Japanese actor Tsunehiko Kamijo, who voiced Chihiro's father in the Studio Ghibli animation 'Spirited Away', has passed away at the age of 85.
According to Japanese media such as Sponichi Annex and TV Asahi on the 1st, Kamijo Tsunehiko passed away on the 22nd of last month at a hospital in Nagano Prefecture, Japan. The funeral was held as a family affair, and there will be no separate farewell event in accordance with the deceased's wishes.
Kamijo appeared healthy at the premiere of the film 'Shinpei's Song is Everything' last November, where he sang the ending theme song, but his health deteriorated after contracting pneumonia at the end of the year. He did not attend the stage greeting at the premiere held in Tokyo in January this year, leaving a message at that time saying, "I am very sorry that I cannot sing in front of you."
Kamijo debuted as a singer in 1962, and his song 'Departure Song', sung with the folk group 'Rockmonzen' led by Hitoshi Gomuro in 1971, sold over 700,000 copies and gained great popularity.
He later worked extensively as a singer, actor, and voice actor, appearing in musicals such as 'Fiddler on the Roof', 'Man of La Mancha', and 'My Fair Lady'. He also left a strong impression in dramas such as 'Tokugawa Ieyasu', 'Ice Point', 'The Dragon', and '3rd Year B Class Kinpachi Sensei'.
He also lent his voice to several Studio Ghibli works. In 'Spirited Away', he voiced Chihiro's father, and in 'Porco Rosso', he voiced the boss of the Mamoru Yuto gang.
