Masakatsu Morita (森田 必勝, Morita Masakatsu; 25 July 1945 – 25 November 1970) was a Japanese political activist who…
Masakatsu Morita (森田 必勝, Morita Masakatsu; 25 July 1945 – 25 November 1970) was a Japanese political activist who killed himself via seppuku with Yukio Mishima in Tokyo. Morita was the youngest child of the headmaster of an elementary school. Losing both parents at the age of three, Morita was cared for by his brother Osamu and educated at a Catholic school. He entered Waseda University in 1966, but was dismayed by the presence of Communist Zengakuren students at the university and became heavily involved in the small right-wing faction at the university. He first met Mishima on 19 June 1967, and joined the Tatenokai at its establishment in October 1968. As early as March of that year, he had written a letter to Mishima expressing a willingness to die for him. Mishima was interested in using his society for direct political action, and he approached several members in April and May 1970. The inner circle then consisted of Mishima, Morita, Masahiro Ogawa (小川正洋) and Masayoshi Koga (小賀正義) ("Chibi" Koga). No clear plan was developed until late June. Shortly afterwards, Mishima went on holiday to Shimoda and paid for the others to go to Hokkaido. On 2 September in Tokyo, Morita and "Chibi Koga" recruited Hiroyasu Koga (古賀浩靖) ("Furu" Koga), who was a Tatenokai member also, and he met Mishima to hear details of the plan on 9 September. Originally all four Tatenokai members had planned to commit seppuku along with Mishima. However, Mishima attempted to dissuade them and three of the members acquiesced to his wishes. Only Morita persisted, saying, "I can't let Mr. Mishima die alone." So, in November, Mishima ruled that only he and Morita were to die. Morita said to other members who had wanted to die together, "We are alive or dead together, because we can meet again somewhere." But Mishima knew that Morita had a girlfriend and still hoped he might live. On 21 and 22 November 1970, supplies were bought, and Morita asked Hiroyasu Koga to stand in for him if he should fail to behead Mishima properly. The next two days were spent rehearsing. On the morning of 25 November, the group drove to the Japan Self-Defense Force's Ichigaya garrison on the pretext of a friendly visit. They barricaded themselves inside General Mashita's office, taking him prisoner, and issued demands. At noon, Mishima began to make a speech from the balcony to assembled troops, but his words were drowned out by helicopters. Immediately after his return from the balcony, Mishima stabbed himself in the abdomen and Morita then attempted to behead him. After three failed attempts by Morita, Hiroyasu Koga stepped in and beheaded Mishima. According to the testimony of the surviving coup members, just before his seppuku, Mishima tried one more time to dissuade Morita, saying "Morita, you must live, not die." Nevertheless, after Mishima's seppuku, Morita knelt and stabbed himself in the abdomen and Koga again performed the kaishakunin duty. Masayoshi Koga, Masahiro Ogawa, and Hiroyasu Koga, who were tried for various charges, including murder with the victim's consent, were freed from prison for good behavior in October 1974. All three were aged 26 at the time.
Famous People Born on July 25
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Kosaku Takahashi (高橋 耕作, Takahashi Kōsaku; born 25 July 1944) is a former Japanese cyclist. He competed in the team…
Kosaku Takahashi (高橋 耕作, Takahashi Kōsaku; born 25 July 1944) is a former Japanese cyclist. He competed in the team pursuit at the 1964 Summer Olympics.
Hiroko Nakamura (中村 紘子, Nakamura Hiroko; July 25, 1944 – July 26, 2016) was a Japanese pianist.
Morio Matsui (松井 守男, Matsui Morio; 1942 – 30 May 2022) was a Japanese artist who lived and worked in Corsica, France…
Morio Matsui (松井 守男, Matsui Morio; 1942 – 30 May 2022) was a Japanese artist who lived and worked in Corsica, France from 1998 until his death.
Kōichirō Uno (宇能鴻一郎, Uno Kōichirō; b. July 25, 1934) is a Japanese author of erotic novels. His works have often been…
Kōichirō Uno (宇能鴻一郎, Uno Kōichirō; b. July 25, 1934) is a Japanese author of erotic novels. His works have often been filmed, most notably by Nikkatsu studio in a prolific series of Roman Pornos giving the author's name in the title. He also won the Akutagawa Prize for Kujiragami (鯨神).
Kazuya Tatekabe (たてかべ和也, Tatekabe Kazuya; July 25, 1934 – June 18, 2015) was a Japanese actor, voice actor, and talent…
Kazuya Tatekabe (たてかべ和也, Tatekabe Kazuya; July 25, 1934 – June 18, 2015) was a Japanese actor, voice actor, and talent manager from Kimobetsu, Hokkaidō. He was represented by Kenyu Horiuchi's Kenyu Office until the time of his death. Until 1977, he performed under his birth name Kazuya Tatekabe (立壁 和也, Tatekabe Kazuya). He is most known for the roles of Takeshi "Gian" Gōda (Doraemon), Warusa (Time Bokan), and Tonzura (Yatterman).
Takeshi Morishita (森下 健, Morishita Takeshi; born July 25, 1932) is a Japanese physician and scholar on cardiological…
Takeshi Morishita (森下 健, Morishita Takeshi; born July 25, 1932) is a Japanese physician and scholar on cardiological imaging in Japan, an ex-professor at Toho University, school of medicine, Tokyo, and a councillor of the university. Born in Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan in 1932, he graduated from Toho University in 1962. In 1979, he became vice-director of Omori Hospital attached to Toho University. After retiring as a professor in 1998, he served as director of Ofuna Chūō General Hospital in Kamakura until March 2006. He became director of Nukada Memorial Hospital in Kamakura in June 2006.
Akira Tamura (田村明, 1926–2010) was a city planner in postwar Japan. He is notable for two phases of his career: one as…
Akira Tamura (田村明, 1926–2010) was a city planner in postwar Japan. He is notable for two phases of his career: one as the chief city planner of the Yokohama city government and the other as an evangelist of machi-zukuri (town-making) among local movements. Under Japan's then-highly centralized government system, Tamura advocated for the importance of local awareness and initiatives; this led to the strengthening of local government as an institution to achieve a quality environment for all residents. Although he stayed in Yokohama for a relatively brief period, from 1968 to 1981, he achieved some of the most innovative results in Japan's postwar town planning history. His influence on Yokohama's city planning, as well as on local residents throughout Japan, remains visible and notable to this day. Tamura initially proposed major projects, called the "Six Spine Projects", to transform the structure of Yokohama in 1964, at the request of the newly elected socialist mayor Ichio Asukata. After becoming Yokohama's chief planner at the invitation of Asukata in 1968, Tamura introduced two additional planning measures: building and land control measures and urban design. As a new mechanism to reform the old administrative system, Tamura created the Bureau of Planning and Coordination, which linked the separate bureaus and forged a united entity of city government with a wider mandate. In 2000, the Architectural Institute of Japan (AIJ), the country's supreme academic institution concerned with architecture and town planning, awarded Tamura its Grand Prize for "the establishment of a theory or technique and its implementation in city planning" (AIJ, 2000), for his work in Yokohama. Tamura remains the only practical planner in the field of city planning to have won the AIJ's Grand Prize; other recipients have all been academics or architects. Tamura consistently endeavored to educate young planners by assigning them important works. Though he worked in Yokohama for only a short time, those young planners became his followers and passed on his concepts and style of work. This contributed to the success and continuation of projects, land control measures, and urban design. It is said that Tamura was initially not a master planner but gradually learned by listening to the opinions of others. His motto was "amorphous fluidity": he never remained in one place long and was always moving, searching for solutions.
Takeo Okuno (奥野 健男, Okuno Takeo; July 25, 1926–November 26, 1997), was a Japanese chemist and a leading literary critic…
Takeo Okuno (奥野 健男, Okuno Takeo; July 25, 1926–November 26, 1997), was a Japanese chemist and a leading literary critic of the postwar era. A close friend of philosopher Takaaki Yoshimoto and writer Yukio Mishima, he helped draw attention to a new generation of postwar Japanese authors and push the Japanese literary world to break free from hegemonic ideologies and pursue more individualistic forms of expression.
Chushiro Hayashi (林 忠四郎, Hayashi Chūshirō; July 25, 1920 – February 28, 2010) was a Japanese astrophysicist. Hayashi…
Chushiro Hayashi (林 忠四郎, Hayashi Chūshirō; July 25, 1920 – February 28, 2010) was a Japanese astrophysicist. Hayashi tracks on the Hertzsprung–Russell diagram are named after him.
Shihachi Fujimoto (藤本 四八, Fujimoto Shihachi; 1911–2006) was a Japanese photographer. In 1938, he helped found the…
Shihachi Fujimoto (藤本 四八, Fujimoto Shihachi; 1911–2006) was a Japanese photographer. In 1938, he helped found the Seinen Hodo Shashin Kenkyukai (Youth Reportage Photography Research Association), which was formed with the support of Photo Times. Fujimoto's works are in the permanent collection of the Tokyo Metropolitan Museum of Photography. Iida City Museum runs a photographic contest, Fujimoto Shihachi Shashin Bunka-shō (藤本四八写真文化賞), in his honour.
Fuku Akino (秋野 不矩, Akino Fuku; July 25, 1908 - October 11, 2001) was a Japanese painter. She was born in Futamata…
Fuku Akino (秋野 不矩, Akino Fuku; July 25, 1908 - October 11, 2001) was a Japanese painter. She was born in Futamata, Iwata-gun, Shizuoka Prefecture (currently, Nimata Town, Tenryu Ward, Hamamatsu City). She became known by her paintings of Indian themes, landscapes and peoples.
Takashi Shimokawara (July 25, 1906 – March 11, 2011) was a Japanese centenarian from Kamaishi, Iwate. He is the current…
Takashi Shimokawara (July 25, 1906 – March 11, 2011) was a Japanese centenarian from Kamaishi, Iwate. He is the current M100 world record holder in the shot put, discus and javelin throw. He also holds the M95 Japanese national record in the javelin, set when he was at the age of 100. He was killed during the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami at the age of 104. Mr. Shimokawara would have a daily exercise routine that included a jog, press ups, squat thrusts and horizontal leg raises. He took up Masters athletics in 2004, at the age of 98. The most important thing of all is to stay supple and flexible. The moment you will be most stiff is when you die – you never get stiffer than that. So you’ve got to sleep well, eat well and keep moving.
Japanese supercentenarians are citizens, residents or emigrants from Japan who have attained or surpassed the age of…
Japanese supercentenarians are citizens, residents or emigrants from Japan who have attained or surpassed the age of 110 years. As of January 2015, the Gerontology Research Group (GRG) had validated the longevity claims of 263 Japanese supercentenarians, most of whom are women. As of 18 October 2026, the oldest-known living Japanese person is Fuyo Kishimoto (born in Hamasaka on 20 December 1911), who is aged 114 years, 302 days. The oldest verified Japanese and Asian person ever is Kane Tanaka (1903–2022), who lived to the age of 119 years and 107 days, making her the second-oldest validated person ever as well. Japan was also home to the world's oldest man ever, Jiroemon Kimura (1897–2013), who lived to the age of 116 years and 54 days.
Ryōhei Koiso (小磯 良平, Koiso Ryōhei; Japanese: [koiso ɾʲoːheː]) (July 25, 1903 – December 16, 1988) was a Japanese…
Ryōhei Koiso (小磯 良平, Koiso Ryōhei; Japanese: [koiso ɾʲoːheː]) (July 25, 1903 – December 16, 1988) was a Japanese artist. He graduated from the Tokyo University of the Arts western art department in 1927 and had a successful career from early on. During World War II he was often commissioned paintings depicting Japanese military scenes, such as the signing of the British surrender of Singapore, and Japanese infantrymen making their way through high grass fields in Malaysia. He returned to mainstream painting following the war, and painted until his death. His work was also part of the painting event in the art competition at the 1936 Summer Olympics.
Yun Sim-deok (Korean: 윤심덕; Hanja: 尹心悳; 25 July 1897 – 4 August 1926) was a Korean singer. She was the country's first…
Yun Sim-deok (Korean: 윤심덕; Hanja: 尹心悳; 25 July 1897 – 4 August 1926) was a Korean singer. She was the country's first professional soprano.
Naosaku Takahashi (髙橋直作 [or 高橋直作], birth name: Naosaku Yamanaka [山中直作], pen name: Shimbi Takahashi [高橋真美]) was a social…
Naosaku Takahashi (髙橋直作 [or 高橋直作], birth name: Naosaku Yamanaka [山中直作], pen name: Shimbi Takahashi [高橋真美]) was a social worker, a novelist in his youth, and a minister (at first the Salvation Army and later the United Church of Christ in Japan).
Shinzō Fukuhara (福原 信三, Fukuhara Shinzō; July 25, 1883 – November 4, 1948) was a Japanese photographer. He was born in…
Shinzō Fukuhara (福原 信三, Fukuhara Shinzō; July 25, 1883 – November 4, 1948) was a Japanese photographer. He was born in Kyōbashi-ku, Tokyo, on 25 July 1883, as the fourth son of Arinobu Fukuhara, the head of Apothecary Shiseidō (which in 1927 would be incorporated as Shiseidō) and Toku Fukuhara (福原 とく). The third brother predeceased his birth, so he was named and treated as the third son. His two other elder brothers also died young, but the next brother, Rosō, would also win fame as a photographer; and, to a lesser degree, his youngest brother Nobuyoshi (信義, b.1897) would too, under the name Tōru Namiki (並木 透). Fukuhara first used a camera in 1896, if not earlier. He went to Columbia University to study pharmacology in 1908, and after his graduation traveled around England, Germany and Italy before settling in Paris in 1913. While there he certainly viewed much art and is likely to have seen various exhibitions of post-Impressionist works; Iizawa sees the influence of artists such as Seurat in Fukuhara's photographs later collected as "Paris and the Seine." Fukuhara died on 4 November 1948.
Keiichi Aichi (愛知 敬一, Aichi Keiichi; July 25, 1880 – June 23, 1923) was a Japanese physicist. He served as a professor…
Keiichi Aichi (愛知 敬一, Aichi Keiichi; July 25, 1880 – June 23, 1923) was a Japanese physicist. He served as a professor of the physics department at the College of Science, Tohoku Imperial University. Aichi was born in Tokyo in 1880 and studied theoretical physics at University of Tokyo. He graduated in 1903 and in 1905 moved to Kyoto where he became an assistant professor at Kyoto University. Between 1908 and 1911 he studied in Germany and in 1912 defended his PhD at Tohoku Imperial University with recommendations from the chancellor. Soon after, he assumed the post of professor at the university's then newly established College of Science. In 1922, he served as an interpreter during the visit of Albert Einstein in Japan. Aichi died from food poisoning in 1923. His son was the politician Kiichi Aichi, who served consecutively as Minister for Foreign Affairs and Minister of Finance.
Katsuji Debuchi (出淵 勝次; July 25, 1878 – August 19, 1947) was a Japanese diplomat who served as ambassador to the United…
Katsuji Debuchi (出淵 勝次; July 25, 1878 – August 19, 1947) was a Japanese diplomat who served as ambassador to the United States.
Masaharu Anesaki (姉崎 正治, Anesaki Masaharu; born July 25, 1873 – July 23, 1949), also known under his pen name "Chōfū…
Masaharu Anesaki (姉崎 正治, Anesaki Masaharu; born July 25, 1873 – July 23, 1949), also known under his pen name "Chōfū Anesaki" (姉崎 嘲風, Anesaki Chōfū), was a leading Japanese intellectual and scholar of the Meiji period. Anesaki is credited as being the father of religious studies in Japan, but also wrote on a variety of subjects including culture, literature, and politics. He was also a member of the International Committee on Intellectual Cooperation of the League of Nations.
Baron Tanaka Giichi (Japanese: 田中 義一; IPA: [ta̠na̠ka̠ ɡʲiːt͡ɕi]; 22 June 1864 – 29 September 1929) was a Japanese…
Baron Tanaka Giichi (Japanese: 田中 義一; IPA: [ta̠na̠ka̠ ɡʲiːt͡ɕi]; 22 June 1864 – 29 September 1929) was a Japanese general and politician who served as Prime Minister of Japan from 1927 to 1929. Born to a samurai family in the Chōshū Domain, Tanaka became an officer in the Imperial Japanese Army and rose through the ranks. He served as Minister of the Army under Prime Ministers Hara Takashi and Yamamoto Gonnohyōe. After retiring from active duty he accepted the presidency of the Rikken Seiyūkai, a major conservative party. Following the resignation of the Wakatsuki Cabinet in 1927, Tanaka was appointed Prime Minister. In foreign affairs, he pursued a hawkish policy; in domestic affairs, he sought to suppress communist and socialist movements. Criticised for his handling of the unauthorised assassination of Zhang Zuolin by a Kwangtung Army officer, he resigned in 1929 and died soon afterwards.
Baron Hideyoshi Arimatsu (有松 英義; 10 June 1863 – 24 October 1927) was a member of House of Peers (Japan) and a…
Baron Hideyoshi Arimatsu (有松 英義; 10 June 1863 – 24 October 1927) was a member of House of Peers (Japan) and a bureaucrat acted as Director-General of the Cabinet Legislation Bureau, Minister of Colonial Affairs, and the Head of Cabinet Pension Bureau during the 18th cabinet of military regime Terauchi Masatake (寺内正毅).