Sab Shimono facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Sab Shimono
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Born |
Saburo Shimono
July 31, 1937 Sacramento, California, U.S.
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Nationality | American |
Education | University of California, Berkeley |
Occupation | Actor |
Years active | 1962–present |
Spouse(s) |
Steve Alden Nelson
(m. 2008) |
Saburo Shimono, known to many as Sab Shimono, is an American actor with Japanese heritage. He was born on July 31, 1937. Sab began his acting journey on stage, performing in famous Broadway musicals like Mame and Pacific Overtures. He has also acted in many movies and TV shows, playing different kinds of characters. Some of his well-known roles are in films like Midway and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles III, and TV shows such as Jackie Chan Adventures and Samurai Jack.
Contents
Early Life and School
Sab Shimono was born and grew up in Sacramento, California. His parents, Edith Mary and Masauchi Shimono, owned a restaurant.
During World War II, a difficult time for many, Sab and his family were sent to special camps called internment camps. This happened because of a government order called Executive Order 9066. They lived at the Tule Lake War Relocation Center and the Granada War Relocation Center.
After the war, Sab went to Sacramento High School. Later, he studied at the University of California, Berkeley.
Acting Career
Sab Shimono has had a long and successful acting career. He has performed on Broadway and in many regional theaters. These include the American Conservatory Theater and Berkeley Repertory Theatre in San Francisco.
Stage Performances
In 1966, Sab played the role of Ito in the popular Broadway musical Mame. He also appeared in Lovely Ladies, Kind Gentlemen (1970) and The Chickencoop Chinaman (1972). A big role for him was playing Manjiro in Stephen Sondheim's Pacific Overtures in 1976. He even returned to play Lord Abe in a new version of Pacific Overtures in 2004. Sab was also nominated for an award for his acting in a play called The Wash. In 2010, he was in the first-ever performance of No-No Boy, a play based on a famous novel. He often works with theater groups like the East West Players and South Coast Repertory.
Film Roles
Sab has been in many movies. In the 1976 film Midway, he played Lt. Tomonaga. He was Saito in the 1986 comedy Gung Ho. In 1990, he appeared in Presumed Innocent as the coroner "Painless" Kumagai. Kids might remember him as Lord Norinaga in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles III (1993). He also played Dr. Tam in The Shadow (1994). Later, he was in Old Dogs (2009) with John Travolta and Robin Williams, playing a Japanese billionaire. Sab also lent his voice to the character Subotai in the 1982 movie Conan the Barbarian.
Television Appearances
On television, Sab Shimono has voiced many characters that kids might know. He was the voice of Uncle Chan, an antique-shop owner and Chi Wizard, in the cartoon series Jackie Chan Adventures. He also voiced the older version of the Emperor (Jack's father) in Samurai Jack. Fans of Avatar: The Last Airbender will recognize his voice as Airbending Master Monk Gyatso and Master Yu. He also voiced characters like Mister Sparkle and Master Sushi Chef on The Simpsons. More recently, he was Mr. Murakami on the 2012 Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles series. Sab has also appeared in live-action TV shows like M*A*S*H and Two and a Half Men.
Theater Credits
Year | Title | Role | Company | Notes |
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1964 | Flower Drum Song | Wang Ta | Melody Fair Theatre | |
1965 | South Pacific | Henry | New York City Center | |
1966-68 | Mame | Ito (original cast) | The Shubert Organization | |
1968 | Mame (West Coast) | Ito (replacement) | The Shubert Organization | |
1968-70 | Mame | Ito (replacement) | The Shubert Organization | |
1970-71 | Lovely Ladies, Kind Gentlemen | Ancient Man, Mr. Keora, Okinawan, Mr. Oshira (understudy) | Majestic Theatre | |
1972 | The Chickencoop Chinaman | Kenji | The American Place Theatre | |
1973 | Othello | The Clown | Amas Musical Theatre | |
1973-75 | Santa Anita '42 | Commissioner, Michael | Playwrights Horizons Company | |
1974 | Ride the Winds | Yamada | Majestic Theatre | |
1976 | Pacific Overtures | Manjiro, Ensemble Member | The Shubert Organization | |
1978 | Barbary Coast | Captain Chung | Orpheum Theatre | LA Weekly Theater Award for Outstanding Performance in a Leading Role |
1980 | The Music Lessons | Kaoru Kawaguchi | The Public Theater | |
1983 | Mame | Ito | Gershwin Theatre | |
1985-86 | As the Crow Flies | P.K. | Los Angeles Theatre Center | |
The Wash | Sadao | Mark Taper Forum | ||
1988-89 | Yankee Dawg You Die | Vincent Chang | Playwrights Horizons | Drama-Logue Award |
1990-91 | The Wash | Nobu Matsumoto | Manhattan Theatre Club | Nominated- Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actor in a Play |
1995-96 | Ballad of Yachiyo | Papa | South Coast Repertory | |
1998 | Red | Hua | Intiman Theatre | |
2000 | Follies | Ben | East West Players | |
2001 | Yankee Dawg You Die | Vincent Chang | ||
2002 | Sisters Matsumoto | Hideo | ||
2003 | The Nisei Widows Club | Tak | ||
2004 | The Wind Cries Mary | Dr. Nakada | ||
2004-05 | Pacific Overtures | Lord Abe | Roundabout Theatre Company | |
2008 | The Pleasure of His Company | Toi | Old Globe Theatre | |
2008 | A Majority of One | Koichi Asano | West Coast Jewish Theatre | |
2010 | No-No Boy | Pa | Miles Memorial Playhouse | |
2011 | Wrinkles | Grandpa Harry | East West Players | |
2014 | The Orphan of Zhao | Gongsun Chujiu, Ensemble Member | American Conservatory Theater | |
2015 | tokyo fish story | Koji | South Coast Repertory | |
2016 | Aubergine | Mr. Park | Berkeley Repertory Theatre | |
2019 | South Coast Repertory |
Filmography
Film
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1970 | Loving | Byron | |
1971 | The Hospital | Operating Room Staff Member | Uncredited |
1972 | Parades | Togo | |
1976 | Midway | Lt. Joichi Tomonaga | |
1978 | Rabbit Test | Chinese Leader | |
1981 | Nice Dreams | Oriental Bus Boy | |
1982 | Conan the Barbarian | Subutai | Voice, uncredited |
The Challenge | Toshio Yoshida | ||
1983 | Where the Toys Come From | Kenji the Designer | |
1986 | Gung Ho | Saito | |
1987 | Blind Date | Mr. Yakamoto | |
1988 | The Wash | Sadao | |
1990 | Presumed Innocent | Dr. "Painless" Kumagai | |
Come See the Paradise | Hiroshi Kawamura | ||
1993 | Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles III | Lord Norinaga | |
Suture | Dr. Max Shinoda | ||
1994 | 3 Ninjas Kick Back | Koga | |
Murder Between Friends | Dr. Lee | ||
The Shadow | Dr. Roy Tam | ||
1995 | Waterworld | Elder | |
1996 | Zoo Rush 2: Destination New York | Akira the forest cobra | Voice |
1997 | Paradise Road | Col. Hirota | |
1998 | The Big Hit | Jiro Nishi | |
1999 | Life Tastes Good | Harry Sado | |
2000 | Luminarias | Lu's Father | |
2001 | Ice Planet | Karteez A. Rumla | |
2003 | Robot Stories | John | Segment: "Clay" |
2004 | Worlds Apart | Teijo | |
2006 | Americanese | Wood Ding | |
Southland Tales | Hideo Takehashi | ||
2008 | The Sensei | Taki Nakano | |
2009 | Scooby-Doo! and the Samurai Sword | Takagawa | Voice, direct-to-video |
Old Dogs | Yoshiro Nishamura | ||
2011 | The Arcadian | Moto | |
2013 | Yellow Face | HYH | |
2016 | The Watcher | Wendell |
Television
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
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1962 | Armstrong Circle Theatre | Father Chen | Episode: "The Cross and the Dragon" |
1964 | East Side/West Side | Sam | Episode: "If Your Grandmother Had Wheels" |
1967 | Coronet Blue | Student | Episode: "Tomoyo" |
1973 | Pueblo | Capt. Rhee | Television film |
1976 | Pacific Overtures | Manjiro, Ensemble Member | |
1977 | Baa Baa Black Sheep | Japanese Bomber Commander | Episode: "Divine Wind" |
1977–78 | The Krofft Supershow | Huli | Main cast |
1978 | And the Soul Shall Dance | Murata | Television film |
1978,
1980 |
M*A*S*H | Kwang, Jin | 2 episodes |
1979 | How the West Was Won | Cook | Episode: "The Gunfighter" |
Mandrake | Ho | Television film | |
When Hell Was in Session | Cao | ||
1980,
1981 |
Quincy, M.E. | Ito, Governor | 3 episodes |
1981 | The Waltons | Cpl. Kiyomo | Episode: "The Last Ten Days" |
Palmerstown, U.S.A. | Yeung-Lee | Episode: "Epidemic" | |
1982 | Bring 'Em Back Alive | Nakamoto | Episode: "Seven Keys to Singapore" |
Cagney & Lacey | Cunningham | Episode: "One of Our Own" | |
Hart to Hart | Koji | Episode: "Rich and Hartless" | |
Modesty Blaise | Weng | Television film | |
1982,
1986 |
Remington Steele | Kenji Ito, Sam Kuromatsu | 2 episodes |
1983 | Knight Rider | Hito Osaka | Episode: "Give Me Liberty... or Give Me Death" |
Tales of the Gold Monkey | Gen. Anago | Episode: "Mourning Becomes Matuka" | |
1984 | Call to Glory | Diem | Episode: "Go/No Go" |
Santa Barbara | Caretaker | Episode #1.58 | |
1985 | Airwolf | Ko | Episode: "The American Dream" |
Street Hawk | Mr. Chen | Episode: "Chinatown Memories" | |
Hotel | Inspector James Matsuoka | Episode: "Identities" | |
1986 | Our House | Veterinarian | Episode: "Choices" |
A Year in the Life | Kwan | Miniseries; 1 episode | |
1986–87 | Gung Ho | Saito | 9 episodes |
1988 | Max Headroom | Ped Xing | Episode: "Neurostim" |
1989 | Knots Landing | Pharmacist | 2 episodes |
1990 | Newhart | Suntara | Episode: "The Last Newhart" |
Hiroshima: Out of the Ashes | Shizuo | Television film | |
Dear John | Charlie Moura | Episode: "Hot Lips Lacey" | |
1991 | Plymouth | Hiro | Television film |
American Playhouse | Takahashi Hosoume | Episode: "Hot Summer Winds" | |
1991,
1997 |
The Simpsons | Master Chef, Mr. Sparkle | Voice, 2 episodes |
1992 | Raven | Mr. Koyosaka | Episode: "The Death of Sheila" |
1993 | Silent Cries | Natsume | Television film |
1994 | All-American Girl | Sammy | Episode: "Yung at Heart" |
The X-Files | Gung Bituen | Episode: "Excelsis Dei" | |
1996 | The Steve Harvey Show | Bobby Wong | Episode: "Loose Lips Sink Friendships" |
Seinfeld | Executive No. 1 | Episode: "The Checks" | |
ER | Dr. Richard Okida | Episode: "No Brain, No Gain" | |
1999 | Jack & Jill | Mr. Tanaka | Episode: "The Awful Truth" |
2000–05 | Jackie Chan Adventures | Uncle Chan | Voice, main role |
2001–17 | Samurai Jack | The Emperor | Voice, 5 episodes |
2006 | Justice League Unlimited | Monk | Voice, episode: "Dead Reckoning" |
Popcorn Zen | Kan Ogawa | Episode #2.1 | |
2005–07 | Avatar: The Last Airbender | Monk Gyatso, Master Yu | Voice, 6 episodes |
2007 | Two and a Half Men | Hiroshi | Episode: "Don't Worry, Speed Racer" |
Clark and Michael | Man at Driving Range | 2 episodes | |
Legion of Super Heroes | K3NT | Voice, episode: "The Man from the Edge of Tomorrow" | |
Ben 10: Race Against Time | Old Man | Television film | |
2008 | Samurai Girl | Noriyuki | Miniseries; 2 episodes |
2010 | The Boondocks | Mr. Long Dou | Voice, episode: "The Red Ball" |
Mad Men | Ichiro Kamura | Episode: "The Chrysanthemum and the Sword" | |
2011–12 | Hawaii Five-0 | Keako Kelly | 3 episodes |
2015 | Longmire | Francis Igawa | Episode: "War Eagle" |
2012–15 | Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles | Mr. Murakami | Voice, 4 episodes |
2016 | Flaked | Wild Bill | Episode: "Palms" |
Legends of Tomorrow | Ichiro Yamashiro | Episode: "Shogun" | |
2017 | The Blacklist | Daniel Nakamoto | Episode: "Dembe Zuma (No. 10)" |
Ave 43 | Dr. Dye | Web series; 4 episodes | |
2017-18 | Stretch Armstrong and the Flex Fighters | Grandpa Park | Voice, recurring role (seasons 1 and 2) |
2019 | The Terror | Kazu | Episode: "Into the Afterlife" |
2023 | Magnum P.I. | George Nakamura | Episode: "Appetite for Danger" |
Video Games
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
2009 | Indiana Jones and the Staff of Kings | Archie Tan |