You can leave comments at the bottom of the page !Photo AlbumMiscellaneous shôjo-manga-related images, mostly taken by (or for) me, with the exception of the frame grabs from the CNN piece. Note: These are really old! I think they are from around 1994 to 1996.  Here
is shôjo manga artist KURAMOCHI Fusako when she appeared with me and
FUJIMOTO Yukari in a short piece on shôjo manga produced by the wonderful
and wacky Shoshana Taylor (with a lot of help from me ^o^ ) and broadcast around
the world on CNN. Kuramochi
in the same CNN appearance, penciling a page from her popular series Tennen
kokekkoo ("All Natural Cockadoodledoo"), which is serialized
in a manga magazine for young women titled Chorus. CNN.
Kuramochi doing a color illustration for the same series. I arranged the interview
with Kuramochi through our mutual friend, shôjo/women's manga artist
SASAYA Nanae. Kuramochi is one of the sweetest, most wonderful people I've
ever met. She also made some fantastic comments. CNN.
Another shot of the same illustration. Kuramochi lives with her sister, KURAMOCHI
Tomoko, who happens to be a respected manga artist herself, and who is every
bit as wonderful as her older sister. Meeting the Kuramochi sisters was the
highlight of this project for me. Here's
my friend, shôjo manga essayist FUJIMOTO Yukari, commenting in the same
CNN piece. As with Kuramochi, I acted as interpreter, and in both cases it
was a challenge. They made such good comments, I wanted to get the translations
just right. I hope I did them justice. CNN.
This young woman saved the day when she appeared in this bookstore and, after
looking over the shôjo manga section, agreed to be interviewed. I couldn't
have scripted her lines better myself. She was articulate, and said just the
kind of things I was hoping she would say. I wish I had asked her name! CNN.
Me, trying to sound professorial (without a license). I was really pleased
with this piece. Shoshana was very conscientious about avoiding the kind of "Isn't-Japan-a-wierd-place?" sensationalism
that dominates American coverage of Japan (e.g., the New York Times) and suceeded
in crafting an intelligent and sympathetic report—using only three minutes
of air time! Bravo! |
NISHI
Keiko at home doing a color illustration for her Sanbanchou Hagiwaraya
no bijin series sometime in Oct. 1994. Nishi is the second professional
manga artist I ever met (the first being NAKANO Junko, whom I interviewed many
years ago), and she is the first female-oriented manga artist (she doesn't
like to be called a "shôjo manga artist") I translated. 
I
first met HAGIO Moto on Nov. 26, '94, when she came to Osaka to participate
in a symposium on shôjo manga. This photo was taken at a restaurant that
evening. Standing, from left to right: JOH Akiko (Hagio's manager); an editor
working with Prof. KUWABARA, whose name I forget ^^; ; FUJIMOTO Yukari, editor
and shôjo manga essayist; MINAMIHATA Yuuko and MINAMIHATA Toshiharu,
owners of the Wonderland chain of manga shops. Sitting, left to right: Prof.
KUWABARA Tomoko, a psychologist who analyzed Hagio's story "Hanshin" in
a book on the dualistic nature of identity; Hagio Moto, arguably the most admired
shôjo manga artist of all time; me. 
Hagio
singing karaoke with YAMAMOTO Junya, taken in Dec. '94. Yamamoto helped mold
the modern shôjo manga industry by taking such pioneering artists as
Hagio, OHSHIMA Yumiko, and TAKEMIYA Keiko under his wing in the early 'seventies,
and allowing them to development their now famous talents. When I arranged
this evening with Hagio, I asked if we could have dinner together and talk
about manga, and she said, "Sure. And then we can go out for karaoke." I
went to dinner with tape recorder and notebook in hand, but apparently only
the part about karaoke had stuck in her mind, because after a hasty dinner
(and hastier interview) she rushed me off to sing karaoke with some mutual
acquaintances. ^^; 
Hagio
singing karaoke with MATSUTANI Takayuki, the president of Tezuka Productions.
(Tezuka Productions is the company that handles merchandising, licensing, and
promotion of the works of the late TEZUKA Osamu, creator of Astro Boy and Kimba
the White Lion.) They are singing the theme song to Astro Boy (Tetsuwan Atom).
Same night, different karaoke bar. ^^;;; 
TAMURA
Yumi, creator of the extremely popular fantasy series, BASARA,
taken in December, '95, at the year-end party of Bessatsu Shôjo
Comic, a popular shôjo manga magazine. Well, I never got a chance
to actually talk to Tamura...I just sat at the table next to hers
and shamelessly took pictures of her. ^^;;; Incidentally, she is drawing an
autograph for a rookie manga artist (still in high school!) who is also under
the Bessatsu Shôjo Comic umbrella. 
Shôjo
manga veterans SASAYA Nanae and IGARASHI Yumiko, taken in Dec. '95 at the year-end
reception of Manga Japan, an organization of manga artists. Igarashi is famous
throughout the world as the creator of Candy! Candy!, and Sasaya
recently drew a controversial manga on child abuse that ran in the top-selling "ladies
comic" magazine, YOU. Sasaya was extremely helpful
to me in my research, and it was through her invitation that I was able to
attend this reception and the business meeting that preceded it. 
MORIZONO
Milk, the most popular and respected creator of erotic manga for women, also
taken at the Manga Japan year-end reception. (She had just finished drawing
an autograph for me. ^^; ) 
TAKAGUCHI
Satosumi, creator of such popular shôjo manga as Hana no Asuka-gumi!,
at her studio in Jan. '96. I tagged along with her then-editor from Kadokawa,
SHIMAOKA Sakae, and representatives from Columbia Edutainment, who were visiting
her to discuss the upcoming CD dramatizations of two of her recent works. Takaguchi
is the single most organized and responsible shôjo manga artist I have
ever met. And to think she used to be a juvenille delinquent! ^o^