1988 in Japan
Encyclopedia
Events in the year 1988 in Japan
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Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
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Incumbents
- EmperorEmperor of JapanThe Emperor of Japan is, according to the 1947 Constitution of Japan, "the symbol of the state and of the unity of the people." He is a ceremonial figurehead under a form of constitutional monarchy and is head of the Japanese Imperial Family with functions as head of state. He is also the highest...
: HirohitoHirohito, posthumously in Japan officially called Emperor Shōwa or , was the 124th Emperor of Japan according to the traditional order, reigning from December 25, 1926, until his death in 1989. Although better known outside of Japan by his personal name Hirohito, in Japan he is now referred to... - Prime MinisterPrime Minister of JapanThe is the head of government of Japan. He is appointed by the Emperor of Japan after being designated by the Diet from among its members, and must enjoy the confidence of the House of Representatives to remain in office...
: Noboru TakeshitaNoboru Takeshitawas a Japanese politician and the 74th Prime Minister of Japan from November 6, 1987 to June 3, 1989.Takeshita was also the last Prime Minister during the long rule of the Emperor Shōwa.-Early years:... - Chief Cabinet SecretaryChief Cabinet Secretary__notoc__The of Japan is a Minister of State who is responsible for directing the Cabinet Secretariat. The main function of Chief Cabinet Secretary is to coordinate the policies of ministries and agencies in the executive branch...
: Keizo ObuchiKeizo Obuchiwas a Japanese politician who served in the House of Representatives for twelve terms, and ultimately as the 84th Prime Minister of Japan from July 30, 1998 to April 5, 2000. His political career ended when he suffered a serious and ultimately fatal stroke....
Events
- March 13: Seikan TunnelSeikan TunnelThe Seikan Tunnel is a railway tunnel in Japan, with a long portion under the seabed. Track level is about below seabed and below sea level. It travels beneath the Tsugaru Strait—connecting Aomori Prefecture on the Japanese island of Honshu and the island of Hokkaido—as part of the Kaikyo Line...
opens. - March 17: Tokyo DomeTokyo DomeTokyo Dome is a 55,000-seat baseball stadium located in Bunkyo Ward of Tokyo, Japan.The stadium opened for business on March 17, 1988. It was built on the site of the Velodrome which was next door to the site of the predecessor ballpark, Kōrakuen Stadium...
completed. - April 4 and 5: Rock band BoøwyBoøwyBoøwy was a Japanese rock group consisting of Kyosuke Himuro , Tomoyasu Hotei , Tsunematsu Matsui and Makoto Takahashi . They were a rock band that reached legendary status in Japan during the 1980s...
hold a last concert in Tokyo Dome and break up. - April 10: Great Seto BridgeGreat Seto BridgeThe , or Seto-Ohashi Bridge, is a series of double deck bridges connecting Okayama and Kagawa prefectures in Japan across a series of five small islands in the Seto Inland Sea. Built over the period 1978–88, it is one of the three routes of the Honshū-Shikoku Bridge Project connecting Honshū and...
opens. - June 18: Asahi ShimbunAsahi ShimbunThe is the second most circulated out of the five national newspapers in Japan. Its circulation, which was 7.96 million for its morning edition and 3.1 million for its evening edition as of June 2010, was second behind that of Yomiuri Shimbun...
breaks the Recruit scandalRecruit scandalThe was an insider trading and corruption scandal that forced many prominent Japanese politicians to resign in 1988.Recruit is a human resources and classifieds company based in Tokyo. Its chairman, Hiromasa Ezoe, offered a number of shares in a Recruit subsidiary, Cosmos, to business leaders and...
. - July 16: The anime film AkiraAkira (film)is a 1988 Japanese animated cyberpunk science fiction film directed by Katsuhiro Otomo, written by Otomo and Izo Hashimoto, and starring the voices of Mitsuo Iwata, Nozomu Sasaki, Mami Koyama and Taro Ishida. The screenplay is based on Otomo's manga Akira....
is released. - July 23: A fishing boat Fuji Maru One collision with a submarine Nadashio, following a fishing boat sank in Tokyo BayTokyo Bayis a bay in the southern Kantō region of Japan. Its old name was .-Geography:Tokyo Bay is surrounded by the Bōsō Peninsula to the east and the Miura Peninsula to the west. In a narrow sense, Tokyo Bay is the area north of the straight line formed by the on the Miura Peninsula on one end and on...
. 30 people death with 17 injures in this crash. - September 14: DaieiDaiei, based in Kobe, is one of the largest supermarket chains in Japan. In 1957, Isao Nakauchi founded the chain in Osaka near Sembayashi Station on the Keihan train line. Daiei is now under a restructuring process supported by Marubeni Corporation and ÆON Co., Ltd., another Japanese supermarket chain....
purchases the Nankai Hawks baseball team: they become the Fukuoka Daiei Hawks. - October 19: OrixORIXis a financial services group established 17 April 1964 as Orient Leasing Co., Ltd.. The company's name was changed to ORIX Corporation in 1989...
purchases the Hankyu Braves baseball team: they become the Orix Braves. - December 9: Finance Minister Kiichi MiyazawaKiichi Miyazawawas a Japanese politician and the 78th Prime Minister from November 5, 1991 to August 9, 1993.-Early life and career:Miyazawa was born in Fukuyama, Hiroshima Prefecture, and graduated from Tokyo Imperial University with a degree in law. In 1942 he joined the Ministry of Finance...
resigns amid the Recruit scandal. - December 27: Takeshita announces a realigned cabinet.
Births
- January 1: Saori HaraSaori Harais a former Japanese AV idol, model and actress who has also used the name .-Life and career:Saori Hara was born in Hiroshima Prefecture to a Japanese mother and a father of mixed German-Japanese parentage.-Mai Nanami:...
, AV idol, model, and actress - January 8: Ryuichi Dogaki, football player
- January 28: Seiya SanadaSeiya SanadaKiyonari Sanada is a Japanese Professional Wrestler currently competing in All Japan Pro Wrestling as Seiya Sanada.-History:...
, wrestler - February 5: Ayaka Noda, gravure idol
- February 7: Ai KagoAi Kagois a Japanese singer, actress, author and former Guinness World Record holder.At age 12, Kago won the 4th National Audition of Morning Musume held by Up-Front Works Agency in 2000, which led to her admission into the extremely popular idol group as a 4th generation member. In the same year, she...
, performer - February 8: Nozomi Sasaki, glamour model
- February 12: Nana EikuraNana Eikurais a Japanese model, actress, and occasional radio show host.She was born in Izumi, Kagoshima, Kyushu island and grew up in Sagamihara, Kanagawa. She was scouted in front of 109 in Shibuya, Tokyo when she was in junior high school...
, model, actress, and occasional radio show host - February 19: Miyu IrinoMiyu Irinois a Japanese voice actor born in Tokyo.He is a good friend of voice actor Mamoru Miyano. He is nicknamed "Miyu-Miyu" by CLAMP members....
, voice actor - February 26: Hitomi NiiyaHitomi Niiyais a Japanese long-distance runner who competes in cross country running and marathon races. She represents Team Toyota Industries in national competition....
, long-distance runner - March 22: Noriko KijimaNoriko Kijima-Life and career:Noriko was born in Nagano Prefecture, Japan on March 22, 1988. She was one of the winners at the 2005 Seikore competition, short for Zenkoku Joshikousei Seifuku Collection , a Japanese national contest for high-school girls modeling school uniforms and bikinis...
, gravure idol and actress - March 27: Atsuto UchidaAtsuto Uchidais a Japanese footballer, who currently plays for Schalke 04.-Club career:Uchida was educated at and played for Shimizu Higashi High School prior to joining the Kashima Antlers in 2006. On 5 March 2006, he debuted for Kashima at the age of 17 in the season-opener against Sanfrecce Hiroshima, since...
, footballer - April 5: Asumi NakataAsumi Nakatais a female seiyū and a Japanese child model who was born in Tokyo, Japan. She is 173 cm tall.She belonged to the talent agency Crayon, subsequently to Five Eight and Switch 58...
, child model and voice actress - May 1: Takeshi SuzukiTakeshi Suzuki (alpine skier)is a Japanese alpine skier and Paralympic athlete.He competed in the 2006 Winter Paralympics in Torino, Italy, where he became4th in the Downhill and 12th in the Slalom, sitting.He competed in the 2010 Winter Paralympics in Vancouver, Canada....
, alphine skier - May 18: Tatsuma ItoTatsuma Itois a Japanese professional tennis player.-Singles: 4 :-Doubles: 1 :-External links:*...
, tennis player - May 26: Akito WatabeAkito Watabeis a Japanese Nordic combined skier who has been competing since 2005. He won a gold medal in the 4 × 5 km team event at the FIS Nordic World Ski Championships 2009 in Liberec and earned his best individual finish of 31st in the 7.5 km sprint at Sapporo in 2007.Competing in two...
, Nordic combined skier - May 28: Meisa KurokiMeisa Kuroki, better known by her stage name , is a Japanese actress, model and singer born in Nago, Okinawa, Japan. She is represented by the agency Sweet Power and is signed to Sony Music Japan. She made her acting debut in 2004. She has modeled for the popular Japanese fashion magazine JJ, among others, and...
, actress, model, and singer - June 26: Rina NakanishiRina Nakanishiis an AV idol and former Japanese idol singer who has also used the name Rico Yamaguchi.-Life and career:Nakanishi dropped out of high school in Ōita Prefecture, Japan in 2005 to audition for the Japanese female pop singing group AKB48...
, AV idol and former idol singer - June 28: Gaku HamadaGaku Hamadais a Japanese film and television actor.- Television roles :Gaku Hamada was a regular cast member of Fuji TV's Operation Love, appearing in all 11 episodes aired , and the 2008 special, and garnering an award for his role...
, film and television actor - September 2: Keisuke KatoKeisuke Kato, born September 2, 1988, is a Japanese actor and entertainer. He is best known for his roles as Ivory in TV Tokyo's "Happy Boys" drama and Keisuke Nago/Kamen Rider IXA in TV Asahi's tokusatsu series Kamen Rider Kiva. He is a huge fan of the Kamen Rider Series, and collects the Battle Ganbaride...
, actor and entertainer - September 7: Daiki Sato, footballer (d. 20102010 in Japan- Incumbents :* Emperor – Akihito* Prime Minister – Yukio Hatoyama until June 8, Naoto Kan * Chief Cabinet Secretary: Hirofumi Hirano until January 7, Yoshito Sengoku* Governor of Tokyo: Shintaro Ishihara-Events:...
) - September 13: Nobuyuki TsujiiNobuyuki TsujiiNobuyuki Tsujii is a Japanese pianist and composer who shared the First Prize at the Thirteenth Van Cliburn International Piano Competition in 2009 in a tie with co-winner Haochen Zhang of China.-Background:...
, pianist and composer - September 18: Yuichi SugitaYuichi SugitaYuichi Sugita is a Japanese tennis player playing on the ATP Challenger Tour. On November 29, 2010, he reached his highest ATP singles ranking of 181.-Singles finals: 2 :-External links:*...
, tennis player - September 20: Chiaki SatōChiaki Satois a Japanese actress. She was born in Iwate Prefecture, and attended the private Yakumo Gakuen High School in Tokyo.-Drama:*Joshi Ana Icchokusen! *Honto ni Atta Kowai Hanashi *My Boss, My Hero...
, actress - September 29: Osama ElsamniOsama ElsamniOsama Elsamni is an Egyptian-Japanese footballer who plays as a striker for Japanese side Montedio Yamagata....
, football player - October 6: Maki HorikitaMaki Horikitais a Japanese actress and endorser. She debuted in 2003 as a U-15 idol and has since starred in Japanese television dramas, television and magazine advertisements, and movies.- Childhood:...
, actress and endorser - October 20: Risa NiigakiRisa Niigakiis a fifth generation member and current leader of the Japanese pop group Morning Musume. She joined Morning Musume in 2001 along with Ai Takahashi, Asami Konno and Makoto Ogawa. She grew up in Yokohama after moving there at age six. As of 2009, she was the longest-serving sub-leader of Morning...
, J-pop singer - November 1: Ai FukuharaAi Fukuharais a Japanese table tennis player sponsored by All Nippon Airways.-Table tennis career:Fukuhara began playing at the age of 3 and became a professional at age 10. The following year, she became the youngest player ever to become a member of the Japanese national team. Because of her age, she has...
, table tennis player - November 7: Kim Chae-HwaKim Chae-HwaKim Chae-Hwa is a South Korean figure skater. She is the 2007 South Korean champion.- Biography :...
, figure skater - November 8: Honami Tajima, actress
- November 26: Yumi KobayashiYumi Kobayashiis a female fashion model from Tokyo, Japan. She belongs to the show-business production Burning Production, K.K. and used to be belong to Platica Inc.Her show-business name from July 2007 to March 2008 was Yumi Uno ....
, fashion model - December 19: Mami MatsuyamaMami MatsuyamaMami Matsuyama is a Japanese teenage idol.Matsuyama cosplayed as Mao Ran, a character in a video game titled Fighting Beauty Wulong ....
, idol - December 23: Eri KameiEri Kameiwas a member of the Japanese pop group Morning Musume. She joined in late 2003 as a sixth generation member along with Miki Fujimoto, Sayumi Michishige, and Reina Tanaka. She graduated on December 15, 2010 in Yokohama Arena along with Junjun and Linlin....
, J-pop singer - December 26: Kayo SatohKayo Satohis a Japanese model and television personality. She gained fame in Japan and overseas in September 2010 when she announced on her blog that she had been born as a male.-TV appearances:* Don! , 21 September 2010 , 22 September 2010- External links :...
, model and television personality - December 28: Yuya ToyodaYuya ToyodaYuya Toyoda born December 28, 1988 in Tokyo is a Japanese actor and entertainer. He is known most notably for his role as Shuichiro Oishi of the fourth generation Seigaku cast in The Prince of Tennis musical series, Tenimyu...
, actor and entertainer
Deaths
- January 2: Yukio KasaharaYukio Kasahara- Notes :...
, general - March 1: Yoshi KatoYoshi KatoYoshi Kato was a Japanese film actor. He appeared in 92 films between 1950 and 1988.-Selected filmography:* The Rice People * Zero Focus * Immortal Love...
, film actor - April 10: Shigeo SugiuraShigeo Sugiurawas a Japanese freestyle swimmer. He won gold medal for the Men's 4×200 m freestyle relay in the 1936 Summer Olympics, alongside Masanori Yusa, Masaharu Taguchi, and Shigeo Arai.-External links:*...
, freestyle swimmer - May 23: Aya KitōAya Kitowas a 15-year-old Japanese girl who wrote a diary about her personal experiences while suffering from spinocerebellar ataxia. Her diary, entitled , was first published in her native Japan on February 25, 1986, more than two years before her death at the age of 25...
, writer - June 14: Prince Kan'in Haruhito, career officer
- August 4: Toshio DokoToshio DokoToshiwo Doko was a Japanese engineer born in Mitsu District, Okayama.* Manager and President of IHI* Manager and President of Toshiba* Chairman of the Japan Business Federation...
, business leader - November 4: Takeo MikiTakeo Mikiwas a Japanese politician and the 41st Prime Minister of Japan.-Background summary:Born in Awa, Tokushima, Miki graduated from Meiji University in Tokyo...
, politician - November 14: Takeo MikiTakeo Mikiwas a Japanese politician and the 41st Prime Minister of Japan.-Background summary:Born in Awa, Tokushima, Miki graduated from Meiji University in Tokyo...
, former prime minister - November 23: Kenzō MasaokaKenzō Masaokawas an early anime creator. He is probably most famous for creating the earliest anime to use cell animation and recorded sound. He also did work under the pseudonym...
, anime creator - December 30: Takeo FujisawaTakeo Fujisawawas a Japanese businessman who worked for Honda. He worked with Soichiro Honda from the beginning of the history of the company until the company became a worldwide car manufacturer....
, businessman
Statistics
- YenJapanese yenThe is the official currency of Japan. It is the third most traded currency in the foreign exchange market after the United States dollar and the euro. It is also widely used as a reserve currency after the U.S. dollar, the euro and the pound sterling...
value: US$1 = ¥122 (low) to ¥135 (high)