Deceased
How Did Professor Toru Tanaka Die?
Life & Death
Died aged 70Also known asCharles J. Kalani, Professor Tanaka, Charles J. Kalani Jr., Prof. Toru TanakaGenderMaleNationalityUnited StatesBorn06/01/1930Born inHonolulu, Hawaii, USADied22/08/2000 (aged 70)Died inLake ForestCauseheart failureWikidataQ2454564 ↗TMDb#13006 ↗
Charles J. Kalani Jr., known by the ring names Professor Toru Tanaka or simply Professor Tanaka, was an American professional wrestler, professional boxer, martial artist and actor. He was best known for his work with the World Wide Wrestling Federation from 1967 to 1978, and was a 3-time Tag Team Championship and one-time International Tag Team Champion. In 2019, he was posthumously inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame as a Legacy Member.
Read full Wikipedia article ↗Filmography42 titles
| Year | Title | Character | Age at release |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | Hard JusticeMovie | Cookie (uncredited) | 65 |
| 1994 | Burke's LawSeries | Sumo #1 | 64 |
| 1994 | The Life And Times of Paul BoeschMovie | Himself (archive footage) | 64 |
| 1993 | Last Action HeroMovie | Tough Asian Man | 63 |
| 1991 | The Perfect WeaponMovie | Tanaka | 61 |
| 1991 | Alligator 2: The MutationMovie | Wrestler | 61 |
| 1991 | Deadly GameMovie | Ikiru-Sun | 61 |
| 1990 | Martial LawMovie | Jimmy Kong | 60 |
| 1990 | DarkmanMovie | Chinese Warrior #2 | 60 |
| 1990 | Wild & Crazy KidsSeries | Self | 60 |
| 1990 | Secret Agent 00 SoulMovie | (uncredited) | 60 |
| 1989 | Black RainMovie | Sugai's Man | 59 |
| 1989 | Hyper SpaceMovie | Android | 59 |
| 1988 | Police StorySeries | Sumo Wrestler | 58 |
| 1988 | Dead HeatMovie | Butcher | 58 |
| 1988 | Tax SeasonMovie | Moto | 58 |
| 1987 | The Running ManMovie | Subzero | 57 |
| 1987 | Catch the HeatMovie | Dozu | 57 |
| 1986 | Bad GuysMovie | Lord Percy's Bodyguard | 56 |
| 1986 | The Best of the WWF: volume 7Movie | Prof. Toru Tanaka | 56 |
| 1986 | Tag Team ChampionsMovie | Professor Toru Tanaka | 56 |
| 1986 | Shanghai SurpriseMovie | Yamagani San | 56 |
| 1985 | Missing in Action 2: The BeginningMovie | Lao | 55 |
| 1985 | VolunteersMovie | Sumo Guard | 55 |
| 1985 | Pee-wee's Big AdventureMovie | Butler | 55 |
| 1985 | Best of the WWF Volume 2Movie | Prof. Toru Tanaka | 55 |
| 1984 | AirwolfSeries | Bandit King | 54 |
| 1984 | Chattanooga Choo ChooMovie | Hashimoto | 54 |
| 1984 | When Death Comes QuicklyMovie | Shimura | 54 |
| 1983 | The A-TeamSeries | Fröbe | 53 |
| 1983 | Off the WallMovie | Banzai Wrestler #1 | 53 |
| 1983 | Wizards and WarriorsSeries | — | 53 |
| 1982 | Tales of the Gold MonkeySeries | — | 52 |
| 1982 | Cassie & Co.Series | Kiro | 52 |
| 1982 | Slapstick of Another KindMovie | Sumo (uncredited) | 52 |
| 1982 | Modesty BlaiseMovie | Akira | 52 |
| 1982 | GavilanSeries | Hiro | 52 |
| 1981 | The Fall GuySeries | — | 51 |
| 1981 | An Eye for an EyeMovie | The Professor | 51 |
| 1975 | WWF All-Star WrestlingSeries | Professor Tanaka | 45 |
| 1974 | Little House on the PrairieSeries | — | 44 |
| 1973 | WWE at Madison Square Garden: June 30, 1973Movie | Prof. Toru Tanaka | 43 |