Hiroshi Nagai (永井 博, Nagai Hiroshi; born March 10, 1941 in Shanghai, China), better known by the pseudonym Yasutaka…
Hiroshi Nagai (永井 博, Nagai Hiroshi; born March 10, 1941 in Shanghai, China), better known by the pseudonym Yasutaka Nagai (永井 泰宇, Nagai Yasutaka), is a Chinese-born Japanese novelist, manga author and scenario writer. He is one of the four brothers of manga artist Go Nagai. In 1969, he was a candidate for the Edogawa Rampo Prize for his novel Baptism of Blood (鮮血のバプテスマ Senketsu no Baputesuma), written under the pen name Baku Nagai (the onyomi reading of his birth name), but lost to Seiichi Morimura. He abandoned his activities as a writer, for a time, with the establishment of Dynamic Production. He would re-debut as a writer in 1981 with Shin Devilman (not to be confused with the manga of similar name with which he also collaborated). When working as a comic writer, he usually takes yet another pen name, that of Hiroshi Koenji. He wrote several comics for both his brother Go Nagai and Ken Ishikawa, such as Maboroshi Panty, Haru Ichiban and Shinrei Tantei Occult Dan, among others.
Famous Japanese People: Writer・Novelist
Writer・Novelist: 974 people
Junichi Saga (佐賀 純一, Saga Jun'ichi; born 1941) is a Japanese countryside physician and writer whose work records…
Junichi Saga (佐賀 純一, Saga Jun'ichi; born 1941) is a Japanese countryside physician and writer whose work records countryside experiences of numerous individuals (typically, his patients).
Yoko Mori (森瑤子) (November 4, 1940 – July 6, 1993) was a Japanese novelist, essayist, and translator who was known for…
Yoko Mori (森瑤子) (November 4, 1940 – July 6, 1993) was a Japanese novelist, essayist, and translator who was known for writing popular romantic fiction. Her real name was Masayo Brackin (née Ito).
Takashi Tachibana (立花 隆, Tachibana Takashi; 28 May 1940 – 30 April 2021, Nagasaki) was a Japanese journalist. He was…
Takashi Tachibana (立花 隆, Tachibana Takashi; 28 May 1940 – 30 April 2021, Nagasaki) was a Japanese journalist. He was known for his articles on Japanese social problems.
Tomomi Muramatsu (村松友視, Muramatsu Tomomi; born 10 April 1940) is a Japanese novelist active during the late Shōwa and…
Tomomi Muramatsu (村松友視, Muramatsu Tomomi; born 10 April 1940) is a Japanese novelist active during the late Shōwa and Heisei eras.
Atsuo Nakamura (中村 敦夫, Nakamura Atsuo; born 18 February 1940) is a Japanese actor and politician. He has appeared in…
Atsuo Nakamura (中村 敦夫, Nakamura Atsuo; born 18 February 1940) is a Japanese actor and politician. He has appeared in more than 50 films since 1964. His younger brother Katsuyuki Nakamura is a writer.
Toshiko MacAdam nee Horiuchi (1940 - Apr 26, 2026) was a Japanese textile artist based in Bridgetown, Nova Scotia…
Toshiko MacAdam nee Horiuchi (1940 - Apr 26, 2026) was a Japanese textile artist based in Bridgetown, Nova Scotia, Canada. She was best known for her work with large-scale textile structures, especially "textile playgrounds" for children, brightly colored net-like structures of crocheted and knotted nylon.
Hiroshi Osada (長田弘, 1939–2015) was a Japanese poet and author known for his contributions to contemporary literature…
Hiroshi Osada (長田弘, 1939–2015) was a Japanese poet and author known for his contributions to contemporary literature and children's literature.
Satoko Kizaki (木崎 さと子, Kizaki Satoko; born November 6, 1939) is a Japanese novelist. She is best known for The Phoenix…
Satoko Kizaki (木崎 さと子, Kizaki Satoko; born November 6, 1939) is a Japanese novelist. She is best known for The Phoenix Tree (Aogiri), which won the 1985 Akutagawa Prize.
Mayumi Shimizu (清水 眞弓, Shimizu Mayumi; July 26, 1939 – September 21, 2011), known by her pen name Jun Henmi (辺見 じゅん…
Mayumi Shimizu (清水 眞弓, Shimizu Mayumi; July 26, 1939 – September 21, 2011), known by her pen name Jun Henmi (辺見 じゅん, Henmi Jun), was a Japanese writer and poet. She was known for her works of fiction and nonfiction about people affected by World War II.
Rie Yoshiyuki (吉行理恵, Yoshiyuki Rie; 8 July 1939 – 4 May 2006) was a Japanese writer of short stories, novels and…
Rie Yoshiyuki (吉行理恵, Yoshiyuki Rie; 8 July 1939 – 4 May 2006) was a Japanese writer of short stories, novels and poetry. She was awarded the Noma Children's Literature Newcomer Award, the Akutagawa Prize, and the Women's Literature Prize.
Teruo Yajima (矢島 輝夫, Japanese: Yajima Teruo; May 20, 1939 – April 2, 1999) was a Japanese writer. He was born and…
Teruo Yajima (矢島 輝夫, Japanese: Yajima Teruo; May 20, 1939 – April 2, 1999) was a Japanese writer. He was born and raised in Tokyo, and studied French literature at Waseda University. After dropping out of university, he worked as an editor of Weekly Manga Action. As a disciple of Takaaki Yoshimoto, he wrote for Yoshimoto's magazine "Shikô (試行: Trial)". In the 1970s, his novel "Mô hitotsu no seikatsu (Another Life)" was nominated for The Akutagawa Prize. William Faulkner and Oe Kenzaburo had a big influence on his novels.
Satoshi Kuribayashi (栗林 慧, Kuribayashi Satoshi; born 1939) is a Japanese photographer.
Kazuo Iwamura (いわむらかずお, Iwamura Kazuo; Original kanji: 岩村 和朗, 3 April 1939 – 19 December 2024) was a children's book…
Kazuo Iwamura (いわむらかずお, Iwamura Kazuo; Original kanji: 岩村 和朗, 3 April 1939 – 19 December 2024) was a children's book author. The French newspaper Libération wrote that he was "well-known" ("mondialement connu") for his series of books about anthropomorphic mice.
Mieko Takizawa (瀧澤美恵子; March 1, 1939–August 9, 2020) was a Japanese novelist. She was best known for her 1989 work…
Mieko Takizawa (瀧澤美恵子; March 1, 1939–August 9, 2020) was a Japanese novelist. She was best known for her 1989 work Nekobaba no iru Machi de (ネコババのいる町で), which won the Akutagawa Prize.
Murder at Mt. Fuji (Wの悲劇, Daburyū no Higeki; The Tragedy of W) is a Japanese novel by author Shizuko Natsuki…
Murder at Mt. Fuji (Wの悲劇, Daburyū no Higeki; The Tragedy of W) is a Japanese novel by author Shizuko Natsuki, originally published in 1982. It has been adapted into several Japanese television dramas and a film.
Mieko Shiomi (塩見 允枝子, Shiomi Mieko; born 1938) is a Japanese artist, composer, and performer who played a key role in…
Mieko Shiomi (塩見 允枝子, Shiomi Mieko; born 1938) is a Japanese artist, composer, and performer who played a key role in the development of Fluxus. A co-founder of the seminal postwar Japanese experimental music collective Group Ongaku, she is known for her investigations of the nature and limits of sound, music, and auditory experiences. Her work has been widely circulated as Fluxus editions, featured in concert halls, museums, galleries, and non-traditional spaces, as well as being re-performed by other musicians and artists numerous times. She is best known for her work of the 1960s and early 1970s, especially Spatial Poem, Water Music, Endless Box, and the various instructions in Events & Games, all of which were produced as Fluxus editions. Now in her eighties, she continues to produce new work.
Rei Nakanishi (なかにし 礼, Nakanishi Rei; 2 September 1938 – 23 December 2020) was a Japanese novelist and songwriter. He…
Rei Nakanishi (なかにし 礼, Nakanishi Rei; 2 September 1938 – 23 December 2020) was a Japanese novelist and songwriter. He won the 122nd Naoki Prize.
Yōko Sano (Japanese: 佐野洋子（さのようこ）; 28 June 1938 – 5 November 2010) was a Japanese writer and illustrator of children's…
Yōko Sano (Japanese: 佐野洋子（さのようこ）; 28 June 1938 – 5 November 2010) was a Japanese writer and illustrator of children's books. She is most well known for her 1977 book The Cat that Lived a Million Times. For her literary contributions, Sano was awarded the Medal of Honor with the Purple Ribbon in 2003 by the Emperor of Japan. She has also written essays, children's literature, screenplays, novels, and translated foreign picture books.
Mineo Higashi (born 1938) is a Japanese writer. He was awarded the Akutagawa Prize in 1971 for his novel An Okinawan…
Mineo Higashi (born 1938) is a Japanese writer. He was awarded the Akutagawa Prize in 1971 for his novel An Okinawan Boy (Okinawa no shonen, 1971). The novel's setting is the city of Koza (later Okinawa City) in the 1950s, where the main character grows up in a family whose business is to arrange meetings between American soldiers and Okinawan girls in the family's apartment. The novel was adapted into the 1983 film Okinawan Boys by director Taku Shinjō.
Kazumasa Hirai (平井 和正, Hirai Kazumasa; May 13, 1938 – January 17, 2015) was a Japanese novelist and science fiction…
Kazumasa Hirai (平井 和正, Hirai Kazumasa; May 13, 1938 – January 17, 2015) was a Japanese novelist and science fiction writer from Yokosuka, Kanagawa. He graduated from Yokosuka Industrial High School and the law department of Chuo University. Hirai is well known for his SF-manga work. He is the creator of 8 Man (aka 8th Man in the USA) and was well known as the story creator of the 1960s manga series "Genma Taisen" (Genma Wars) about a hero with psychokinetic powers and his battle against a space villain called Genma. Hirai wrote stories for the Wolf Guy comic series, and also published comics co-authored with cartoonist Shotaro Ishinomori that were later adapted into an animated film in 1983.
Kazuko Hosoki (細木 数子, Hosoki Kazuko; 4 April 1938 – 8 November 2021) was a Japanese fortune teller and writer. She was…
Kazuko Hosoki (細木 数子, Hosoki Kazuko; 4 April 1938 – 8 November 2021) was a Japanese fortune teller and writer. She was an author of over 100 books. In addition to her regular celebrity appearances on Japanese television, she was known for her belief that ancestor worship is central to Japanese identity. Hosoki was associated with Six-Star Divination, known in Japanese as Rokusei Senjutsu. Religious studies scholar Yoshihide Sakurai wrote that Hosoki published on the system in the early 1980s and "quickly set off a fortune-telling boom". Guinness World Records lists Hosoki as having written 81 fortune-telling books totaling 34 million copies sold. Netflix's media materials for the 2026 drama Straight to Hell also describe Hosoki as famous for Six-Star Divination.
Aiko Kitahara (北原 亞以子; January 20, 1938 – March 12, 2013) was a Japanese novelist. She is best known for writing…
Aiko Kitahara (北原 亞以子; January 20, 1938 – March 12, 2013) was a Japanese novelist. She is best known for writing historical novels.
Yoshikichi Furui (古井 由吉, Furui Yoshikichi; 19 November 1937 – 18 February 2020) was a Japanese author and translator.…
Yoshikichi Furui (古井 由吉, Furui Yoshikichi; 19 November 1937 – 18 February 2020) was a Japanese author and translator. He has won the Akutagawa Prize, the Tanizaki Prize, and the Yomiuri Prize, among other literary awards.
Shigeko Kubota (久保田 成子, Kubota Shigeko) (August 2, 1937 – July 23, 2015) was a Japanese video artist, sculptor and…
Shigeko Kubota (久保田 成子, Kubota Shigeko) (August 2, 1937 – July 23, 2015) was a Japanese video artist, sculptor and avant-garde performance artist, who mostly lived in New York City. She was one of the first artists to adopt the portable video camera Sony Portapak in 1970, likening it to a "new paintbrush." Kubota is known for constructing sculptural installations with a strong DIY aesthetic, which include sculptures with embedded monitors playing her original videos. She was a key member and influence on Fluxus, the international group of avant-garde artists centered on George Maciunas, having been involved with the group since witnessing John Cage perform in Tokyo in 1962 and subsequently moving to New York in 1964. She was closely associated with George Brecht, Jackson Mac Low, John Cage, Joe Jones, Nam June Paik, and Ay-O, among other members of Fluxus. Kubota was deemed "Vice Chairman" of the Fluxus Organization by Maciunas. Kubota's video and sculptural works are mainly shown in galleries. Her use of the physical television as a component of her work differs from other video artists of the 1960s who made experimental broadcast programs as a move against the hegemony of major networks. Kubota is known for her contribution to the expansion of the field of video into the field of sculpture and for her works addressing the place of video in art history. Her work explores the influence of the technology, and more specifically the television set, on personal memory and the emotions. Some works for example eulogize while also exploring the presence of the deceased in video footage and recorded images such as her Duchampiana series, the video My Father, and her later works Korean Grave and Winter in Miami which eulogize her husband Nam June Paik. Kubota's sculptures also play with ways in which video footage and sculptures utilize videos to evoke nature, as in her Meta-Marcel, Bird, and Tree series' and in River, and Rock Video: Cherry Blossoms.
Nanami Shiono (塩野 七生, Shiono Nanami; born 7 July 1937) is a Japanese author and novelist known for her works on the…
Nanami Shiono (塩野 七生, Shiono Nanami; born 7 July 1937) is a Japanese author and novelist known for her works on the history of Italy, especially those dealing with ancient Rome and the Renaissance period.
Naoya Abe (Japanese: 安部 直也, Hepburn: Abe Naoya; May 17, 1937 – September 2, 2019), known by his pen name George Abe (安部…
Naoya Abe (Japanese: 安部 直也, Hepburn: Abe Naoya; May 17, 1937 – September 2, 2019), known by his pen name George Abe (安部 譲二, Abe Jōji), was a Japanese author and former yakuza. Outside Japan, he is best known for writing the manga series Rainbow: Nisha Rokubō no Shichinin in collaboration with artist Masasumi Kakizaki. As a teenager, Abe became a member of the Ando-gumi yakuza family, and was later recruited by the Koganei-ikka. In 1986, after leaving the yakuza life, he wrote a novel about his time in Fuchū Prison titled Hei no Naka no Korinai Menmen (塀の中の懲りない面々), which became a bestseller and was adapted into a film. Abe died on September 2, 2019, from pneumonia, aged 82. Abe worked as a flight attendant for Japan Airlines from 1961 to 1965. He was the model for Jōji Miyagi, the main character in Yukio Mishima's entertainment romance novel Fukuzatsuna Kare (複雑な彼 That Complicated Guy) published in 1966. Abe's pen name "Jōji" was adapted from the character in the novel.
Ryūzō Saki (佐木 隆三, Saki Ryūzō; April 14, 1937 – October 31, 2015) was a Japanese novelist and non-fiction writer, born…
Ryūzō Saki (佐木 隆三, Saki Ryūzō; April 14, 1937 – October 31, 2015) was a Japanese novelist and non-fiction writer, born in North Hamgyong, a province of what is now North Korea. He was interested in high-profile crimes in Japan and published a number of non-fiction books about Japanese crimes. On January 14, 1976, Saki was awarded the Naoki Prize for the novel Vengeance Is Mine based on Japanese serial killer Akira Nishiguchi. The novel became the basis of Shohei Imamura's film Vengeance Is Mine. He also wrote the books about Norio Nagayama, Tsutomu Miyazaki, Fusako Sano and Futoshi Matsunaga. His 1980 novel The Miracle of Joe, the Petrel was adapted into a feature film in 1984 by Toshiya Fujita. In 1992, Saki published a book about Japanese Resident-General of Korea Itō Hirobumi and Korean An Jung-geun, titled Itō Hirobumi to An Jung-geun. On 1 November 2015, he died from throat cancer in Kitakyūshū at age 78.
Minoru Betsuyaku (別役 実, Betsuyaku Minoru; 1937 – March 3, 2020) was one of Japan's most prominent postwar playwrights…
Minoru Betsuyaku (別役 実, Betsuyaku Minoru; 1937 – March 3, 2020) was one of Japan's most prominent postwar playwrights, novelists, and essayists, associated with the Angura ("underground") theater movement in Japan. He won a name for himself as a writer in the "nonsense" genre and helped lay the foundations of the Japanese "theater of the absurd." His works focused on the aftermath of the war and especially the nuclear holocaust.
Akio Jissoji (実相寺昭雄, Jissōji Akio; March 29, 1937 – November 29, 2006) was a Japanese television and film director best…
Akio Jissoji (実相寺昭雄, Jissōji Akio; March 29, 1937 – November 29, 2006) was a Japanese television and film director best known outside Japan for the 1960s tokusatsu TV series Ultraman and Ultraseven, as well as for his auteur erotic ATG-produced Buddhist trilogy Mujo (無常), Mandala (曼陀羅), and Uta (哥). He was also known for his film adaptations of Japanese horror author Edogawa Rampo. Jissoji possessed a very distinctive visual style that was notable even in Japanese cinema which is known internationally for its visual style. Every project he directed, from children's action shows to disturbing adult films had an uncompromising approach to cinematic story telling. His episodes of the Ultraman TV shows are unique and quite unusual for children's television. His career is also unusual in that he went back and forth from children's television to film projects that were sexually provocative in some way or another. It is perhaps this aspect of his work that has prevented wider distribution of his films. Sadomasochistic and non-consensual sexual practices are featured in many of his film works with women receiving the brunt of the abuse. Most of his work is not available outside Japan or with English subtitles. Other notable films include: Utamaro: Yume to Shiriseba (歌麿 夢と知りせば; Utamaro's World, 1977), a visually sumptuous telling of the famed Japanese printmaker's life centering on the years he was forced to make pornographic prints for a living. Tokyo: The Last Megalopolis (帝都物語, Teito Monogatari; 1988), a live-action science fiction/horror film. Rampo Jigoku (乱歩地獄; 2005), Jissoji directed the lead segment of this horror anthology. Yume Jū-ya (ユメ十夜; Ten Nights of Dreams, 2006), Jissoji contributed a selection in this anthology of short films based on the writings of Natsume Sōseki. He died of stomach cancer, aged 69, in his birth city of Tokyo in 2006 just after starting work on a revival of his Silver Mask live action children's show.
Katsuhiko Akasegawa (赤瀬川 克彦, Akasegawa Katsuhiko; March 27, 1937 – October 26, 2014), known by his pseudonym Genpei…
Katsuhiko Akasegawa (赤瀬川 克彦, Akasegawa Katsuhiko; March 27, 1937 – October 26, 2014), known by his pseudonym Genpei Akasegawa (赤瀬川 原平, Akasegawa Genpei), was a Japanese artist and writer. In literary works, he also went by Katsuhiko Otsuji (尾辻 克彦, Otsuji Katsuhiko). A member of the influential artist groups Neo-Dada Organizers and Hi-Red Center, Akasegawa went on to maintain a multi-disciplinary practice throughout his career as an individual artist. He is also known for having coined the term and concept of Hyperart Thomasson and for having founded the Rojō Kansatsu Gakkai (路上観察学会; lit. 'Street Observation Society'). Akasegawa has had retrospective exhibitions at the Hiroshima City Museum of Contemporary Art, Chiba City Museum, and Oita City Museum. His work is in the permanent collection at Museum of Modern Art in New York. Artist Nam June Paik has described Akasegawa as "one of those unexportable geniuses of Japan".
Natsuko Kuroda (黒田 夏子, Kuroda Natsuko; born 1937) is a Japanese writer. At the age of 75, she won the 148th Akutagawa…
Natsuko Kuroda (黒田 夏子, Kuroda Natsuko; born 1937) is a Japanese writer. At the age of 75, she won the 148th Akutagawa Prize, making Kuroda the oldest winner in the history of the prize.
Takahiko Iimura (Japanese: 飯村隆彦, Hepburn: Iimura Takahiko; 20 February 1937 – 31 July 2022) was a post-war Japanese…
Takahiko Iimura (Japanese: 飯村隆彦, Hepburn: Iimura Takahiko; 20 February 1937 – 31 July 2022) was a post-war Japanese avant-garde filmmaker and fine art artist. He is considered one of the pioneers of experimental and independent filmmaking in Japan. He focused on the sexuality of human bodies, film construction in Japanese culture. Iimura was born in Tokyo and was a graduate of Keio University. He began experimenting the combination of human body and contemporary Japanese art subject in his early stage. In his film A Dance Party in the Kingdom of Lillput (1964) focuses on the movement and the intimate body parts - oral cavity and bare feet. The film Onan (1963) has gained him success and earn a global reputation by winning the Special Prize at the Brussels International Independent Film Festival in 1964. Later after his success from his first international solo exhibition in the 70s, he switched his attention from human sexuality to exploring the new forms of film structure. Cosmic Buddha (1960-1971), Iimura re-shot from the screen introducing the infinite space within the footage, questioning the issue of space and time. The film concerns the philosophical and religious aspects of Japanese culture. He published a seminal work on experimental filmmaking in 1970, Geijutsu to higeijutsu no aida, and a biography of Yoko Ono, Ono Yōko hito to sakuhin, in 1985. Iimura made much of his film in New York City, but became a professor at the Nagoya Zokei University of Art & Design in 1992.
Yū Aku (阿久 悠, Aku Yū), occasionally credited as You Aku (February 7, 1937 – August 1, 2007), was a Japanese lyricist…
Yū Aku (阿久 悠, Aku Yū), occasionally credited as You Aku (February 7, 1937 – August 1, 2007), was a Japanese lyricist, poet, and novelist.
Toshio Moriuchi (森内 俊雄, Moriuchi Toshio; December 12, 1936 – August 5, 2023) was a Japanese author. He was born in…
Toshio Moriuchi (森内 俊雄, Moriuchi Toshio; December 12, 1936 – August 5, 2023) was a Japanese author. He was born in Osaka Prefecture and graduated from Waseda University. He won the 42nd Yomiuri Prize (1990) for Hyōga ga kuru made ni. Moriuchi died from pneumonia on August 5, 2023, at the age of 86.
Reiko Okuyama (奥山 玲子, Okuyama Reiko; 26 October 1936 – 6 May 2007), née, was a Japanese animator, notable for being one…
Reiko Okuyama (奥山 玲子, Okuyama Reiko; 26 October 1936 – 6 May 2007), née, was a Japanese animator, notable for being one of the first female Japanese animators. She has also been credited as Reiko Kotabe (小田部 玲子, Kotabe Reiko; on Hustle Punch episode 19) and Reiko Kitagawa (北川 玲子, Kitagawa Reiko; on Belladonna). The 2019 asadora Natsuzora is loosely based on her life and career.
Yukiko Kato (加藤幸子; September 26, 1936 – March 30, 2024) was a Japanese writer. She is best known for writing Yume no…
Yukiko Kato (加藤幸子; September 26, 1936 – March 30, 2024) was a Japanese writer. She is best known for writing Yume no Kabe (夢の壁), which won the 1982 Akutagawa Prize.
Asaki Takamori (高森 朝樹, Takamori Asaki; September 4, 1936 – January 21, 1987), known by the pen names Ikki Kajiwara (梶原…
Asaki Takamori (高森 朝樹, Takamori Asaki; September 4, 1936 – January 21, 1987), known by the pen names Ikki Kajiwara (梶原 一騎, Kajiwara Ikki) and Asao Takamori (高森 朝雄, Takamori Asao), was a Japanese author, manga writer, and film producer. He is known for the work about sports and martial arts, with images of heroic young men with the occasional fine details as he moves from one topic to another. Tiger Mask and Star of the Giants have been cited as his life's work.
Yang Sok-il (or Yang Sokil, Yang Sogil, Yang Seok-il, 13 August 1936 – 29 June 2024) was a writer in Japanese of Korean…
Yang Sok-il (or Yang Sokil, Yang Sogil, Yang Seok-il, 13 August 1936 – 29 June 2024) was a writer in Japanese of Korean nationality. He was born in Osaka.
Taijirō Amazawa (Japanese: 天沢 退二郎 Amazawa Taijirō; 21 July 1936 – 25 January 2023) was a Japanese poet, translator, and…
Taijirō Amazawa (Japanese: 天沢 退二郎 Amazawa Taijirō; 21 July 1936 – 25 January 2023) was a Japanese poet, translator, and scholar.
Keiichi Tanaami (21 July 1936 – 9 August 2024) was a Japanese pop artist who was active as multi-genre artist from the…
Keiichi Tanaami (21 July 1936 – 9 August 2024) was a Japanese pop artist who was active as multi-genre artist from the 1960s as a graphic designer, illustrator, video artist and fine artist.
Hiroshi Sasagawa (笹川 ひろし, Sasagawa Hiroshi; born July 9, 1936) is a Japanese animator and cartoonist known for…
Hiroshi Sasagawa (笹川 ひろし, Sasagawa Hiroshi; born July 9, 1936) is a Japanese animator and cartoonist known for directing several anime series including Time Bokan, Speed Racer, The Genie Family, Ninja Hattori-Kun, and Tekkaman: The Space Knight.
Katsu Kanai (金井 勝, Kanai Katsu; 9 July 1936 – 22 April 2026) was a Japanese experimental and avant-garde film director.…
Katsu Kanai (金井 勝, Kanai Katsu; 9 July 1936 – 22 April 2026) was a Japanese experimental and avant-garde film director. The Harvard Film Archive has called him "one of the most vital and inventive filmmakers in the history of Japanese underground film".
Tadanori Yokoo (横尾 忠則, Yokoo Tadanori; born 27 June 1936) is a Japanese graphic designer, illustrator, printmaker and…
Tadanori Yokoo (横尾 忠則, Yokoo Tadanori; born 27 June 1936) is a Japanese graphic designer, illustrator, printmaker and painter. Yokoo's signature style of psychedelia and pastiche engages a wide span of modern visual and cultural phenomena from Japan and around the world.
Nobuyuki Yoshigahara (芦ヶ原 伸之 Yoshigahara Nobuyuki, commonly known as "Nob"; May 27, 1936 – June 19, 2004) was a…
Nobuyuki Yoshigahara (芦ヶ原 伸之 Yoshigahara Nobuyuki, commonly known as "Nob"; May 27, 1936 – June 19, 2004) was a Japanese inventor, collector, solver, and communicator of puzzles.
Kazuo Koike (Japanese: 小池 一夫, Hepburn: Koike Kazuo; May 8, 1936 – April 17, 2019) was a Japanese manga writer…
Kazuo Koike (Japanese: 小池 一夫, Hepburn: Koike Kazuo; May 8, 1936 – April 17, 2019) was a Japanese manga writer (gensakusha), novelist, screenwriter, lyricist and entrepreneur. He is best known for his violent, artful seinen manga, notably Lone Wolf and Cub (with Goseki Kojima, 1970–6), Lady Snowblood (with Kazuo Kamimura, 1972–3) and Crying Freeman (with Ryoichi Ikegami, 1986–8), which – along with their numerous media adaptations − have been credited for their influence on the international growth of Japanese popular culture.
Shigehiko Hasumi (Japanese: 蓮實重彥, also romanized Shiguéhiko; born 29 April 1936) is a Japanese literary critic, film…
Shigehiko Hasumi (Japanese: 蓮實重彥, also romanized Shiguéhiko; born 29 April 1936) is a Japanese literary critic, film critic, French literature scholar, and novelist. He was a professor at the University of Tokyo (Cultural Studies, or the Study of Culture and Representation), dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, and the 26th President (1997-2001). Hasumi started his academic career as a Gustave Flaubert scholar, and played a central role in the early introduction of the contemporary French philosophy, such as Gilles Deleuze and Michel Foucault, into Japan in the 1970s. He is known as one of the most prolific Japanese reviewers of modern literature and film. Since the 1980s, Hasumi has been active in introducing the French New Wave filmmakers' thought and Hollywood B-films. His method of viewing and writing about film, inspired by the 1950s French film criticism appearing in Cahiers du Cinéma, played a major role in Japanese film culture in the late 20th century. His influential work includes Directed by Yasujiro Ozu (1983). Reflecting on Hasumi, Kiyoshi Kurosawa noted, "The international recognition of Yasujiro Ozu and Mikio Naruse would never have been achieved without Hasumi. Even the popularity of Clint Eastwood and Wim Wenders in Japan owes much to his influence. And as for myself—there’s no doubt that I’m only able to be here, doing what I do, all thanks to the good fortune of having met Shiguéhiko Hasumi." He is married to Chantal Van Melkebeke, the daughter of the Belgian painter, journalist, and writer Jacques Van Melkebeke, who is known for having been the first chief editor of Tintin magazine. They had one son, Shigeomi Hasumi. In 1970, the French Broadcasting and Television Office interviewed him, his wife and his son in French in Tokyo for 20 minutes. Hasumi curated a film series entitled Shiguéhiko Hasumi: Another History of the Movie in America and Japan for Japan Society in 2025, including works by Richard Fleischer, Michael Mann and Makoto Sato. Director Sho Miyake attended, presenting his collaboration with Hasumi—the montage film John Ford and Throwing.
Naoki Tanemura (種村 直樹, Tanemura Naoki; March 7, 1936 – November 6, 2014) was a Japanese writer, essayist and critic. He…
Naoki Tanemura (種村 直樹, Tanemura Naoki; March 7, 1936 – November 6, 2014) was a Japanese writer, essayist and critic. He called himself a "railway writer". He had published commentaries on railways and travel writings including mysteries. He came from Ōtsu, Shiga Prefecture. He graduated from Shiga Prefectural Zeze High School and then the Department of Law of Kyoto University. He became a journalist of the Mainichi Shimbun, and became independent afterwards. Tanemura was well informed about the railways in Japan. His travel style in his book called "Kimagure Ressha" (capricious train) influenced a lot of young people. Tanemura had a fan club. Writers in Japan who have their own fan club is considerably few. He traveled with the members of the fan club and he often wrote about them in his works. Tanemura was an authority of a hobby named "travel savings" (旅行貯金, ryokō chokin), where participants around the country deposit a small amount of money at post offices (and Japan Post Bank) to collect the rubber stamps of the post offices.
Hiroshi Sakagami (坂上 弘, Sakagami Hiroshi; 13 February 1936 – 16 August 2021) was a noted Japanese author. He was also…
Hiroshi Sakagami (坂上 弘, Sakagami Hiroshi; 13 February 1936 – 16 August 2021) was a noted Japanese author. He was also president of the Japan Writers' Association and director of Keio University Press.
Shōichirō Sasaki (佐々木昭一郎, Sasaki Shōichirō; January 25, 1936 – June 14, 2024) was a Japanese filmmaker.