is a Japanese actor and model.
Biography Masao Kusakari was born in Fukuoka Prefecture to a Japanese mother Sueko from Yukuhashi, and an American father Robert H. Tolar from Tar Heel, North Carolina, a USAF mailman who was deployed to Tsuiki Base during Korean War. Masao was told by Sueko (who died in 2010) that Robert had died in the Korean War, and he believed so, until NHK show "Family History" discovered that Robert had left Japan to move back to the US before Masao was born, then deployed to West Germany for several years as a military personnel, and later settled back in North Carolina where he died in 2013. After Masao was born, Sueko left her hometown of Yukuhashi, where there were strong prejudices against children with mixed races, then settled in Kokura (Current Kitakyushu) where she worked for multiple jobs to raise Masao. Masao also started working as early as elementary school age as a newspaper delivery boy. He started his career as a fashion model in Fukuoka when he was a high school student. Considered stunningly good looking, Masao was scouted at age 17 by a model agency in Tokyo, where his debut into the public eye began when he became a model for Shiseido Cosmetics in the early 1970's. He joined Toho in 1974 and began his career as a screen actor.日本映画人名事典』男優篇 上巻、キネマ旬報社、1996 P.552 He won his first major award at the Elan d'or Awards in 1975, and a year later, appeared in Kaze to Kumo to Niji to, a dream of his since early childhood to star in a taiga drama. From then to the early 1980's, Kusakari was one of the most popular actors in Japan.
He won popularity again through his role in Sanada Maru in 2016. In 2017, Kusakari won Best Supporting Actor of 10th Tokyo Drama Awards for his role in Sanada Maru. In 2019, Kusakari appeared in the Asadora Natsuzora and played an important role that has a great influence on leading character Natsu's life.
Filmography
Film Year Title Role Notes 1974ESPY Jirō Miki Okita SōjiOkita SōjiLead roleHimikoTakehiko 1975Gambare Wakadaishō Shōzo Umeno aka WakadaishōLead role 1976Brother and Sister Inokichi1978Hi no Tori Yumihiko of Matsuro1979G.I. Samurai MasakichiByoinzaka no Kubikukuri no Ie Hinatsu Mokutaro1980Virus YoshizumiLead role1981Eijanaika Itoman 1982The Last HeroAkio KitanoLead role 1984Wangan DoroKensuke SugimotoLead role 1987Horinonakano PlayballJunichi MizutaLead role1989Yuwakusha Kazuhiko Sotomura 1995August in the Water 1999 Hakuchi Kogarashi 2004Ultraman: The Next Manjōme 2013Casting Blossoms to the Sky 2018 My Retirement, My Life Michitarō SanoLead role 2019Hit Me Anyone One More Time Daigo Tsurumaru 2022Dreaming of the Meridian ArcThe Governor of Chiba / Tokugawa Ienari 2024Kingdom 4: Return of the Great GeneralKing Zhaoxiang of Qin 2025Emergency Interrogation Room: The Final MovieMasanao Gōhara2026The Honest Realtor: The MovieToshiro Tosaka
Television dramas Year Title Role Notes 1976Kaze to Kumo to Niji to Kashima no Haruaki Taiga drama 1981Pro Hunter Shunsuke RyuzakiLead role 1985Sanada Taiheiki Sanada Yukimura 1994Minami-kun no Koibito Chiyomi's father Hana no Ran Hino Katsumitsu Taiga drama 1996Furuhata Ninzaburō Ken'ichirō Inui Episode 16Iguana Girl Masanori Aoshima 1997 Mōri Motonari Katsura Hirozumi Taiga drama 2002Shopping Hero 2004Ultra Q: Dark Fantasy 2005Yoshitsune Taira no Tomoyasu Taiga drama 2008Atsuhime Abe Masahiro Taiga drama 2009Atashinchi no Danshi 2010Clouds Over the Hill Katō Tomosaburō 2011Gō Honda Masanobu Taiga drama 2012Priceless Hirose 2014 Emergency Interrogation Room Masanao Gōhara2016Sanada MaruSanada MasayukiTaiga drama 2017Bakumatsu Gourmet Bushi Meshi!The Lord Doctor-X Season 5Kagenobu Uchikanda 2018Fūunji tachiTanuma OkitsuguTelevision film 2019Innocence, Fight Against False ChargesShin KurokawaSpecial appearance Natsuzora: Natsu's SkyTaiju ShibataAsadora 2020Operation ZPrime minister EjimaLead role Love Begins When the Money EndsTomihiko SaruwatariMiniseries2021A Man and His CatKanda FuyukiLead role2022ChimudondonGorō ŌsatoAsadora2022–24The Honest RealtorToshiro Tosaka2 seasons
Dubbing Year Title Role Notes 1997My Best Friend's WeddingGeorge Downes (Rupert Everett)2000 NTV edition2008WALL-ECaptain B. McCrea2017Murder on the Orient ExpressHercule Poirot (Kenneth Branagh)
Awards and prizes
Year Award Category Work Result 1975Elan d'or AwardsNewcomer of the YearHimself201710th Tokyo Drama AwardsBest Supporting ActorSanada MaruTokyo Drama Awards 2017
References
External links Official profile