Kuroyanagi Tetsuko is a Japanese actress, television host, and essayist, born in Nogizaka, Akasaka, Tokyo, Japan. She is known for her pioneering role as Japan's first female television news anchor and talk show host. Affiliated with Yoshida Nahomi Office, Inc., she is also a member of the Japan Art Academy and has served as a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador since 1984.

Kuroyanagi began her television career on Japan’s first broadcast day, making her the country's first television actress. She holds the world record for the most episodes of a talk show hosted by the same person with her program "Tetsuko's Room." Her television contributions include hosting the NHK Kohaku Uta Gassen and authoring the best-selling book "Totto-chan: The Little Girl at the Window."

Her family has notable connections in the media and entertainment industry: her paternal uncle, Taguchi Sakumura, was the first director of Shochiku Kamata Studio, and another uncle, Taguchi Shuji, was the New York bureau chief for Nippon News.

Kuroyanagi's early life was marked by challenges; she was expelled from elementary school and transferred to Tomoe Gakuen. During World War II, she was evacuated to Suwanodaira, Aomori, before returning to Tokyo after the war. She graduated from Tomoe Gakuen, Korlan Girls' School, and the Oriental Music School’s vocal music department.

Initially aspiring to be an opera singer, Kuroyanagi shifted her focus to performing puppet shows and reading picture books. She joined the NHK Broadcasting Theater Company in January 1953, becoming Japan's first television actress. She later studied acting at Bungakuza’s Theater Research Institute and worked on the Toho musical "Scarlett" in 1970. An invitation to study in New York led her to live there for a year, where she also studied modern dance at the Luigi Dance School.

In July 2021, Kuroyanagi launched an official YouTube channel.

(Source: MyDramaList) Edit Biography