Toru Furuya

Toru Furuya (古谷 徹), born on July 31, 1953, in Yokohama, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan, is a distinguished voice actor and narrator, recognized for his extensive contributions to the anime industry. His journey began as a child member of Gekidan Himawari, a children's acting group, and he currently works with Aoni Production, a prominent talent agency.

Furuya has gained fame for voicing iconic characters across various popular series. Notably, he portrayed Amuro Ray in the original *Mobile Suit Gundam* and its subsequent sequels. His impressive repertoire also includes significant roles such as Hyouma Hoshi from *Kyojin no Hoshi*, Pegasus Seiya in *Saint Seiya*, Yamcha in *Dragon Ball Z*, Kyosuke Kasuga in *Kimagure Orange Road*, and Mamoru Chiba, also known as Tuxedo Mask, in *Sailor Moon*. Remarkably, he is the first and only Japanese voice actor to lend his voice to Mario, the beloved Nintendo character.

In *Mobile Suit Gundam 00*, Furuya took on the role of Ribbons Almark under the pseudonym Noboru Sōgetsu, marking his first appearance in a non-Universal Century Gundam series, while he also contributed narration under his real name. Beyond his professional endeavors, he shared a close friendship with the late Hirotaka Suzuoki and has maintained a strong bond with fellow voice actor Shuichi Ikeda. Furuya was previously married to voice actress Mami Koyama, with whom he divorced amicably in 1983, and later wed Satomi Majima, his co-star from *Stop!! Hibari-kun!*.