49 Inspiring Vintage Photos of Extraordinary Women

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Lady Snowblood, Meiko Kaji (1973)

Vietnam Artprints

Three decades before Uma Thurman sliced and diced a team of assassins and the yakuza as The Bride in Kill Bill, the Japanese actress and singer Meiko Kaji was already wreaking havoc as the assassin Lady Snowblood whose mission was to seek revenge on the people who raped her mother and murdered her father and brother. Meiko also effectively portrayed the vicious spy-turned-inmate Nami Matsushima from the Female Prisoner Scorpion series.

Born Masako Ohta in the Kanda area of Tokyo, she started her career in film right after graduating from high school. She has appeared in many films and tv shows, often portraying strong roles of vindictive female vigilantes. A legend in Japanese cinema and known for her moves and signature stare, Meiko has received many acting offers from Hollywood, but she refused them all because she believed she couldn’t give an outstanding performance in a language other than Japanese.