[1] While a student, he roomed at a boarding house owned by the actor Shuji Sano, and on graduation was offered a position at Shochiku Studios in Kanagawa.

In his debut appearance in 1947, Phoenix, directed by Keisuke Kinoshita, Sada was paired with Kinuyo Tanaka in a love scene.

Later that year, he was selected for the lead role in Kane no Naru Oka (鐘の鳴る丘), a movie adaptation of a popular NHK radio drama.

Sada was killed[1] on August 17, 1964, while returning with his family from their summer cottage in the Tateshina Mountains of Nagano Prefecture when their chauffeur collided with a taxi on a bridge in Nirasaki, Yamanashi.

His memorial services were held in Aoyama Cemetery in Tokyo with thousands of fans attending; however, his grave is at the temple of Engaku-ji in Kamakura.