Kenshiro Matsunami (松浪 健四郎, Matsunami Kenshirō; born 14 October 1946) is a retired Japanese politician of the Liberal…
Kenshiro Matsunami (松浪 健四郎, Matsunami Kenshirō; born 14 October 1946) is a retired Japanese politician of the Liberal Democratic Party, who served as a member of the House of Representatives in the Diet (national legislature). A native of Izumisano, Osaka, he attended Nippon Sport Science University, Eastern Michigan University and Nihon University. He was elected to the House of Representatives for the first time in 1996 as a member of the New Frontier Party. After losing his seat in 2003, he was re-elected in 2005 and served until 2009 as a member of the LDP.
Famous People Born in the Year of the Dog
Dog: 1,900 people
Jin Akiyama (Japanese: 秋山仁; born 1946) is a Japanese mathematician, known for his appearances on Japanese prime-time…
Jin Akiyama (Japanese: 秋山仁; born 1946) is a Japanese mathematician, known for his appearances on Japanese prime-time television (NHK) presenting magic tricks with mathematical explanations. He is director of the Mathematical Education Research Center at the Tokyo University of Science, and professor emeritus at Tokai University. Akiyama studied mathematics at the Tokyo University of Science, where one of his mentors was Takashi Hamada. He completed a graduate degree at Sophia University under the supervision of Mitio Nagumo, in differential equations, but soon shifted his interests to graph theory. He planned to take a position in Ghana, but after conflict there caused it to be cancelled he joined the faculty at Nippon Ika University, and then moved to the U.S. for 1978 and 1979 to work with Frank Harary at the University of Michigan. In the 1990s, his interests shifted again, from graph theory to discrete geometry. Akiyama is a founder of the Japan Conference on Discrete and Computational Geometry, Graphs, and Games (JCDCG3), the founding managing editor of Graphs and Combinatorics, and the author of the books A Day's Adventure in Math Wonderland (with Mari-Jo Ruiz, World Scientific, 2008), Factors and Factorizations of Graphs (with Mikio Kano, Lecture Notes in Mathematics 2031, Springer, 2011), and Treks Into Intuitive Geometry: The World of Polygons and Polyhedra (with Kiyoko Matsunaga, Springer, 2015). He is also the namesake of a Nintendo DS game, Master Jin Jin's IQ Challenge. Akiyama's lectures sometimes also include musical performances by him, on accordion or xylophone.
Sawao Katō (加藤 澤男, Katō Sawao; born October 11, 1946) is a Japanese former gymnast and one of the most successful…
Sawao Katō (加藤 澤男, Katō Sawao; born October 11, 1946) is a Japanese former gymnast and one of the most successful Olympic athletes of all time. Between 1968 and 1976 he won twelve Olympic medals, including eight gold medals, making him the most successful Japanese Olympian by number of gold medals won.
Naoto Kan (菅 直人, Kan Naoto; born 10 October 1946) is a Japanese former politician who served as Prime Minister of Japan…
Naoto Kan (菅 直人, Kan Naoto; born 10 October 1946) is a Japanese former politician who served as Prime Minister of Japan and President of the Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) from June 2010 to September 2011. Kan was the first Prime Minister since the resignation of Junichiro Koizumi in 2006 to serve for more than one year, with his predecessors Yukio Hatoyama, Tarō Asō, Yasuo Fukuda, and Shinzo Abe either resigning prematurely or losing an election. On 26 August 2011, Kan announced his resignation. Yoshihiko Noda was elected as his successor. On 1 August 2012, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon announced Kan would be one of the members of the UN high-level panel on the post-2015 development agenda. Kan would announce his retirement from politics in November 2023. In February 2024 he would publish a memoir reflecting on his time in politics titled 'Fifty Years of Citizen Politics' (市民政治50年, Shimin Seiji 50-nen).
Toshio Yanagida (柳田 敏雄, Yanagida Toshio) (born 1946) is a Japanese biophysicist famous for his pioneer research in…
Toshio Yanagida (柳田 敏雄, Yanagida Toshio) (born 1946) is a Japanese biophysicist famous for his pioneer research in single molecule biology, and made important contributions to single molecule fluorescence microscopy.
Genjirō Arato (荒戸 源次郎, Arato Genjirō; 10 October 1946 – 7 November 2016) was a Japanese film producer, actor and…
Genjirō Arato (荒戸 源次郎, Arato Genjirō; 10 October 1946 – 7 November 2016) was a Japanese film producer, actor and director.
Sumie Oinuma (生沼 スミエ, Oinuma Sumie; born October 8, 1946) is a female Japanese former volleyball player who competed in…
Sumie Oinuma (生沼 スミエ, Oinuma Sumie; born October 8, 1946) is a female Japanese former volleyball player who competed in the 1968 Summer Olympics and in the 1972 Summer Olympics.
Masatoshi Shinomaki (篠巻 政利, born October 6, 1946) is a retired Japanese heavyweight judoka, who won the world title in…
Masatoshi Shinomaki (篠巻 政利, born October 6, 1946) is a retired Japanese heavyweight judoka, who won the world title in the open category in 1969 and 1971, placing third in 1967. He also competed at the 1972 Summer Olympics.
Yukiko Kobayashi (小林夕岐子, Kobayashi Yukiko; born 6 October 1946) is a former Japanese actress. She has appeared in more…
Yukiko Kobayashi (小林夕岐子, Kobayashi Yukiko; born 6 October 1946) is a former Japanese actress. She has appeared in more than ten films since 1965.
Helen Nishikawa (Japanese: 西川 ヘレン, Hepburn: Nishikawa Heren) [born Helen Sugimoto (杉本 ヘレン, Sugimoto Heren); 6 October…
Helen Nishikawa (Japanese: 西川 ヘレン, Hepburn: Nishikawa Heren) [born Helen Sugimoto (杉本 ヘレン, Sugimoto Heren); 6 October 1946] is a female Japanese TV presenter and actress. Although one of her parents was American, Nishikawa does not speak native-level English. She is well known as the wife of the comedian and former politician Kiyoshi Nishikawa and has written two books.
Junji Higashi (東 順治, Higashi Junji; 6 October 1946 – 17 October 2023) was a Japanese politician of the New Komeito…
Junji Higashi (東 順治, Higashi Junji; 6 October 1946 – 17 October 2023) was a Japanese politician of the New Komeito Party, a member of the House of Representatives in the Diet (national legislature). A native of Kitakyūshū, Fukuoka and graduate of the University of Kitakyushu he was elected to the House of Representatives for the first time in 1990. He represented the 2nd District of Fukuoka prefecture. Junji Higashi died of pneumonia on 17 October 2023, at the age of 77.
Oh Seung-Lip (Korean: 오승립; born 6 October 1946) is a Korean former judoka who competed in the 1972 Summer Olympics. He…
Oh Seung-Lip (Korean: 오승립; born 6 October 1946) is a Korean former judoka who competed in the 1972 Summer Olympics. He won a bronze medal at the 1969 World Judo Championships.
Atsuto Suzuki (鈴木 厚人, Suzuki Atsuto; born October 3, 1946, in Niigata Prefecture, Japan) is an experimental particle…
Atsuto Suzuki (鈴木 厚人, Suzuki Atsuto; born October 3, 1946, in Niigata Prefecture, Japan) is an experimental particle physicist known for his observations of neutrinos and anti-neutrinos.
Tadahiko Shintani (Japanese: 新谷 忠彦, romanized: Shintani Tadahiko, born October 1946) is a Japanese linguist and…
Tadahiko Shintani (Japanese: 新谷 忠彦, romanized: Shintani Tadahiko, born October 1946) is a Japanese linguist and Professor Emeritus of the Tokyo University of Foreign Studies, specializing in the phonology of New Caledonian languages and Southeast Asian languages.
Hiroshi Imazu (今津 寛, Imazu Hiroshi; born 30 September 1946) is a former Japanese politician of the Liberal Democratic…
Hiroshi Imazu (今津 寛, Imazu Hiroshi; born 30 September 1946) is a former Japanese politician of the Liberal Democratic Party, who served as a member of the House of Representatives in the Diet (national legislature). A native of Asahikawa on Hokkaido and graduate of Chuo University, he was elected to the first of his two terms in the city assembly of Asahikawa in 1975, to the first of his two terms in the Hokkaido Prefectural Assembly in 1983 and finally to the House of Representatives for the first time in 1990. Imazu is affiliated to the revisionist lobby Nippon Kaigi. After failing to win a seat in the 2017 Japanese general election he retired from politics. His son is Hirosuke Imazu, who became the mayor of Asahikawa in 2021.
Morinobu Endo (遠藤 守信 Endō Morinobu, born September 28, 1946) is a Japanese physicist and chemist, often cited as one of…
Morinobu Endo (遠藤 守信 Endō Morinobu, born September 28, 1946) is a Japanese physicist and chemist, often cited as one of the pioneers of carbon nanofibers and carbon nanotubes synthesis at the beginning of the 1970s. He demonstrated carbon fibers can be grown by gas pyrolysis and traveled to Orléans, France in 1974 working with Madame Agnès Oberlin at CNRS in her laboratory. He discovered carbon nanotubes in 1976 as part of his studies at University of Orleans in France. He has been awarded the Charles E. Pettinos Award from the American Carbon Society in 2001, "For his pioneering work and applications of carbon nanotubes", Medal of Achievement in Carbon Science and Technology from the American Carbon Society in 2004, "for the discovery of, and early synthesis work on, carbon nanotubes". Born in Nagano Prefecture in 1946, he studied electrical engineering and received his Bachelor of Engineering and master's degree in 1969 and 1971 from Shinshu University, Japan, respectively, and obtained "Docteur d'Universite" in 1975 from University of Orléans, France, then Ph.D. in 1978 from Nagoya University, Japan. In his works, he developed the structural, synthetic research as well as physical properties analysis, mainly on multi-walled carbon nanotubes. He showed that they had a tubular structure of graphite layers grown by ultra-fine iron particle by catalytic process, and developed to mass production process for the first time. This catalytic CVD process has been used as an industrially available mass production method, both substrate and floating catalyst processes. Present CCVD process has been expecting to grow the wide range of carbon nanotubes by controlling the growth site as well as their nanostructure. His main research interests are science and applications of "nanocarbons" such as carbon nanotubes, and he has contributed to development of new composites and high-performance energy storage devices such as lithium ion battery, electric double layer capacitor, and fuel cell, based on such structure controlled advanced carbons. Since 1990, he is a professor of education and training of electrical and electronics engineers, and now is also the director of Institute of Carbon Science & Technology, both at Shinshu University. He is one of the international advisory members of CARBON journal. He has been invited at many international conferences and symposium as a plenary lecturer/key-note speaker. In addition, he has joined many international conferences as a chairman, organizer and advisory board member.
Fujinokawa Takeo (born 26 September 1946 as Takeo Morita) is a former sumo wrestler from Otofuke, Hokkaido, Japan. He…
Fujinokawa Takeo (born 26 September 1946 as Takeo Morita) is a former sumo wrestler from Otofuke, Hokkaido, Japan. He made his professional debut in May 1961 and reached a highest rank of sekiwake in May 1967. He was a runner-up in two top division (makuuchi) tournaments, finishing three wins behind Tamanoshima in May 1968 and losing a playoff to ozeki Kiyokuni in July 1969. He earned four kinboshi for defeating yokozuna and won seven special prizes. After his retirement in 1972 at the age of 26 he became an elder of the Japan Sumo Association and took over as head coach of Isenoumi stable in 1982. He left the Sumo Association in 2011 upon reaching 65 years of age.
Kōichi Tabuchi (田淵 幸一, Tabuchi Kōichi; born September 24, 1946) is a Japanese former professional baseball player…
Kōichi Tabuchi (田淵 幸一, Tabuchi Kōichi; born September 24, 1946) is a Japanese former professional baseball player, manager, and commentator. During his career, Tabuchi played for the Hanshin Tigers and the Seibu Lions. Tabuchi played catcher for the Hanshin Tigers from 1969 and 1978, where his combination with pitcher Yutaka Enatsu was called the "Golden Battery". Always a long-range hitter, Tabuchi was nicknamed home run artist because of the high-in-the-sky, long trajectory of his home runs. Although his career total of 474 home runs is far below Sadaharu Oh's 868, his frequency nearly matched Oh's. Tabuchi hit a home run once every 12.41 at-bats, while Oh did once every 10.66. In this statistic he is second only to Oh among sluggers who have logged 300 or more home runs. Known as Mr. Tiger (along with Fumio Fujimura, Minoru Murayama, and Masayuki Kakefu), Tabuchi has served as the chairman of Hanshin Tigers Old Boys' Committee since November 2009.
Tsutomu Katsuki (September 23, 1946 – October 13, 2014) was an organic chemist who primarily focused on asymmetric…
Tsutomu Katsuki (September 23, 1946 – October 13, 2014) was an organic chemist who primarily focused on asymmetric oxidation reactions utilizing transition metal catalysts.
Setsuko Inoue (井上 節子, Inoue Setsuko) (born September 16, 1946) is a Japanese former volleyball player who competed in…
Setsuko Inoue (井上 節子, Inoue Setsuko) (born September 16, 1946) is a Japanese former volleyball player who competed in the 1968 Summer Olympics. She was born in Kanagawa Prefecture. In 1968 she was part of the Japanese team which won the silver medal in the Olympic tournament. She played all seven matches.
Noriyuki Kazaoka (Japanese: 風岡典之) (born September 15, 1946) was a Japanese official who served as Grand Steward of the…
Noriyuki Kazaoka (Japanese: 風岡典之) (born September 15, 1946) was a Japanese official who served as Grand Steward of the Imperial Household Agency from 1 Jun 2012 – 26 Sep 2016. He was born in Niigata Prefecture and worked at the Ministry of Construction.
Mitsuru Kohno (河野 満, Kōno Mitsuru; born September 13, 1946) is a former international table tennis player from Japan.
Hayato Tani (谷 隼人, Tani Hayato; born September 9, 1946 as Hajime Iwatani) is a Japanese actor, singer and television…
Hayato Tani (谷 隼人, Tani Hayato; born September 9, 1946 as Hajime Iwatani) is a Japanese actor, singer and television presenter best known for his career as General Tani in Takeshi's Castle and Commander Sugata in Hikari Sentai Maskman. He is affiliated to the Goodfellows agency and has a business partnership with Anemoi Entertainment, the agency representing singer and actor Gentaro Takahashi.
Tadamori Ōshima (Japanese: 大島 理森, Hepburn: Ōshima Tadamori; born 6 September 1946) is a former Japanese politician who…
Tadamori Ōshima (Japanese: 大島 理森, Hepburn: Ōshima Tadamori; born 6 September 1946) is a former Japanese politician who served as the Speaker of the House of Representatives from 2015 to 2021. A member of the Liberal Democratic Party, he previously served as the Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, and Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology. He is affiliated to the revisionist lobby Nippon Kaigi.
Fujiko Sawada (澤田ふじ子; born September 5, 1946) is a Japanese novelist. She is best-known for her works of historical…
Fujiko Sawada (澤田ふじ子; born September 5, 1946) is a Japanese novelist. She is best-known for her works of historical fiction.
Minoru Arakawa (荒川 實, Arakawa Minoru; born September 3, 1946) is a Japanese businessman best known as the founder and…
Minoru Arakawa (荒川 實, Arakawa Minoru; born September 3, 1946) is a Japanese businessman best known as the founder and former president of Nintendo of America, and the co-founder of Tetris Online, Inc.
Yukio Takasu (高須幸雄, Takasu Yukio) (born August 29, 1946) is a Japanese diplomat and the former United Nations…
Yukio Takasu (高須幸雄, Takasu Yukio) (born August 29, 1946) is a Japanese diplomat and the former United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Management. Previously, he was the Special Adviser on Human Security to the United Nations Secretary-General. Takasu also served as Advisor to the Japanese Foreign Minister and as Professor at the University of Tokyo. Since 2011, Takasu has taught at Ritsumeikan University in Kyoto. He was Permanent Representative and Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary at the Permanent Mission of Japan to the United Nations in New York. Takasu has also twice served as President of the United Nations Security Council, once in February 2009 and again in April 2010.
Hideo Ōnishi (大西英男, Ōnishi Hideo; born August 28, 1946) is a former Japanese politician and member of the House of…
Hideo Ōnishi (大西英男, Ōnishi Hideo; born August 28, 1946) is a former Japanese politician and member of the House of Representatives, who represented Tokyo 16th district from 2012 to 2024. He is a member of the Liberal Democratic Party.
Akihiko Noro (野呂 昭彦, Noro Akihiko; born 28 August 1946) is a Japanese politician, most recently serving as the governor…
Akihiko Noro (野呂 昭彦, Noro Akihiko; born 28 August 1946) is a Japanese politician, most recently serving as the governor of Mie Prefecture from 2003 until 2011. A native of Iitaka, Mie, Noro attended Keio University and obtained a Bachelor of Engineering degree. In 1979 he commenced his political career by becoming secretary to his father Kyōichi Noro, who had just been appointed as Minister of Health and Welfare in the cabinet of Prime Minister Masayoshi Ōhira. In 1983 Kyōichi announced his retirement from politics, leaving Akihiro to contest his seat in the Mie No.2 district in the December 1983 general election. Akihiro was successful in the election and served in the House of Representatives in the Diet (national legislature) for four terms from 1983 until 1996. Electoral reforms introduced in 1993 saw the old system of multi-member constituencies abolished. Noro contested the newly created Mie 4th district at the 1996 general election but lost to Norihisa Tamura. Noro then successfully contested the April 2000 mayoral election in Matsusaka. He resigned in April 2003 whilst still in his first term in order to contest the Mie gubernatorial election.
Tamejiro Hiyama (born August 24, 1946) is a Japanese organic chemist. He is best known for his work in developing the…
Tamejiro Hiyama (born August 24, 1946) is a Japanese organic chemist. He is best known for his work in developing the Nozaki-Hiyama-Kishi reaction and the Hiyama coupling. He is currently a professor at the Chuo University Research and Development Initiative, and a Professor Emeritus of Kyoto University.
Norio Yoshimizu (吉水 法生, Yoshimizu Norio; born August 21, 1946) is a former Japanese football player. He played for…
Norio Yoshimizu (吉水 法生, Yoshimizu Norio; born August 21, 1946) is a former Japanese football player. He played for Japan national team.
Masaaki Ikenaga (池永 正明, Ikenaga Masaaki; August 18, 1946 – September 25, 2022) was a Japanese professional baseball…
Masaaki Ikenaga (池永 正明, Ikenaga Masaaki; August 18, 1946 – September 25, 2022) was a Japanese professional baseball player. A right-handed pitcher, he played in Japan for the Nishitetsu Lions. Ikenaga was one of the top pitchers in Nippon Professional Baseball before a scandal derailed his career at age 23. Before being implicated in the Black Mist Scandal, he made five consecutive All-Star teams at the beginning of his career, and was in the top 10 in ERA every season of his career.
Mariko Bando (坂東 眞理子, Bandō Mariko) is a Japanese writer, critic, and former bureaucrat. Bando started her career in…
Mariko Bando (坂東 眞理子, Bandō Mariko) is a Japanese writer, critic, and former bureaucrat. Bando started her career in the Prime Minister's office, later becoming a consul general and the first director general of the Japanese Cabinet Office's Gender Equality Bureau. Her 2006 book The Dignity of a Woman has sold more than three million copies in Japan. She is currently the president and chancellor of Showa Women's University.
Takeshi Uchiyamada (内山田 竹志, Uchiyamada Takeshi; born August 17, 1946) is a Japanese businessman who was chairman of…
Takeshi Uchiyamada (内山田 竹志, Uchiyamada Takeshi; born August 17, 1946) is a Japanese businessman who was chairman of Toyota from 2013 to 2023. He graduated from Nagoya University. He is known as the "father of the Prius" for his role in leading the development of the Toyota Prius, the world's best-selling hybrid electric vehicle in history.
Noriyuki Haraguchi (1946-2020) was a Japanese artist who is known as a leading figure of Mono-ha and Post-mono-ha, with…
Noriyuki Haraguchi (1946-2020) was a Japanese artist who is known as a leading figure of Mono-ha and Post-mono-ha, with a precise attention paid to the materials used (often industrial), their spatial arrangement, the relationship with the exhibition space and the processual reach of the artistic practice. His first works reference the aesthetics and materials of militarism and heavy industry. From the 1970s onwards, his work turned to issues related to perception and representation by creating complex conversation between raw and manufactured materials exploring notions of modernity, industrialization, and nature in works with a beguiling formal beauty.
Masaji Kusakabe (born 7 August 1946) is a Japanese professional golfer.
Masaaki Sakai (堺 正章, Sakai Masaaki; born June 6, 1946 as Masaaki Kurihara (栗原 正章, Kurihara Masaaki)) is a popular…
Masaaki Sakai (堺 正章, Sakai Masaaki; born June 6, 1946 as Masaaki Kurihara (栗原 正章, Kurihara Masaaki)) is a popular Japanese performer from Tokyo. He is best known to English-speaking audiences as the title star of the TV show Monkey.
Ichikawa Danjūrō XII (十二代目 市川 團十郎, Jūnidaime Ichikawa Danjūrō; August 6, 1946 – February 3, 2013) was a Japanese actor.…
Ichikawa Danjūrō XII (十二代目 市川 團十郎, Jūnidaime Ichikawa Danjūrō; August 6, 1946 – February 3, 2013) was a Japanese actor. He was the twelfth kabuki actor to hold the illustrious name Ichikawa Danjūrō.
Kazuo Yamaguchi (山口一男, Yamaguchi Kazuo; born August 6, 1946) is a Japanese sociologist and is the Hanna Holborn Gray…
Kazuo Yamaguchi (山口一男, Yamaguchi Kazuo; born August 6, 1946) is a Japanese sociologist and is the Hanna Holborn Gray Professor of sociology at the University of Chicago.
Kenji Nakagami (Japanese: 中上 健次, Nakagami Kenji; 2 August 1946 – 12 August 1992) was a Japanese writer, critic, and…
Kenji Nakagami (Japanese: 中上 健次, Nakagami Kenji; 2 August 1946 – 12 August 1992) was a Japanese writer, critic, and poet. He was one of the most prominent and influential Japanese writers of the post-war era, known for his novels, short stories, and essays that powerfully depicted the lives of Japan's burakumin outcaste community. Born into a buraku in Shingū, Wakayama, Nakagami was the first writer from this background to win the prestigious Akutagawa Prize, which he received in 1976 for his novella The Cape (岬, Misaki). His writing is characterized by a rhythmic, visceral prose style that drew heavily on oral storytelling traditions, folklore, and the dialect of his native Kumano region. Nakagami's major works, including the "Akiyuki trilogy"—The Cape, Withered Tree Straits (枯木灘, Karekinada), and The Ends of the Earth, the Supreme Time (地の果て至上の時, Chi no hate, shijō no toki)—form a complex family saga set in the roji (路地, alleyways), a fictionalized version of his hometown's buraku. These narratives explore themes of bloodlines, incest, violence, sexuality, and the interplay between myth and history. After publicly revealing his burakumin origins in 1977, Nakagami became a vocal public intellectual, engaging in critical dialogues about discrimination, Japanese literature, and national identity. He sought to represent the voices of the mukoku (voiceless), the socially silenced people of Japan. He consciously positioned his work against the mainstream of modern Japanese literature, which he critiqued for its exclusion of marginalized voices and its adherence to what he called the "emperor's syntax". Adopting the concept of "parallax" to describe his dual perspective as both an insider to the buraku and an outsider to mainstream society, he sought to create a "strange new tongue" rooted in the peripheral experiences of his community. He died from kidney cancer at the age of 46.
Zenjiro Yasuda (born August 1, 1946) is a Japanese field hockey coach. At the 2012 Summer Olympics he coached the Japan…
Zenjiro Yasuda (born August 1, 1946) is a Japanese field hockey coach. At the 2012 Summer Olympics he coached the Japan women's national field hockey team.
Hiroshi Takeyama (Yō Takeyama (竹山 洋, Takeyama Yō); July 28, 1946 – April 12, 2023) was a Japanese screenwriter. Besides…
Hiroshi Takeyama (Yō Takeyama (竹山 洋, Takeyama Yō); July 28, 1946 – April 12, 2023) was a Japanese screenwriter. Besides his work for television, he is best known for his screenplays for Hotaru (2001) and Shijushichinin no shikaku, Kon Ichikawa's 1994 version of the Forty-seven rōnin story. Both of these were nominated but did not win the Award of the Japanese Academy for "Best Screenplay".
Nobuyasu Okabayashi (Japanese: 岡林 信康, Hepburn: Okabayashi Nobuyasu; born July 22, 1946) is a Japanese folk…
Nobuyasu Okabayashi (Japanese: 岡林 信康, Hepburn: Okabayashi Nobuyasu; born July 22, 1946) is a Japanese folk singer-songwriter whose career spans more than 50 years. Often compared to Bob Dylan, Rolling Stone Japan called him an icon of Japan's politically turbulent 1960s and 1970s. Okabayashi made his debut in 1968 and quickly earned the nickname the "God of Folk" (フォークの神様, Fōku no Kamisama) with his protest songs. He spent 1975 to 1981 eschewing this title by experimenting with genres such as enka, pop, and new wave. Inspired by the rhythms of Japanese Bon Odori and Korean samul nori, he then created his own genre in the mid-1980s and 1990s that he dubbed "enyatotto" (エンヤトット).
Midori Nakano (中野 翠, Nakano Midori; b. Urawa, Saitama, 21 July 1946) is a Japanese columnist and essayist who has…
Midori Nakano (中野 翠, Nakano Midori; b. Urawa, Saitama, 21 July 1946) is a Japanese columnist and essayist who has written extensively in Sunday Mainichi magazine. She is a graduate of Waseda University.
Kunie Shishikura (宍倉 邦枝, Shishikura Kunie; born July 13, 1946) is a Japanese former volleyball player who competed in…
Kunie Shishikura (宍倉 邦枝, Shishikura Kunie; born July 13, 1946) is a Japanese former volleyball player who competed in the 1968 Summer Olympics. She was born in Chiba Prefecture. In 1968 she was part of the Japanese team which won the silver medal in the Olympic tournament. She played all seven matches.
Takashi Ishii (石井隆, Ishii Takashi; 11 July 1946 – 22 May 2022) was a Japanese film director, screenwriter and manga…
Takashi Ishii (石井隆, Ishii Takashi; 11 July 1946 – 22 May 2022) was a Japanese film director, screenwriter and manga artist. He directed several pinku eiga erotic films, but his most notable feature was the 1995 crime thriller Gonin starring Takeshi Kitano.
Kimiko Itō or Kimiko Itoh (伊藤 君子, Itō Kimiko; born July 11, 1946) is a Japanese jazz singer. She was born on the island…
Kimiko Itō or Kimiko Itoh (伊藤 君子, Itō Kimiko; born July 11, 1946) is a Japanese jazz singer. She was born on the island of Shikoku in Kagawa Prefecture, Japan. After graduating from Musashino Art University with a degree in oil painting, she studied under Yasushi Sawada. In 1982, she made her debut with her first jazz album, "Birdland". In 1989, she released the album "フォロー・ミー(FOLLOW ME)" simultaneously in Japan and the United States. It ranked 16th in the Radio & Records Contemporary Jazz charts. Swing Journal (スイングジャーナル) voted Kimiko Number 1 female vocalist in 1988–1996. In 2004, her cover of the song "River of Crystals" from her album "Follow Me" was featured in the Mamoru Oshii-directed film Ghost in the Shell: Innocence.
Nana Kinomi (木の実 ナナ, Kinomi Nana; born July 11, 1946, in Sumida, Tokyo, Japan) is a Japanese actress and singer.
Yukako Uchinaga (内永 ゆか子, Uchinaga Yukako; born 1947) is a Japanese businesswoman, best known for her long career at IBM…
Yukako Uchinaga (内永 ゆか子, Uchinaga Yukako; born 1947) is a Japanese businesswoman, best known for her long career at IBM Japan.
Kōkei Tsuruya (弦屋 光渓, Tsuruya Kōkei, born July 1946 in Chigasaki, Kanagawa Prefecture) is a contemporary Japanese…
Kōkei Tsuruya (弦屋 光渓, Tsuruya Kōkei, born July 1946 in Chigasaki, Kanagawa Prefecture) is a contemporary Japanese woodblock print artist, best known for his Kabuki actor portraits. In 1985, art dealer Robert Sawers referred to him as a modern-day Sharaku because of the expressive quality of his actor prints.