Who is Mie Hama?

Mie Hama first started out working as a bus fare collector. While working, she was spotted by producer Tomoyuki Tanaka when she was only sixteen years old, and was soon employed at Toho Studios. She appeared in a bevy of drama and sci-fi films, including King Kong vs. Godzilla (1963), where she became the Giant Ape's "Damsel in Distress." She is probably best known in Western Cinema as Bond girl Kissy Suzuki, starring alongside actor Sean Connery in the 007 film You Only Live Twice (1967). That same year, Kingu Kongu no gyakushû (1967) was released, thus, she portrayed the spellbinding "Bond-girlish" villainess Madamn Piranha. Her extended wardrobe and enchanted bed chambers contributed to the film's "James Bond-ish" atmosphere. In addition, Hama would sometimes be referred to as "Funny Face," due to her appearances in Japan's "Crazy Cats" movies.

She became one of the most popular actresses in Japan's "Golden Age" of Cinema, but has done little acting when Japan's cinema world experienced severe financial problems. However, she did return to appear in a few films in the 1970s and 1980s, and she is seen, most recently, working as an active environmentalist, radio and television talk show host.

Overview

Nicknames
Mié Hama

Trivia

  • Because of illness during filming, Mie Hama (as "Kissy Suzuki") was doubled in a diving scene (in You Only Live Twice (1967)) by, no less than, Diane Cilento.
  • When producers for You Only Live Twice (1967) warned Mie that because she wasn't learning English quickly enough, she was going to be fired from the film, she solemnly told them that, because of her shame, she would then commit ritual suicide. Whether she was bluffing or not, the producers decided not to risk it, and instead that she switch roles with the other actress in the film Akiko Wakabayashi, since this role didn't require much dialogue.
  • In 2017, she fondly recalled working with Sean Connery on You Only Live Twice (1967). She described him as a kindred spirit from a working-class background, who became a role model. He was a professional who was down to earth off camera, but who could magically turn into the dapper superspy at the shout of "Action!" She still respectfully calls him "Sean Connery-san." She said she now regrets not trying to speak with him more or get to know him. She never met him again after the movie's release.
  • When she was 40, she was driving through rural Japan. She came across an old farming village that was being torn down to build a dam. She yelled at her driver to pull over and was heartbroken to meet an old woman being forced out of her home. It became a turning point in Hama's life. She said, ""Japan was giving up its real self in its rush for economic development. I realized that Japan had to get back to its real self. And so did I." She became an advocate for preserving old farms and farming techniques.
  • She didn't realize what she had gotten herself into when she signed on to do the James Bond film You Only Live Twice (1967) until she had arrived in London, when someone from the studio demanded a look inside her suitcase. She obligingly opened it to reveal some T-shirts and bluejeans. The studio representative told her "You're a Bond girl now. The clothes you wear, the jewelry you put on, we will manage all of that." The next day, expensive dresses began appearing at her hotel room door.