Harold Sakata

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Olympic medal record
Men's Weightlifting
Silver	1948 London	Light-heavyweight

Toshiyuki "Harold" Sakata (July 1, 1920 – July 29, 1982) was a Japanese American film actor most famous for his role as the villain "Oddjob" in the James Bond film Goldfinger.

[edit] Career

Toshiyuki Sakata was born on July 1, 1920 in Holualoa, Hawaii, of Japanese descent; when he moved to mainland America he began to go by the more Western name "Harold." At the age of eighteen, he only weighed 113 lb (51 kg) at a height of 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m). Wanting to "look as good as the other guys", he started lifting weights. He spent his early life training as a weightlifter and won a silver medal for the United States at the 1948 Summer Olympics in London, lifting a total of 410 Kg in the Heavyweight division. He also did a stint as a professional wrestler under the name Tosh Togo from the early 1950s until the early 1960s, becoming World Champion. He never lost a fight, always winning. Sakata introduced the legendary Rikidozan (who eventually became known as the "Father of Puroresu") into the world of professional wrestling.

Bond producers Harry Saltzman and Albert Broccoli took notice of Sakata because his heavy build--he stood 5 ft 9 in and weighed 284 lb (129 kg)--which when coupled with his intimidating gaze, made him the perfect choice for the part of Oddjob. He had no acting background at all, but the character was mute and required little theatrical skill.

As Oddjob, he was bodyguard to Bond villain Auric Goldfinger and his sharpened, steel-brimmed bowler hat became a famous and much-parodied trademark of the Bond series. He appeared in several other movies in similar roles and took on "Oddjob" as a middle name.

While filming Oddjob's death scene, Harold got his hand badly burned, but held on until he heard director Guy Hamilton say "Cut".

He also appeared in a series of TV commercials for cough syrup in the 1970's. The ad showed Sakata demolishing his house and frightening his family as the cough spasms grew worse and worse. The ad premise was, of course, that a spoonful of the stuff would quiet the worst of coughs.

Sakata died on July 29, 1982 in Honolulu, Hawaii, of cancer.

[edit] Pro Wrestling Championships

• 1-Time NWA World Tag Team Champion (Los Angeles version) (with Wild Red Berry)
• 1-Time NWA Los Angeles International Television Tag Team Champion (with Wild Red Berry)
• 2-Time NWA Pacific Northwest Tag Team Champion (with Toi Yamamoto)
• 1-Time Canadian Tag Team Champion
• 1-Time NWA Hawaii Heavyweight Champion
• 1-Time NWA Hawaii Tag Team Champion (with King Curtis Iaukea)
• 1-Time NWA Texas Heavyweight Champion

[edit] External links

• Harold Sakata at the Internet Movie Database
• [1] Harold Sakata: Olympic Weightlifter and Professional Wrestler