Miki Norihei, born Tanuma Tadashi (田沼則子) in Hamacho, Nihonbashi, Tokyo, Japan, was a Japanese actor, director, and comedian. He served as the 5th president of the Japan Comedy Association (日本喜劇人協会).

Raised by a mother involved in entertainment and a father with a medical doctorate, Miki was exposed to traditional performances like tsuzumi and kouta from an early age. He frequented theaters such as Meijiza (明治座) and Asakusa's vaudeville, where he learned various performance styles.

Miki graduated from the former Japan University First Middle School (旧制日本大学第一中学校) in 1942, and later studied at Nihon University's (日本大学) Faculty of Law and Literature, where he shifted from painting to stage design, eventually graduating from the Department of Drama in 1947.

During WWII, Miki took refuge with the "Tsukuda Masahito Family" (佃政一家), a yakuza group. In 1944, due to a clerical error, he was mistakenly registered as a woman and did not receive his conscription notice until the war had ended, with his enlistment date set for August 18, 1945.

Miki’s career in theater began when he filled in for an actor in a military relief performance. After stints with the Aoyama Sugisaku Research Institute (青山杉作研究所) and the Actors' Studio (アクターズ・スタジオ), he performed in "A Midsummer Night's Dream" at the Imperial Theater (帝国劇場). However, an incident where his costume caught fire led to his expulsion from new theater, after which he joined the Miki Toriro Group (三木鶏郎グループ) to pursue comedy.

In 1956, he signed an exclusive contract with Toho (東宝) and debuted as a lead actor in "Norihei no Santei Shujin" (のり平の三等亭主).

His eldest son is comedian Kobayashi Norikazu (小林のり一).

Following his wife’s death in 1993, Miki’s lifestyle became increasingly solitary and marked by heavy drinking, leading to a diagnosis of terminal liver cancer in January 1999. He passed away on January 25, 1999, at the age of 74, shortly after his diagnosis.

(Source: MyDramaList) Edit Biography