Katsuichi Honda (Japanese: 本多 勝一, Hepburn: Honda Katsuichi; born January 28, 1932) is a Japanese journalist and author…
Katsuichi Honda (Japanese: 本多 勝一, Hepburn: Honda Katsuichi; born January 28, 1932) is a Japanese journalist and author most famous for his writing on the Nanjing Massacre. During the 1970s he wrote a series of articles on the atrocities committed by Imperial Japanese soldiers during World War II called "Chūgoku no Tabi" (中国の旅, "Travels in China"). The series first appeared in the Asahi Shimbun. Honda also worked as a war correspondent in Vietnam during the Vietnam War, an experience which, according to some historians, contributed to stoking his interest in Japanese wartime history.
Famous People from Nagano Prefecture
Nagano Prefecture: 426 people
Shoshichi Kobayashi (小林 昭七, Kobayashi Shōshichi; 4 January 1932 – 29 August 2012) was a Japanese mathematician. He was…
Shoshichi Kobayashi (小林 昭七, Kobayashi Shōshichi; 4 January 1932 – 29 August 2012) was a Japanese mathematician. He was the eldest brother of electrical engineer and computer scientist Hisashi Kobayashi. His research interests were in Riemannian and complex manifolds, transformation groups of geometric structures, and Lie algebras.
Shinkichi Takemura (21 December 1931 – 9 December 1999) was a Japanese speed skater. He competed at the 1956 Winter…
Shinkichi Takemura (21 December 1931 – 9 December 1999) was a Japanese speed skater. He competed at the 1956 Winter Olympics and the 1960 Winter Olympics.
Syun-Ichi Akasofu (赤祖父 俊一, Akasofu Shun'ichi; born December 4, 1930, Saku, Nagano, Japan) is a Japanese-American…
Syun-Ichi Akasofu (赤祖父 俊一, Akasofu Shun'ichi; born December 4, 1930, Saku, Nagano, Japan) is a Japanese-American geophysicist known for his research on auroras, auroral substorms, and magnetospheric physics. He is the founding director of the International Arctic Research Center of the University of Alaska Fairbanks (UAF), serving in that position from the center's establishment in 1998 until January 2007. Previously he had been director of the university's Geophysical Institute from 1986.
Kei Kumai (熊井 啓, Kumai Kei; 1 June 1930 – 23 May 2007) was a Japanese film director. After his studies in literature at…
Kei Kumai (熊井 啓, Kumai Kei; 1 June 1930 – 23 May 2007) was a Japanese film director. After his studies in literature at Shinshu University, he began work as a director's assistant. He won the Directors Guild of Japan New Directors Award for his second film, Nihon rettō, in 1965. His 1972 film Shinobu Kawa was entered into the 8th Moscow International Film Festival. His 1973 film Rise, Fair Sun was entered into the 24th Berlin International Film Festival. Sandakan No. 8 received widespread acclaim for tackling the issue of a woman forced into prostitution in Borneo before the outbreak of World War II. Kinuyo Tanaka won the Best Actress Award at the 25th Berlin International Film Festival for her performance. The film was nominated for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 48th Academy Awards. Kumai's follow-up film was 1976's Cape of North, starring French actress Claude Jade as a Swiss nun who falls in love with a Japanese engineer on a trip from Marseilles to Yokohama. His 1986 film The Sea and Poison won the Silver Bear - Special Jury Prize at the 37th Berlin International Film Festival. In 1992, his film Luminous Moss was entered into the 42nd Berlin International Film Festival. Other works include Death of a Tea Master starring Toshirō Mifune as Sen no Rikyū (Silver Lion at the 46th Venice International Film Festival), and the 2002 film The Sea Is Watching, based on Akira Kurosawa's posthumous script. Kumai was married to the writer and researcher Akiko Kumai. He died in 2007 at age 76.
Yoshikazu Hasegawa (長谷川 善和) (12 March 1930 – 2 September 2026) was a Japanese vertebrate palaeontologist and honorary…
Yoshikazu Hasegawa (長谷川 善和) (12 March 1930 – 2 September 2026) was a Japanese vertebrate palaeontologist and honorary museum director. The Pleistocene anatid Shiriyanetta hasegawai was named in his honour, in recognition of his "outstanding contributions" to the field.
Hisao Yamada (山田 尚勇, Yamada Hisao; June 8, 1930 – May 21, 2008) was a Japanese computer scientist, known for his…
Hisao Yamada (山田 尚勇, Yamada Hisao; June 8, 1930 – May 21, 2008) was a Japanese computer scientist, known for his influential contributions to theoretical computer science, as well as for the development of Japanese keyboard layouts, a challenging practical problem. From 1972 to 1991, he was professor of the formal languages division at the Department for Information Science at the University of Tokyo.
Takuya Iwasaki (岩崎 卓也, Iwasaki Takuya; July 9, 1929 – February 4, 2018) was a Japanese archaeologist.
Yayoi Kusama (草間 彌生, Kusama Yayoi; 22 March 1929 – 14 August 2026) was a Japanese artist who worked primarily in…
Yayoi Kusama (草間 彌生, Kusama Yayoi; 22 March 1929 – 14 August 2026) was a Japanese artist who worked primarily in sculpture and installation. She was also active in painting, performance, video art, fashion, poetry, fiction, and other arts. Her work was based in conceptual art and shows some attributes of feminism, minimalism, surrealism, art brut, pop art, and abstract expressionism, and is infused with autobiographical, psychological, and sexual content. She was acknowledged as one of the most important artists to have come out of Japan, and was one of the world's top-selling female artists and ranked #19 in Sotheby's 2023 list of the top 50 artists. Her work influenced her contemporaries, including Andy Warhol and Claes Oldenburg. Kusama was raised in Matsumoto, and trained at the Kyoto City University of Arts for a year in a Japanese painting style called nihonga. She was inspired by American abstract impressionism. She moved to New York City in 1958 and was a part of the New York avant-garde scene throughout the 1960s, especially in the pop-art movement. Embracing the rise of the hippie counterculture of the late 1960s, she came to public attention when she organized a series of happenings in which naked participants were painted with brightly colored polka dots. She experienced a period in the 1970s during which her work was largely overlooked, but a revival of interest in the 1980s brought her art back into public view. Kusama continued to create art in various museums around the world, from the 1950s onwards. She was open about her mental health and resided in a mental health facility from the 1970s until her death. She said that art had become her way to express her mental problems. "I fight pain, anxiety, and fear every day, and the only method I have found that relieved my illness is to keep creating art", she told an interviewer in 2012. "I followed the thread of art and somehow discovered a path that would allow me to live."
Kiyotaka Takabayashi (高林 清高, Takabayashi Kiyotaka; born 10 July 1928) is a Japanese former speed skater who competed in…
Kiyotaka Takabayashi (高林 清高, Takabayashi Kiyotaka; born 10 July 1928) is a Japanese former speed skater who competed in the 1952 Winter Olympics and in the 1956 Winter Olympics. He was born in Nagano Prefecture. In 1952 he finished sixth in the 500 metres competition and 34th in the 1500 metres event. Four years later he finished 30th in the 500 metres contest at the 1956 Games.
Sohei Miyashita (宮下 創平, Miyashita Sohei; 10 November 1927 – 7 October 2013) was a Japanese politician who served as…
Sohei Miyashita (宮下 創平, Miyashita Sohei; 10 November 1927 – 7 October 2013) was a Japanese politician who served as Minister of Health and Welfare from 1998 to 1999, Director-General of the Environmental Agency from 1994 to 1995 and Director-General of the Defense Agency from 1991 to 1992. A member of the Liberal Democratic Party, Miyashita served in the House of Representatives from 1979 to 2003.
Shinji Takahashi (高橋 信次; 1927–1976) was a Japanese religious leader, writer and founder of GLA, a religious…
Shinji Takahashi (高橋 信次; 1927–1976) was a Japanese religious leader, writer and founder of GLA, a religious organization established in Japan in 1969. Takahashi taught that the essential nature of human beings is the soul.He further asserted that life is sustained by a transcendent divine existence that surpasses human intellect, and that individuals are born with the purpose of establishing themselves and contributing to the harmony of the world.
Madoka Kanai (金井 圓; Shinjitai: 金井 円, Kanai Madoka; 5 June 1927 – 7 July 2001) was a Japanese historian at the…
Madoka Kanai (金井 圓; Shinjitai: 金井 円, Kanai Madoka; 5 June 1927 – 7 July 2001) was a Japanese historian at the University of Tokyo who specialized in modern Japanese history, with a special interest in the history of Japanese foreign relations. He was formerly Director of the Japan-Netherlands Institute and President of the Historiographical Institute of the University of Tokyo. Kanai was born in Nagano Prefecture and educated at the University of Tokyo.
Bushi Kozu (Japanese: 神津武士; February 11, 1927 – December 17, 2025) was a Japanese politician.
Teruaki Mukaiyama (向山 光昭, Mukaiyama Teruaki; January 5, 1927 – November 17, 2018) was a Japanese organic chemist. One…
Teruaki Mukaiyama (向山 光昭, Mukaiyama Teruaki; January 5, 1927 – November 17, 2018) was a Japanese organic chemist. One of the most prolific chemists of the 20th century in the field of organic synthesis, Mukaiyama helped establish the field of organic chemistry in Japan after World War II.
Shōichi Fujimori (Japanese: 藤森昭一) (26 December 1926 – 25 June 2016) was a Japanese bureaucrat who served as Grand…
Shōichi Fujimori (Japanese: 藤森昭一) (26 December 1926 – 25 June 2016) was a Japanese bureaucrat who served as Grand Steward of the Imperial Household Agency (1988–1996). He was born in Matsumoto, Nagano Prefecture.
Yoshikatsu Takeiri (Japanese: 竹入義勝, Takeiri Yoshikatsu; 10 January 1926 – 23 December 2023) was a Japanese politician…
Yoshikatsu Takeiri (Japanese: 竹入義勝, Takeiri Yoshikatsu; 10 January 1926 – 23 December 2023) was a Japanese politician who served as the third chair of Komeito from 1967 to 1986, making him the longest serving leader in the party's history.
Ōnobori Mitsuhiro (born Isamu Ishida, August 1, 1925 – March 1, 2009) was a sumo wrestler and coach from Karuizawa…
Ōnobori Mitsuhiro (born Isamu Ishida, August 1, 1925 – March 1, 2009) was a sumo wrestler and coach from Karuizawa, Nagano, Japan. He made his professional debut in January 1941, reaching a highest rank of maegashira 1. He retired in 1957. From 1971 to 1990 he was the head coach of Kasugayama stable.
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.
Ryōji Uehara (上原良司, Uehara Ryōji; 27 September 1922 – 11 May 1945) was a flight captain of the Imperial Japanese Army…
Ryōji Uehara (上原良司, Uehara Ryōji; 27 September 1922 – 11 May 1945) was a flight captain of the Imperial Japanese Army and was killed in action as a kamikaze pilot. Uehara was born in what is now the town of Ikeda, Nagano. He entered the Department of Economics at Keio University in 1942 and joined the IJA 50th Regiment in Matsumoto, Nagano Prefecture, later that same year. He was a member of the 56th Shinmu squadron (第56振武隊) of the IJA Air Corps when he carried out his final mission against the US carrier fleet near Kadena, Okinawa Prefecture on 11 May 1945. He was 22 years old. His letter, written to his parents the night before his final mission, was published after the war and it is still regarded as a masterpiece of wartime literary works in Japan.
Shigehiro Ozawa (小沢 茂弘, Ozawa Shigehiro; 29 August 1922 – 12 October 2004) was a Japanese film director and…
Shigehiro Ozawa (小沢 茂弘, Ozawa Shigehiro; 29 August 1922 – 12 October 2004) was a Japanese film director and screenwriter. He is best known for his film The Street Fighter. He directed over 110 films between 1954 and 1976.
Akira Iwai (岩井 章, Iwai Akira; April 25, 1922 – February 18, 1997) was a Japanese trade union leader. He served as the…
Akira Iwai (岩井 章, Iwai Akira; April 25, 1922 – February 18, 1997) was a Japanese trade union leader. He served as the secretary-general of the General Council of Trade Unions of Japan (Sōhyō) from 1955 to 1970. Born in Matsumoto, Nagano, Iwai left school in 1937 and began working as a locomotive hand on the Japan National Railways. He served in the armed forces during World War II, but returned to the railways after the war, and joined the National Railway Workers' Union. In 1950, he became the chair of the union's headquarters struggle committee, leading the union's "year-end struggle" in 1952 and 1953, but in 1954 he was sacked by his employer due his trade union activities. Within the national trade federation Sōhyō, Iwai voiced his disagreement with secretary-general Minoru Takano over Takano's "Peace Force Thesis," whereby Takano sought to align Sōhyō with the "peaceful" Soviet Union and Communist China against the "warlike" United States. In 1955, Iwai was instrumental in blocking the reelection of Takano to a fifth term, and was himself elected secretary-general instead. When the charismatic Kaoru Ōta was elected Sōhyō chairman in 1958, Ōta and Iwai formed a close partnership known as the "Ōta-Iwai Line," which sought to balance wage struggles with political struggles. Iwai supported Ōta's policy of the "spring wage offensive" (shuntō), an annual, coordinated, pre-scheduled strike by Sōhyō unions to secure annual wage increases in line with Japan's economic growth. Iwai also helped oversee Sōhyō's militant role in the 1960 Anpo protests against the U.S.-Japan Security Treaty and the 1960 Mitsui Miike Coal Mine Strike. However, both the Anpo and Miike struggles came to be viewed as defeats for the labor movement, as the Anpo protests failed to stop passage of a revised security treaty, and the Miike miners' union was broken when Mitsui corporation succeeded in hiving off a more pliable "second union" and reopening the mine. After these perceived failures, Iwai and Ōta sought to further moderate Sōhyō's renowned militancy, shying away from political protests and focusing more on bread-and-butter issues such as securing piecemeal workplace improvements and wage increases, negotiated amicably with employers in advance of the annual shuntō spring wage offensive. Public-sector unions, however, did not benefit as much from these efforts, and saw their wages falling behind private-sector counterparts. These workers remained extremely militant, and pressured Sōhyō to take more forceful actions vis-a-vis their government employers. When Sōhyō's public-sector unions threatened to go on strike in 1964, in defiance of a law banning public-sector workers from striking, Ōta and Iwai met face-to-face with Prime Minister of Japan Ikeda Hayato, and successfully negotiated an annual increase in public sector wages that would match pay in the private sector, in exchange for a promise to further reduce labor militancy. Iwai retired as secretary-general of Sōhyō in 1970, and was awarded the Lenin Peace Prize that same year. In 1972, he became vice-president of the Japan-Soviet Friendship Society.
Akira Yamada (山田 晶, Yamada Akira; 7 March 1922 – 29 February 2008) was a Japanese scholar and philosopher of the West…
Akira Yamada (山田 晶, Yamada Akira; 7 March 1922 – 29 February 2008) was a Japanese scholar and philosopher of the West European Medieval philosophy. He was member of the Japan Academy since 1998.
Kaname Harada (原田 要; 11 August 1916 – 3 May 2016) was a Japanese flying ace of World War II. He was credited with…
Kaname Harada (原田 要; 11 August 1916 – 3 May 2016) was a Japanese flying ace of World War II. He was credited with shooting down as many as 19 Allied aircraft between late 1941 and when he was himself downed in October 1942. After recovering from the injuries sustained in this incident, Harada served as a flying instructor for the remainder of the war. Following the end of hostilities in 1945, Harada worked as a farmer, before founding a nursery for children in 1965 and later a kindergarten. He became an anti-war activist in 2001 and remained a prominent speaker until late in his life.
Kenzō Yagi (八木健三, Yagi Kenzō; 5 September 1914 – 18 July 2008) was a Japanese mineralogist and petrologist who…
Kenzō Yagi (八木健三, Yagi Kenzō; 5 September 1914 – 18 July 2008) was a Japanese mineralogist and petrologist who specialized in experimental mineralogy and petrology. Yagiite, a new mineral found in the Colomera meteorite, was named after him for its contribution to the petrology.
Kiyoshige Koyama (小山 清茂, Koyama Kiyoshige; January 15, 1914 – June 6, 2009), was a Japanese composer for orchestras…
Kiyoshige Koyama (小山 清茂, Koyama Kiyoshige; January 15, 1914 – June 6, 2009), was a Japanese composer for orchestras, vocal, and traditional Japanese instrumentation. He was born in Nagano City, Nagano Prefecture. Although nationalistic he did not compose until his thirties, which was after the period of Imperial expansionism.
Haruyo Ichikawa (市川春代, Ichikawa Haruyo; 9 February 1913 – 18 November 2004) was a Japanese film actress and singer.
Masako Shinpo (22 January 1913 – 19 December 1995) was a Japanese track and field athlete. She competed in the women's…
Masako Shinpo (22 January 1913 – 19 December 1995) was a Japanese track and field athlete. She competed in the women's javelin throw at the 1932 Summer Olympics.
Masaki Iinuma (飯沼 壮貴, Iinuma Masaki; 27 November 1912 – December 1941) was a Japanese aviator. Iinuma was born in…
Masaki Iinuma (飯沼 壮貴, Iinuma Masaki; 27 November 1912 – December 1941) was a Japanese aviator. Iinuma was born in Toyoshina (now part of Azumino, Nagano Prefecture), and was a graduate of the Imperial Japanese Army flying school at Tokorozawa. At age 24 he gained fame as the pilot on the Kamikaze (神風号, Kamikaze-go), a Mitsubishi Ki-15 Karigane aircraft, (registration J-BAAI) sponsored by the newspaper Asahi Shimbun. It became famous on April 9, 1937, as the first Japanese-built aircraft to fly from Japan to Europe, making the flight between Tokyo and London, in time for the coronation of King George VI and Queen Elizabeth. The total elapsed time from departure from the Tachikawa Airfield was 94 hours, 17 minutes and 56 seconds, with actual flight time for the whole distance of 15,357 kilometres (9,542 mi) was 51 hours, 19 minutes and 23 seconds. The crew consisted of pilot Iinuma and navigator Kenji Tsukagoshi. The flight was the first Fédération Aéronautique Internationale record won by Japanese aviators. Iinuma later served as chief test pilot for the Kayaba Ka-1 autogyro from May 1941. Iinuma was killed in December 1941 at Phnom Penh airfield in French Indochina when, in a daze from hearing the news of the attack on Pearl Harbor by Japanese forces, he accidentally walked into a spinning aircraft propeller. His death was officially reported as a military casualty.
Toshinobu Onosato (June 8, 1912 – November 30, 1986) was a Japanese printmaker. His work frequently included geometric…
Toshinobu Onosato (June 8, 1912 – November 30, 1986) was a Japanese printmaker. His work frequently included geometric shapes like circles, rectangles, and triangles, leading to his reputation as a pioneer of scientifically oriented design.
Zentarō Kosaka (小坂 善太郎, Kosaka Zentarō; 23 January 1912 – 26 November 2000) was a Japanese politician who served two…
Zentarō Kosaka (小坂 善太郎, Kosaka Zentarō; 23 January 1912 – 26 November 2000) was a Japanese politician who served two terms as foreign minister and as labour minister.
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.
Masaaki Tanaka (田中 正明, Tanaka Masaaki) (February 11, 1911 – January 8, 2006) was a Japanese author notable for his book…
Masaaki Tanaka (田中 正明, Tanaka Masaaki) (February 11, 1911 – January 8, 2006) was a Japanese author notable for his book What Really Happened in Nanking: The Refutation of a Common Myth, which denies that the Nanjing Massacre as traditionally understood took place. Originally written in Japanese in 1987, an English version was published in 2000 in response to Iris Chang's book, The Rape of Nanking.
Yoshimi Takeuchi (竹内 好, Takeuchi Yoshimi; born October 1910 — 3 March 1977) was a Japanese Sinologist.
Egerton Herbert Norman (September 1, 1909 – April 4, 1957) was a Canadian diplomat and historian. Born in Japan to…
Egerton Herbert Norman (September 1, 1909 – April 4, 1957) was a Canadian diplomat and historian. Born in Japan to missionary parents, he became a historian of modern Japan before joining the Canadian foreign service. His most influential book was Japan's Emergence as a Modern State (1940) where he argued that persisting feudal class relations were responsible for government oppression at home and the imperialistic expansion that led to World War II in Asia. During the Red Scare of the 1950s Norman was accused of being a communist or even a spy, though investigations found no corroboration and he was defended by Canadian authorities. He committed suicide in 1957.
Motoichi Kumagai (熊谷 元一, Kumagai Motoichi; 12 July 1909 – 6 November 2010) was a Japanese photographer and illustrator…
Motoichi Kumagai (熊谷 元一, Kumagai Motoichi; 12 July 1909 – 6 November 2010) was a Japanese photographer and illustrator of books for children, known for his portrayal of rural and school life. He has illustrated numerous children's books, books containing his photography, and other works. His works have won prizes, beginning with a photography prize from the Mainichi Shimbun in 1955. He is sometimes credited as Motokazu Kumagai or Motoiti Kumagai.
Haruyasu Nakajima (中島 治康 June 28, 1909 – April 21, 1987) was a Japanese baseball player. An outfielder with a strong…
Haruyasu Nakajima (中島 治康 June 28, 1909 – April 21, 1987) was a Japanese baseball player. An outfielder with a strong throwing arm, he played an active part in the beginning of professional baseball in Japan. Nakajima attended Waseda University, where he starred in the Tokyo Big6 Baseball League. He began his professional career in 1936 with the Japanese Baseball League, as a charter member of the Tokyo Kyojin. An excellent curveball hitter who used all parts of the field, in 1938 he was the first in Japan to become a triple crown player, as he compiled a .361 batting average, with 10 home runs and 38 RBI for the fall season. In addition, he was named league MVP for that season. In 1941, Nakajima was named the Kyojin player-manager and he led his team to the JBL championship. He was again the team's player-manager in 1946-1947, and in 1949, when he led them (now known as the Yomiuri Giants) to another championship. During his time with the Kyojin/Giants. Nakajima led the league in homers twice, average once, and RBI four times. In 1950, with the reorganization of the JBL into Nippon Professional Baseball, Nakajima and a number of other veteran players were sent from the Giants to the Taiyo Whales to compensate for that team's lack of players. Nakajima ended his career in 1951 as player-manager of the Whales, but they struggled to a 19–26 record under his leadership, and he was replaced before the end of the season. Nakajima was inducted into the Japanese Baseball Hall of Fame in 1963, just the third player inducted. He died April 21, 1987.
Gon'ichirō Nishizawa (西沢 権一郎, Nishizawa Gon'ichirō; 5 December 1906 – 31 December 1980) was a Japanese politician and…
Gon'ichirō Nishizawa (西沢 権一郎, Nishizawa Gon'ichirō; 5 December 1906 – 31 December 1980) was a Japanese politician and essayist. He was born in Nagano Prefecture. He was a graduate of Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology. He was governor of Nagano Prefecture (1959–1980). He is the longest serving governor of the Nagano Prefecture.
Tomio Hora (Japanese: 洞 富雄, Hepburn: Hora Tomio; 14 November 1906 – 15 March 2000) was a Japanese historian and Waseda…
Tomio Hora (Japanese: 洞 富雄, Hepburn: Hora Tomio; 14 November 1906 – 15 March 2000) was a Japanese historian and Waseda University professor, well known for his pioneering efforts to push back against Nanjing Massacre denial inside Japan.
Ichimaru (市丸), born Matsue Goto (後藤 まつゑ, Gotō Matsue; July 16, 1906 – February 17, 1997), was a popular Japanese…
Ichimaru (市丸), born Matsue Goto (後藤 まつゑ, Gotō Matsue; July 16, 1906 – February 17, 1997), was a popular Japanese recording artist and geisha. Her rivalry with another popular geisha singer, Katsutaro Kouta, created the "Katsu-Ichi Era" in Japanese music history.
Taiko Hirabayashi (平林 たい子, Hirabayashi Taiko; 3 October 1905 – 17 February 1972) was the pen-name of a Japanese writer.…
Taiko Hirabayashi (平林 たい子, Hirabayashi Taiko; 3 October 1905 – 17 February 1972) was the pen-name of a Japanese writer. Her real name was Hirabayashi Tai.
Yoshimi Usui (臼井 吉見, Usui Yoshimi; June 17, 1905 – July 12, 1987) was a Japanese writer and critic from Azumino, Nagano…
Yoshimi Usui (臼井 吉見, Usui Yoshimi; June 17, 1905 – July 12, 1987) was a Japanese writer and critic from Azumino, Nagano prefecture. Usui won the 1974 10th Tanizaki Prize for Azumino (安曇野). In 1977 he published a novelised account of Kawabata's death that led to a lawsuit against him by the Nobel Prize-winner's family.
Kohei Ezaki (江崎 孝坪, Ezaki Kōhei; real given name 孝平, 15 June 1904 – 27 June 1963) was a Japanese Nihonga painter from…
Kohei Ezaki (江崎 孝坪, Ezaki Kōhei; real given name 孝平, 15 June 1904 – 27 June 1963) was a Japanese Nihonga painter from Takatō, Nagano. He was a pupil of Seison Maeda. Ezaki was also engaged in films as an art director and costume designer. He was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Costume Design for his work in Akira Kurosawa's film Seven Samurai (1954).
Noboru Itō (伊藤昇, Itō Noboru; 31 January 1903 – 7 February 1993) was a Japanese composer who wrote experimental pieces…
Noboru Itō (伊藤昇, Itō Noboru; 31 January 1903 – 7 February 1993) was a Japanese composer who wrote experimental pieces for, among others, piano, chamber orchestra, and ballet suites. His work was part of the Art competitions at the 1936 Summer Olympics. During the 1930s and 1940s, he also wrote the music scores for films produced by the P.C.L. film studios and its successor, the Toho film studios, including early works by directors Mikio Naruse and Satsuo Yamamoto.
Tomeju Uruma (潤間留十, Uruma Tomeju; 9 December 1902 – 26 January 1999) was a Japanese speed skater who competed in the…
Tomeju Uruma (潤間留十, Uruma Tomeju; 9 December 1902 – 26 January 1999) was a Japanese speed skater who competed in the 1932 Winter Olympics. He was eliminated in the heats of the 500 m, 1500 m, 5000 m, and 10000 m events.
Shinpei Takagi (高木 新平, Takagi Shinpei; 3 November 1902 – 21 April 1967) was a Japanese film actor. He appeared in more…
Shinpei Takagi (高木 新平, Takagi Shinpei; 3 November 1902 – 21 April 1967) was a Japanese film actor. He appeared in more than 100 films from 1923 to 1961.
Yoshitora Kawai (Japanese: 川合 義虎; 1902–1923) was a Japanese communist activist involved with many Tokyo-based political…
Yoshitora Kawai (Japanese: 川合 義虎; 1902–1923) was a Japanese communist activist involved with many Tokyo-based political groups. Kawai attended Honzan hospital's nurse training school, but moved to Tokyo's Kameido district in September 1920 after being exposed to socialism by a professor, Oka-sensei. He was a member of Gyōminkai (Enlightened People's Society), a communist study group, and joined the Nankatsu Labor Union alongside Tanno Setsu. In March 1923, Kawai created the Tokyo Communist Youth League, the first instance of a Japanese group openly labeling themselves as communists. During the 1923 Great Kantō earthquake, Kawai was reported as having rescued three children who had been trapped under a collapsed house. Amidst the chaos of the earthquake's aftermath, he was captured on 2 September 1923, and a few days later, was killed by police in prison during the Kameido Incident.
Ryohei Arai (荒井良平, Arai Ryōhei) (22 October 1901 – 22 October 1980) was a Japanese film director. He directed films…
Ryohei Arai (荒井良平, Arai Ryōhei) (22 October 1901 – 22 October 1980) was a Japanese film director. He directed films from the 1930s to 1950s, especially jidaigeki and ghost movies based on kaidan.
Kinsuke Shimada (島田 謹介, Shimada Kinsuke; 1900–1994) was a renowned Japanese photographer.
Minoru Shirota (代田 稔, Shirota Minoru; 23 April 1899 – 10 March 1982) was a Japanese microbiologist who made pioneering…
Minoru Shirota (代田 稔, Shirota Minoru; 23 April 1899 – 10 March 1982) was a Japanese microbiologist who made pioneering research on gut microbiota and developed the first commercial probiotic. In the 1930, he identified a strain of lactic acid bacteria that is part of normal gut flora that he originally called Lactobacillus casei Shirota, which appeared to help contain the growth of harmful bacteria in the gut. The species was later reclassified as Lactobacillus paracasei. Using his novel bacterium, Shirota produced the first probiotic yogurt, named Yakult in 1935. The commercial success of the beverage led to the establishment of the company Yakult Honsha and its subsidiary research organisation Yakult Central Institute in 1935.