Events in the year 1964 in

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

. It corresponds to Shōwa 39 (昭和39年) in the

Japanese calendar Japanese calendar types have included a range of official and unofficial systems. At present, Japan uses the Gregorian calendar together with year designations stating the year of the reign of the current Emperor. The written form starts with t ...

. 1964 is considered a seminal year in modern Japanese history. The Tokyo Olympics and first run of the

bullet train Bullet train may refer to: Rail * Shinkansen high-speed trains of Japan, nicknamed for their appearance and speed * Other high-speed trains of a similar appearance to Japanese trains * An ongoing project to build high-speed rail in India. Rail to ...

reflected a society-wide sense that post-war

reconstruction Reconstruction may refer to: Politics, history, and sociology *Reconstruction (law), the transfer of a company's (or several companies') business to a new company *'' Perestroika'' (Russian for "reconstruction"), a late 20th century Soviet Unio ...

was over and that Japan had rejoined the international family of nations. Diplomatic negotiations underway this year between South Korea and Japan resulted in a formal normalization of relations the following year. Individuals born beginning around this date were often subsequently identified as " shinjinrui" (or new people) because they had not experienced the suffering older generations had during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

or the post-war period, and on the contrary, grew up in material plenty.

Incumbents

Emperor An emperor (from la, imperator, via fro, empereor) is a monarch, and usually the sovereignty, sovereign ruler of an empire or another type of imperial realm. Empress, the female equivalent, may indicate an emperor's wife (empress consort), ...

Hirohito Emperor , commonly known in English-speaking countries by his personal name , was the 124th emperor of Japan, ruling from 25 December 1926 until his death in 1989. Hirohito and his wife, Empress Kōjun, had two sons and five daughters; he was ...

Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...

Hayato Ikeda was a Japanese bureaucrat and later politician who served as Prime Minister of Japan from 1960 to 1964. He is best known for his Income Doubling Plan, which promised to double Japan's GDP in ten years. Ikeda is also known for repairing U.S.-J ...

( L–Hiroshima, 3rd term) until November 9,

Eisaku Satō was a Japanese politician who served as Prime Minister from 1964 to 1972. He is the third-longest serving Prime Minister, and ranks second in longest uninterrupted service as Prime Minister. Satō entered the National Diet in 1949 as a membe ...

(L–Yamaguchi) *

Chief Cabinet Secretary The is a member of the cabinet and is the leader and chief executive of the Cabinet Secretariat of Japan. The Chief Cabinet Secretary coordinates the policies of ministries and agencies in the executive branch, and also serves as the government ...

: Yasumi Kurogane (L–Yamagata) until July 18,

Zenkō Suzuki was a Japanese politician who was Prime Minister of Japan from 1980 to 1982. He was the last prime minister to have been born in the Meiji era. Early life and education Suzuki was born on 11 January 1911, Yamada, Iwate Prefecture, the eldest ...

(L–Iwate) until November 9, Tomisaburō Hashimoto (L–Ibaraki) * Chief Justice of the

Supreme Court A supreme court is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts in most legal jurisdictions. Other descriptions for such courts include court of last resort, apex court, and high (or final) court of appeal. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...

: Kisaburō Yokota * President of the

House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entitles. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often c ...

: Naka Funada (L–Tochigi) * President of the

House of Councillors The is the upper house of the National Diet of Japan. The House of Representatives is the lower house. The House of Councillors is the successor to the pre-war House of Peers. If the two houses disagree on matters of the budget, treaties, ...

Yūzō Shigemune Yūzō, Yuzo or Yuuzou is a masculine Japanese given name. Possible writings Yūzō can be written using different combinations of kanji characters. Here are some examples: *勇三, "courage, 3" *悠三, "calm, 3" *雄三, "male, 3" *優三, "ge ...

(L–national) *

Diet Diet may refer to: Food * Diet (nutrition), the sum of the food consumed by an organism or group * Dieting, the deliberate selection of food to control body weight or nutrient intake ** Diet food, foods that aid in creating a diet for weight loss ...

sessions: 46th (regular session opened in December 1963, to June 26), 47th (extraordinary, November 9 to December 18), 48th (regular, December 21 to 1965, June 1)

Governors

Aichi Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region of Honshū. Aichi Prefecture has a population of 7,552,873 () and a geographic area of with a population density of . Aichi Prefecture borders Mie Prefecture to the west, Gifu Prefectur ...

Mikine Kuwahara Mikine Kuwahara (桑原幹根, ''Kuwahara Mikune'', August 29, 1895 – April 11, 1991) was a Japanese Home Ministry government official. He was born in Yamanashi Prefecture. He was a graduate of the University of Tokyo. He was twice governor of Ai ...

*Akita Prefecture:

Yūjirō Obata Yūjirō, Yujiro or Yuujirou is a masculine Japanese given name. Possible writings Yūjirō can be written using different combinations of kanji characters. Some examples: *勇二郎, "courage, 2, son" *勇次郎, "courage, next, son" *勇治郎 ...

*Aomori Prefecture:

Shunkichi Takeuchi Shunkichi (written: 俊吉 or 駿吉) is a masculine Japanese given name. Notable people with the name include: *, Japanese field hockey player *, Japanese photographer {{given name Japanese masculine given names ...

*Chiba Prefecture:

Taketo Tomonō Taketo (written: 岳人 or 勇人) is a masculine Japanese given name. Notable people with the name include: *, Japanese basketball player and coach *Taketo Gohara Taketo Gohara is a record producer and sound designer who has collaborated with ...

*Ehime Prefecture: Sadatake Hisamatsu *Fukui Prefecture:

Eizō Kita Eizō, Eizo or Eizou (written: 栄三, 栄蔵, 英三, 英蔵 or 永三) is a masculine Japanese given name. Notable people with the name include: *, Japanese politician *, Japanese painter *, Japanese gymnast *, Japanese musician *, Japanese film ...

*Fukuoka Prefecture:

Taichi Uzaki Tai chi (), short for Tai chi ch'üan ( zh, s=太极拳, t=太極拳, first=t, p=Tàijíquán, labels=no), sometimes called "shadowboxing", is an internal Chinese martial art practiced for defense training, health benefits and meditation. Ta ...

*Fukushima Prefecture: Zenichiro Satō (until 23 March); Morie Kimura (starting 16 May) *Gifu Prefecture: Yukiyasu Matsuno *Gunma Prefecture: Konroku Kanda *

Hiroshima Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Chūgoku region of Honshu. Hiroshima Prefecture has a population of 2,811,410 (1 June 2019) and has a geographic area of 8,479 km² (3,274 sq mi). Hiroshima Prefecture borders Okayama ...

Iduo Nagano was the Governor of Hiroshima Prefecture from 1962 to 1973. In 1974 was elected as a member of the upper house of the Japanese parliament. References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Nagano, Iduo 1918 births 1981 deaths People from Hiroshima University o ...

Hokkaido is Japan's second largest island and comprises the largest and northernmost prefecture, making up its own region. The Tsugaru Strait separates Hokkaidō from Honshu; the two islands are connected by the undersea railway Seikan Tunnel. The la ...

Kingo Machimura was a Japanese politician who served as governor of Toyama Prefecture (1941–1943), governor of Niigata Prefecture (1945) and the second Governor of Hokkaido (1959–1971). He was a member of the Liberal Democratic Party (Japan), Liberal Democr ...

*Hyogo Prefecture:

Motohiko Kanai Motohiko (written: 元彦 or 基彦) is a masculine Japanese given name. Notable people with the name include: * (1905-1998), Japanese ski jumper * Motohiko Eguchi, Japanese Judo athlete *Motohiko Hino Motohiko "Toko" Hino (January 3, 1946 in To ...

Ibaraki Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Kantō region of Honshu. Ibaraki Prefecture has a population of 2,871,199 (1 June 2019) and has a geographic area of . Ibaraki Prefecture borders Fukushima Prefecture to the north, ...

: Nirō Iwakami *

Ishikawa Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region of Honshu island. Ishikawa Prefecture has a population of 1,140,573 (31 October 2019) and has a geographic area of 4,186 km2 (1,616 sq mi). Ishikawa Prefecture borders Toyama Prefecture to ...

Yōichi Nakanishi Yōichi Nakanishi ( ja, 中西陽一) (September 23, 1917 – February 2, 1994) was Governor of Ishikawa Prefecture (1963–1994). He was a graduate of Kyoto University and a member of the Liberal Democratic Party (Japan) The , frequently ab ...

*Iwate Prefecture: Tadashi Chida *Kagawa Prefecture:

Masanori Kaneko Masanori is a masculine Japanese name, Japanese given name. Kanji and meaning The name Masanori is generally written with two kanji, the first read and the second read , for example: *Starting with ("correct"): **: second kanji means "rule" o ...

*Kagoshima Prefecture:

Katsushi Terazono Katsushi (written: 克志, 克史, 勝志, 豪氏 or かつし in hiragana) is a masculine Japanese given name. Notable people with the name include: *, Japanese animator *, Japanese footballer *, Japanese footballer *, Japanese editor *, Japanese ...

Kanagawa Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Kantō region of Honshu. Kanagawa Prefecture is the second-most populous prefecture of Japan at 9,221,129 (1 April 2022) and third-densest at . Its geographic area of makes it fifth-smallest. Kana ...

: Iwataro Uchiyama *Kochi Prefecture:

Masumi Mizobuchi Masumi is a unisex Japanese given name. Notable people with the name include: *, Japanese hurdler * Masuumi Juma, a Japanese voice actor *Masumi Aya, a Japanese hammer thrower * Masumi Fuchise, a Japanese racewalker * Masumi Hayashi (disambiguation ...

Kumamoto Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located on the island of Kyūshū. Kumamoto Prefecture has a population of 1,748,134 () and has a geographic area of . Kumamoto Prefecture borders Fukuoka Prefecture to the north, Ōita Prefecture to ...

: Kōsaku Teramoto * Kyoto Prefecture: Torazō Ninagawa *Mie Prefecture: Satoru Tanaka *

Miyagi Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Tōhoku region of Honshu. Miyagi Prefecture has a population of 2,305,596 (1 June 2019) and has a geographic area of . Miyagi Prefecture borders Iwate Prefecture to the north, Akita Prefecture to the nort ...

: Yoshio Miura *Miyazaki Prefecture: Hiroshi Kuroki *

Nagano Prefecture is a landlocked prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region of Honshū. Nagano Prefecture has a population of 2,052,493 () and has a geographic area of . Nagano Prefecture borders Niigata Prefecture to the north, Gunma Prefecture to the ...

Gon'ichirō Nishizawa was a Japanese politician and essayist. He was born in Nagano Prefecture. He was a graduate of Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology The commonly known as TUAT is a Japanese national university headquartered in Fuchū, Tokyo. This univ ...

*Nagasaki Prefecture:

Katsuya Sato is both a masculine Japanese given name and a Japanese surname. Possible writings *克也, "gram, to be" *勝也, "win, to be" *勝矢, "win, arrow" *勝哉, "win, how" *勝夜, "win, night" *活耶, "active, father" *活弥, "active, extensive, ...

*Nara Prefecture: Ryozo Okuda *

Niigata Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture in the Chūbu region of Honshu of Japan. Niigata Prefecture has a population of 2,227,496 (1 July 2019) and is the List of Japanese prefectures by area, fifth-largest prefecture of Japan by geographic area ...

: Juichiro Tsukada *Oita Prefecture:

Kaoru Kinoshita Kaoru is a Japanese given name for males or females. Name Meanings The name's meaning varies depending on its written form: *薫/郁/芳 — "fragrance", common for both males and females *馨/香 — "fragrance", more common for females ...

Okayama Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Chūgoku region of Honshu. Okayama Prefecture has a population of 1,906,464 (1 February 2018) and has a geographic area of 7,114 Square kilometre, km2 (2,746 sq mi). Okayama Prefectur ...

Yukiharu Miki was a Japanese physician and politician. He served as Governor for the Okayama Prefecture

(until 21 September); Takenori Kato (starting 15 November) *

Osaka Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Kansai region of Honshu. Osaka Prefecture has a population of 8,778,035 () and has a geographic area of . Osaka Prefecture borders Hyōgo Prefecture to the northwest, Kyoto Prefecture ...

: Gisen Satō *

Saga Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located on the island of Kyushu. Saga Prefecture has a population of 809,248 (1 August 2020) and has a geographic area of 2,440 km2 (942 sq mi). Saga Prefecture borders Fukuoka Prefecture to the northeast and Nagasak ...

: Sunao Ikeda *

Saitama Prefecture is a landlocked prefecture of Japan located in the Kantō region of Honshu. Saitama Prefecture has a population of 7,338,536 (1 January 2020) and has a geographic area of 3,797 km2 (1,466 sq mi). Saitama Prefecture borders Tochigi Prefecture ...

: Hiroshi Kurihara *

Shiga Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Kansai region of Honshu. Shiga Prefecture has a population of 1,412,916 (1 October 2015) and has a geographic area of . Shiga Prefecture borders Fukui Prefecture to the north, Gifu Prefecture to the nort ...

: Kyujiro Taniguchi *Shiname Prefecture: Choemon Tanabe *Shizuoka Prefecture:

Toshio Saitō Toshio is a common masculine Japanese given name. Possible writings Toshio can be written using different kanji characters and can mean: *敏夫, "agile, man" *敏男, "agile, man" *敏雄, "agile, male" *俊夫, "sagacious, man" *俊雄, "sagaci ...

*Tochigi Prefecture:

Nobuo Yokokawa Nobuo (written: , , , , , in hiragana or in katakana) is a masculine, Japanese given name. Notable people with the name include: *, Japanese basketball player *Nobuo Fujita (1911–1997), Warrant Flying Officer of the Imperial Japanese Navy *, J ...

*Tokushima Prefecture:

Kikutaro Hara (born November 17, 1976), better known as his wrestling persona and formerly , is a freelance Japanese people, Japanese Professional wrestling, professional wrestler. Though best known for wrestling under a Wrestling mask, mask, he also regula ...

Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.468 ...

: Ryōtarō Azuma *Tottori Prefecture: Jirō Ishiba *Toyama Prefecture: Minoru Yoshida *Wakayama Prefecture:

Shinji Ono is a Japanese professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for J1 League club Hokkaido Consadole Sapporo. Career Urawa Reds Ono grew up in the Shizuoka Prefecture and began his professional career with Urawa Reds in the J1 League in 1998. ...

*Yamagata Prefecture: Tōkichi Abiko *Yamaguchi Prefecture:

Masayuki Hashimoto Masayuki (written: , ,, , , , , , , , , , , , , , or ) is a masculine Japanese given name. Notable people with the name include: *, Japanese animator and director *, Japanese actor *, Japanese baseball player and manager *, Japanese politician *, ...

*Yamanashi Prefecture:

Hisashi Amano Hisashi is a masculine Japanese given name. Its meaning differs depending on the kanji used to write it. Kanji Single kanji used to write the name Hisashi include: *: "long time" *: "eternal" *: "still" *: "standard" *: "complete" *: "long" *: "li ...

Events

*March 18: Hayakawa Electric (the predecessor of today's

Sharp Sharp or SHARP may refer to: Acronyms * SHARP (helmet ratings) (Safety Helmet Assessment and Rating Programme), a British motorcycle helmet safety rating scheme * Self Help Addiction Recovery Program, a charitable organisation founded in 19 ...

) and

Sony , commonly stylized as SONY, is a Japanese multinational conglomerate corporation headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan. As a major technology company, it operates as one of the world's largest manufacturers of consumer and professional ...

announce that they have completed a prototype electronic calculator using Japanese-manufactured diodes and transistors. *March 24: U.S. ambassador

Edwin Reischauer Edwin Oldfather Reischauer (; October 15, 1910 – September 1, 1990) was an American diplomat, educator, and professor at Harvard University. Born in Tokyo to American educational missionaries, he became a leading scholar of the history and cul ...

is stabbed by a Japanese youth. *April 1: Japanese citizens are permitted to freely travel overseas. *April 12: Channel 12, the predecessor of

TV Tokyo JOTX-DTV (channel 7), branded as and known colloquially as , is a television station headquartered in the Sumitomo Fudosan Roppongi Grand Tower in Roppongi, Minato, Tokyo, Japan, owned and operated by the subsidiary of listed certified b ...

, begins operations. * April 17 – Orient Lease, as predecessor of Orix Group founded in

Osaka is a designated city in the Kansai region of Honshu in Japan. It is the capital of and most populous city in Osaka Prefecture, and the third most populous city in Japan, following Special wards of Tokyo and Yokohama. With a population of 2. ...

. * April 29 - The Keiō Dōbutsuen Line opens. *June 16: An earthquake in

kills 12. *July 14: According to Japan Fire and Disaster Management Agency official confirmed report, a Katsushima Warehouse caught fire and explode in

Shinagawa is a special ward in Tokyo, Japan. The Ward refers to itself as Shinagawa City in English. The Ward is home to ten embassies. , the Ward had an estimated population of 380,293 and a population density of 16,510 persons per km2. The total are ...

, total 19 person were human fatalities and 117 persons were wounded. *July 18: A heavy rain, following devastate flood and landslide in

Shimane is a prefecture of Japan located in the Chūgoku region of Honshu. Shimane Prefecture is the second-least populous prefecture of Japan at 665,205 (February 1, 2021) and has a geographic area of 6,708.26 km2. Shimane Prefecture borders Yamaguc ...

and

Tottori Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Chūgoku region of Honshu. Tottori Prefecture is the least populous prefecture of Japan at 570,569 (2016) and has a geographic area of . Tottori Prefecture borders Shimane Prefecture to the west, Hirosh ...

, at least 128 people lives. *

August 18 Events Pre-1600 * 684 – Battle of Marj Rahit: Umayyad partisans defeat the supporters of Ibn al-Zubayr and cement Umayyad control of Syria. * 707 – Princess Abe accedes to the imperial Japanese throne as Empress Genmei. *1304 & ...

– The International Olympic Committee bans South Africa from the Tokyo Olympics on the grounds that its teams are racially segregated. *September 17: The

Tokyo Monorail The , officially the , is a straddle-beam, Alweg-type monorail line in Tokyo, Japan. It is an airport rail link that connects Tokyo International Airport (Haneda) to Tokyo's Ōta, Shinagawa, and Minato wards. The line serves 11 stations betwee ...

begins operations. *October 1: The

Tōkaidō Shinkansen The is a Japanese high-speed rail line that is part of the nationwide Shinkansen network. Along with the Sanyo Shinkansen, it forms a continuous high-speed railway through the Taiheiyō Belt, also known as the Tokaido corridor. Opened in 1964, ...

begins operations. *October 10–24:

1964 Summer Olympics The , officially the and commonly known as Tokyo 1964 ( ja, 東京1964), were an international multi-sport event held from 10 to 24 October 1964 in Tokyo, Japan. Tokyo had been awarded the organization of the 1940 Summer Olympics, but this ho ...

held in Tokyo. Judo introduced for the first time as an Olympic Game. *October 25:

Ikeda Hayato was a Japanese bureaucrat and later politician who served as Prime Minister of Japan from 1960 to 1964. He is best known for his Income Doubling Plan, which promised to double Japan's gross domestic product, GDP in ten years. Ikeda is also kno ...

resigns as prime minister;

is elected to replace him. *November 9: Sato announces his first cabinet. *November 17: The political party

Komeito , formerly New Komeito and abbreviated NKP, is a conservative political party in Japan founded by lay members of the Buddhist Japanese new religious movement Soka Gakkai in 1964. Since 2012, it has served in government as the junior coalitio ...

is formed. *December 23:

Tokyo Metro Tōzai Line The is a rapid transit line in Tokyo and Chiba Prefecture, Japan, owned and operated by Tokyo Metro. Its name translates to "''East-West Line"''. The line runs between Nakano in Nakano-ku, Tokyo and Nishi-Funabashi in Funabashi, Chiba Pr ...

was opened.

Births

*January 1:

Akemi Masuda Akemi Masuda ( ja, 増田明美; born January 1, 1964) is a retired Japanese people, Japanese female long-distance runner. She competed for Japan at the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, California, although she failed to finish the race. Masu ...

, athlete *January 4:

Riki Takeuchi is a Japanese actor best known for his roles in v-cinema yakuza movies. Takeuchi has starred in many yakuza films and action films, such as '' Dead or Alive'' by Takashi Miike. Takeuchi also starred in '' Battle Royale II: Requiem'', in which h ...

, actor *January 25: Seiko Senou, actor of 1987 Metal Hero Series

Choujinki Metalder is the sixth and shortest entry of the Metal Hero Series franchise, running from March 16, 1987, to January 17, 1988, for only 39 episodes. It was the first series to air on Sundays instead of Mondays. ''Metalder'' bears many similarities to ...

. *March 8:

Hiroshi Tsuburaya was a Japanese actor. The grandchild of Eiji Tsuburaya, who was also the first creator of the Ultraman Series, and the third son of Hajime Tsuburaya who became the second creator of the Ultraman Series after Eiji Tsuburaya's death on January ...

, actor of 1984 Space Sheriff Series

Uchuu Keiji Shaider is a tokusatsu television show that aired from March 2, 1984 to March 8, 1985. It is the last of the "Space Sheriff Series" of the broader Metal Hero Series franchise, the previous two being '' Space Sheriff Gavan'' and ''Space Sheriff Sharivan'' ...

(d.

2001 The September 11 attacks against the United States by Al-Qaeda, which Casualties of the September 11 attacks, killed 2,977 people and instigated the global war on terror, were a defining event of 2001. The United States led a Participants in ...

). *March 9: Tomomitsu Niimi, criminal (d.

2018 File:2018 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in PyeongChang, South Korea; Protests erupt following the Assassination of Jamal Khashoggi; March for Our Lives protests take place across the United ...

) *March 12:

Kaori Ekuni Kaori Ekuni (江國香織 ''Ekuni Kaori'', born 21 March 1964) is a Japanese author. She was born in Setagaya, Tokyo. Her father is Japanese haiku poet and essayist, Shigeru Ekuni. Works In Japan, she was dubbed the female Murakami. Her numero ...

, author *March 18: **

Mika Kanai is a Japanese voice actress and singer. She is attached to Ken Production. She is best known for her roles in '' Idol Tenshi Yokoso Yoko'' (as Yoko Tanaka), ''Tanoshii Moomin Ikka'' (as the Snork Maiden), ''Goldfish Warning!'' (as Wapiko), ''So ...

, voice actress and singer **

Yoko Kanno is a Japanese composer, arranger and music producer best known for her work on the soundtracks of anime series, television series, live-action films, video games, and advertisements. She was born in Sendai, Miyagi Prefecture, Japan. She has wri ...

, pianist and songwriter *April 23:

Rie Ishizuka is a Japanese voice actress who works for Theatrical Group EN. Filmography Television animation *'' Strange Dawn'' (2000) (Mani) *''Demon Lord Dante'' (2002) (Saeko Kodai/Medusa) *''Princess Tutu'' (2002) (Ebine) *'' Air Master'' (2003) (Sampa ...

, voice actress *April 30:

Misa Watanabe is a Japanese voice actress and narrator from Tokyo, Japan. She is well known for voicing Nefertari Vivi in ''One Piece''. Filmography Television Animation ;1990s *''Magical Princess Minky Momo'' (1991) – Mother *'' Baby and Me'' (1996) – Y ...

, voice actress *May 5:

Minami Takayama is a Japanese voice actress, narrator and singer who is currently affiliated with 81 Produce. She is also the main vocalist of Two-Mix and ES CONNEXION when it was active. Her uncle is a former New Japan Pro-Wrestling managing director Hisashi Sh ...

, singer and voice actress *May 6: Daisuke Araki, former professional baseball player *May 31:

Yukio Edano is a Japanese politician who served as the leader of the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan from its formation in 2017 until 2021. A member of the House of Representatives in the Diet since 1993, he served as Chief Cabinet Secretary and M ...

, politician *June 22: Hiroshi Abe, model and actor *June 23:

Tomonohana Shinya Tomonohana Shinya (born 23 June 1964 as Shinya Narimatsu) is a former sumo wrestler from Yatsushiro, Kumamoto Prefecture, Japan. His highest rank was ''komusubi.'' He is now a sumo coach. Career He had been an amateur sumo champion at Nihon Uni ...

, sumo wrestler and coach *July 3:

Toshiharu Sakurai is a Japanese voice actor. He was born in Tokyo, and works for 81 Produce. He is the official Japanese dubbing voice for Shaggy Rogers in the Scooby-Doo franchise. Filmography Television animation *'' Dragon Quest'' (1989) (Mokomoko) *'' Nadia: ...

, voice actor *July 7:

Shinichi Tsutsumi is a Japanese stage and screen actor. Internationally, he is best known for his roles as Koichi Takagi in the ''Monday'' films, Tetsuya Ishigami in the ''Suspect X'' films, and Jo Sawashiro in '' Yakuza: Like a Dragon.'' In Japan, he is best kno ...

, actor *July 9:

Kazumi Kawai Kazumi Kawai (可愛かずみ ''Kawai Kazumi'') (July 9, 1964 – May 9, 1997 in Tokyo, Japan), was a Japanese actress An actor or actress is a person who portrays a character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the tra ...

, actress (d.

1997 File:1997 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The movie set of ''Titanic'', the highest-grossing movie in history at the time; ''Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone'', is published; Comet Hale-Bopp passes by Earth and becomes one of t ...

) *July 14:

Kippei Shiina is a Japanese actor. Career Shiina portrayed John Rain and co-starred in Max Mannix's '' Rain Fall'' (2009) with Gary Oldman. He starred in Takeshi Kitano's '' Outrage'' (2010). Filmography Film *''Wangan Bad Boy Blue'' (1992) *''A Night in Nu ...

, actor *July 19:

Masahiko Kondō or Matchy is a Japanese singer, lyricist, actor, racing car manager and former semi-professional racing driver. He was a member of the Tanokin Trio. Kondō is also a semi-professional racing driver and a racing team owner. He founded the racing ...

, solo singer of

Johnny & Associates is a Japanese talent agency, formed by Johnny Kitagawa in 1962, which trains and promotes groups of male entertainers known as . History 1962–1989 In 1962, Kitagawa launched his first group, Johnnys. In its early days, Kitagawa's agency rente ...

*July 24:

Banana Yoshimoto is the pen name of Japanese writer . From 2002 to 2015, she wrote her name in hiragana (). Biography Yoshimoto was born in Tokyo on July 24, 1964, and grew up in a liberal family. Her father is the poet and critic Takaaki Yoshimoto, and her sist ...

, author *July 25:

Reiko Takashima is a Japanese actress. Career Takashima starred in Shinji Aoyama's 1999 film, '' EM Embalming''. She has also appeared in films such as '' K-20: Legend of the Mask'', ''Railways'' and ''Space Battleship Yamato''. Filmography Film * ''Like a Ro ...

, actress *August 10:

Hiro Takahashi , born as , was a Japanese singer, lyricist, and composer. Biography On the music program ''Hey! Hey! Hey! Music Champ'', he mentioned he composed two songs at the age of 11 – ''Heart of a Woman'' and ''Northern Town''. In 1984, Takahashi s ...

, singer, lyricist, and composer (d.

2005 File:2005 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: Hurricane Katrina in the Gulf of Mexico; the Funeral of Pope John Paul II is held in Vatican City; "Me at the zoo", the first video ever to be uploaded to YouTube; Eris was discovered in ...

) *September 13:

Junko Mihara is a Japanese politician, and was formerly a singer, actress, and racing driver. She is a member of the Liberal Democratic Party. Entertainment career Mihara made her debut as a teenager in the 1979 television series ''Kinpachi-sensei'', and ...

, politician, former singer, and actress *September 23:

Koshi Inaba (born September 23, 1964 in Tsuyama, Okayama) is a Japanese vocalist, multi-instrumentalist and songwriter. He is best known as the singer and lyricist of the rock duo B'z, the best-selling music act in their native Japan. He has also had a su ...

, singer of B'z *October 5: **

Keiji Fujiwara was a Japanese actor and voice actor. His best known works are voicing Shinnosuke's father Hiroshi Nohara in the long-running anime series '' Crayon Shin-chan'', Maes Hughes in ''Fullmetal Alchemist'', Holland in ''Eureka Seven'', Axel in '' K ...

, voice actor **

Seiko Hashimoto is a Japanese politician, former speed skater and track cyclist. She has the most Olympic appearances of any Japanese athlete except Noriaki Kasai, representing her native country in four consecutive Winter Olympics from 1984 to 1994 and in ...

, ice speed skater **

Megumi Yokota (born 5 October 1964) is a Japanese citizen who was abducted by a North Korean agent in 1977 when she was a thirteen-year-old junior high school student. She was one of at least seventeen Japanese citizens kidnapped by North Korea in the late 1 ...

, one of the North Korean abductee victims of the late 1970s (d. ca.

1977 Events January * January 8 – Three bombs explode in Moscow within 37 minutes, killing seven. The bombings are attributed to an Armenian separatist group. * January 10 – Mount Nyiragongo erupts in eastern Zaire (now the Democratic R ...

?) *October 12:

Masaru Ogawa is a Japanese former competitive figure skater. He is a four-time Japanese national champion and placed 14th at the 1984 Winter Olympics The 1984 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XIV Olympic Winter Games ( Serbo-Croatian and Slove ...

, figure skater *October 18:

Etsuko Inoue is a retired tennis player from Japan. Inoue twice represented her native country at the Summer Olympics: in 1984 (Los Angeles, California) and 1988 File:1988 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The oil platform Piper Alpha explodes and ...

, tennis player *October 20:

Tomoko Yamaguchi is a Japanese actress, Voice acting in Japan, voice actress and singer from Tochigi, Tochigi, Tochigi. She is the lead actress for the classic dorama series Long Vacation, starring alongside Takuya Kimura. She has been married to Toshiaki Karasa ...

, actress *October 24: Kotaro Tanaka, actor of 1991 Super Sentai

Chōjin Sentai Jetman is a Japanese tokusatsu television series produced by Toei Company and Bandai. It is the fifteenth entry of the ''Super Sentai'' metaseries, following the previous series ''Chikyu Sentai Fiveman''. The series aired on TV Asahi on February 15, 199 ...

as Red Hawk/Ryu Tendou. *November 4:

Yūko Mizutani was a Japanese actress, voice actress, narrator and singer from Ama District, Aichi. Throughout her career, she worked with Production Baobab, and was working with Aoni Production at the time of her death. Mizutani was best known for her anime v ...

, voice actress (d.

2016 File:2016 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Bombed-out buildings in Ankara following the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt; the impeachment trial of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff; Damaged houses during the 2016 Nagorno-Karabakh ...

) *December 13: hide, musician (d.

1998 1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''. Events January * January 6 – The '' Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for frozen water, in soil in permanently ...

) *December 15:

Norihisa Tamura is a Japanese politician who served as the Minister of Health, Labour, and Welfare from September 2020 to October 2021. He is also a member of the House of Representatives representing Mie's 4th district since 1996. Early life and education A n ...

, politician *December 23:

Kazuhiro Koshi is a Japanese skeleton racer who has competed since 1991. Competing in three Winter Olympics, he earned his best finish of eighth in the men's skeleton event at Salt Lake City in 2002. He was the oldest member of the Japanese team at the 2010 Wi ...

, skeleton racer *December 28:

Kaori Yamaguchi is a retired judoka. Yamaguchi won the All-Japan Judo Championships 10 consecutive times from 1978–1987 (twice in the -50 kg division, seven times in the -52 kg division) and won her first medal at the 1980 World Judo Cha ...

, judoka

Deaths

*February 8:

Boshirō Hosogaya was an admiral in the Imperial Japanese Navy during World War II. Biography Hosogaya was born to a farming family in Nozawa, Nagano prefecture in 1888. He graduated from the 36th class of the Imperial Japanese Naval Academy in 1908. He was ranked ...

, admiral (b. 1888) *February 17:

Chūichi Hara was a Japanese admiral in the Imperial Japanese Navy during World War II. Heavier and taller than the average Japanese person, in his youth he was nicknamed "King Kong" by his friends. Biography Hara was born in Matsue city in Shimane Prefect ...

, admiral (b.

1889 Events January–March * January 1 ** The total solar eclipse of January 1, 1889 is seen over parts of California and Nevada. ** Paiute spiritual leader Wovoka experiences a vision, leading to the start of the Ghost Dance movement in the ...

) *April 5:

Tatsuji Miyoshi was a Japanese poet, literary critic, and literary editor active during the Shōwa period of Japan. He is known for his lengthy free verse poetry, which often portray loneliness and isolation as part of contemporary life, but which are written ...

, poet, literary critic, and editor (b.

1900 As of March 1 ( O.S. February 17), when the Julian calendar acknowledged a leap day and the Gregorian calendar did not, the Julian calendar fell one day further behind, bringing the difference to 13 days until February 28 ( O.S. February 15), 2 ...

) *May 6: Haruo Satō, novelist and poet (b.

1892 Events January–March * January 1 – Ellis Island begins accommodating immigrants to the United States. * February 1 - The historic Enterprise Bar and Grill was established in Rico, Colorado. * February 27 – Rudolf Diesel applies for ...

) *May 8: Kichisaburo Nomura, politician and military leader (b. 1877) *August 17:

Keiji Sada is the stage name for a Japanese cinema actor active from the late-1940s to the early 1960s. His real name was Kanichi Nakai. He won the award for best actor at the 7th Blue Ribbon Awards for and . He was the father of the actor Kiichi Nakai an ...

, actor (b.

1926 Events January * January 3 – Theodoros Pangalos declares himself dictator in Greece. * January 8 **Abdul-Aziz ibn Saud is crowned King of Hejaz. ** Crown Prince Nguyễn Phúc Vĩnh Thuy ascends the throne, the last monarch of V ...

) *November 29:

Ryūsaku Tsunoda is known as the "father of Japanese studies" at Columbia University. He was directly responsible for developing the Japanese language and literature collection at Columbia's library. Prominent among the former-students who credit his influence ...

, educator and historian (b. 1877)

Statistics

Yen The is the official currency of Japan. It is the third-most traded currency in the foreign exchange market, after the United States dollar (US$) and the euro. It is also widely used as a third reserve currency after the US dollar and the e ...

value: US$1 = ¥360 (fixed)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:1964 In Japan Years of the 20th century in Japan

1960s in Japan