Photo/Illutration Actor Kunie Tanaka in a 2001 photo (Asahi Shimbun file photo)

Playing the role of a clumsy man was second nature to actor Kunie Tanaka, who died on March 24 at age 88.

To my mind, the most conspicuous example of that was in his portrayal of Ino-san, a character in a movie titled "Gakko" (School).

Over 50 and illiterate, Ino-san learns to read and write at a night school that offers junior high school education.

He falls in love with his teacher, played by Keiko Takeshita, and tries to express his feelings to her in a postcard he writes for the first time in his life: "Please be my bride. If you do, I will study every evening ..."

To make sure his handwriting is nice and neat, he uses a ruler, and takes one week to complete the task.

It must have been his extraordinary talent that made me almost forget he was acting.

From early in his career, he came to be known as a highly versatile supporting actor.

His biggest break came with "Kita no Kuni kara" (From the north country), a TV serial drama series that began airing in 1981.

But the director told him, "Kuni-san, you think too hard, trying to act this way and that way, and you end up stifling your true power of expression."

Tanaka understood the need to pare down frills. The result was his performance in the lead role of Goro Kuroita, a man who leaves behind his life in the big city following his wife's disappearance from home and returns to his hometown in Furano, Hokkaido, with his two school-age children.

The episodes revolve around Goro's struggles as a father, far from the conveniences of modern urban life.

He is pathetically clumsy and unglamorous. But that's quite OK, which was what I learned by watching Goro in the series.

For some movie fans, Tanaka was the archrival of a character played by a hunky young actor. For others, he was a sleazy gangster.

Tanaka was a solid, versatile presence throughout his career.

"Some actors have their moment of brilliance, but someone like me doesn't even know how to shine," he once told a weekly magazine in an interview. "The only thing I can do is to remain a long-distance runner."

Tanaka was never flashy. But throughout the extra-long distance he ran to the end, the light he emitted was always strong and powerful.

--The Asahi Shimbun, April 7

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Vox Populi, Vox Dei is a popular daily column that takes up a wide range of topics, including culture, arts and social trends and developments. Written by veteran Asahi Shimbun writers, the column provides useful perspectives on and insights into contemporary Japan and its culture.

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