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Kawauchi Kouhan Dies at 88 | April 08, 2008 |
 One of Japan's great showbiz writers, Kawauchi Kouhan died early Sunday morning at a hospital near his home in Hachinohe, Aomori Prefecture. He was 88. The cause of death has not been formally announced but is believed to have been lung cancer, and Kawauchi was rarely seen without a cigarette. He had his first major hit as writer of the hugely popular 1958 TV series "Gekko Kamen", the forerunner of Japan's "tokusatsu" super heroes. He was also the man behind "Manga Nihon Mukashibanashi", a series of anime versions of old Japanese folk tales that originally ran on TBS from 1975-94 and remains popular today. He penned the lyrics for hits by such top stars as Katsu Shintaro and Yashiro Aki. But although he was a major 20th-century figure with the power to influence even prime ministers, his name was mostly unknown to the younger generation until last year. He thrust himself back into the limelight when he very publicly chastised top enka singer Mori Shinichi (60, photo inset) for making changes to the lyrics of his signature tune "Ofukuro-san" without his permission. Mori countered by saying that the changes were made some 30 years ago, which just made Kawauchi madder than ever. He refused to allow Mori to sing any of the hits he had written for him ever again, going so far as to enforce the ban legally through JASRAC. Mori tried on several occasions to change his mind, but Kawauchi stubbornly refused to speak with him or even read his letters, right up to the end. Though legally he is now entitled to sing the original version of "Ofukuro-san," it's unlikely that Mori will ever do so.
• Singer Miyako Harumi (60) is in shock following the suicide of her partner of many years. It was revealed yesterday that Nakamura Kazuyoshi (60) hung himself last Friday in the central Tokyo apartment where the couple lived. Though he was married with children, Nakamura started living with Miyako back in the early 1980s when he was a director at her record company. Shortly after she retired as a singer to become a producer, Nakamura became the president of her management company. Miyako returned to performing in 1990 and has recently been doing concerts to celebrate her 45th anniversary as a singer.
• Young J-pop star Kato Miliyah (19) has seen her latest album, "Tokyo Star", enter the weekly Oricon chart Top 5. She's just the second singer-songwriter to have three Top 5 albums while still in their teens, the other being Utada Hikaru (25) in 2002.
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