Veteran actress Chieko Baisho, who starred in the popular Tora-san films, and a 15-year-old boy who saved a drowning man, are among 837 individuals and 13 groups to be awarded Medals of Honor in May, the government said Wednesday.

The awards for contributions to society are conferred twice a year, in spring and autumn.

Yukito Haza, a high school freshman who jumped into a pond in Ikoma, Nara Prefecture, in October to rescue a man, will be one of two recipients of the Medal with Red Ribbon, given for saving a life.

He is the youngest person to be awarded the medal since the end of World War II.

Baisho, 63, is one of 29 people who will be awarded the Medal with Purple Ribbon for contributions to the arts and academia.

Baisho, who was born Chieko Koroku, rose to fame for her film role as the younger sister of Tora-san, hero of the series "Otoko wa Tsuraiyo" ("It's Tough Being a Man").

In 1981, she got the prestigious Japan Academy Prize for outstanding performance by an actress in a leading role.

The Medal with Purple Ribbon list also includes Matsumoto Koshiro, 62, a veteran kabuki and stage actor who was born Teruaki Fujima; Shinji Mizushima, 66, a cartoonist known for his baseball comics, and Shigeru Kasamatsu, 57, a Munich Olympics gold medalist in gymnastics.

The government will bestow the Medal with Blue Ribbon to 499 individuals in recognition of their efforts in "advancing the public good."

One of the recipients will be retired sumo wrestler Tokitsukaze, 67, born Katsuo Uchida and formerly known as ozeki Yutakayama.