out in June of the same year. According to the film director Kazuo Ikehiro, around this time rumors began to circulate that Ichikawa Jukai III was actually Raizō's biological father. Upon his second adoption Raizō's legal name was changed again as well, to Yoshiya Ōta. This name was chosen by Raizō himself, as he was weary of being judged by his current family name. According to Akinari Suzuki, the studio president of Daiei Kyoto Studio, Raizō often advised those around him to consider changing their names, and it's said that some 20 to 30 people related to the film studio did so upon Raizō's recommendation. In fact, Masako Nagata, the woman Raizō would eventually marry, was originally named Kyōko, and changed her given name after Raizō suggested she do so. Transition into Film Acting (July 1951 – 1957) Raizō became Jukai's adopted son in 1951, but Jukai believed that the 20-year-old Raizō was still too young to take on major roles and adopted a policy of only giving him minor roles for the time being. As a result of this Raizō decided to pursue a film career in 1954 and joined the Daiei film studio. Regarding his transition to film acting, Raizō maintained that he did it simply because it seemed like a good opportunity and he wanted to try it out. Rikiya Tayama has said that the real reason was that Raizō, dissatisfied with the treatment he received over the years, was extremely upset when he was cast as an idiot without a single line in the Osaka Kabukiza's performance of Kōya Hijiri in June 1954, and thus decided to leave the world of kabuki for good. Fortuitously he received an offer from Daiei Films who intended to position him as a star in their jidaigeki – period dramas – and accepted it, leaving the kabuki world for film. From that time forwards, Raizō only performed in a single kabuki play: the January 1964 production of Kanjinchō directed by Tetsuji Takechi at the newly completed Nissay Theater, in which he played Yasuie Togashi. On that occasion Raizō said, "In Kabuki you're no good unless you're old. In film you're no good once you're old. While I'm still young I'll make a living in film, once I've gotten older I'll try kabuki again." Once he had decided to pursue a film career, Raizō began to frequent the movie theater to