LINDA BEECH & Her Japanese TV Series

[Peter Grilli]

Markus:

I believe the TV sitcom with Linda Beech began a bit earlier than the
1960s -- probably in the late 1950s.  I was going to high school in Tokyo
then (I graduated HS in 1959) and Linda and the program were already quite
popular then.
My parents and I knew Linda Beech and her husband Keyes Beech slightly in
the mid- to late-1950s.  He was then a correspondent in Asia, based in
Tokyo, for the Chicago Tribune.  After retiring in the 1960s or early 1970s,
he and Linda moved to Hawaii, as I recall.  If they are still alive, I would
guess that they're in Hawaii.

I can't remember the exact name of the program, however.  It was something
like "Aoi Me no Tomodachi, Rinda-san"  or "Aoi Me de Mita Nippon!" and -- as
I recall -- it cast Linda as a lively Japanese-speaking blonde blue-eyed
American with many Japanese friends.  I remember Linda as tall, willowy,
very blonde, very blue-eyed, very beautiful -- about as "tenkei-teki" an
American beauty as possible!

Linda Beech became something of an icon in Japan as a result of the program.
I also remember a comment she made in the Asahi Shimbun -- years later --
about her experience of the Ampo demonstrations in 1960 and the years
following.  She said that even though the demonstrators looked fierce and
were shouting loud anti-American slogans, she never felt that they had
anything against American people or American culture.  As she walked along
the streets of Tokyo, demonstrators would wave to her and call out
cheerfully "Hi, Linda-san!"  as though they were her friends.

Peter

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Peter M. Grilli
President, Japan Society of Boston
One Milk Street,  Boston, MA 02109
Tel:  617-451-0726
Fax: 617-451-1191
E-mail:  grilli at us-japan.org



-----Original Message-----
From: owner-KineJapan at lists.acs.ohio-state.edu
[mailto:owner-KineJapan at lists.acs.ohio-state.edu]On Behalf Of Mark
Nornes
Sent: Wednesday, March 26, 2003 7:41 AM
To: KineJapan at lists.acs.ohio-state.edu
Subject: Fwd: Japanese TV Series


Anybody know this?

Markus




Begin forwarded message:

> From: Laurie Carreira <lcarreira at Homevision.com>
> Date: Tue Mar 25, 2003  3:59:56  PM US/Eastern
> To: "'amnornes at umich.edu'" <amnornes at umich.edu>
> Subject: Japanese TV Series
>
> Hello,
>
> I don't know if you would be able to help with this or not, but I am
> trying
> to find out the name of a Japanese sitcom that aired in the early 60's
> starring an American actress named Linda Beech.  I am working on the
> DVD
> release of the feature film Home Movie in which Linda also appears and
> we
> would love to track down her Japanese sitcom for our supplemental
> section.
> If you have any ideas for tracking this down I'd appreciate it.
>
> Thank you,
>
> Laurie Carreira
>
> Home Vision Entertainment
> 4423 N. Ravenswood
> Chicago, IL 60640
> T: 773.878.2600 x246
> F: 773.878.8406
> lcarreira at homevision.com