Japanese entertainment mogul Johnny Kitagawa dies at age 87

However, he was never charged with any crimes on the basis of the allegations.

Only because of the clout that he held over the heads of all his "children"! If they wanted to stay in the business there was no way they would come out publicly and make any accusations!

You'll see all the Johnny's member's lining up at his funeral, and plenty will be crying, and I'll bet that not all those tears are going to be tears of sorrow!

This guy was as American as he was Japanese.

A Japanese Jimmy Savile. Horrible!

The Michael Jackson of the Japanese music industry. I hope with his passing this will end his companies stranglehold on TV in Japan. We won't be forced to see all of his "children" host and star in all the crap broadcast on TV. But it seems that the AKB guy has taken the torch and run with it, because now it is nothing but a steady stream of "girls" from his stable on TV

The court ruled that there was sufficient evidence of his sexual abuse of underage boys as well as his habit plying them with cigarettes and alchohol but that the 15 year statue of limitations had passed in the incident that was brought to court.

Didn't do much to dent his popularity.

I hope these allegations aren't papered over in what I'm sure are going to be the around the clock effusive outpourings we will witness on TV.

Perhaps fans should be a little more conscientious about what they consume. Does knowing what he may have been doing to the pop stars they worship not cause any sort of conflict in loyalty?

Guess not.

Its an open secret that if you want to make it in j-pop, you look innocent in public but sell your body to the creepy guys (like Johnny) who pull the strings. I much prefer the street bands to the puppets on TV.

He was the greatest producer in the Japanese show business. Literally, one of a kind. We watch many male talents produced by him on TV everyday. And Tackey will be a good successor to the master in his own way.

A Japanese Jimmy Savile. Horrible!

Exactly. The entire entertainment industry in Japan knew exactly what he was but his acts made money and he had clout so it was ignored. They are all complicit.

He was the precursor of AKB, Akimoto. All the groups are the same; variations of the same theme.

The stories I heard about what the boys had to do to become famous were really shocking. The bully tactics these agencies use to be their "talents" on TV were unethical. Feel sorry for the loss but not sorry he is gone. Hopefully now he is gone the truth can be told.

Perhaps fans should be a little more conscientious about what they consume. Does knowing what he may have been doing to the pop stars they worship not cause any sort of conflict in loyalty?

It's just far too easy to "overlook" the dark side when one is being "entertained". It's like a drug and as long as people are able to keep their fantasies alive, they dont care and dont want to hear about any BS.

Hope its a hot day in hell when he arrives, hope people come forward now and put a stop to this disgustingly predatory industry.

I wonder will there a rush of these "Johnnies" boys to either leave the agency and start their lives, or do things like normal people like find a girlfriend and get married. So many of these "boys" were and are so controlled, no dating, no wives. Unless you were super powerful like a Kimura Takuya, who went ahead and married much to the chagrin of the agency.

Hope its a hot day in hell when he arrives, hope people come forward now and put a stop to this disgustingly predatory industry.

Only when the middle-aged oyaji's stop drooling over the handshakes of their AKB idols! And folks like Akimoto have their feet held to the fire for keeping this industry alive!

A Jimmy Savile type character.....

All I can say is... good.

Only when the middle-aged oyaji's stop drooling over the handshakes of their AKB idols!

Handshakes? Pfft! I prefer when they shake their moneymakers! That's some good stuff!

He made the industry what is today, poisoning the well for 50 years and well into the future. Dumbing down entertainment for so long that it will take generations for his influence to be detoxed and the bar to be raised.

The Michael Jackson of the Japanese music industry. I hope with his passing this will end his companies stranglehold on TV in Japan.

Not a chance, isn't his daughter running the business now? It was interesting to see that the TV mostly showed Kimutaku's post about Johnny, the same guy who was the bad guy/bully in SMAP, they mustve been really close.

Handshakes? Pfft! I prefer when they shake their moneymakers! That's some good stuff!

Sounds like something only a pimp would say!

We won't be forced to see all of his "children" host and star in all the crap broadcast on TV.

Are you forced to watch TV?

How about turning the TV off, or at least changing the channel?

Nobody is "forced" to watch anything on TV.

The Tokyo High Court reduced the damages to ¥1.2 million, concluding that the reports of drinking and smoking were defamatory but that the allegations of sexual exploitation of adolescent boys by Johnny Kitagawa were true. A 2004 appeal to the Supreme Court by Kitagawa was rejected.'

What a weird state of affairs, sexual exploitation true but no penalty, but defamatory to say smoking, drinking? Unless he was actually using stimulants?

in any other culture that cared about children he would have died in jail.

The rumors in Japan for decades, plus the court evidence of his sexual dealings with young boys, mean "Johnny" was a very bad man. I wonder who shows up to his funeral? Paid crowd?

The rumors in Japan for decades, plus the court evidence of his sexual dealings with young boys, mean "Johnny" was a very bad man. I wonder who shows up to his funeral? Paid crowd?

Isn't it disgusting that he was allowed to escape justice and Japanese people didn't care?

"It became a daily routine to enjoy Johnny's delicacies with him"

Yeah, I bet it did.

https://aminoapps.com/c/japan/page/blog/the-dark-side-of-johnny-associates/MXsk_uaWeXX4lYQrgVqxdjjX31dNK

"Johnny", the mogul of bad taste whose bizness dumbed down millions and set Japanese pop culture back half a century, leaves a malodorous legacy as an unindicted perv whose iniquitous influence is sure to exhumed in the near future. Johnny will go down to posthumous disgrace like Jimmy. Neither are missed.

Back in the 80's I used to hate Hikaru GENJI and Shonentai, and that was followed by just about everybody else that came out of Johnny's! I never understood what was so appealing about them! I got rid of my TV about 15 years ago because I was so tired of seeing a Johnny's representative on just about every show!

On Fuji TV this morning, everyone was praising his achievements.

As expected, nothing was mentioned about these ’rumours’ & certainly no negative comments made about him.

His one of the children, Takuya Kimura, doesn't care and i guess won't shed a single drop of tear. KimuTaku is the most successful and the most famous in Japan esp among women.

Along with Tsuyoshi Kusanagi, are the only two pairs that I find them doing Good Acting in the dramas.

My hope is as the "old guard" of these mostly manufactured "talent" and "music" agencies being to check out that we see a move to more reasonable contracts, working hours and conditions for the people who sign away their lives.

His final curtain came down with him wrapped in the love of his beloved children

Sick bucket. Now. Please.

He tortured and strangled the entire entertainment industry for the whole post-war period. Good riddance.

"Guinness World Records titles for the most No. 1 artists, the most No. 1 singles and the most concerts produced by an individual."

I thought these were supposed to be "world" records. More like, #1 singles IN JAPAN. And what's a "No. 1 artist"? Sales? Popularity?

And "most concerts"? A lot of street buskers will say, "Hey, wait a minute. Those 2 fans grooving to my tunes outside of ??? train station count as a concert".

His passing will change nothing in the entertainment industry. If you want to be on stage or in front of the camera, you better be ready to "please" the powers.

Johnny was a sadistic pedophile like the film director that fled to France. They both should have been locked up.

The Japanese public knew well what he was up to all these years and did nothing, cared nothing.

In football parlance, all those young idol boys joined Johnnys as tight ends and came out wide receivers.

Two companies that the Japanese entertainment & media world could do without:

-- Johnny's Jimusho, and

-- Dentsu

Both were and are abusive, leveraging their monopolistic power to maintain their stranglehold, discarding anyone that gets in their way!!!

Also, Ganbare:

The rumors in Japan for decades, plus the court evidence of his sexual dealings with young boys, mean "Johnny" was a very bad man. I wonder who shows up to his funeral? Paid crowd?

What's going on? Not following the establishment line for once?

I had a friend who was trying to make it as a talent back in the 90's, and so was her little brother. She told me he was starting with Johnny's, and I asked her if she and her family were okay with it, even though the word on the street was that Johnny was a gay pedo rapist. Her reply kind of started the end of our friendship, something like, "If he has to have sex with Johnny or one of his other senpai's to get their support he should just do it because it will be worth it." Apparently that was part of her plan as well....

What dismays is the manner that broadcast media tacitly accepted predator Johnny Kitagawa sexual degenerate behaviour in young boys.

Worst still is Kitagawa alleged use of his entertainment agency and contacts to satisfy his odious sexual delinquency.

If ever there was a reason to separate legislatively talent agencies stranglehold into every aspect of media broadcast services and the reprehensible exploitative carousal business model that effectively ties idols career prospects into what amounts to unbreakable slave contracts meeds to be urgently addressed.

Just saw NHK afternoon news. In the 3 or 4 minute presentation about Johnny, nothing about the scandal. Only the greatness of his agency and work nurturing talent.

@theeastisred, totally man. I’m shocked Gambare Japan wasn’t leading the tributes to Johnny, as per the official company line.

@Norman Goodman, is that you being an apologist for sex offenders again?

You’re starting to get a reputation for that.

If only the industry he built would die with him.

@Stewart Gale

...Right, and where is AlwaysSpeakingWisdom? I'm waiting for the fellow to say chime in, saying "HaHa! As if the USA and the west don't have sexual abuse! What about .... and... and...??!!"

Norman Goodman is a person pre-eminence a means to exculpate inherent warped and corrupt character flaws that degenerate into a alleged predilection to inflict perversity without recourse to natural justice or scrutiny?

Is this also manifested from societies misandry, had to look that up, quote, an ingrained prejudice against men? That is truly remarkable.

I do not take any joy or pleasure trampling over Johnny Kitagawa memory. I am sure Johnny Kitagawa family is devastated by their loss.

I will not mourn his passing.

@Ascissor. It’s still early mate....

I’ll rebute it in advance by saying that in the West, these sex abuse cases aren’t swept under the carpet and ignored because it’s embarrassing, might upset someone and we like the professional work of the sex case in question.

Well, I hope some questions will now start to be asked about the people who knew what he was up to, e.g. TV and music industry executives, but chose to turn a blind eye and follow the money.

Johnny's true character just oozed from his unpleasant face; even if you knew nothing about him, you would give a dodgy-looking dude like him a wide berth, unless you wanted something from him.

@theeastisred, totally man. I’m shocked Gambare Japan wasn’t leading the tributes to Johnny, as per the official company line.

To speak honestly, I was never a fan of "Johnny". AS for rumor, "Where theres smoke theres fire". But my wife loves SMAP and KA-TUN, so I need to be careful of criticism!!

Okay, I did not read the whole thread and I skimmed the article so I did not see other posters were making the same accusation. Still, specifics are lacking even in the article. You can tell any rumor but as soon as its illegal sex that rumor will gain a life of its own. To me that tells me a lot about the people doing the talking, more so than the accused. Hell, even Michael Jackson was brought up and the fact his main accuser was the son of a known con artist can't stop rumors about him.

 Takuya Kimura, doesn't care and i guess won't shed a single drop of tear. KimuTaku is the most successful and the most famous in Japan esp among women.

Only because he was able to cut his ties with Johhny and get married to another celebrity. At the time, it was a scandal too

@Ganbare Japan, you know the lead singer of KA-TUN got arrested for possession of a small amount of marijuana right? How can you live with a person who is a fan of such a criminal? The kind of criminal who threatens innocent Japanese people. You're going to have to consider divorce.

I just wonder now, how many more allegations will be made that he's now passed away.

Apparently, money talks by keeping people silent.

He leaves a sad legacy.

Sounds like something only a pimp would say!

It does, doesn't it! lol Still, that's why they get paid. Anyway, I figured "moneymaker" was more acceptable than the more direct words I could have used, but I'm a GENTLEMAN! lolz

I agree with and have nothing to add to the sentiments regarding the abuse allegations. Truly disgusting.

But to take it in a slightly different direction, this man ruined the artistic landscape of pop music in Japan for decades. Johnny's music is formulaic and artistically lacking. Might you like a song or two? Sure, of course. But the tracks are completely forgettable, as evidenced by the fact that none of them survive the test of time, and just fade into oblivious as they get replaced with the next tracks that they release. Johnny's group "music" isn't "music" in the sense of art as much as it is a vehicle to spotlight the personalities of the performers, to get them on TV 24/7, to sell merchandise and to sell concert tickets. The music is secondary to the spectacle. And as people fell in love with the spectacle and the personalities, the "music" cluttered the pop charts, and completely blocked out other artists who were trying to do innovative, artistic, skilled things with their music. The best pop musicians in Japan have been relegated to the lower-tiers of public consciousness. Seriously - J-pop is a horrendous university by any objective musical standard. Who the heck are they going to get for the Opening Ceremony of the Olympics? I'm nervous about it.

@Original Wing,

Quite right, but it kept Johnny in nice tite sphincters for several decades.

There is no excuse for what he did. But remember, Japan has never been Christianized, and back in those days, sex was just something fun, and there was not such a psychological impact as you might have in the west, where sex is heavily moralized. Also, in those days, the age of consent for boys in Tokyo-to was 13, so once you went through puberty, you were on your own. This lack of concern or moralization about sex is probably why the press has never really treated the accusations against Johnny very seriously back in those days.

PS NHK evening news gave 6 or 7 minutes to Johnny, but no mention of scandal.

I noticed that in the Japanese press, they refer to Johnny's acts against his singers as セクハラ sexual harassment rather then child molesting.

Toasted Heretic wrote: "Hmm. Equating being gay with sexual assault and/or paedophilia is probably the wrong move, Norm."

1) I already admitted I was not fully aware of the allegations against the man when I wrote my guess about his actual lifestyle. I had thought the accusation was coming from only the one person I responded to, and I assumed he was exaggerating for effect as is common when an older man dates legal but younger people... or is rumored to. I just figured he had a tryst or two with some of his adult male clients. If I had known the extent of the allegations, I would not have written that.

I did no such thing. I did not equate gayness with pederasty at all. In fact, that was what I thought the poster I was replying to was doing and I was calling him on it.

NorthernlifeToday wrote: @Norman I talk about a lot of things absolute utter ridiculous stuff then I like to defend pedophiles..

Actually I am attacking society for creating the situations that create more and more serious victims. Read gokai_wo_maneku's post about psychological impact. He makes a pertinent point. The moralization of everything sexual creates victims through negative feelings that need not have existed. Not the way I would have said it, but the point is maybe more understandable to some.

The ubiquitous three monkeys of the Japanese media undoubtedly ENABLED Johnny's abnormal proclivities and will continue to enable his posthumous reputation for as long as it is "decent", but then the circling vultures of commerce will descend to feed on the indecent remains of his reputation for there will be lotsa yen to be made pickin' Johnny's bones.

Lost the little trust I had of J-TV, for over 30 years here in Japan never saw his face as the TV showed self restrain not to show him. Even the last days he was battling with life he was never shown and since kicking the bucket his face is on every channel.

The best pop musicians in Japan have been relegated to the lower-tiers of public consciousness. Seriously - J-pop is a horrendous university by any objective musical standard. Who the heck are they going to get for the Opening Ceremony of the Olympics? I'm nervous about it.

Hopefully, they'll have some of the better solo artists and real musicians - Keiseke Kawada, Eikichi Yazawa, Masaharu Fukuyama, Ayaka, Misia, Dreams Come True, Every Little Thing, X Japan, etc. (I'd love to see Loudness. But, that will never happen.)

But, you know it's gonna have crap like AKB48, Perfume, Arashi, etc. I wouldn't be surprised if SMAP does a reunion just for the Olympics. All that goofy dancing makes for good TV, I guess.

If you enjoy good J-Pop/J-Rock, you should watch shows like Songs or Covers. There's usually some good stuff there. None of the goofy dancing. Just music.