Yuki Saito (Japanese: 斉藤 由貴, romanized: Saitō Yuki; born September 10, 1966, in Minami-ku, Yokohama, Kanagawa Prefecture) is a Japanese actress, singer and narrator.[1][2][3] She attended Kanagawa Prefectural Shimizugaoka High School (now Yokohama Seiryo Sogo High School).[1]
She is well known in Japan for being a member of LDS Church,[3] as she refuses to work on Sundays.[4] Saito used a fake cigarette while filming the 1986 film Koisuru Onnatachi due to her beliefs.[4]
In 1985, after making her singing debut with her single Sotsugyō and her debut album, Axia, she was cast in the lead role of Saki Asamiya in the first Sukeban Deka television drama series.[1][2] She later revisited that story by playing Saki's mother in the 2006 movie, Yo-Yo Girl Cop. She has starred in and been cast in many television and film dramas and comedies, and has also done voice-over narration work.
Saito has released 21 singles and 13 original albums. She has also released a live album, eight "best of" compilation albums, and has been featured on five tribute albums where she covered songs by The Carpenters, songs from Walt Disney films, and others.
Her father owns an obi shop in Yokohama,[5] and her brother is the actor Ryūji Saitō.[2]
Career
While attending high school in 1984, Saito won the third annual "Miss Magazine" Grand Prix contest run by Kodansha in Weekly Shōnen Magazine.[1][2] She made her singing debut in 1985 with her single release Sotsugyō[1][2] and her debut album, Axia. That same year, Saito took the leading role in Sukeban Deka,[1][2] a TV series following the exploits of Saki Asamiya, a high school delinquent who is pressed into service as a yo-yo-wielding undercover police officer sent to a high school known for its vicious gangs.
She wrote a commentary on Yasutaka Tsutsui's work Kyakusō Gijitsu in 1989. Saito married salaryman Nobuyasu Isarai in 1994,[2] and they have one son and two daughters, including Rin Mizushima.[8] While she still occasionally takes acting roles, she spends most of her time with her family. During the 1990s, Saito began moving from the role of idol star to doing more acting in movies, television, and on stage. She also began writing poetry, doing voice-over narration, and song and lyric writing.
Saito has a wide range of roles, from serious to comedic. Throughout the 1990s, most of her roles on stage, TV, and film were serious, dramatic roles. In 2006, she returned to her comedy roots with a role in Wagahai wa Shufu Dearu. Along with Mitsuhiro Oikawa, she formed a duo called "Yanake" (やな家) in 2006 and released Kateinai Date (家庭内デート),[9] and made her first singing appearance in seven years on June 8, 2006. This year also marked the 17th year since her appearance on the Takaaki Ishibashiowarai show The Tunnels' Thanks to Everyone. In the 2006 movie, Yo-Yo Girl Cop, Saito plays Saki's mother. She held several 25th anniversary concerts in February 2011.[10]
Saito's father owns a long-standing and respected obi tailoring shop in Yokohama, and sells his obis to multiple kimono stores in Motomachi, Tobe, and other places within the city.[5] Her brother is the actor Ryūji Saitō.[2] Saito's hobbies include poetry, illustrating, and writing books.[1]
^ abcd斉藤由貴「仕事より礼拝」…宗教上“制約”多く [Yuki Saito: "Beliefs come before work"...Religious taboos are many] (in Japanese). Zakzak via Sankei Digital. May 17, 2006. Retrieved January 14, 2013.
^"NHK朝の連続テレビ小説" [NHK Morning TV Novel Series] (in Japanese). Video Research. Retrieved January 14, 2013.
^【1989年5月】夢の中へ／あの独特な振り付けで斉藤由貴最大のヒット曲に [May 1989 - "Yume no Naka e" / Yuki Saito's hit song due to unusual choreography] (in Japanese). Sponichi Annex via Sports Nippon Newspapers. May 10, 2011. Retrieved January 14, 2013.
^【斉藤由貴】母が道ならぬ恋「子供たちは早く寝かせたほうがいいかも」。 [Yuki Saito - Mom had an illicit love affair "Perhaps it would be good to put the kids to bed early"] (in Japanese). Zakzak via Sankei Digital. April 21, 2010. Retrieved January 14, 2013.
