Kataoka Kamezo, 64-Year-Old Kabuki Actor, Dies in Tokyo Fire

The Yomiuri Shimbun

15:24 JST, November 24, 2025

Kabuki actor Kataoka Kamezo, 64, died in a fire in Adachi Ward, Tokyo, on Monday.

The fire broke out around 4 a.m. at a three-story building that contains a sweets factory and a house, burning approximately 30 square meters of the third-floor residential section.

Two men including Kataoka were rescued and transported to the hospital, but Kataoka died shortly after. The other man is said to be conscious.

According to the Metropolitan Police Department, the residence is home to brothers in their 60s. Kataoka was an acquaintance of the younger brother.

His acting prowess, which enabled him to portray a wide range of roles from villains to comic characters, was his hallmark, and he actively appeared in new kabuki productions.