Everything Action Theater: Shōgun (1980)
FX and Hulu’s incredible new spin on James Clavell’s critically acclaimed novel Shōgun debuted this week but it’s not the first time the novel came to TV. You can watch the first episode of the original 1980 miniseries in the latest Everything Action Theater. Richard Chamberlain starred as John Blackthorne, an English sailor who finds himself taken prisoner in Japan when his ship washes ashore on the island nation’s east coast. He draws the attention of Lord Toranaga (Toshiro Mifune), who sees an opportunity in Blackthorne and his knowledge of the Portuguese traders and Catholic Jesuit priests to try and strengthen his position against his rivals. Translating for Blackthorne is Lady Mariko (Yoko Shimada), who Blackthorne eventually falls in love with. James Clavell was an executive producer of the miniseries. The series aired over five consecutive nights on NBC starting on September 15th, 1980. It was the highest-rated program in NBC’s history and one of the highest-rated programs ever for television. A version that edited the entire series down to just under three hours was released in theaters. The series is credited with increasing awareness of Japanese culture in America, leading to an increase in the number of Japanese restaurants and the adoption of food like sushi. It is also the only American TV series, to this day, that filmed entirely in Japan. You can watch part 1 of Shōgun below thanks to Archive.org.