Sumiko Shirakawa, voice actress, Died at 80

  Actor

Sumiko Shirakawa was born on June 26, 1935, and died in November 2015.

She was an actress, known for Tobidase! Bacchiri in 1966, The Adventures of Tom Sawyer in 1980, and A Dog of Flanders in 1975.

Sumiko was found in her home on Thursday and taken to the hospital, where examiners confirmed her death.

Medical examiners will conduct further analysis to determine the cause of death.

Sumiko did not appear at the recording session of Sazae-san on Thursday.

A staff member of the program and a family member visited Sumiko home and discovered her unresponsive in the bathroom.

According to the Suginami Police Station, Sumiko Shirakawa had been living alone.

Sumiko became active as a seiyuu in the 1960s with major roles in Uchuu Ace and Tobidase! Bacchiri.

She also played the role of Hidetoshi Dekisugi in the Doraemon series between 1980 and 2005.

Sumiko recent roles include as Hiroshi in Space☆Dandy 2nd Season in 2014.

Shirakawa’s best known role was as the Hiroshi Nakajima in Sazae-san, a character she voiced since 1969.

The episode airing November 29 will be her final appearance in the series.

An audition will be held to determine Nakajima’s new seiyuu.

Sumiko Shirakawa passed away at age 80 in November 2015.