- He lost his left foot during World War II.
- He entered a vocational school for injured veterans in Kokura where he learned to make furniture.
- Attended Nippon University where his studies included design and drafting, specializing in furniture design. He studied under architecture Professor Iwao Yamawaki.
- His father, Ichiji Inoue, became the youngest medical doctor in Japan.
- He designed the large tank (known as "The Big Pool") that was used for special effects at Toho.
- In July 1953, he visited the Shintoho studios. Hanging around the studio, they gave him a box lunch. In the following days, he kept going back.
- After visiting Shintoho for a number of days, and receiving free box lunches, he began feeling guilty. He offered to help with set decoration. The head of the Art Department heard about this and approached him asking if he knew anyone who could draw blueprints of naval vessels and construct models. Inoue said he could do it. He brought in his portfolio and some of the models of furniture he had constructed. According to Inoue, the head of the Art Department suddenly hugged him and said that he was the man he had been looking for. This became the start of Inoue's career in the motion picture industry.
- After working at Shintoho for about a year, he was loaned out to Toho for a big special effects project, "Gojira" (1954) ("Godzilla").
- With the tremendous success of "Gojira" (1954) ("Godzilla"), Toho immediately planned a sequel "Gojira no Gyakushu" (1955) (released in the United States as "Gigantis, the Fire Monster" (1959). This began a long series of big special effects spectacles for which Inoue's talents were needed at Toho. He never returned to Shintoho and remained at Toho for his entire career,.
- He became the supervisor of Toho's Special Effects Art Department. Although almost unknown to the public, he was regarded as Eiji Tsuburaya's right-hand man.
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