Chafūrin

Description
Chafūrin is a Japanese voice actor born on December 4, 1961, in Saitama Prefecture. His real name is Hirotaka Shimazawa, and he is a graduate of Toyo University. He is affiliated with the talent management firm Ohsawa Jimusho. His stage name, Chafūrin, is a play on the name of the iconic comedian Charlie Chaplin.

Chafūrin began his voice acting career in the late 1980s, with one of his earliest roles being in the series Anime Sanjushi in 1987. He quickly became a familiar presence in the industry, building a prolific career with a distinctive, nasal voice that is well-suited for a wide range of characters, from authority figures to comedic relief and even villains. He is also skilled in tap dancing and has performed in stage productions.

Chafūrin is renowned for several long-running and iconic roles. He is the voice of the persistent and beloved Detective Inspector Megure Juzo in the immensely popular anime Case Closed, also known as Detective Conan. He also voices the melancholy schoolboy Nagasawa-kun in the long-running series Chibi Maruko-chan. In the anime Crayon Shin-chan, he plays the role of Dan Kazama's father, Danroku Kazama. His voice is also familiar to generations of children as the father of the titular character in the educational series Shimajiro, a role he originated in 1993. This connection to the franchise extends to the feature films you mentioned, Eiga Shimajiro Miracle-jima no Nanairo Carnation and Eiga Shimajiro Shimajiro to Yuki no Uta.

His career is marked by frequent collaborations with particular production teams and appearances in major franchises. He has had recurring roles in several long-running series, such as the police officer Shiraishi in Gintama, the detective Daisuke Oishi in the When They Cry franchise, and multiple characters in the Doraemon anime over the years. He has also contributed his voice to a wide variety of other popular works, including Bleach, Death Note, One Piece, Your Name., and Dragon Ball Z.

A notable achievement in his later career was being selected as the second voice actor for the character Wataru Isobe in the long-running anime Sazae-san, a role he assumed in 2014. This demonstrates his standing and longevity in the industry. He continues to be active, with recent roles including the ojii-chan in the 2023 anime adaptation of The Diary of Ochibi-san and the mysterious Mr. X in the 2024 television special Lupin the Third: Is Lupin Still Burning?.