980	The Sand Boat		0
205	1980	Port Arthur	Gentaro Kodama	76
206	1980	Drive for the Future	Akiji Nishikawa	0
207	1980	Shogun's Ninja	Tozawa Hakuunsai	62
208	1981	Flames of Blood		70
209	1981	The Last Days of Planet Earth	Dr. Nishiyama	0
210	1981	Samurai Reincarnation	Muramasa	60
211	1981	The Bushido Blade	Lord Yamato	54
212	1981	The Wild Daisy	Gozaburo Saito	60
213	1981	The Imperial Navy	Jisaburo Ozawa	66
214	1981	Call from Darkness	Sugibayashi	57
215	1982	Onimasa: A Japanese Godfather	Uichi Suda, The Big Boss	63
216	1982	The Villain from Edo Kochiyama Soshun		0
217	1982	The Imperial Japanese Empire	Hideki Tojo	55
218	1982	Suspicion	Kanetaka Okamura	67
219	1982	To Trap a Kidnapper		60
220	1983	Samon’s Hell Revenge: Unauthorised Jutte Records 2 - The Assassination of the Shogun		0
221	1983	Battle Anthem	Yamamoto	70
222	1983	The Duel in the forbidden territory		0
223	1983	The Geisha	Kochi Notable	64
224	1983	The Tale of Saikaido		0
225	1983	Lady Vengeance and the 47 Ronin		0
226	1983	A Madcap Corporation		0
227	1983	L・O・V・I・N・G		0
228	1984	Choshichiro's Edo Diaries: The Yagyu Conspiracy	Yagyu Munefuyu	0
229	1984	Kukai		90
230	1984	Zero	Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto	42
231	1984	Fireflies in the North	Ishikura	53
232	1984	Kōgen ni ressha ga hashitta		0
233	1984	The Story of a Man Among Men		60
234	1984	Nezumi Kozō kaitō den		0
235	1985	Love: Starting on a Journey		25
236	1985	The Sound of the Waves		0
237	1985	The Last True Yakuza	Kazumasa Tashiro	48
238	1985	Vendetta of Obligation		0
239	1986	Cabaret	Yakuza boss	47
240	1986	April Fish	Panapora Chief Handa	55
241	1986	Be Free!	Keizo Hasegawa	0
242	1986	The White Tiger Battalion		0
243	1987	Tokyo Blackout	Nakata	50
244	1987	Night Train	Isaburo Tamura	10
245	1987	Shinran: Path to Purity		50
246	1987	Ronin on a Mission	Ōishi Kuranosuke	0
247	1987	You're My Destiny		60
248	1987	Twilight of the Cockroaches	Grandpa (voice)	61
249	1987	There Goes Benio, the Smart Girl		60
250	1987	Tabaruzaka		0
251	1988	A Taxing Woman's Return	Sadohara	65
252	1988	Tokyo Pop	Mr. Dota	74
253	1988	Tokugawa Ieyasu – TBS Warlord Special		0
254	1989	Shogun's Shadow	Hotta Masamori	68
255	1989	Tetsuro Tamba's Great Spirit World: What Happens When You Die	吉野博士	0
256	1989	長七郎江戸日記スペシャル長七郎大奥まかり通る		0
257	1989	Yakuza Ladies 3	Takeo Sakanishi	0
258	1989	The Political Game		0
259	1989	Four Days of Snow and Blood	Jinzaburi Shinzaki	69
260	1989	Tokyo: The Last War	Kanaami Kohou	72
261	1990	Tetsuro Tamba's Great Spirit World 2: I was surprised when I died!!	Ryo Okamoto	0
262	1990	13 Assassins		70
263	1990	Aurora Borealis	Tsuneiro Kamisaka	41
264	1990	School Be-In Bully	Ryotaro Sakurazawa	0
265	1990	1750 Days of Turbulence		85
266	1991	Female Neo-Ninjas	Time Patrol leader	40
267	1991	Heat Wave	Denkichi Tsuzaki	58
268	1991	Kim's War		0
269	1991	The Hitman Blood Smells Like Roses		52
270	1991	Riki-Oh: The Story of Ricky	Master Zhang	68
271	1991	Yakuza Warfare		60
272	1991	The Great Shogunate Battle		57
273	1991	The Tale of Genji		0
274	1991	Minamoto Yoshitsune		50
275	1992	Taira no Kiyomori		0
276	1993	The Supernormal II		40
277	1994	Psychic: Traveler to the Unknown		0
278	1994	Tetsuro Tamba’s Great Spiritual World 3: Amazing Reincarnation Story That Ran Around the Whole		0
279	1997	The Peking Man	Osone	30
280	1998	Screwed	Landlord	49
281	1999	Crayon Shin-chan: Explosion! The Hot Spring's Feel Good Final Battle	Tamba (voice)	67
282	1999	Jubaku: Spellbound	Tajiro Kawakami	60
283	1999	Japanese Hell	Asu Shino	42
284	2000	The Stupid Teacher	Utaemon Baba	0
285	2000	A Class to Remember IV: Fifteen	Tetsuo Hatake	90
286	2000	Sakuya: The Slayer of Demons	Old Master	61
287	2001	Blind Beast vs Dwarf Killer		35
288	2001	The Making Of The Katakuris		60
289	2001	Ino Tadataka: Meridian dreams		0
290	2002	Shura Group Part 1		0
291	2002	Shura Group		0
292	2002	The Happiness of the Katakuris	Granpa Jinpei Katakuri	69
293	2002	Graveyard of Honor	Tetsuji Tokura	63
294	2002	The Cat Returns	Cat King (voice)	71
295	2002	Deadly Outlaw: Rekka	Sanada	67
296	2002	The Twilight Samurai	Tozaemon Iguchi	78
297	2002	Bond Girls Are Forever	Tiger Tanaka (archive footage) (uncredited)	58
298	2002	Best Ever Bond	Tiger Tanaka (archive footage) (uncredited)	50
299	2002	Shura Group Part 2		0
300	2003	T.R.Y.		70
301	2003	A Case of Murder by the Atami Station Taxi Stand		0
302	2003	Yakuza Demon	Michitane Tendou	60
303	2003	Gozu		68
304	2004	Capone: Roppongi Renkin no Teio		0
305	2004	The Thousand Year Fire		0
306	2005	Demon Pond		66
307	2006	Teruo Ishii Fan Club		0
308	2006	The Exotic Locations of 'You Only Live Twice'	Tiger Tanaka (archive footage)	60

Television

No.	Year	Title	Role	Vote Average
1	1978	Ōgon no Hibi	Imai Sōkyū	0
2	1982	Matsudaira Ukon Jikencho		0
3	1982	Marco Polo	Vasaio	68
4	1984	水曜ドラマ宮本武蔵	平田無二斎	0
5	1985	Sanada Taiheiki	Sanada Masayuki	80
6	1986	Tokugawa Chronicles: Ambition of the 3 Branches	Naruse Hayatonosho	0
7	1986	Inochi	Takahara Masamichi	0
8	1986	Byakkotai	Jinbo Kuranosuke	0
9	1990	HOTEL	Ohara Tetsutaro	0
10	1990	Yonimo Kimyou na Monogatari Tokubetsuhen		95
11	1992	Hanshichi Torimonochō		0
12	1993	新幹線物語'93夏	黒木哲也	0
13	1994	Coming Home	Shirota Fukuzo	0
14	1995	Gokenin Zankuro		80
15	1995	Hashiran ka!	前田米吉	0
16	1997	Kaseifu wa mita!		0
17	1999	The Veteran Trio	Inui Sanshiro	0
18	2002	Toshiie and Matsu	Tarozaemon Iguchi	80
19	2003	Yumemiru Budo		0
20	2004	Order Made ~Shiawase Iro no Shinshi Fuku Mise~		0
21	2005	Yoshitsune	Minamoto no Yorimasa (Gen-ji)	85