Interview with Hiroshi Tsuburaya Translation by: Tetsuya Shima -The interviewer : ???(Yu Tagami) From the book : "?????? -???????????????????- (Uchuu Keiji Taizen -Gavan Sharivan Shaider no Sekai-)" ISBN4-575-29080-7 Publisher : ??? (Futabasha) Editors : ????????????(Mikio Ando & Studio Hard)
In the third installment of our Space Sheriff Spotlight, we present an interview with actor Hiroshi Tsuburaya (part of the Tsuburaya family) about his role as Space Sheriff Shaider. -Please tell us why you wanted to become an actor. I had been a volleyball player since I was in junior high school, and I was going to be a college volleyball player. At that time, I heard the audition for NOGIKU NO HAKA whose leading actress was Seiko Matsuda would be held. I got interested in it so I auditioned for the opposite role. After all, I failed just before the final selection, but I was fascinated by the tension-filled atmosphere of the audition. The strain I felt through the audition was different from the one that I felt during playing volleyball. That is the start of my professional career as an actor. For your information, the director of this movie was Shinichirou Sawai. -What a coincidence! I sometimes worked together with Mr.Sawai in FUKUZAWA YUKICHI,etc... After this audition I appeared on KOUKOUSEI FU-FU created by Daiei Television. So this is my debut film. The leading actors were Maiko Itoh and Shingo Tsurumi. My role was a close friend of Shingo. Then I appeared on SHAIDER. -Jun Yoshida and you were on the short list, and it took very long time to choose which one to be Dai Sawamura. Exactly. Mr.Yoshida and I went to the gym of JAC (Japan Action Club) for two months or so. Although I was young and had experience of volleyball, the training of JAC was very hard for me. Because my body was stiff and I had no experience of gymnastics. -Later You were chosen as Dai Sawamura and Mr. Yoshida, Shinkan Poe. How was the first filming? The very first shot of the first day was the fight scene for Episode 2 `Odore Petopeto(Dance, Petpet)`. I was told to fight on a running trailer. I almost said "What!? Are they serious!?" The crew of JAC who acted Combatmen Miraclers prepared for the shooting as if it had been routine work. -You jumped on a mini-trampoline when you transform in Episode 2 Yes. Besides that, I practiced jumping in the training.
-How did you get along with Mr.Sawai, the director? He was a little wicked. On the first day of shooting in a back lot, I had a scene of synchronous recording, not dubbing. Mr.Sawai added new lines to original script. I was passed the revised script at the makeup room in the morning. I got confused very much. I can recite the lines even now : "The important reminders at shooting Laser Gun: 1. Focus your whole attention on the target in a moment. 2. Don`t look away from the target."(laughs) -It`s the scene where Dai recites what he learned in the classroom at graduation day from the Space Sheriff School, isn`t it? But these lines were not on the original script. No. I was given the lines only few hours before shooting. -Did you have any conversation with Naomi Morinaga (as Annie)? I was always with Morinaga but didn`t talk about roles and acting. We just joked : "Which of us would make more NG takes?" or something like that. We took the same train to the studio then. I think I was supported by her so I owe her the popularity of Shaider. Morinaga disliked Panchira (panty-shot) back then. She was good at theatrical combat but not driving. She crashed that yellow RX-7 many times. I was good at driving. I was driving the jeep in the opening scene where a gunman on a helicopter was shooting it. I could stop a car where it ought to stop at. So Fumio Matsumura, a camera operator said to me : "You`re very nice driver." The jeep was easy to handle. -What do you think of Osamu Kaneda, the stunt coordinator? I like him, and he is one of the people I appreciate most. In those days, I was called `Dai` or `Dai-chan`, but only Kaneda-san somehow called me `Daisuke`. At first I talked back to him : "I am Dai Sawamura." But he had been supporting me through the series very much, so I got to like his way of calling me Daisuke. Later I named my son Daisuke.(laughs)
-Did you get along with the members of JAC? I completely owe to them, especially Takanori Shibahara and Kazuyoshi Yamada. Without them, Shaider couldn`t be popular as it is today. -Both of them showed their amazing skills in Shaider Yes. I owe a lot to them in action scenes. Yamada-san doubled for me. He did some fight scenes instead of me. -Yamada-san acted the human-style of Psychoers in `Sharivan`, so he was bald at first. Exactly.(laughs) He left me strong impression at the shooting of Shaider`s first theatrical version. In this movie there`s a scene where Dai jumped off a building in Marunouchi, and transform in the air. At that time, Yamada-san had the same hairstyle with me, and did double for me. But at the shooting of the jump-off scene, Kaneda-san said : "Shibahara, I want you to double in this scene." Shibahara-san answered : "What!?... I think Yamada will...", "You must do, Shibahara !!". Kaneda-san strongly insisted on Shibahara`s doubling. If you watch this scene, you will see the spectacle stunt where stuntman risked his life. Kaneda-san perfectly understood the skill of each stuntman, and also knew Shibahara-san was better at jump-off stunt than Yamada-san. Yamada-san was chagrined very much. I felt his pride and passion for doubling for Dai. I was moved and also felt an appreciation for him very much. -The scene where Shibahara-san jumped off a building was stunning. Yes. I was happy to be with great people both in physically and spiritually. I really owe a lot of things to them. I got surprised when I saw Shibahara-san in Shaider`s costume jump off a red tower in episode 1. Surprisingly enough, Shibahara-san is acrophobia. He said wearing a mask made his eyesight limited, so he couldn`t see the site below his eyes, which means he didn`t feel any fear. This sense is beyond my understanding.(laughs)
-Surprising story. Who created `Shouketsu` posing? Kaneda-san did. Another posing that was used when Dai transformed in the air was created by Shibahara-san, Yamada-san and me. -As episodes went by, you challenged harder fight scenes, didn`t you? I got desire to do more fight scenes by myself. What I did were like rolling and falling at a quarry in Saitama prefecture, a location site. That is what I remember most as to fight scenes. You know, the ground of the location site was full of rocks not stones, and the rocks had sharp edge. Dai`s blue costume wasn`t thick, so I felt pain constantly. In episode 19 titled `Annie Kiki Ippatsu (Annie in danger)`, I took off the upper shirts for shooting the scene where Dai trained by the waterfall with his upper-half naked. Then Mr.Ogasawara, the director asked to me : "Hey you, how did you get so much scars?" I couldn`t see my back, but he said my back was covered in scars and bruises, and he said it looked so painful that he didn`t feel like filming back shot. I got accustomed to feel pain then, so I didn`t care much about my body, but I got surprised to know my back`s condition. Consequently Yamada-san acted Dai in back shot in this scene. I like this scene of training best especially my expression. -This nice expression could be the result of your hard challenges. I think so. I had a trouble in episode 22 titled `Ningyo ga Yobu Umi no Kai (The Merman Calls the Ocean of Mysteries)` In the scene of transforming, I dived into the ocean, but in the next moment I got a whiplash. I failed to dive smoothly. I got neck pain and couldn`t breathe then I became semiconscious... Thanks to my wet suit I floated and got saved, but I was in serious danger. -Is there any story through the contact with kids? I have one interesting story. One day When I was walking to the shooting site, I saw a newspaper discarded on the street. It`s nothing special, so I kept walking. Then some kids found me and asked me to give my autograph. Unfortunately they didn`t have any paper, so I said to them : "Bring some papers, and I`ll write my autograph." They went for some papers and came back. What they brought was the discarded newspaper that I found on the street just a while ago. Anyway I couldn`t turn down their wishes, so I wrote my autograph. Kids were very pleased, which made me happy.
-Those kids had no bad intention. Your autograph turned the trashed paper into treasures for kids. Surely kids` intent was not malicious. Sometimes I recall that autograph and wonder how they are doing. -How did you feel about approaching final episode? I felt relieved because I was alright physically. I owe my success in acting the leading role for a year to Morinaga, Shibahara-san and Yamada-san in spite of the fact I was a mere actor not an action star while Kenji-san and Watari-san were stuntmen of JAC. Of course I thank everyone but especially those three because we costed our lives and helped each other. Yamada-san is a stunt coordinator in KAMEN RIDER KUUGA with Kaneda-san now. To my big surprise, Ishida Hidenori-san, who was thrid-assistant director back then is chief director of KUGGA. I can`t help feeling the flow of a long years. Compared to a director, I was always with assistant directors on a shooting site. I have many stories about Ishida-san. A long time after finishing filming of SHAIDER, I went to Toei`s studio for shooting of a drama. Then I came across with Ishida-san. He was filming his first movie as a chief director then. I want to visit a shooting site of KUUGA and to meet them.
-Did you meet Ohba-san and Watari-san at final episode (episode 49) for the first time? Yes. I wore Shaider`s costume then for the first time. I was in the costume in this episode including the still picture. Shimizu Akira-san, who was in the suit in close-up taught me how to pose. -It`s not well-known that Tsuburaya-san was in Shaider`s costume in the picture where three space cops were lined up! I hear Tsuburaya-san quit your career as an actor, and you became a manager in Tsuburaya production... I became a manager of Talent Division from this April because I damaged my health last fall, and I thought it`s hard for me to keep acting physically. Talent Division is the section which I asked to be created when I was chosen for Shaider. I thought such section which actors could belong to was needed. I hope young actors like Shigeki Kagemaru and Misato Suzuki get more popularity with the support of my experience. -Lastly please give your message to the fans. I think `Uchuu Keiji` is eternal hero like `Ultraman`. I want to watch the scene where three space cops fight together. I can`t be Shaider any more, but I hope someone will become a successor to this metallic-blue hero! And take care of yourself! This is the message from Hiroshi Tsuburaya, you know. Good health is very important, so pay attention to your body`s feedback. I hope everybody strives for their dreams. And keep checking SciFi Japan for more Space Sheriff coverage to come!