Obituary: Godzilla Suit Actor Kenpachiro Satsuma Has Passed Away

Japanese actor Kenpachiro Satsuma died earlier today, according to a translated post from Matomedane, from what’s said to be interstitial pneumonia. The 76-year-old actor is best known for portraying various monsters during Godzilla’s Heisei era, including the lead monster himself.

Satsuma was born May 27, 1947 under the name Yasuaki Maeda. He started acting in the 1960s in bit parts for movies like Incident at Blood Pass. In 1971, he made his debut in the monster movie scene with Godzilla vs. Hedorah, where he played the latter monster. He would then go on to be the suit actor for Gigan in Godzilla vs. Gigan the following year, along with 1973's Godzilla vs. Megalon and the tokusatsu series Zone Fighter.

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