Sonny Chiba

Personal Info

Birthday

January 23, 1939

Day of Death

2021-08-19

(82 years old)

Place of Birth

Fukuoka, Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan

Also Known As

Синъити Тиба

Shinichi Chiba

Sadaho Maeda

Sonny Chiba

Biography

Sonny Chiba (born January 23, 1939 - August 19, 2021), also known as Shin'ichi Chiba, was a Japanese actor and martial artist. Chiba was one of the first actors to achieve stardom through his skills in martial arts, initially in Japan and later before an international audience.

Born in Fukuoka, Chiba played a variety of sports in high school, including baseball and volleyball. He also practiced gymnastics and participated at the National Sports Festival of Japan in his third year. When he was a university student, he learned martial arts, earning a black belt in Kyokushin Karate in 1965 and later receiving a fourth degree in 1984.