James Shigeta
Known for: Acting
James Saburo Shigeta (June 17, 1929 – July 28, 2014) was an American actor, singer, and musician of Japanese descent. He was noted for his roles in The Crimson Kimono (1959), Walk Like a Dragon (1960), Flower Drum Song (1961), Bridge to the Sun (1961), Die Hard (1988), and Mulan (1998). In 1960, he won the Golden Globe Award for Most Promising Newcomer – Male, along with three other actors. In his early career, Shigeta often played romantic male lead roles, which were almost nonexistent for an actor of Asian descent during his time, making him a trailblazer in Asian American representation in media. The Goldsea Asian-American Daily magazine listed him as one of the "Most Inspiring Asian-Americans Of All Time". Before his Hollywood career he found success as a pop singer and performer abroad, especially in Japan and Australia.
Filmography
Series
Perry Mason
Ward Toyama
1957
Series
Murder, She Wrote
John Sukahara
1984
Series
Murder, She Wrote
Luc Li
1984
Series
The Love Boat
Bud's Father
1977
Series
Beverly Hills, 90210
Ben Sosna
1990
Series
Little House on the Prairie
Sam Wing
1974
Series
Babylon 5
Taro Isogi
1994
Series
Mission: Impossible
Shiki
1966
Series
Ironside
1967
Series
Magnum, P.I.
Richard Enoka
1980
Series
Magnum, P.I.
Mr. Obotu
1980
Series
Golden Globe Awards
Self - Audience Member
1944
Series
Golden Globe Awards
Self - Nominee
1944
Series
Golden Globe Awards
Self - Winner
1944
Series
Hawaii Five-O
Joseph Matsukino
1968
Series
Avatar: The Last Airbender
Old Wanderer (voice)
2005
Series
Emergency!
1972
Series
The Rockford Files
Clement Chin
1974
Series
Simon & Simon
1981
Series
T. J. Hooker
Chow Duc Khan
1982
Series
Airwolf
Colonel Tranh Van Zung
1984
Series
Dr. Kildare
Dr. Roy Shigera
1961
Series
Jake and the Fatman
Mr. Koso Nakasone
1987
Series
Burke's Law
Sidney Ying
1963
Series
Renegade
1992
Series
Renegade
Mr. Ota
1992
Series
Naked City
James Kam
1958
Series
seaQuest DSV
Vietnamese President Chi
1993
Film
Die Hard
Joseph Yoshinobu Takagi
1988
Film
Mulan
General Li (voice)
1998
Series
Medical Center
Dr. Osaka
1969
Series
Police Woman
1974
Series
Ben Casey
1961
Series
Ben Casey
Dr. Harvey Lee
1961
Series
The Outer Limits
Maj. Jong
1963
Series
The Outer Limits
AIO Captain Newa
1963
Series
Cybill
Mr. Matsuzaki
1995
Series
The Hitchhiker
Nishi
1983
Series
Matt Houston
Lin Ha
1982
Series
The Hardy Boys / Nancy Drew Mysteries
1977
Series
The Dinah Shore Chevy Show
Self
1956
Series
Ellery Queen
Stephen Yang
1975
Series
The Streets of San Francisco
1972
Series
The Streets of San Francisco
Prosecutor
1972
Series
The Real Adventures of Jonny Quest
Inspector Mantjur (voice)
1996
Series
The Real Adventures of Jonny Quest
Dr. Yamashiro (voice)
1996
Series
Threat Matrix
Kang Sok-Joo
2003
Film
Midway
Vice Admiral Chuichi Nagumo
1976
Series
The Lieutenant
1963
Series
S.W.A.T.
1975
Series
Masquerade
Makko
1983
Series
Once an Eagle
Lin Tso-Han
1976
Film
The Yakuza
Goro
1974
Series
Kraft Mystery Theatre
1961
Series
The Bing Crosby Show
1964
Film
Brother
Sugimoto
2000
Film
Drive
Mr. Lau
1997
Film
Cage II: The Arena of Death
Tin Lum Yin
1994
Film
Lost Horizon
Brother To-Lenn
1973
Film
Paradise, Hawaiian Style
Danny Kohana
1966
Film
Flower Drum Song
Wang Ta
1961
Film
The Crimson Kimono
Detective Joe Kojaku
1959
Film
China Cry
Dr. Sung
1990
Film
Cage
Tin Lum Yin
1989
Film
The Young Lawyers
Lee Ahn
1969
Film
Carol for Another Christmas
Japanese Doctor
1964
Film
Cry for Happy
Suzuki
1961
Film
Midnight Man
Mao Mak
1995
Film
Hart to Hart: Old Friends Never Die
Det. Whoo
1994
Film
Space Marines
Ambassador Nakamura
1996
Film
Hollywood Chinese
Self
2007
Film
The Questor Tapes
Dr. Chen
1974
Film
The Renegades
Jimmy Lee
1982
Film
Enola Gay: The Men, the Mission, the Atomic Bomb
Field Marshal Abehata
1980
Film
Beam Me Up, Sulu
Self
2025
Film
The Slanted Screen
Himself
2006
Series
Kung Fu
Master Kwan Li
1972
Series
Kung Fu
Col. Lin Pei
1972
Film
Nobody's Perfect
Diver Toshi O'Hara
1968
Film
The Killer Who Wouldn't Die
David Lao
1976
Film
Walk Like a Dragon
Cheng Lu
1960
Film
Tomorrow's Child
Donald Shibura
1982
The Hardy Boys: The Mystery of the Chinese Junk
George Ti Ming
1967
Film
Death Walks in Laredo
Lester Koto
1967
Film
The People I've Slept With
Charles Yang
2009
Film
Matt Helm
Tom McCauley
1975
Film
Escape to Mindanao
Lt. Takahashi
1968
Film
Samurai
Takeo Chisato
1979
Film
Yellowface: Asian Whitewashing and Racism in Hollywood
(archive footage)
2019
Film
Yorktown: A Time to Heal
Admiral Heilachiro Nogura
2022
Film
Operation Heartbeat
Chief Resident
1969
Film
Bridge to the Sun
Hidenari Terasaki
1961
Film
Manila, Open City
Captain Murakami
1968
Qigong: Ancient Chinese Healing for the 21st Century
Narrator
1999
Film
Slaying the Dragon
1988
Home from the Eastern Sea
Narrator
1990