was a Japanese film director known for his comedy films. Born in Akita Prefecture, he entered Shōchiku's Kamata studio in 1922 and debuted as a director in 1926. He later worked at the Shintoho and Toho studios. He became known as the "god of comedy" for directing over 200 films, many of which were nonsense comedies featuring famous clowns such as Ken'ichi Enomoto, Roppa Furukawa, and Junzaburo Ban. Program of 2005 Saitō retrospective.Joseph L. Anderson, Donald Richie The Japanese Film: Art and Industry 1982 Page 198 "One of the earliest of the postwar comedies was Torajiro Saito's The Emperor's Hat (Tennō no Bōshi), made in 1950 and incorporating a plot which before the war would have constituted a severe political crime. A man working in a museum ..."
Filmography His works include: Akeyuku Sora (1929) Wasei Kingu Kongu (1933) Kodakara Sodo (1935) Akireta musume-tachi, alternate title: (金語楼の子宝騒動) (1949) Nodo jimankyō jidai (1949) Odoroki ikka (1949) Akogare no Hawaii Kōro (1950) Aozora tenshi (1950) Tennō no Bōshi (天皇の帽子) (1950) jointly directed with Masaki Mori (:ja:毛利正樹) Tokyo Kid (1950) Tonbo kaeri dōchū (1950) Unusual trip to Hawaii (Hawai chindochu) (1954) Ukare Gitsune Senbon Zakura (1954)
See also List of Japanese film directors
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