Toraichi Kono

Toraichi Kono (高野虎市, Kōno Toraichi, 1885–1971 ) was the valet and secretary of Charlie Chaplin.

He appeared in three of Chaplin's films as the valet to Chaplin's characters, and he worked as a representative for United Artists. He was arrested by the FBI on suspicion of espionage in the lead-up to World War II, and he was held in an internment camp, before being released in 1949 and returning to Japan in the 1950s. Kono has been the subject of increasing historical interest, both for the insights that his papers have provided into Chaplin's complicated relationship with Japan, and because he was one of the few Asian residents of the United States to be active in the nascent American film industry.

Life and career Kono was born in Hiroshima in 1888. He grew up in Japan, before moving to Southern California by around 1904. Kono pursued training both as an airplane pilot and as a lawyer.

In 1932, Chaplin went on a three-week trip to Japan with Sydney Chaplin, his brother and business manager, and Kono. He was imprisoned until 1948. In 2009, Hiroyuki Ono wrote a biography of Kono, called チャップリンの影: 日本人秘書高野虎市 (Shadow of Chaplin: Japanese Secretary Toraichi Kono). Kono was also discussed in depth by Makino Mamoru in the book Chaplin among the ashes.