Parents Oppose Marriage with Intense Hostility as Sayuri Yoshinaga Reveals Ordinary Newlywed Life at Home

Sayuri Yoshinaga, reigning as a “great actress” at 79, lost her husband, former Kyodo Television chairman Okada Taro, to gallbladder cancer. He was 94 years old.

 

Sayuri met Okada when she was 19, while he was a director at Fuji TV, and they married nine years later. However, her parents strongly opposed the union. In particular, her mother said:

 

“I have only ever truly wanted to kill one person, Okada Taro, the man who is my second daughter’s fiancé.” 

Her mother opposed the marriage so vehemently that she even wrote about it in her book, Because I’m a Mother, Because I’m a Woman (Rippu Shobo).

She deliberately allowed the media to capture her newlywed life.

Okada’s friends, Fuji TV directors Yosio Chiaki and Hatakeyama Midori, held their wedding at their luxurious home, but Sayuri’s parents were absent from both the wedding and the subsequent intimate reception. Their absence reflected their deep resentment towards the marriage. From her mother’s perspective, it was likely that she felt her precious daughter was being deceived by a man with a history of divorce.

In the early days of her marriage, Sayuri allowed the media a glimpse into her private life.

I once had the opportunity to interview her for a women’s weekly magazine. With a shopping basket in hand, Sayuri presented herself as a “normal housewife.” The photoshoot took place at a supermarket in Tokyo, and she exuded the charm of any newlywed wife doing her evening shopping.

For me, a devoted fan of Sayuri since the film The Town with a Cupola, it was a dreamlike interview. However, after that, she stopped sharing glimpses of her married life.

During her single days, Sayuri lived a glamorous life as a popular actress in a high-end apartment in central Tokyo. However, after marrying Okada, she began to adapt to a lifestyle that matched his income as a salaryman. She chose a more modest apartment and embraced an ordinary married life, cooking meals for Okada without any pretensions.

In the early days of their marriage, Sayuri had a limited cooking repertoire, only able to make fried eggs. Determined to improve, she enrolled in a cooking school, where she learned how to make dashi and fillet fish. She even became capable of handling bank transactions on her own.

 

She devoted herself entirely to household chores, and their marriage continued peacefully without any turbulence.

 

From the hospital where her husband was hospitalized to the filming location.

The public was aware of Sayuri’s parents’ opposition to her marriage. By showcasing her newlywed life, she likely wanted to convey to her parents and the world that “my husband didn’t marry me for money.”

Sayuri reappeared in the media as “Okada’s wife” in 2014 when he suffered a serious illness. She devotedly supported him during his hospital visits, and it was said she even went directly from the hospital to filming locations.

Although there were reports of Okada’s recovery afterward, Sayuri chose not to reveal details about her private life.

Recently, on September 3, she announced Okada’s passing.

The message reads:

 

“My husband, Taro Okada, was diagnosed with gallbladder cancer last December and underwent chemotherapy. Unfortunately, due to metastasis and worsening symptoms, he passed away on September 3 at the age of 94. I believe he had a long and fulfilling life. I was able to rush to the hospital after finishing my work in the countryside and was by his side at the end.”

 

This heartfelt handwritten message has been made public.

 

Having been together for 51 years, the great actress will undoubtedly overcome this sorrow and continue to shine for her fans in the future. Rest in peace.