Shinsuke Chikaishi was a Japanese voice actor and narrator born on January 20, 1931, in Tokyo. He began his career in the 1960s, a pioneering era for Japanese animation, and remained active in the industry for over six decades until his passing on October 5, 2022, at the age of 91. His enduring presence spanned voice acting in anime, dubbing foreign films and television series, radio hosting, and television narration.

Chikaishi is perhaps best known for his role as the first voice of Masuo Fuguta, the husband of the title character in the long-running and iconic anime series Sazae-san, a part he played from 1969 to 1978. He voiced Inspector Koichi Zenigata in one of the pilot films for Lupin III, included in the Lupin III: Secret Files OVA. His other notable anime roles from the 1960s include Pukko in Wonder Three, the Narrator in Goku no Daibōken, 005emon in Kaminari Boy Pikkaribee, and Tom in King Kong - 00 1/7 Tom Thumb. In the 1980s, he voiced Tetsuhiko Sugimoto, also known as Bomber no Oyassan, in Aitsu to Lullaby: Suiyobi no Cinderella. Later in his career, he took on supporting roles in films such as Yoshihiko Hasegawa in Roujin Z and the Sage in The Boy and the Beast.

Beyond anime, Chikaishi was a highly prominent voice in foreign film and television dubbing. He was established as the official Japanese dub voice for several major Hollywood stars, including Jerry Lewis, James Cagney, and Jackie Cooper. His versatility extended to dubbing Roddy McDowall, including the role of Caesar in the Planet of the Apes series.

His work was not limited to character voices. He was a familiar presence as a television narrator, most notably for the long-running program Hajimete no Otsukai (My First Errand), where his warm and gentle delivery became synonymous with the show for decades. He was also a renowned radio personality, hosting the TBS Radio program Hagaki de Konnichiwa from 1971 until its conclusion in 2020.

In recognition of his extensive contributions to the voice acting industry across many genres, particularly his work in foreign productions, Chikaishi was honored with a Merit Award at the 7th Seiyu Awards in 2013.