Hisaya Morishige was a renowned Japanese actor whose career spanned over six decades and included significant contributions to the early days of anime voice acting. He was born on May 4, 1913, in Hirakata, Osaka. Before his acting career, he attended Waseda University and worked as an announcer for NHK in Manchukuo during World War II. He rose to fame in the 1950s as a versatile performer, first in comedy and later in more serious roles across film, television, and stage.

Morishige's most notable and foundational contribution to anime was his work in the 1958 film The White Snake Enchantress (Hakujaden). This film was historically significant as Japan's first full-length color anime feature. In a remarkable feat of voice acting, Morishige voiced all the male characters in the film. This included the lead roles of the young man Xu Xian and the antagonistic monk Fahai, as well as the character Panda and other roles such as the Dragon King and Catfish King. He also served as the narrator for the film. His performance in The White Snake Enchantress was highly influential, directly inspiring a young Hayao Miyazaki to become an animator, as Miyazaki later acknowledged.

Decades later, Morishige returned to voice acting for acclaimed animated features. He voiced the boar god Okkoto-nushi in Hayao Miyazaki's Studio Ghibli film Princess Mononoke in 1997. His final voice role was as Professor Torino in the 2001 Doraemon film, Doraemon: Nobita and the Winged Braves.

Throughout his life, Morishige held a distinguished place in Japanese entertainment. He was a long-time leader of the Japan Actors Union. In recognition of his cultural contributions, he was named a Person of Cultural Merit in 1984 and became the first artist from the field of popular arts to receive the prestigious Order of Culture from the Emperor of Japan in 1991. Hisaya Morishige passed away on November 10, 2009, at the age of 96.