Sayonara, Miyoshi Umeki, 78
Posted: Thursday, September 6th, 2007 11:14 amLICKING, Missouri (AP) — Actress Miyoshi Umeki, who won an Oscar for her performance as the doomed wife of an American serviceman in “Sayonara” and later starred in the Broadway musical “Flower Drum Song,” has died of cancer. She was 78.
The Japanese-born actress, the first Asian performer to win an Oscar, died August 28 at Licking nursing home, said Michael Hood, her son. …
Umeki also portrayed Mrs. Livingston, the housekeeper, in the ABC series, “The Courtship of Eddie’s Father” (1969-1972), which starred Bill Bixby and Brandon Cruz. In a 1969 Washington Post interview, Bixby called her “the best actress I’ve ever worked with.”
Among her other movies were “Cry for Happy” (1961), “The Horizontal Lieutenant” (1962) and “A Girl Named Tamiko” (1962). … Read full obituary
