Megumi Odaka

Megumi Odaka
Born	May 9, 1972 (1972-05-09) (age 39) Kanagawa, Japan
Occupation	Actress, Seiyū, Singer
Years active	1984 - 1998

Megumi Odaka (小高恵美, Odaka Megumi^?) started her career in 1984 as a voice-actress (seiyū) for the animation-TV-Series Fushigi na koala Blinky aka Noozles (USA) aka The Wondrous Koala Blinky (USA), where she played the character Sandy Brown. In 1987 she started her film career at Toho with the movie "Taketori Monogatari" aka "Princess from the Moon", where she played the role of the blind girl Akeno along with Yasuko Sawaguchi, who played Kaguya, the princess. Then she starred as Asuka along with Natsuki Ozawa and Hikari Ishida in the TV series Hana no Asuka-gumi aka "Radiant Asuka Class" (1988), based on a manga series about a 14 year old delinquent girl. Her next role was in the NHK TV-Series "Seishun kazoku" ("Youth Family") (1989).

After she won the "TOHO Cinderella Contest" in 1987, where she took place with Yasuko Sawaguchi, she landed the role of Miki Saegusa in Godzilla vs. Biollante in 1989. At this time she was a second year high school student and was first afraid of the Godzilla costume. But she quickly befriended suit-actor Kenpachiro Satsuma. However, TOHO was impressed with her acting skills and she also played Miki Saegusa in the following Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah and the rest of the Heisei Series: Godzilla vs. Mothra, Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla II, Godzilla vs. SpaceGodzilla and Godzilla vs. Destoroyah. She won a Japanese Academy Award for "Rookie of the year" for her performance in "Princess from the Moon" in 1988, among others.^[1]

She was one of the few actors to play the same role in more than one original Japanese release of a Godzilla film (Takashi Shimura played Dr. Kyouhei Yamane in the first two films, Raymond Burr reprised his role as Steve Martin in the edited American releases Godzilla, King of the Monsters! and Godzilla 1985, and finally Momoko Kochi who portrayed Emiko Yamane on the original 1954 Godzilla film reprised her role in a cameo appearance in Godzilla vs. Destoroyah).

At the end of the Heisei Series she said: "He (actor Akira Takarada) was in the first Godzilla nearly 40 years ago, before I was even born. I want to be like him at that age--if Toho is still making Godzilla movies then, I`d like to come back and appear in them as Miki Saegusa."

Megumi was also a singer and released several singles, two videos, two photobooks and the two albums Milky Cotton (1988) and Powder Snow (1989). She also acted in several Live Stage Productions such as "Anne no aijou" (or "Anne no ai") aka "Anne's Love" or "Anne's Affection" in 1991, "Kiki's Delivery Service" in 1995,^[2] "Peter Pan" in 1996^[3] and "Yana no ue no Violinjiki" ("Violin Player on top of the Roof" or "Fiddler on the Roof") in 1994, 1996 and 1998.

Megumi's last noticeable appearance was at G-Fest 2000. The last known was on 25 April 2001, which can be seen here: http://www.geocities.co.jp/MusicStar-Drum/5154/yubin.html

When Megumi was supposed to perform in the stageplay "The bird of fire", her physical condition was bad. She went sick for a time, but she's supposed to be better now. Megumi left the Toho-Office and actually retired, although she didn't carry it out properly.

Filmography

• Princess from the Moon (OT: Taketori Monogatari) (1987)
• Hana no Asuka-gumi (1988) (TV-Series)
• Seishun kazoku (1989) (TV-Series)
• Hey! Agari icchou. (1989) (TV-Series)
• Godzilla vs. Biollante (1989)
• Ikenai jiyoshikou monogatari (1990) (TV-Series)
• Gekai arimori saeko (1990) (TV-Series) (Episode 5)
• Genji monogatari ue no Makishita no kan (1990) (TV-Series)
• Gogeza monogatari (1991)
• Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah (1991)
• Anata dake mienai (1992) (TV-Series)
• Yonimo kimyouna monogatari - Haru no tokubetsu-hen (1992) (TV-Series)
• Ude ni oboe ari 2 (1992) (TV-Series) (Episode 5)
• Oushin doctor jiken no Karte (1992) (TV-Series) (Episode 9)
• Kaseifu wa mita! (1992) (TV-Series) (Episode 11)
• Godzilla vs. Mothra (1992)
• Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla II (1993)
• Hit the Goal! (OT: Shoot!) (1994)
• Godzilla vs. SpaceGodzilla (1994)
• Godzilla vs. Destoroyah (1995)
• Furuhata ninzaburou (1996) (TV-Series) (2nd Season - Episode 14)
• Samurai tantei jiken (1997) (TV-Series) (Episode 14)
• Hakui no futari (1998) (TV-Series)
• Hamidashi Keiji Jounetsu kei (2000) (TV-Series) (4th Series - Episode 17)

Discography

• Soushun no Eki / Doushite desu ka (21.03.1988) (single)
• Blue Wind / Tsuna no Jiki (06.07.1988) (single)
• Milky Cotton (07.09.1988) (album)
• Autabi Anata o Suki ni naru / Koi ga Samui November (21.11.1988) (single)
• Jounetsu no Sasayaki / Harukaze Memory (21.03.1989) (single)
• Shumatsu no Cinderella tachi / Stance (30.08.1989) (single)
• Powder Snow (29.11.1989) (album)
• Ima, Kaze no Naka de / Umi o Futari jime (21.02.1991) (single)
• Odaka Megumi Best (aka: Emi Odaka Best) (21.08.2002) (best-of album)

Photobooks

• Whisper / Sasayaki (30.03.1989) (ISBN 4-8470-2106-1)
• TRY (05.11.1989) (ISBN 4-7648-1624-5)

References

1. ^ Japanese Academy Awards of 1988 (in Japanese)
2. ^ http://www.cat-group.co.jp/history/1995.html
3. ^ http://www.cat-group.co.jp/history/1996.html

External links

• Megumi Odaka Fan Site
• Miki Saegusa Shrine
  • (Japanese) Megumi Odaka Fansite
• Encyclopedia Idollica, a 1980s J-pop idol resource
• Megumi Odaka at the Internet Movie Database (incomplete and partly incorrect)
• Megumi Odaka at the Japanese Movie Database (Japanese) (incomplete)

Persondata
Name	Odaka, Megumi
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	1972-05-09
Place of birth	Kanagawa, Japan
Date of death
Place of death