I'll be surprised if her name strikes a bell with anyone today. I would be hard put to place her anywhere myself if not for this vinyl album that my father owned. It was a collection of popular American songs performed by Miyoshi in her native Japanese tongue. My favourites from the album: How Deep Is The Ocean, Hanna Ko San, Can't Help Lovin' Dat Man, S'Wonderful and of course, Sayonara.
(I just saw the CD version of this album - some more, it was a used copy - being offered for sale on Amazon.com for an astounding US$249.99)
Miyoshi was born in Hokaido on 28 May 1929 and became the first Asian to win an Academy Award for Sayonara in 1957. If you remember the TV series The Courtship of Eddie's Father, you'll remember her as the housekeeper in the show.Sayonara was a best-selling novel by James A. Michener and was about forbidden romance between U.S. servicemen and Japanese women during the Korean War. Miyoki's character in the movie married an Air Force sergeant and the relationship led to his persecution and their double suicide. She won an Oscar for this role.
She also played a Chinese mail-order "picture bride" Mei Li in Flower Drum Song, both on stage and in the film version. She withdrew from public view after ending her three-year run in The Courtship of Eddie's Father.
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