Veteran actor Kodama Kiyoshi passed away around midnight on May 16th from stomach cancer.

The 77-year-old was diagnosed with stomach cancer in late February and entered the hospital in March to receive treatment. As tokyohive reported early in April, the actor had cancelled his TV appearances for health reasons. Unfortunately, the cancer later spread to his liver, and he passed away after his condition took a sudden turn for the worse last weekend.

Kodama's agency commented, "He worked hard until the end so that he could come back to work. Fans and people in the industry have given (him) warm words of encouragement until now, and we would like to thank (them) from the heart."

The actor's wake will be held on the 20th, and the funeral service on the 21st.

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Kodama Kiyoshi's profile:

Real name: Kitagawa Kiyoshi. Kodama was born in Tokyo in 1934 and became an actor through Toho Eiga's movie audition. In later years, he became an indispensable figure in television dramas, appearing in works like "Arigato" and "HERO". In the 2010 historical drama "Ryomaden", Kodama portrayed the father of the protagonist Sakamoto Ryoma (played by Fukuyama Masaharu). He was also known as an avid reader.

Source + Photo: Oricon