Takaaki Katsumata (勝俣孝明, Katsumata Takaaki; born 7 April 1976) is a Japanese politician serving as a member of the…Takaaki Katsumata (勝俣孝明, Katsumata Takaaki; born 7 April 1976) is a Japanese politician serving as a member of the House of Representatives since 2012. From 2023 to 2024, he served as chairman of the foreign affairs committee.
Yuji Fujimoto (藤本 祐司, Fujimoto Yūji; born February 16, 1957) is a Japanese politician of the Democratic Party of Japan…Yuji Fujimoto (藤本 祐司, Fujimoto Yūji; born February 16, 1957) is a Japanese politician of the Democratic Party of Japan, a member of the House of Councillors in the Diet (national legislature). A native of Hamamatsu, Shizuoka, he graduated from Waseda University and received his master's degree from Michigan State University. In 2004, he was elected to the House of Councillors for the first time.
Masaaki Sugiyama (杉山正明, Sugiyama Masaaki) (1952-2019) was a Japanese historian and author. Sugiyama was born March 1…Masaaki Sugiyama (杉山正明, Sugiyama Masaaki) (1952-2019) was a Japanese historian and author. Sugiyama was born March 1, 1952, in Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan. He graduated from the Faculty of Letters of Kyoto University in 1974. In 1992, he became an associate professor at the Faculty of Letters at Kyoto University, and in 1995, a professor, and later a professor at the Graduate School of Letters. He received the Japan Academy Prize in 2007. Sugiyama died on December 24, 2019.
Masato Harada (原田 眞人, Harada Masato; July 3, 1949 – December 8, 2025) was a Japanese film director, screenwriter…Masato Harada (原田 眞人, Harada Masato; July 3, 1949 – December 8, 2025) was a Japanese film director, screenwriter, critic and occasional actor. He was nominated five times for the Japan Academy Film Prize for Best Director, among other accolades.
Yukiko Sakamoto (坂本 由紀子, Sakamoto Yukiko; born 20 January 1949) is a Japanese politician and bureaucrat from Mishima…Yukiko Sakamoto (坂本 由紀子, Sakamoto Yukiko; born 20 January 1949) is a Japanese politician and bureaucrat from Mishima, Shizuoka. She was the first woman to be appointed vice-governor of Shizuoka Prefecture in 1996 and served one term in the House of Councillors in the National Diet from 2004 until 2009.
Jiro Nagasawa (長沢 二郎, Nagasawa Jirō; February 2, 1932 – March 23, 2010) was a Japanese swimmer. He is credited with the…Jiro Nagasawa (長沢 二郎, Nagasawa Jirō; February 2, 1932 – March 23, 2010) was a Japanese swimmer. He is credited with the invention of the modern butterfly stroke. Although not the first to swim the butterfly-breaststroke, Nagasawa was the first to use a dolphin kick, where the legs stayed together and moved simultaneously up then down.
Makoto Ōoka (大岡 信, Ōoka Makoto; February 16, 1931, in Mishima, Shizuoka – April 5, 2017) was a Japanese poet and…Makoto Ōoka (大岡 信, Ōoka Makoto; February 16, 1931, in Mishima, Shizuoka – April 5, 2017) was a Japanese poet and literary critic. He pioneered the collaborative poetic form renshi in the 1990s, in which he has collaborated with such well-known literary figures as Charles Tomlinson, James Lasdun, Joseph Stanton, Shuntarō Tanikawa and Mikirō Sasaki.
Norio Ohga (大賀 典雄, Ōga Norio; January 29, 1930 – April 23, 2011), also spelled Norio Oga, was a Japanese businessperson…Norio Ohga (大賀 典雄, Ōga Norio; January 29, 1930 – April 23, 2011), also spelled Norio Oga, was a Japanese businessperson who was the president and chairman of Sony Corporation. He is credited with spurring the development of the compact disc (CD) as a commercially viable audio format.
Masao Sasakibara (佐々木原 正夫, Sasakibara Masao; 1921–2005) was an ace fighter pilot in the Imperial Japanese Navy during…Masao Sasakibara (佐々木原 正夫, Sasakibara Masao; 1921–2005) was an ace fighter pilot in the Imperial Japanese Navy during World War II. Participating in many of the Pacific War battles and campaigns as a member of several units, Sasakibara was officially credited with destroying 12 enemy aircraft. He was seriously injured while supporting the Ke operation during the Guadalcanal Campaign, but survived after a lengthy stay in the hospital. He returned to Japan in June 1945 and survived the war.
Ryoei Saito (齊藤 了英, Saitō Ryōei; April 17, 1916 – March 30, 1996) was the honorary chairman of Daishowa Paper…Ryoei Saito (齊藤 了英, Saitō Ryōei; April 17, 1916 – March 30, 1996) was the honorary chairman of Daishowa Paper Manufacturing in Japan. He was noted for his purchase of expensive art. Specifically, at consecutive auctions by Christie's and Sotheby's in New York in mid May 1990, Saito bought Van Gogh's Portrait of Dr. Gachet and a second, smaller version of Renoir's Bal du moulin de la Galette for $82.5 and $78.1 million, respectively. At the time, these were the two most expensive paintings sold, either at auction or through private sales. Taking inflation in account, they remained the two most expensive paintings until the private sale of Klimt's Portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer I in June 2006. It took 25 years before Saito's public auction price was broken, through the sale of Picasso's Les Femmes d'Alger ("Version O") at Christie's, New York, in May 2015. Saito died of a stroke six years after his acquisitions. Three years later, the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, after failing to locate the Van Gogh for an exhibition, expressed concern that both paintings may have been cremated with the owner, since Saito had mentioned in the early 1990s, after having to pay $24 million in taxes for them, that it would be better to do so, in order to avoid colossal death duties for his children. Only in 2007 did it became publicly known that the painting had been sold in 1997 or 1998 to the Austrian-born investment fund manager Wolfgang Flöttl.
Yasushi Inoue (井上靖, Inoue Yasushi; May 6, 1907 – January 29, 1991) was a Japanese writer of novels, short stories…Yasushi Inoue (井上靖, Inoue Yasushi; May 6, 1907 – January 29, 1991) was a Japanese writer of novels, short stories, poetry and essays, noted for his historical and autobiographical fiction. His most acclaimed works include The Bullfight (Tōgyū, 1949), The Roof Tile of Tempyō (Tenpyō no iraka, 1957) and Tun-huang (Tonkō, 1959).
Shu Watanabe (渡辺 周, Watanabe Shū; born 11 December 1961) is a Japanese politician of the Constitutional Democratic…Shu Watanabe (渡辺 周, Watanabe Shū; born 11 December 1961) is a Japanese politician of the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan, who served as a member of the House of Representatives in the Diet of Japan (national legislature).
