>>> Item number 8212 from WRITERS LOG9302B --- (86 records) ------ <<< Date: Fri, 12 Feb 1993 22:37:34 JST Reply-To: WRITERS Sender: WRITERS From: Mike Barker Subject: Eastern character... for anyone looking for characters... - one currently warming up the media here... whom I happen to think is a great stereotype buster. He's started turning up recently on T.V. shows. 52 years old, with hair cut militarily short on the sides, showing salt and pepper. On top, it's growing out, but was recently a short cut. Harder to tell the color here, since for media appearances, he adds a little purple or green coloring. His face has the kind of amiable ugliness of John Wayne and similar stars. He often laughs now, although the resting wrinkles of his face still have a trace of grim self-discipline lingering in their folds. On T.V. shows, he wears a basic outfit of tights, hot pants, and brightly colored t-shirt, enhanced with scarfs, feather boas, or other items, all too often asymmetrically knotted and tied in unusual fantasy. He has shown up on one show with knee-socks (two different colors and lengths, naturally) and knee-warmers worn on his forearms, loudly telling the host that the stage was too cold. He tries, valiantly, whatever people are doing, and laughs gustily and happily at his own fumblings. He also has perhaps the worst singing voice ever heard in Japan, but that doesn't stop him from trying. Where did this odd Japanese man come from? Is he really this way? A media team decided to track him down and surprise him on a normal day. They obviously expected to find a more ordinary person "behind" the stage persona. He is a university professor, and they "burst in" to his office during scheduled student visiting hours. On one side sit two grad students, surrounded by bookshelves and papers. On the other side, behind a desk that must be imagined, since it cannot be seen under the stacks of books, papers, and other oddments, sits the professor. He is reading papers, but looks up when the T.V. crew comes in. His hair isn't colored today, and he seems to have set aside the huge earrings that he often wears on stage. Now we can see that the top is still mostly black hair. As he stands up, angrily, it is obvious that he is wearing green tights, purple hot-pants, and a simple yellow tie-dyed t-shirt. During the short interview he agrees to allow the T.V. staff, they ask about his clothing. He shrugs, and says "It's comfortable." The grad students, questioned, say that he always dresses this way. He seems on edge during the interview, and comments that this time is really for his students. (His anger, more than the assurances of the T.V. staff, convinced me that this was a real surprise visit. Also, for his media appearances, today's outfit was conservative.) This is a staid pillar of a Japanese university? He is indeed a professor, (the T.V. crew interviewed the Dean and stressed that) and is at an age where I estimate his position is entrenched and solid. I'm guessing, since no one seems to know, that somehow he decided to start trying some rather unusual styles of life, and has ended up with those he feels are comfortable, tossing the traditional ways out the window. Oh - several people have tried to suggest that he is homosexual, transvestite, or similarly inclined. His wife, children, and several media reports insist that this is not behind his style - he just likes it. Frankly, I suspect his comment is the real reason - "It's comfortable." So the next time someone tells you about the marching hordes of conformist Japanese - tell them about this professor. (sorry, I haven't caught his field of study. Reminds me of some of the farther out profs I had in the early '70s, though.) while I was fiddling with this, I finally saw a show where they talked about his field. Watch out, folks, he's a writer! They showed his publications from last year - a tray covered with books. He says he writes about 1,000 pages a month (roughly 500,000 words). I'm giving away my manic crown - that's how many words a day? Now I see why he wears comfortable clothes - he doesn't have time to do anything else. I am in awe... this could happen to us. mike