THE ASAHI SHIMBUN
August 19, 2026 at 18:18 JST
Keiko Kishi in Tokyo in July 2019 (Asahi Shimbun file photo)
Keiko Kishi, the Japanese film star who shot to fame in the 1953 blockbuster “Kimi no Na wa” and went on to build an international acting career while earning acclaim as a writer, has died. She was 93.
Kishi’s talent agency announced on Aug. 19 that she died on Aug. 7.
Born in Yokohama in 1932, Kishi began her career while still in high school after passing an audition at Shochiku studio, making her screen debut in “Wagaya wa Tanoshi.”
Her role as the heroine of “Kimi no na wa” made her one of Japan’s biggest stars.
Her on-screen style of wrapping a stole around her head and neck sparked a national craze known as “Machiko-maki,” named after her character.
Her fame soon attracted offers from European and American directors.
Her lead role in the French-Japanese production “Typhon sur Nagasaki” led to her 1957 marriage to the film’s director, Yves Ciampi.
She moved to Paris and continued to live there after the couple’s divorce in 1975.
Kishi showcased her range in acclaimed collaborations with director Kon Ichikawa.
These included “Her Brother” (1960) and “The Makioka Sisters” (1983), in which she played the eldest of four sisters in Ichikawa’s adaptation of Junichiro Tanizaki’s novel.
Over her long career, Kishi received numerous awards and honors.
She won the Japan Academy Film Prize for Best Actress in 2002 for her role in “Kaachan: A Mother’s Compassion.”
In 2011, France named her a Commander of the Order of Arts and Letters.
Beyond the screen, Kishi was a popular essayist who authored several books.
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