Jiro Dan

was a Japanese actor and voice actor. He was known for his role as Hideki Go, the protagonist of Return of Ultraman, a role he consistently reprised throughout the Ultraman Series. He used stage name "団 次郎" (same pronunciation) until 1984, and his real name was .
==Career==
Jiro Dan was frequently a cover model for Japanese fashion magazines in the 1960s prior to acting in Return of Ultraman. He officially debuted as an actor and and later a singer in 1968.https://www.nikkansports.com/entertainment/news/202303240000274.html He also broke into the Toho film industry, appearing as the character G-Guard Commander in the 1996 series, Godzilla Island.
==Personal Life==
Jiro Dan was born to a Japanese mother and British-American father.
==Death==
On March 24, 2023, Alpha Agency, of whom Jiro was under, announced that he had passed away at 4:14 a.m. on March 22 from lung cancer.https://news.yahoo.co.jp/articles/bd4aeec1778a369412050a66bbae615931e2b00c His condition was diagnosed back in 2017, but worsened in 2022. Despite this, Jiro remained upbeat about life and was dedicated to his work until the end.https://hochi.news/articles/20230324-OHT1T51357.html?page=1https://www.sankei.com/article/20230324-Z7RX6WA3KVLMRLFL6PNHIU5LLI/https://news.yahoo.co.jp/articles/d336d35400792302dc9cb963f93d06ec01b03ce8
At the end of the ULTRAMAN MUSIC LIVE event at TSUBURAYA CONVENTION 2023 on November 26, 2023, a photo of Jiro Dan was displayed as "Tatakae! Ultraman" and "Kaettekita Ultraman" played as a tribute.
==Roles==
Year	Title 	Role 	Notes
1971	Return of Ultraman 	Hideki Go 	
1972	Ultraman Ace 	Fake Hideki Go 	Episode 10 "Duel! Ultraman Ace vs. Hideki Go"
1973	Ultraman Taro 	Hideki Go 	Episode 33 "5 Seconds Before the Great Explosion of the Land of Ultra!"Episode 34 "The Last Day of the Six Ultra Brothers!"Episode 52 "Steal the Ultra Life!"
1974	Ultraman Leo 	Hideki Go 	Episode 34 "Ultra Brothers, Eternal Vows"
1997	Ultraman Zearth 2: Superhuman Big Battle - Light and Shadow	Newscaster 	
2006	Ultraman Mebius & the Ultra Brothers 	Hideki Go/Ultraman Jack	Voice (Ultraman Jack)
2007	Ultraman Mebius 	Hideki Go/Ultraman Jack	Voice (Ultraman Jack)Episode 45 "Deathrem's Plot"Episode 50 "Words from the Heart -Final Trilogy III-"
2008	Great Decisive Battle! The Super 8 Ultra Brothers 	Hideki Go/Ultraman Jack	Voice (Ultraman Jack)
2009	Ultraman Mebius Gaiden: Ghost Rebirth 	Ultraman Jack 	Voice
2009	Mega Monster Battle Ultra Galaxy: The Movie 	Ultraman Jack 	Voice
2010	Ultraman Zero: The Revenge of Belial 	Ultraman Jack 	Voice
2012	Ultraman Saga 	Hideki Go/Ultraman Jack	Voice (Ultraman Jack)
2017	Ultra Fight Orb 	Ultraman Jack 	Voice
===Stage===
Year	Title 	Role 	Notes
2008	Ultraman Premier Stage 2	Ultraman Jack	Voice
===Other Roles===
*Robot 8-chan - Dr. Aoi
*Godzilla Island - G-Guard Commander
*Ninpuu Sentai Hurricaneger - Ikki Kasumi
*Kishiryu Sentai Ryusoulger - Elder of the Ryusoul Tribe
==Discography==
:;Return of Ultraman
::Kaettekita Ultraman (Opening) (with Misuzu Children's Choir)
::MAT Team no Uta (with Misuzu Children's Choir)
::Tatakae! Ultraman (with Misuzu Children's Choir)
:;Ultraman Mebius
::Ultraman Mebius (Opening) (with Project DMM, as member of Ultra Defense Force)
==Gallery==
Hideki Go 001.png|Dan as Hideki Go in Return of Ultraman
Hideki Go Ace 1.png|Dan as Hideki Go in Ultraman Ace
Alien_Achira_Human.png|Dan as Fake Hideki Go in Ultraman Ace
Hideki Go Taro 1.png|Dan as Hideki Go in Ultraman Taro
Hideki Go Leo 40.png|Dan as Hideki Go in Ultraman Leo
Jiro Dan 1997.png|Dan as a Newscaster in Ultraman Zearth 2: Superhuman Big Battle - Light and Shadow
Hideki Go Mebius movie 1.png|Dan as Hideki Go in Ultraman Mebius & the Ultra Brothers
Hideki Go 2006 2.png|Dan as Hideki Go in Ultraman Mebius
Hideki I.jpg|Dan as Hideki Go in Great Decisive Battle! The Super 8 Ultra Brothers
Hideki Go saga 1.png|Dan as Hideki Go in Ultraman Saga
===Miscellaneous===
Hideki III.jpg
JiroDangodzillamvie.png
Jiro Dan 001.png
Jiro Dan 002.png
Jiro Dan 003.png
Jiro Dan 40.png
Mqdefault.jpg|Jiro Dan with Susumu Kurobe and Kohji Moritsugu
6777 623729991080196 560273325271993382 n.jpg|Jiro acting by showing his Ultra's willpower and his friends representing each of their roles as human hosts of Ultramen.
11008206 475592502588257 1366179789 n.jpg|From left to right: Jiro Dan, Kohji Moritsugu, Saburo Shinoda, Susumu Kurobe, and Keiji Takamine
Jiro Dan 2021 1.jpeg|Jiro at a Return of Ultraman 50th anniversary event in 2021
== Trivia ==
*His blood type is AB.
*Jiro Dan played Hideki Go at age 22, making him the youngest actor to play an Ultra's human host in the Showa period.
*Although Jiro Dan debuted with his real name, Hideo Murata, he was often confused with a singer of the same name.
*His stage name was formerly written in Katakana, but was then changed to kanji.
==References==
Category:Real Life People
Category:Actors
Category:Male Actors
Category:Actors who appeared in Super Sentai
Category:Deceased Actors
Category:Singers
Category:Actors who appeared in Godzilla