Takeshi Kitano[note 1] (北野 武, Kitano Takeshi, born January 18, 1947), also known as Beat Takeshi (ビートたけし, Bīto Takeshi) in Japan, is a Japanese comedian, actor, and filmmaker. While he is known primarily as a comedian and TV host in his native Japan, he is better known abroad for his work as a filmmaker and actor as well as TV host. During his time as a student at Meiji University, he became a com