# Kenichi Ogata (緒方 賢一) (voice actor)
**Kenichi Ogata** (緒方 賢一; born 1942) is a Japanese voice actor, actor, and narrator from [Fukuoka Prefecture](https://www.edgepedia.org/fukuoka-prefecture). He is known for long-running and widely recognized roles including Dr. Agasa (阿笠博士) in *Detective Conan*, the robot Analyzer in *Space Battleship Yamato*, Shishimaru the ninja dog in *[Ninja Hattori-kun](https://www.edgepedia.org/ninja-hattori-kun)*, Genma Saotome in *Ranma ½*, the father in *Atashin'chi*, Myoga in *Inuyasha*, King Dedede in *Kirby: Right Back at Ya!*, Hasujirō in *Hanakappa*, and [Gran Torino](https://www.edgepedia.org/gran-torino) in *My Hero Academia*.[1](https://thetv.jp/person/0000011470/) • [2](https://www.animatetimes.com/tag/details.php?id=1350)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Born | 1942, Fukuoka Prefecture (Tagawa District per profile listings)[1](https://thetv.jp/person/0000011470/) • [3](https://bangumi.tv/person/4009) |
| Professions | Voice actor, actor, narrator[1](https://thetv.jp/person/0000011470/) |
| Agency | Office Umikaze; previously Production Baobab until January 2016[4](https://enpedia.rxy.jp/wiki/%E7%B7%92%E6%96%B9%E8%B3%A2%E4%B8%80) |
| Signature roles | Dr. Agasa (*Detective Conan*, since 1996), Genma Saotome (*Ranma ½*), Analyzer (*Space Battleship Yamato*), Shishimaru (*Ninja Hattori-kun*), the father (*Atashin'chi*)[2](https://www.animatetimes.com/tag/details.php?id=1350) • [5](https://www.fashion-press.net/profiles/4274) |
| Award | Merit Award (功労賞), 13th Seiyu Awards (2019), shared with Kyoko Kishida[6](https://natalie.mu/comic/news/320550) |
| Stage work | Founded the troupe Sugoroku (劇団すごろく) in 1985 and led it until leaving in 2013[5](https://www.fashion-press.net/profiles/4274) |
| Live-action roles | Nakayama Tadayoshi in NHK's taiga drama *Segodon*, the Narazawa tailor shop's head in the asadora *Toto Nee-chan*, and Shōtarō Ikenami in *Ikenami Sanpo*[1](https://thetv.jp/person/0000011470/) |
## Early life and stage career
Ogata was born in Fukuoka Prefecture; profile listings give his birthplace as Tagawa District, and describe him as the second son in a family that ran a restaurant (ryōtei). After finishing middle school he began training as a chef, but left home after an incident in which defending a colleague in the highly hierarchical workplace brought punishment on himself, and went to work in a coal mine.[3](https://bangumi.tv/person/4009)
Moving to Tokyo, he auditioned for the so-called "three major troupes" (Gekidan Mingei, Haiyuza, and Bungakuza) and failed all of them, then joined Gekidan Tōen, whose repertory was largely ideological theater; as a guest he also performed works in the style of Beckett and Ionesco.[7](https://otocoto.jp/interview/ogata001/)
In 1985 he founded the theater troupe Sugoroku and served as its company head, continuing to appear on stage until he left the troupe in 2013. He then formed the team *Ogata Kenichi to Share-Ders* (緒方賢一とシャレダース), which supports younger performers, so he has not retired.[5](https://www.fashion-press.net/profiles/4274) • [3](https://bangumi.tv/person/4009)
## Voice acting career
Ogata's anime work reaches back to the 1970s. From 1974 he voiced the robot Analyzer in *Space Battleship Yamato* (with additional roles such as Yasuo Yabu and Gantz), appeared in [Toei Animation](https://www.edgepedia.org/toei-animation) productions including Kikyōya in *Ikkyū-san*, and played Shishimaru the ninja dog in *Ninja Hattori-kun*.[4](https://enpedia.rxy.jp/wiki/%E7%B7%92%E6%96%B9%E8%B3%A2%E4%B8%80) • [5](https://www.fashion-press.net/profiles/4274)
**Detective Conan.** He has voiced Dr. Agasa, the inventor neighbor who knows Conan's identity, since the television series began in 1996, and the professor's pun quizzes in the theatrical films became a fixture of the franchise. His film credits as Agasa run through *Black Iron Submarine* (2023), *The Million-dollar Pentagram* (2024), *Flashback* (隻眼の残像, 2025), and *Highway of Fallen Angels* (2026).[5](https://www.fashion-press.net/profiles/4274) • [8](https://eiga.com/person/22685/movie/)
**Range of roles.** He voiced the father in *Atashin'chi* (2002), Myoga in *Inuyasha*, King Dedede in *Kirby*, Hasujirō in *Hanakappa*, and Gran Torino in *My Hero Academia*; he also narrates the *Ranma ½* remake and voiced Kaku Kaiō in the *Baki* franchise.[1](https://thetv.jp/person/0000011470/) • [2](https://www.animatetimes.com/tag/details.php?id=1350) • [8](https://eiga.com/person/22685/movie/)
**Improvisation.** He is known as a master of dajare (puns), and is said to have rewritten lines to the point of altering the script on *Nils's Mysterious Journey* together with actor [Shigeru Chiba](https://www.edgepedia.org/shigeru-chiba).[5](https://www.fashion-press.net/profiles/4274)
## Television acting and later work
As a live-action actor he has played Matsuzō in NHK Fukuoka's *Ropponmatsu Aishikata Kaikaku*, the head of the Narazawa tailor shop in the NHK morning drama *Toto Nee-chan*, Nakayama Tadayoshi in the NHK taiga drama *Segodon*, and Shōtarō Ikenami in the Jidaigeki Channel program *Ikenami Sanpo*.[1](https://thetv.jp/person/0000011470/)
**Teaching.** He has taught as an instructor at Tokyo Voice Actor Academy and Human Academy, telling students to "become a daikon actor", invoking the vegetable's versatility in cooking and its whiteness that takes on any color as a model of flexible, wide-ranging performance.[9](https://finalfantasy.fandom.com/ja/wiki/%E7%B7%92%E6%96%B9%E8%B3%A2%E4%B8%80) • [10](https://tmaa.ac.jp/CMS/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/voice_syllabus.pdf)
## Health and personal details
In 2011 he developed hematuria but prioritized a stage production, undergoing surgery after the run ended; the diagnosis was renal pelvis cancer and his left kidney was removed.[9](https://finalfantasy.fandom.com/ja/wiki/%E7%B7%92%E6%96%B9%E8%B3%A2%E4%B8%80) He stands 162 cm and his blood type is A; his hobby is golf, his specialty is the Kyushu dialect, and his listed hobby at his agency is wordplay.[3](https://bangumi.tv/person/4009) • [1](https://thetv.jp/person/0000011470/) • [11](https://narrow.jp/production/2669)
## Recognition
In 2019 Ogata received the Merit Award (功労賞) at the 13th Seiyu Awards, given to voice actors who have contributed over many years across many genres including foreign-picture dubbing, sharing it with Kyoko Kishida, known for Genkai in *Yu Yu Hakusho*.[6](https://natalie.mu/comic/news/320550) • [12](https://www.daily.co.jp/gossip/2019/02/19/0012080434.shtml)
## References
1. [緒方賢一のプロフィール・画像・写真 | WEBザテレビジョン](https://thetv.jp/person/0000011470/)
2. [緒方賢一｜アニメイトタイムズ プロフィール・出演情報まとめ](https://www.animatetimes.com/tag/details.php?id=1350)
3. [緒方賢一 | Bangumi 番组计划](https://bangumi.tv/person/4009)
4. [緒方賢一 - Enpedia](https://enpedia.rxy.jp/wiki/%E7%B7%92%E6%96%B9%E8%B3%A2%E4%B8%80)
5. [緒方賢一のプロフィール・経歴・出演映画 - ファッションプレス](https://www.fashion-press.net/profiles/4274)
6. [「声優アワード」一部先行発表で、緒方賢一、京田尚子、山口勝平、かないみか受賞 - コミックナタリー](https://natalie.mu/comic/news/320550)
7. [緒方賢一さんの裏話 - otocoto](https://otocoto.jp/interview/ogata001/)
8. [緒方賢一 : 関連作品（映画） - 映画.com](https://eiga.com/person/22685/movie/)
9. [緒方賢一 | Final Fantasy Wiki (Fandom)](https://finalfantasy.fandom.com/ja/wiki/%E7%B7%92%E6%96%B9%E8%B3%A2%E4%B8%80)
10. [東京声優アカデミー 音声シラバス](https://tmaa.ac.jp/CMS/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/voice_syllabus.pdf)
11. [オフィス海風｜オーディションサイトnarrow](https://narrow.jp/production/2669)
12. [緒方賢一、京田尚子らに「声優アワード」各賞 - デイリースポーツ](https://www.daily.co.jp/gossip/2019/02/19/0012080434.shtml)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Screen people and creators › Voice performers › Japanese voice performers › Surnames symbols to M*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 18, 2026; Sep 30, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Sep 18, 2026; Sep 30, 2026; Oct 12, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
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