BIO

Haruko Sugimura (杉村春子) was born in Hiroshima, Japan, in 1909.   Her mother was a prostitute and she was born out of wedlock.   Sugimura was adopted by a timber merchant and grew up with only the bare necessities.

Her dream was to sing, but she was twice rejected by the Tokyo School of Music and instead joined a regional theatre group.

Sugimura appeared in her first Japanese film in 1937 for Shochiku at the age of 28.

In 1954, she won the Mainichi Concours Award for Best Supporting Actress for her performances in An Inlet Of Muddy Water (にごりえ) and The Tokyo Story (東京物語).

Sugimura also received an honorary award in 1998 from the Japan Academy for her life-long contribution to Japanese cinema.

After a career of more than 80 motion pictures over 6 decades, her last film appearance was in 1995.

Sugimura died of pancreatic cancer in Tokyo, in 1997.   She was 88 years old.

NOTED FILMS