Tōru Ōhira

Tōru Ōhira (大平 透, Ōhira Tōru, September 29, 1929 – April 12, 2016) was a Japanese narrator and voice actor from the Tokyo Metropolitan Area. He was the founder of Ōhira Production and was also attached to 81 Produce.

Tōru Ōhira
大平 透
Born(1929-09-29)September 29, 1929[1]
Tokyo, Japan
DiedApril 12, 2016(2016-04-12) (aged 86)[2]
Occupation
  • Narrator
  • voice actor
Years active1952–2015

One of his best-known roles was the dub voice of Darth Vader in Star Wars, on the series' home video releases and playing the title character Moguro Fukuzō in the original The Laughing Salesman. He was also known for his many narration roles, most notably in the Super Sentai series.

Overview

Ōhira was a very influential figure in the dubbing industry during the Shōwa period.

After graduating from Tokyo Metropolitan University Jōnan Senior High School (in which he was also the supervisor of the school's volleyball team), he went on to graduate from the Meiji University Department of Political Science and Economics. In 1954, he joined the Nippon Broadcasting System, in which he became an announcer and producer. In 1955, with the opening of the Tokyo Broadcasting System, he enlisted in its theatrical company. He left the company in 1958 to become a voice artist.

His breakthrough performance was the dubbing voice of Darth Vader in the Star Wars series. He reprised this role for Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith and a crossover appearance in Soulcalibur IV- notable because the game was originally in Japanese, meaning that Ōhira was Vader's "original" voice in the game, unlike with the films. In addition, he was usually cast in either astringent villain roles or gag characters, such as Pete in Disney cartoons.

He was also a close friend of Kyosen Ōhashi, and the mentor of Shirō Yasutomi.

On April 12, 2016, Ōhira died from pneumonia at the age of 86. As his last will, he requested Tesshō Genda to replace him as the voice of Moguro Fukuzō.

Filmography

Television animation

Theatrical animation

Video games
YearTitleRoleConsoleSource
2001Sakura Taisen 3 ~Pari wa Moeteiru ka?~Duke Calmar[4]
2001Stupid InvadersGorgious KlatooDreamcast, Microsoft Windows[5]
2002Space Channel 5: Part 2President PeaceDreamcast, PlayStation 2, Xbox Live Arcade, PlayStation Network, Steam, Microsoft Windows[5]
2002Kingdom HeartsMayor of Halloween TownPlayStation 2[5]
2005Kingdom Hearts IIPete, Mayor of Halloween Town[4]
2008Soulcalibur IVDarth VaderPlayStation 3, Xbox 360[5]
2008Tatsunoko vs. Capcom: Cross Generation of HeroesHakushon Daimaō[4]
2009Kingdom Hearts Re:CodedPete[4]
2010Kingdom Hearts Birth by SleepPetePlayStation Portable[5]
2012Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop DistancePete, JuliusNintendo 3DS[5]

Tokusatsu

Dubbing roles

Live-action

Animation

References
  1. "giantmonstermovies.com".
  2. "喪黒福造・ハクション大魔王…大平透さん死去". Yomiuri Shimbun.
  3. Doi, Hitoshi. "Search results for "大平 透" in ALL database". Hitoshi Doi's Seiyuu Database. Retrieved July 20, 2019.
  4. "声優さん出演リスト 個別表示：銀河万丈(Toru Ohira)" [Voice actor's appearance list individual display: Tooru Oohira]. Voice Artist Database (in Japanese). GamePlaza-HARUKA-. Retrieved July 20, 2019.
  5. "Toru Ohira - 44 Character Images | Behind The Voice Actors". behindthevoiceactors.com. Check mark indicates role has been confirmed using screenshots of closing credits and other reliable sources.
  6. "ネバーエンディング・ストーリー＜インターナショナル版HDニューマスター＞ ネバーエンディング・ストーリー＜エクステンデッド版ＨＤニューマスター＞". Zeque Productions. Retrieved July 16, 2019.
  7. "お熱いのがお好き（１９５９）". Star Channel. Retrieved October 2, 2019.
  8. "ザ・シンプソンズ　ＭＯＶＩＥ［吹］". Star Channel. Retrieved July 23, 2019.
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