16 moments

1. Birth in Qingdao

   1920-04-01 · Qingdao, Shandong, China

   Mifune was born in Qingdao, then under Japanese occupation in Shandong. This is the starting point of his documented life chronology.

2. Family relocation to Dalian

   1925-01-01 · Dalian, Liaoning, China

   Mifune's family relocated to Dalian, where his father established a new photography studio; Dalian became the principal place of Mifune's youth. The official chronology gives the year but not a month or day.

3. Dalian Junior High School enrollment

   1934-01-01 · Dalian, Liaoning, China

   Mifune entered Dalian Junior High School during his adolescence in the city where he had grown up. The school building is not identified in the source; coordinates represent Dalian.

4. Seventh Flying Squad posting

   1940-01-01 · Manchuria, China

   

   After being drafted, Mifune entered the Seventh Flying Squad of the Manchurian Imperial Army Air Force and was assigned to aerial-photography work. The source identifies Manchuria but not the squadron's specific base; coordinates are a representative point in the region.

5. Stationing at Yokaichi

   1941-01-01 · Yokaichi, Higashiomi, Shiga, Japan

   

   Following transfer from the Eighth Flying Squad's educational department in Manchuria, Mifune was stationed at Yokaichi in Shiga Prefecture. Yokaichi is now part of Higashiomi; coordinates represent the former city center.

6. End of war at Kumanosho base

   1945-01-01 · Kumanosho Airfield area, Jonan, Kumamoto, Japan

   Mifune was stationed at the Kumanosho kamikaze base in Kumamoto Prefecture when Japan's war ended. Coordinates approximate the historic Kumanosho airfield area; the wartime installation no longer survives as a clearly bounded modern site.

7. Toho audition in Tokyo

   1946-06-01 · Toho Studios, Seijo, Setagaya, Tokyo, Japan

   After the war, Mifune went to Toho Studios seeking cinematography work; his misplaced application led to a June new-actor audition and his entry into film. The official chronology states that the interview occurred in June 1946; the studio's modern address is used for the historic studio site.

8. Marriage at Aoyama Gakuin Methodist Church

   1950-02-01 · Aoyama Gakuin Methodist Church, Shibuya, Tokyo, Japan

   Mifune married Sachiko Yoshimine in a Christian ceremony at Aoyama Gakuin Methodist Church. The source gives month-level precision. Coordinates represent the Aoyama Gakuin campus location of the historic church.

9. Volpi Cup ceremony at Venice Film Festival

   1961-01-01 · Venice International Film Festival, Lido di Venezia, Venice, Italy

   

   Mifune was photographed receiving the Volpi Cup during the 22nd Venice International Film Festival, where he was recognized for Yojimbo. The Biennale archive dates the photograph to the festival period, 19 August–2 September 1961; only the year is used because it does not identify the ceremony day.

10. Filming Ánimas Trujano in Tlacolula

    1961-05-01 · Tlacolula de Matamoros, Oaxaca, Mexico

    

    Mifune was photographed during a break in the filming of Ánimas Trujano at Tlacolula de Matamoros, a major overseas acting engagement. The contemporaneous photograph is dated May 1961; no specific day is supplied.

11. Jury service at Moscow International Film Festival

    1973-01-01 · Moscow, Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic, Soviet Union

    Mifune served on the jury of the eighth Moscow International Film Festival, bringing him to Moscow for the event. The official festival archive lists Mifune as a jury member and dates the festival 10–23 July 1973; the specific days of his attendance are not identified.

12. Second Moscow International Film Festival jury

    1977-01-01 · Moscow, Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic, Soviet Union

    Mifune again served on the jury of the Moscow International Film Festival, a second documented professional appearance in the Soviet capital. The official festival archive lists Mifune as a jury member and dates the festival 7–21 July 1977; the specific days of his attendance are not identified.

13. Sakura Festival Parade appearance

    1990-01-01 · San Francisco, California, United States

    Mifune attended the Sakura Festival parade in San Francisco, one of his documented late-career public appearances in the United States. The official biography gives only the year; coordinates represent central San Francisco rather than a parade-route point.

14. Japanese equestrian-archery performance at Chantilly

    1991-01-01 · Chantilly Racecourse, Chantilly, Oise, France

    Mifune participated in a Dainippon Kyuba Kai performance of Japanese archery and equestrian arts at Chantilly Racecourse. The official English biography renders Chantilly as “Chante” and says Paris; coordinates use the identifiable Chantilly Racecourse in Chantilly, near Paris.

15. Ishiro Honda memorial service

    1993-03-06 · Joshoji Kaikan, Setagaya, Tokyo, Japan

    Mifune attended the memorial/funeral gathering for director Ishiro Honda, where he and Akira Kurosawa met again after decades without collaboration. The source places Honda's memorial service at Joshoji Kaikan in Setagaya on 6 March 1993 and states that the funeral reunited Kurosawa and Mifune; coordinates represent Setagaya because the hall's precise historic geolocation was not independently confirmed.

16. Death at Kyorin University Hospital

    1997-12-24 · Kyorin University Hospital, Mitaka, Tokyo, Japan

    Mifune died from multiple organ failure at a hospital in Mitaka, ending a career that had made him one of Japan's most internationally recognized actors. Contemporary Japanese reporting identifies the hospital as Kyorin University Hospital; the official biography identifies only a hospital in Mitaka.