Carl Kenichi Furuta

June 23, 1933 - April 26, 2017 Carl was born in Kent, WA to Masako and Minoru Furuta on 6-23-33, year of the Rooster. He was raised on a farm in Topanish, WA until the death of his father in 1938. He lived in Wapato, WA until he was relocated to Heart Mountain, WY during WW II. He lived in Utah until his mother remarried and moved to Seattle in 1946. He attended Washington Jr. High and Garfield High School where he played trombone in the orchestra and was the photographer for "Arrow", the school year book. After graduation he joined the Army and was sent to Germany. During this time his mother passed away. He was discharged as a Sergeant in 1956 and returned to Seattle. He briefly worked for Boeing then for the Seattle Times in the photography department. Next he worked as a Garment Cutter for "Far West Company". Carl met his future wife, Sally Kadoshima in 1957 and decided to further his education in Photography. With his G.I. Bill he enrolled at Art Center College in Los Angeles. While in school Carl lived with his Uncle Roy and Auntie Margie Murakami in Gardena. He was forever grateful for their generosity and kindness. Sally graduated UW in 1958. They were married in September 1960 and Carl graduated Art Center in February 1961. Carl worked for "HB Cross Photography" and for "Bernie Gardner" until 1967. In October of that year, Carl finally opened his own studio. After waiting many years, Ken was adopted in 1968. A short time later 2 young nephews, Mark and Chris came to live with the family until 1970. Carl's business grew and he acquired many National and International accounts and traveled extensively. He worked with a variety of clients and he shot ads for Mercedes Benz, Range Rover, Volkswagen, Toyota, Honda, Jack in the Box, McDonalds, Burger King, Nike, Wilson Sports Goods, Tylenol, Miller Lite Beer, American Airlines, Hertz and many others. He enjoyed shooting the entertainment and sports talents who endorsed these products. They included Cassius Clay, Wilt Chamberlain, Sophia Loren, Debbie Reynolds, Shirley Jones, Magic Johnson, Kareem Abdul Jabar, and Coach Wooden to name a few. He had a very exciting and rewarding career. His health began to fail so he closed his studio in 2003. Retirement did not slow him down as he continued to pursue his many hobbies and interests such as golf, playing cards at Wilshire Country Club, The Nisei Skeet Club, the Gardena Bowling Alley Breakfast Group, hunting, fishing and most of all, FOOD. He loved Nobu's sushi in Beverly Hills, BBQ Ribs from Watts, Chinese from Newport Restaurant in Alhambra, and Mexican food from El Monte. Many thanks to Mr. Lee and Milton for driving Carl when he no longer could and to his wonderful Doctors: Dr. Wayne Tsang, Dr. Del Vicario and Dr. Chong U. Kim at Little Company of Mary. Carl will always be remembered as someone who knew how to live and enjoy every moment.