Kent Sidney Gilbert (born May 25, 1952, in
Idaho
Idaho ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. To the north, it shares a small portion of the Canada–United States border with the province of British Columbia. It borders the states of Monta ...
, United States) is an American commentator and
tarento
Television personalities in Japan, known as in Japanese, are celebrities who regularly appear in mass media in Japan, especially as panelists on variety shows. During the Golden Age of Hollywood, bankable stars in America were described as " ...
working in Japan, lawyer of California. He first came to Japan in 1971 as a
Mormon
Mormons are a religious and cultural group related to Mormonism, the principal branch of the Latter Day Saint movement started by Joseph Smith in upstate New York during the 1820s. After Smith's death in 1844, the movement split into se ...
missionary
A missionary is a member of a Religious denomination, religious group which is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Tho ...
. After returning to the United States, he received a
Juris Doctor
The Juris Doctor (J.D. or JD), also known as Doctor of Jurisprudence (J.D., JD, D.Jur., or DJur), is a graduate-entry professional degree in law
and one of several Doctor of Law degrees. The J.D. is the standard degree obtained to practice l ...
as well as an
M.B.A. from
Brigham Young University
Brigham Young University (BYU, sometimes referred to colloquially as The Y) is a private research university in Provo, Utah. It was founded in 1875 by religious leader Brigham Young and is sponsored by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-d ...
.
While working in Japan as an attorney in 1983, he had a chance to perform as a stand-in for a foreign theatrical company, which led to other opportunities on Japanese television and in films. He is a foreign celebrity (''
gaijin tarento'') and is often on news programs as a commentator with a "foreign" point of view. He is known as one of "the two Kents" (along with
Kent Derricott
is an actor and celebrity television personality or ''gaijin tarento'', in Japan. He first learned Japanese while working as a Mormon missionary in Japan when he was 19 years old. He is known as one of "the two Kents" (along with Kent Gilbert). De ...
).
Gilbert lives in Tokyo and also maintains a residence in
Orem, Utah
Orem is a city in Utah County, Utah, United States, in the northern part of the state. It is adjacent to Provo, Lindon, and Vineyard and is approximately south of Salt Lake City.
Orem is one of the principal cities of the Provo-Orem, Uta ...
. He made an appearance in
Kazuki Ōmori's ''
Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah''.
Gilbert maintains the Japanese government never forced women to work as prostitutes or
comfort women
Comfort women or comfort girls were women and girls forced into sexual slavery by the Imperial Japanese Army in occupied countries and territories before and during World War II. The term "comfort women" is a translation of the Japanese '' ian ...
during World War II.
In April 2018, Gilbert was appointed visiting professor at
Okayama University of Science.
References
External links
*
Gilbert, Kent S. 1952-in libraries (
WorldCat
WorldCat is a union catalog that itemizes the collections of tens of thousands of institutions (mostly libraries), in many countries, that are current or past members of the OCLC global cooperative. It is operated by OCLC, Inc. Many of the O ...
catalog)
*
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You Are Going To Know?(blog, last update Aug. 25, 2017)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gilbert, Kent
1952 births
Living people
20th-century Mormon missionaries
American expatriates in Japan
American lawyers
Latter Day Saints from Utah
American Mormon missionaries in Japan
Brigham Young University alumni
Expatriate television personalities in Japan
Nanjing Massacre deniers
People from Orem, Utah