Rui Sakuragi

Rui Sakuragi (Japanese: 桜樹ルイ, Hepburn: Sakuragi Rui), is a former Japanese AV Idol, gravure idol and erotic dancer who has been described as a "real AV Queen",[2] the "top Japanese AV idol of the mid-1990s"[3] and the "biggest star" in AV in 1992.[4] She has also appeared widely in mainstream films and videos and on TV.

Rui Sakuragi
桜樹ルイ
Born
Miki Ebisawa

(1970-03-08) March 8, 1970[1]
Japan
Other namesMasako Ichinose
Miki Aizawa
Height1.64 m (5 ft 4+1⁄2 in)

Life and career

Rui Sakuragi was born on March 8, 1970. After having previously been a "gravure" (non-sex) model, she made her adult video (AV) debut for the VIP label in April 1989 under the name Masako Ichinose but took the name Rui Sakuragi the following year.[5] She sometimes worked for other studios but VIP (and its successor Atlas21) was her main label for the next two years. Her work for them included a seven-man orgy in Golden Pavilion Temple 2[6] and cosplay in The Uniform Connection Special.[7] Sakuragi announced that her April 1992 release for VIP, The Last of Rui Sakuragi would be her final work and left with a tearful farewell.[8]

According to a 1992 article, whereas an attractive leading lady in AV could command 1.5 to 2 million yen (about $10,000 to $15,000) for a video, "Sakuragi, the biggest star at present" made 3 million yen (more than $20,000) per project.[4]

Although Sakuragi had married just before her retirement, she became bored with her new lifestyle and started working as a stripper in clubs throughout Japan.[9] Almost four years later, divorced, and in need of money,[9] Sakuragi returned to AV with a contract with Atlas21 for three videos beginning with Phoenix Once Again in March 1996.[2] After the third video, Super AV Idol Legend, fan response convinced her to do a fourth and final film, Good Bye Rui Sakuragi.[10] Since her retirement, Atlas21, Kuki, and Alice Japan have all released compilations of her earlier videos.[11]

During her AV career and after her retirement, Sakuragi also worked extensively in mainstream movies and softcore pink film and V-Cinema productions.[12][13] In February 1992 she appeared in Sakuragi Rui: Gushonure Kahanshin, directed by the noted pink film woman director Sachi Hamano.[14] Another early movie was the March 1992 Paris Fantasy (幻想のＰａｒｉｓ, Gensō no Paris), a drama of romance and revenge set in the Parisian fashion industry where she co-starred with Kayo Matsuo.[15] She also had a leading role in an episode of the long-running TV drama Kaseifu ha mita (家政婦は見た!) broadcast by TV-Asahi on December 4, 1997.[16][17] Later, she was a regular on the NTV love story/suspense drama Tsumetai tsuki (冷たい月) which ran in 10 episodes from January to March 1998.[18] In 2002, she had a voice role in the anime erotic-horror film Youjuu Kyoushitsu Chapter 2 (Demon Beast Invasion Chapter 2) with another former AV Idol, Riria Yoshikawa.[19]

Notes
  1. Infobox data from "桜樹 ルイ Sakuragi Rui" (in Japanese). I-Dic. Retrieved 2009-07-07.
  2. "Phoenix Once Again". AV Idol Directory. Retrieved 2010-08-09.
  3. Payne, Peter (May 17, 2002). "Greetings from J-List May 17, 2002". www.peterpayne.net. Retrieved 2009-07-08.
  4. Fornander, Kjell (July 1992). "A Star is Porn". Tokyo Journal. Archived from the original on 2006-05-16. Retrieved 2007-02-18.
  5. "1989" (in Japanese). AV 研究所 (AV Research Laboratory). Retrieved 2009-07-07.
  6. "Golden Temple 2". AV Idol Directory. Retrieved 2010-08-09.
  7. "Uniform Special". AV Idol Directory. Retrieved 2010-08-09.
  8. "The Last of Rui Sakuragi". AV Idol Directory. Retrieved 2009-07-08.
  9. "桜樹ルイ の部屋へようこそ (Welcome to Rui Sakuragi's Room)" (in Japanese). www.b-v.co.jp. Retrieved 2009-07-08.
  10. "Good Bye Rui Sakuragi". AV Idol Directory. Retrieved 2010-08-09.
  11. "Rui Sakuragi". AV Idol Directory. Retrieved 2010-08-09.
  12. 桜樹ルイ (in Japanese). JMDB. Retrieved 2009-07-08.
  13. "桜樹ルイ サクラギルイ(Rui Sakuragi)" (in Japanese). MovieWalker. Retrieved 2009-07-08.
  14. 桜樹ルイ ぐしょ濡れ下半身 (in Japanese). JMDB. Retrieved 2010-08-09.
  15. 幻想のＰａｒｉｓ (in Japanese). MovieWalker. Retrieved 2009-10-19.
  16. ""Kaseifu ha mita" Shinkon Fufu no Himitsu (1997)". IMdB. 4 December 1997. Retrieved 2009-07-08.
  17. "Kaseifu ha Mita!(Drama)". en.accessup.org. Retrieved 2009-07-08.
  18. "Tsumetai tsuki [冷たい月]". JDorama. Retrieved 2009-07-08.
  19. "Youjuu Kyoushitsu Chapter 2". www.sazuma.com. Retrieved 2009-07-08.

Sources
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