Sayoko Yamaguchi (Japanese: 山口小夜子, September 19, 1949 – August 14, 2007) was a Japanese model and actress.

Early life

Yamaguchi was born in Yokohama and graduated from Sugino Gakuen's Dressmaker Gakuin design school in Tokyo.

Career

Yamaguchi broke into the international modeling industry in the 1970s. She was one of the first asian models to be featured in the world's top fashion shows and magazines. She made her debut in Paris in 1972, and went on to work in New York City and other international cities. In 1977 Newsweek named her one of the world's top six fashion models. Also that year, she was featured on the cover of Steely Dan's Aja album, photographed by Hideki Fujii. Yamaguchi went on to continue her career as a film and theater actress, as well as a costume designer.

Death

Yamaguchi died aged 57, on August 14, 2007, of acute pneumonia. In 2015 she was the subject of a posthumous documentary, Kōri no hanabi Sayoko Yamaguchi (Ice Fireworks Sayoko Yamaguchi).

Filmography