Shiga Mariko

Shiga Mariko (志賀 真理子) was a Japanese pop singer, actress, and seiyuu.

About
Mariko first got her start as a child actor in the 1970s, although her first major appearance was on the NHK quiz program, Donna Mondai Q Terebi, as one of the contestants answering questions.

She later got her start as a singer in 1985, releasing the single Yume no naka no Rondo, which were used as theme songs for the Magical Princess Minky Momo OAV of the same name. She then made her full idol debut a year later, switching record labels from Victor to Warner, along with her first major seiyuu debut, voicing the lead character, Hanazono Yumi in the anime, Magical Idol Pastel Yumi. Mariko's second single, Freesia no Shonen were used as theme songs for the anime. She released two more singles after that in 1986.

In 1987, she released only one single, Rainy Day Hello. She decided to put her career on hold in order to focus on her studies, she later graduated from the Funabashi Municipal High School in Chiba Prefecture. Her last public appearance was in July 1989, moderating Studio Pierrot's 10th anniversary event. A month later, she would enroll in Riverside's University of California campus, studying jazz music.

Sadly, on November 23, one month before her 20th birthday, Mariko was riding in a car with four other friends on a freeway near Flagstaff, Arizona. An animal had appeared in front of the car and the car attempted to swerve to not hit it. However, the car had flipped over, the four friends were injured, and Mariko was thrown out of the car and was instantly killed in the crash.

Her ashes were buried shortly afterward in Japan.

Album

 * [1986.06.25] mariko (Re-Released in 1996, 2009, & 2010)

Singles

 * [1985.04.21] Yume no naka no Rondo (夢の中の輪舞)
 * [1986.02.25] Freesia no Shonen (フリージアの少年)
 * [1986.05.25] Aoi namida (青い涙)
 * [1986.12.10] Hikoki Gumo (ひこうき雲)
 * [1987.08.25] Rainy Day Hello