LITTLE TOKYO, Calif. — Say chizu! Shogun Santa is returning to Little Tokyo this weekend to pose for pictures. Dressed in an ornate red robe and gold helmet, the only known Asian Santa in LA will wear traditional straw zoris instead of black boots and bellow “Shoooo-gun!” rather than “Merry Christmas!”
“I like doing things that are just fun,” Shogun Santa told Spectrum News 1 from a location distinctly south of the North Pole. “One thing about Shogun Santa is you’re not just the typical ‘ho, ho, ho, how are you?’ type of Santa. You get to be part of a community.”
Shogun were Japanese military rulers in the 12th through 19th centuries, but Shogun Santa? He’s only been around since the 1980s when he made his first appearance in Little Tokyo “as a way to introduce a Japanese- or Asian-themed Santa,” said Little Tokyo Business Assn. President David Ikegami.
Shogun Santa has been played by various individuals over the years, including the late actor Rodney Kageyama, who was best known for his roles in the 1990 film “Pretty Woman” and TV show “Quantum Leap,” and, more recently, Mike Okamoto — an architect who was also the president of the Little Tokyo Business Assn.
The role has since been taken over by Jesse Dizon, an actor for 50+ years on everything from 1980s TV shows like “MacGyver” and “The Rockford Files” to recent movies, including “Executor.”
“I’ve played the bad guy. I’ve been killed by cannon. I’ve been beat up and stalked,” Dizon said of his acting career. “Very few characters that I play were not the bad guy because they stereotype you, whereas Shogun Santa is just nice. When I look into somebody’s eyes and they smile, it’s a positive energy.”
Dizon made his Shogun Santa debut four years ago before COVID came along and put coal in everyone’s proverbial stocking. He returned to the role last year, though he had to wear a mask. This year, Shogun Santa will be mask free and able to show off his curly white beard as he poses for photos and hands out balloons and candy canes.
“I’d like to give out mochi, but that might be a little too sticky as you’re walking around a mall,” said Dizon, who will play both a jingle bell and a sound block for his holiday appearances.
Shogun Santa will don his helmet and zoris for three days this season. Dec. 17, 18 and 24, he will be in front of the Christmas tree at Japanese Village Plaza from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., and at the Little Tokyo Galleria from 4 to 6 p.m.