Kōichirō Tomita (冨田 弘一郎, Tomita Kōichirō; 16 February 1925 – 22 May 2006) was a Japanese astronomer, discoverer of…Kōichirō Tomita (冨田 弘一郎, Tomita Kōichirō; 16 February 1925 – 22 May 2006) was a Japanese astronomer, discoverer of minor planets and comets. The fireball passed over west Japan and was recorded by photos and a sketch. Kōichirō Tomita identified that it was the Kosmos 133 spacecraft (30 November 1966). He is credited by the Minor Planet Center with the discovery of 9 numbered minor planets during 1978–1982, such as 2252 CERGA, 3056 INAG, 3765 Texereau, 4051 Hatanaka. He is the author of at least one astronomy book (in Japanese) about comets (which was translated and published in Russian in 1982). The Nysa asteroid 2391 Tomita is named after him.
Hajime Katō (加藤一, Katō Hajime) (1925–2000) was a Japanese painter and designer. He was born in Kanda, Tokyo. Before…Hajime Katō (加藤一, Katō Hajime) (1925–2000) was a Japanese painter and designer. He was born in Kanda, Tokyo. Before becoming a painter, he was a professional keirin cyclist. In 1958 he emigrated to France. He died in Paris and was laid to rest in the Montparnasse Cemetery.
Masashige Narusawa (Japanese: 成沢昌茂, Narusawa Masashige; 29 January 1925 – 13 February 2021) was a Japanese screenwriter…Masashige Narusawa (Japanese: 成沢昌茂, Narusawa Masashige; 29 January 1925 – 13 February 2021) was a Japanese screenwriter and director.
Yasuji Mori (森康二, Mori Yasuji; January 28, 1925 – September 5, 1992) was an animator who worked with Toei Animation…Yasuji Mori (森康二, Mori Yasuji; January 28, 1925 – September 5, 1992) was an animator who worked with Toei Animation, while it was still known as Toei Doga. He was also a famous illustrator of children's books. Mori was responsible for one of the major animation styles within Toei Animation. In The Little Prince and the Eight-Headed Dragon Mori was the first to be credited as animation director in Japan, although Akira Daikubara had the same post on The Tale of the White Serpent but was not credited as that. As a senior animator he formed many of the great animators of the next generation (including Hayao Miyazaki, Isao Takahata, Yasuo Ōtsuka, and Yoichi Kotabe). He later left Toei Animation to work with Nippon Animation.
Buichi Saitō (斎藤武市, Saitō Buichi; 27 January 1925 – January 2011) was a Japanese film director from Saitama Prefecture.…Buichi Saitō (斎藤武市, Saitō Buichi; 27 January 1925 – January 2011) was a Japanese film director from Saitama Prefecture. His representative works included Wataridori series starring Akira Kobayashi, Farewell to Southern Tosa(1959) and Gazing at Love and Death(1964). Saitō often worked with Akira Kobayashi, Joe Shishido and Sayuri Yoshinaga. After graduating Waseda University, he joined Shochiku Film and started working as an assistant director under Yasujirō Ozu and Kōzaburō Yoshimura etc. In 1954, he transferred to Nikkatsu Film and made his director debut in the 1956 film Anesan no Oyomeiri.
Tōichirō Kinoshita (木下東一郎, Kinoshita Tōichirō ; January 23, 1925 – March 23, 2023) was a Japanese-born American…Tōichirō Kinoshita (木下東一郎, Kinoshita Tōichirō ; January 23, 1925 – March 23, 2023) was a Japanese-born American theoretical physicist. Kinoshita was born in Tokyo on January 23, 1925. He studied physics at the University of Tokyo, earning his bachelor's degree in 1947 and then his PhD in 1952. Afterwards he spent two years as a postdoctoral researcher of the Institute of Advanced Study, Princeton, New Jersey, and then one year at Columbia University. His research interests included quantum field theory, and the Standard Model. Kinoshita worked at the Newman Laboratory of Nuclear Studies at Cornell University from 1955. He was at first a research associate. In 1958 he became assistant professor, and in 1960 associate professor. He became a full professor in 1963, and in 1992 he was appointed Goldwin Smith professor. In 1995 he retired from Cornell as professor emeritus. In 1962–63 he was a Ford Fellow at CERN. He was a guest professor at the University of Tokyo, at CERN, at the national laboratory for high-energy physics KEK in Japan, and at RIKEN in Japan. Kinoshita was known for his extensive and detailed calculations of quantum electrodynamics (QED), the theory of the interaction of light and matter, on which physicist Abraham Pais called him the "expert among experts". QED is often described as the most accurate physical theory in existence. Among the best-known examples are Kinoshita's calculations of the anomalous magnetic moments of the electron and the muon.
Yoshio Iimuro (飯室 芳男, Iimuro Yoshio; 18 January 1925 – October 2023) was a Japanese triple jumper who competed in the…Yoshio Iimuro (飯室 芳男, Iimuro Yoshio; 18 January 1925 – October 2023) was a Japanese triple jumper who competed in the 1952 Summer Olympics. Iimuro died in October 2023, at the age of 98.
Tsuruko Yamazaki (山崎 つる子, Yamazaki Tsuruko; 1925 – June 12, 2019) was a Japanese artist, known for her bold artistic…Tsuruko Yamazaki (山崎 つる子, Yamazaki Tsuruko; 1925 – June 12, 2019) was a Japanese artist, known for her bold artistic experiments with abstract visual styles and non-traditional materials. She was a co-founder and the longest-standing female member of the Gutai Art Association, an avant-garde artists' collective established by Jirō Yoshihara.
Kihachirō Kawamoto (川本 喜八郎, Kawamoto Kihachirō; January 11, 1925 – August 23, 2010) was a Japanese puppet designer…Kihachirō Kawamoto (川本 喜八郎, Kawamoto Kihachirō; January 11, 1925 – August 23, 2010) was a Japanese puppet designer, independent film director, screenwriter, animator and the second president of the Japan Animation Association, succeeding founder Osamu Tezuka in 1989 and serving until his own death. He is best-remembered in Japan as designer of the puppets for the long-running NHK live action television series of the Puppet theater, the Three Kingdoms in the early 1980s and The Tale of the Heike in the 1990s but better-known internationally for his own animated short films, the majority of which are model animation but which also include the cutout animation Tabi and Shijin no Shōgai and mixed media, French-language Farce anthropo-cynique. Since beginning his career in his early twenties as a production design assistant under So Matsuyama in the art department of Toho in 1946, he met Tadasu Iizawa and left the film studio in 1950 to collaborate with him on illustrating children's literature with photographs of dolls in dioramas, many of which have been republished in English editions by such American publishers as Grosset & Dunlap and Western Publishing's Golden Books imprint, and trained in the art of stop motion filmmaking under Tadahito Mochinaga and, later, Jiří Trnka. He is also closely associated with Tadanari Okamoto, another independent filmmaker. They collaborated in booking private halls in which to show their films to the public as the "Puppet Animashow" in the 1970s. Okamoto's last film, The Restaurant of Many Orders (注文の多い料理店, Chūmon no Ōi Ryōriten; 1991), was left incomplete following his death during its production. Kawamoto completed the film. The film was based on Kenji Miyazawa's short story "The Restaurant of Many Orders."
Otohiko Hara (原乙彦, Hara Otohiko; January 1, 1925 – April 9, 2018), formerly known as Otohiko Yabashi, was a Japanese…Otohiko Hara (原乙彦, Hara Otohiko; January 1, 1925 – April 9, 2018), formerly known as Otohiko Yabashi, was a Japanese corporate executive. He was a chief executive officer of Unitika Tsusho [:ja:] (later, Unitika Trading [:ja:]). One of the first Japanese businesspersons who led Dai Nippon Spinning Co., Ltd. (later, Unitika), one of Japan's three largest textile makers, to the first overseas expansion of Japanese corporations after World War II.
Kōji Nakano (中野 孝次, Nakano Kōji; 1 January 1925 – 16 July 2004) was a Japanese novelist, translator of German…Kōji Nakano (中野 孝次, Nakano Kōji; 1 January 1925 – 16 July 2004) was a Japanese novelist, translator of German literature and literary critic in Shōwa period Japan.
Takashi Yokoyama (横山 隆志, Yokoyama Takashi; 24 December 1913 – 1945) was a Japanese swimmer. He competed at the 1932…Takashi Yokoyama (横山 隆志, Yokoyama Takashi; 24 December 1913 – 1945) was a Japanese swimmer. He competed at the 1932 Summer Olympics, where he won a gold medal in the 4 × 200 m freestyle relay event. He died in Kōchi, Japan.
Takasi Tokioka (時岡 隆, Tokioka Takashi; 1913 – September 30, 2001) was a Japanese zoologist. He published over 200…Takasi Tokioka (時岡 隆, Tokioka Takashi; 1913 – September 30, 2001) was a Japanese zoologist. He published over 200 scientific articles on marine animals such as chaetognaths, ctenophores, and tunicates. He was Professor of Zoology at Kyoto University working at the Seto Marine Biological Laboratory in Shirahama, Japan. From 1975 to 1977, he was the Director of SMBL.
Kiyoshi Inoue (井上 清, Inoue Kiyoshi; December 19, 1913 - November 23, 2001) was a Japanese academic, historian, author…Kiyoshi Inoue (井上 清, Inoue Kiyoshi; December 19, 1913 - November 23, 2001) was a Japanese academic, historian, author and professor emeritus of the Kyoto University. He was considered a specialist in modern Japanese history. He was also known as a "progressive historian" and a "Marxist historian."
Masayoshi Ito (伊東 正義, Itō Masayoshi; 15 December 1913 – 21 May 1994) was a Japanese political figure. He served as…Masayoshi Ito (伊東 正義, Itō Masayoshi; 15 December 1913 – 21 May 1994) was a Japanese political figure. He served as acting Prime Minister of Japan in 1980 after the sudden death of Masayoshi Ōhira. He then served as foreign minister of Japan from 1980 to 1981.
Sunao Sonoda (園田 直, Sonoda Sunao; 11 December 1913 – 2 April 1984) was a Japanese politician of the Liberal Democratic…Sunao Sonoda (園田 直, Sonoda Sunao; 11 December 1913 – 2 April 1984) was a Japanese politician of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) who served as minister for foreign affairs and minister of health and welfare. He was called "flying foreign minister" due to his active diplomacy in increasing the role of Japan when he was in office. He was one of the significant figures in normalizing the relations between Japan and China.
Kineo Kuwabara (桑原 甲子雄, Kuwabara Kineo; December 1913 – December 10, 2007) was a Japanese editor and photographer…Kineo Kuwabara (桑原 甲子雄, Kuwabara Kineo; December 1913 – December 10, 2007) was a Japanese editor and photographer, known for photographing Tokyo for over half a century. Kuwabara was born in Tokyo in 1913. He started taking photographs around 1931 with a Vest Pocket Kodak, but his interest increased as a result of an invitation by his neighbor Hiroshi Hamaya to go to a photo-shoot in Kamakura. His photograph, taken with a Leica C, won second prize in the related contest, leading him to submit his work to photographic magazines, which accepted them. In 1940, he went to Manchuria to take photographs for military purposes. He returned after the war and became editor of the magazine Camera and thereafter edited other photographic magazines, putting the nurture of new talent and photographic criticism ahead of his own photography. Kuwabara's own photographs received more critical attention from the late 1960s, but the revival in his work only took off in the mid-1970s. He came to be regarded as one of the foremost street photographers, particularly among those active before the war. While his earlier photographs of Tokyo had concentrated on Asakusa and elsewhere in the Shitamachi (area traditionally populated by artisans), his later photographs (many in color) show Setagaya-ku, where he later lived. Nobuyoshi Araki did much to promote the revival of interest in Kuwabara's works, and the pair had a joint exhibition, "Love you Tokyo", in the Setagaya Art Museum in summer 1993. Kuwabara died on 10 December 2007, a fact that was only announced in February 2008.
Yoshio Miyake (三宅芳夫, Miyake Yoshio; 7 December 1913 – 26 April 1983) was a Japanese gymnast. He competed in eight…Yoshio Miyake (三宅芳夫, Miyake Yoshio; 7 December 1913 – 26 April 1983) was a Japanese gymnast. He competed in eight events at the 1936 Summer Olympics.
Yae Sagara (相良 八重, Sagara Yae; 27 November 1913 – 29 April 1967) was a Japanese track and field athlete. She competed…Yae Sagara (相良 八重, Sagara Yae; 27 November 1913 – 29 April 1967) was a Japanese track and field athlete. She competed in the women's high jump at the 1932 Summer Olympics.
Tomie Ohtake (大竹富江, Ōtake Tomie; née Nakakubo (中久保); 21 November 1913 – 12 February 2015) was a Japanese Brazilian…Tomie Ohtake (大竹富江, Ōtake Tomie; née Nakakubo (中久保); 21 November 1913 – 12 February 2015) was a Japanese Brazilian visual artist. Her work includes paintings, prints and sculptures. She was one of the main representatives of informal abstractionism in Brazil.
Shomatsu Yokoyama (横山 正松, Yokoyama Shōmatsu; 1913–1992) was a Japanese physician. During the Second World War, he…Shomatsu Yokoyama (横山 正松, Yokoyama Shōmatsu; 1913–1992) was a Japanese physician. During the Second World War, he disobeyed orders to conduct inhumane experiments on living human beings.
Seiji Miyaguchi (宮口精二, Miyaguchi Seiji; 15 November 1913 – 12 April 1985) was a Japanese stage and film actor who…Seiji Miyaguchi (宮口精二, Miyaguchi Seiji; 15 November 1913 – 12 April 1985) was a Japanese stage and film actor who appeared in films of Akira Kurosawa, Yasujirō Ozu, Mikio Naruse, Keisuke Kinoshita, Tadashi Imai and many others.
Shigemitsu Dandō (團藤 重光, Dandō Shigemitsu; 8 November 1913 – 25 June 2012) was a professor of the department of Social…Shigemitsu Dandō (團藤 重光, Dandō Shigemitsu; 8 November 1913 – 25 June 2012) was a professor of the department of Social and Political sciences at the University of Tokyo, an academic researcher of criminology, and a Justice of the Supreme Court of Japan.
Masao Ichihara (市原 正雄, Ichihara Masao; 7 November 1913 – 1977) was a Japanese sprinter. He competed in the men's 4 ×…Masao Ichihara (市原 正雄, Ichihara Masao; 7 November 1913 – 1977) was a Japanese sprinter. He competed in the men's 4 × 400 metres relay at the 1936 Summer Olympics.
Kieko Watanabe (渡辺喜恵子; November 6, 1913–August 8, 1997) was a Japanese novelist. She is best known for her Naoki…Kieko Watanabe (渡辺喜恵子; November 6, 1913–August 8, 1997) was a Japanese novelist. She is best known for her Naoki Prize-winning work, Mabuchi-gawa (馬淵川). Many of her works were historical fiction.
Sakunosuke Oda (織田 作之助, Oda Sakunosuke; October 26, 1913 – January 10, 1947) was a Japanese writer. He is often grouped…Sakunosuke Oda (織田 作之助, Oda Sakunosuke; October 26, 1913 – January 10, 1947) was a Japanese writer. He is often grouped with Osamu Dazai and Ango Sakaguchi as the Buraiha. Literally meaning ruffian or hoodlum faction, this label was not a matter of a stylistic school but one bestowed upon them by conservative critics disparaging the authors' attitudes and subject matter.
Major Shizuo Fukui (福井 静夫, Fukui Shizuo; 1913-1993) was a Japanese author, photographer, editor, and Imperial Japanese…Major Shizuo Fukui (福井 静夫, Fukui Shizuo; 1913-1993) was a Japanese author, photographer, editor, and Imperial Japanese Naval and Japanese Coast Guard officer with the rank of lieutenant commander. He was most famous for his comprehensive books of all combatant vessels and minor miscellaneous vessels in the Japanese Navy during World War II and postwar Japan. His third son Takeo Fukui was President of Honda R&D and Honda.
Yuki Katsura (桂ゆき, Katsura Yuki, also Katsura Yukiko, 10 October 1913 – 5 February 1991) was a Japanese artist whose…Yuki Katsura (桂ゆき, Katsura Yuki, also Katsura Yukiko, 10 October 1913 – 5 February 1991) was a Japanese artist whose career spanned from the prewar to the postwar eras. During her six-decade career, Katsura did not conform to one particular artistic genre or style, instead employing a variety of approaches including painting, mixed media collage, and caricature to depict a range of subjects using folkloric allegory, religious iconography, realism, and experiments into abstraction. She was trained in both Japanese and Western painting styles and traditions, which was a rare accomplishment for a woman of her time. Katsura engaged with subjects that responded to critical socio-political events in mid-century Japan, such as societal expectations for Japanese women, the militarization of Japan, the post-war occupation, the rise of nuclear power, and gender equality. Her diverse approaches, engagement with critical issues, and adherence to personal autonomy gained her critical acclaim; she has been called a "pioneer among women artists," and is considered influential to the genesis of the Japanese avant-garde before and after the Asia Pacific War. Katsura has been the subject of several large museum retrospectives in Japan, including the Shimonoseki Municipal Museum of Art (1991); Ibaraki Prefectural Museum of Modern Art (1998); and the Museum of Contemporary Art, Tokyo (2013). While she is very well-known in her native Japan, Katsura was left out of the canonization of Japanese art and art market in a Western context for many years. In the 2010s, she became the subject of more curatorial and art historical interest and publications in English. Katsura's artworks are included in the collections of the Museum of Modern Art, Kamakura & Hayama; Ohara Museum of Art; Itabashi Art Museum; the Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo; the Yokohama Museum of Art; and the University of Arizona Museum of Art.
Toshio Sugie (杉江敏男, Sugie Toshio; 24 September 1913 – 10 October 1996) was a Japanese film director. He directed films…Toshio Sugie (杉江敏男, Sugie Toshio; 24 September 1913 – 10 October 1996) was a Japanese film director. He directed films from the 1940s to the 1960s.
Tokutaro Ukon (右近 徳太郎, Ukon Tokutarō; 23 September 1913 – March 1944) was a Japanese football player. He played for…Tokutaro Ukon (右近 徳太郎, Ukon Tokutarō; 23 September 1913 – March 1944) was a Japanese football player. He played for Japan national team.
Hidekazu Yoshida (Japanese: 吉田 秀和, romanized: Yoshida Hidekazu; 23 September 1913 – 22 May 2012) was a Japanese music…Hidekazu Yoshida (Japanese: 吉田 秀和, romanized: Yoshida Hidekazu; 23 September 1913 – 22 May 2012) was a Japanese music and literary critic whose career spanned the Shōwa and Heisei eras.
Tadao Horie (堀江 忠男, Horie Tadao; September 13, 1913 – March 29, 2003) was a Japanese football player. He played for…Tadao Horie (堀江 忠男, Horie Tadao; September 13, 1913 – March 29, 2003) was a Japanese football player. He played for Japan national team.
Eiji Toyoda (豊田 英二, Toyoda Eiji; 12 September 1913 – 17 September 2013) was a Japanese engineer and industrialist. He…Eiji Toyoda (豊田 英二, Toyoda Eiji; 12 September 1913 – 17 September 2013) was a Japanese engineer and industrialist. He was largely responsible for bringing Toyota Motor Corporation to profitability and worldwide prominence during his tenure as president and later, as chairman. He was succeeded as the president of Toyota by Shoichiro Toyoda.
Shigeru Ishimoto (1913–2007) was a Japanese politician. She served as Director-General of the Environmental Agency from…Shigeru Ishimoto (1913–2007) was a Japanese politician. She served as Director-General of the Environmental Agency from 1984 to 1985. She was the third woman to become a Cabinet minister in Japan.
Seiji Shimota (霜多正次, Shimota Seiji; September 5, 1913 – April 16, 2003) was a Japanese novelist. Born in Nakijin…Seiji Shimota (霜多正次, Shimota Seiji; September 5, 1913 – April 16, 2003) was a Japanese novelist. Born in Nakijin, Okinawa, he attended local elementary and middle schools, but continued his high school education in Kumamoto, where he began writing novels and studied with Haruo Umezaki. He graduated from the School of English Literature, Literature Department of Tokyo Imperial University. In 1940, he was conscripted and sent to Bougainville Island. Towards the end of the war, in May 1945, he surrendered to Australian forces and was sent to a POW camp. After being released, he did not return to Okinawa (which at the time was occupied by the Americans), but went to Tokyo instead, where he wrote novels while working in the offices of Shin Nihon Bungakukai ("New Japan Literature Society"), a leftist writers' association. In 1950, he published Kiyama ittō-hei to senkyōshi ("Private Kiyama and the Missionary") in the magazine "Shin Nihon Bungaku" and established himself as a writer. In 1953, he returned for a visit for the first time after the war to Okinawa, and started using Okinawan themes in his writings. For the novel Okinawashima, which was published in installments in Shin Nihon Bungaku ("New Japanese Literature") in 1956, he was awarded the "Mainichi Publications Literary Award". In 1957, with fellow writers Tatsukichi Nishino, Kim Tal-su and Sei Kubota, he started the Riarizumu Kenkyukai ("Realism Research Association"). He was expelled from the New Japan Literature Society after relations between him and Teruo Takei, the de facto leader of the Society, were soured by ideological differences. At a conference in 1964, Shimota disagreed with other executives of the Society on numerous issues, such as in regard to the Partial Nuclear Test Ban Treaty, in which he took the Japanese Communist Party's position on the issue. When the Nippon minshushugi bungaku domei ("Japanese Democratic Literary Alliance") was established in 1965, he was named vice-chairman. In 1971, he was awarded the Takiji-Yuriko Award for Akemodoro. He died of pneumonia in Musashino, Tokyo, on April 16, 2003.
Kenzō Tange (丹下 健三, Tange Kenzō; 4 September 1913 – 22 March 2005) was a Japanese architect. Born in Sakai and raised…Kenzō Tange (丹下 健三, Tange Kenzō; 4 September 1913 – 22 March 2005) was a Japanese architect. Born in Sakai and raised in China and southern Japan, Tange was inspired from an early age by the work of Le Corbusier and designed his first buildings under Imperial Japan. He first achieved recognition for his projects to reconstruct the destroyed cities of postwar Japan, particularly Hiroshima, where he designed the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park. His engagement with the Congres Internationaux d'Architecture Moderne in the 1950s made him one of the first Japanese architects to achieve international recognition. Renowned for synthesizing traditional Japanese styles with modernism, Tange's work was emblematic of the Japanese postwar boom. However, he built major projects on five continents. He was a forerunner, mentor, and patron of the metabolist movement. He was also known as an ambitious, original urban planner whose ideas inspired the reconstruction of cities including Skopje. Tange would continue designing buildings until his death in 2005. Tange won awards for his contributions to architecture, including the Royal Gold Medal in 1965, the AIA Gold Medal in 1966, the Praemium Imperiale for Architecture in 1993, and the Pritzker Prize, the "Nobel Prize of architecture", in 1987.
Saburō Ienaga (家永 三郎, Ienaga Saburō; September 3, 1913 – November 29, 2002) was a Japanese historian. In 1953, the…Saburō Ienaga (家永 三郎, Ienaga Saburō; September 3, 1913 – November 29, 2002) was a Japanese historian. In 1953, the Japanese Ministry of Education published a textbook by Ienaga, but censored what they said were factual errors and matters of opinion, regarding Japanese war crimes. Ienaga undertook a series of lawsuits against the Ministry for violation of his freedom of speech. He was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize in 1999 and 2001 by Noam Chomsky among others. He also recorded the history of the Japanese resistance in World War II in his book The Pacific War, 1931–1945.
Jun Tazaki (田崎 潤, Tazaki Jun; 28 August 1913 – 18 October 1985), born Minoru Tanaka, was a Japanese actor best known…Jun Tazaki (田崎 潤, Tazaki Jun; 28 August 1913 – 18 October 1985), born Minoru Tanaka, was a Japanese actor best known for his various roles in kaiju films produced by Toho, often portraying scientists or military personnel.
Hiromichi Shinohara (篠原 弘道, Shinohara Hiromichi; 1 August 1913 – 27 August 1939) was the highest-scoring fighter ace of…Hiromichi Shinohara (篠原 弘道, Shinohara Hiromichi; 1 August 1913 – 27 August 1939) was the highest-scoring fighter ace of the Imperial Japanese Army Air Service (IJAAF). On 27 June 1939 he set a Japanese record by downing 11 planes on a single day. He was shot down and killed on 27 August 1939, having claimed 58 victories in only three months of combat. He scored all his aerial victories while flying a Nakajima Ki-27.
Nankichi Niimi (新美 南吉, Niimi Nankichi; July 30, 1913 – March 22, 1943) was a Japanese author, sometimes known as the…Nankichi Niimi (新美 南吉, Niimi Nankichi; July 30, 1913 – March 22, 1943) was a Japanese author, sometimes known as the Hans Christian Andersen of Japan. Niimi was born Shōhachi Watanabe (渡邊 正八, Watanabe Shōhachi) in Yanabe, in the city of Handa, Aichi prefecture, on July 30, 1913. He lost his mother when he was four years old. His literary skill was noticeable at an early age. During his elementary school graduation ceremony, he presented a haiku that impressed most people at the ceremony. The Dandelion So Many Days Trampled Today’s Flower At age 18, Niimi moved to Tokyo to enter the Tokyo University of Foreign Studies. He fell sick with tuberculosis while in Tokyo shortly after graduating, and returned to his hometown. He worked there, first as an elementary school teacher, then as a women's high school teacher. He died at age 29. Although not prolific, he shows great talent in all of his writings. His works are known for their accuracy and lively depictions of humans. He is also often compared to Kenji Miyazawa. There is a Niimi Nankichi Memorial Museum in his birthplace, Handa.
Kanichi Kashimura (樫村 寛一, Kashimura Kan'ichi; July 5, 1913 – March 6, 1943) was an Imperial Japanese Navy Naval Ace of…Kanichi Kashimura (樫村 寛一, Kashimura Kan'ichi; July 5, 1913 – March 6, 1943) was an Imperial Japanese Navy Naval Ace of the Second Sino-Japanese and Second World War. On December 9, 1937, Kashimura fought Hawk III over Nan- chang, destroying one and then colliding with another aircraft (an unknown type that could have been either Japanese or Chinese), tearing off a third of his left wing. Through superb piloting, the calm aviator brought his crippled Claude' back to base, and after four landing attempts, the aircraft somersaulted on touching the ground on its fourth approach and lost its tail in the subsequent crash. Astoundingly, the pilot walked away from the wreckage unharmed. Local news reporters quickly sent the story back to Japan, where Kashimura gained instant fame. On March 6, 1943 he was shot down and killed by a US aircraft near the Russell Islands.
Ayako Sano (佐野禮子, Sano Ayako; July 4, 1913 – September 3, 2003), formerly Princess Ayako Takeda (禮子女王, Ayako Joō), was…Ayako Sano (佐野禮子, Sano Ayako; July 4, 1913 – September 3, 2003), formerly Princess Ayako Takeda (禮子女王, Ayako Joō), was the daughter of Prince Tsunehisa Takeda and Princess Masako Takeda, and was thus the granddaughter of Emperor Meiji through her mother's side. She married Tsunemitsu Sano in March 1934, and had four children. She lost her status as a member of the Imperial Family in October 1947 with the abolition of collateral imperial houses by the American Occupation Authorities. She died on September 3, 2003.
Takeshi Nagata (永田 武, Nagata Takeshi; June 24, 1913 – June 3, 1991) was a Japanese geophysicist. He studied…Takeshi Nagata (永田 武, Nagata Takeshi; June 24, 1913 – June 3, 1991) was a Japanese geophysicist. He studied geomagnetism. He won the Gold Medal of the Royal Astronomical Society in 1987. Mount Nagata in Antarctica is named after him.
Tsugio Hasegawa (長谷川 次男, Hasegawa Tsugio; born 18 June 1913, date of death unknown) was a Japanese figure skater.…Tsugio Hasegawa (長谷川 次男, Hasegawa Tsugio; born 18 June 1913, date of death unknown) was a Japanese figure skater. Hasegawa began figure skating in 1926 at a park in Kanagawa Prefecture. He competed in the men's singles event at the 1936 Winter Olympics. Later that month, he competed at the 1936 World Championships, where he placed last.