is a Japanese

comedian A comedian (feminine comedienne) or comic is a person who seeks to entertainment, entertain an audience by making them laughter, laugh. This might be through jokes or amusing situations, or acting foolishly (as in slapstick), or employing prop c ...

best known as the ''

tsukkomi The following glossary of words and terms (generally of Japanese language, Japanese origin) are related to ''owarai'' (Japanese comedy). Many of these terms may be used in areas of Japanese culture beyond comedy, including television and radio, ...

'' half of a popular

owarai is a broad word used to describe Japanese comedy as seen on television. The word ''owarai'' is the Honorific speech in Japanese#Honorific prefixes, honorific form of the word ''warai'' (by adding o- prefix), meaning "a laugh" or "a smile". '' ...

duo Rozan　(ロザン) alongside Hirofumi Suga (菅広文). Given his 158 IQ score, bachelor's degree in law from

Kyoto University , or , is a National university, national research university in Kyoto, Japan. Founded in 1897, it is one of the former Imperial Universities and the second oldest university in Japan. The university has ten undergraduate faculties, eighteen gra ...

(one of the top-tier universities in the country), and championship titles from a number of TV quiz shows, he is also widely known as one of the most intelligent comedians in Japan. He is 177 cm tall and weighs 59 kg.Rozan official web site provided by Yoshimoto Kogyo

Bio

*1976 - Born in Shijonawate, Osaka *1992 - Entered Osaka Kyoiku University Tennoji High school *1995 - Entered

majoring in

law Law is a set of rules that are created and are enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior, with its precise definition a matter of longstanding debate. It has been variously described as a science and as the ar ...

*1996 - Formed owarai duo "Rozan" with Hirofumi Suga *2004 - Graduated from Kyoto University

Early life

Ujihara's parents are originally from

Shiga prefecture is a landlocked prefecture of Japan in the Kansai region of Honshu. Shiga Prefecture has a population of 1,398,972 as of 1 February 2025 and has a geographic area of . Shiga Prefecture borders Fukui Prefecture to the north, Gifu Prefecture to th ...

. The family moved from Osaka to

Hiroshima is the capital of Hiroshima Prefecture in Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 1,199,391. The gross domestic product (GDP) in Greater Hiroshima, Hiroshima Urban Employment Area, was US$61.3 billion as of 2010. Kazumi Matsui has b ...

when he was four. Living there for ten years, he used to speak in the Hiroshima dialect. During his third year in junior high school, the family moved back to Osaka. Ujihara's parents were very stern since his early childhood. He always earned outstanding grades at school, one of the top students in his year in high school. When he was a high school junior, he scored the second highest in a

Yoyogi seminar is a neighbourhood in the northern part of Shibuya, Tokyo, Japan. Geography The area encompassed by Yoyogi is typically defined two ways: * Only the five Yoyogi . * The former , corresponding roughly to the area south of National Route 20 (K ...

's (prep school) nationwide mock exam for expected applicants of Kyoto University (for the law major). Given his grades, the prep school offered him free tuition and free mock exam fee. Initially, he vaguely planned to be a lawyer, however, his best friend Suga invited him to be his

manzai is a traditional style of comedy in Japanese culture comparable to double act comedy. usually involves two performers ()—a straight man () and a double act, funny man ()—trading jokes at great speed. Most of the jokes revolve around mut ...

partner when Ujihara was a high school junior. Suga also recommended Ujihara to take the entrance exam of Kyoto University, assuming the school name would be a help when they become a manzai duo in the future. Ujihara accepted his offer, took the entrance exam, and passed it when he was a high school junior. Since Ujihara had expected his parents would be against his career decision, he kept secret his activities as a comedian from them. However, one day in a TV variety show, his father saw him wearing only a shorts and chasing around money in the street. His father became furious shouting at him "Why are you going to university!?" Although His father stayed against Ujihara's comedy career, the father, having seen Ujihara's nine-year effort to graduate from the university, eventually recognized Ujihara's passion for comedy and supported his decision.

Interests

Ujihara is a big fan of professional baseball team

Hiroshima Toyo Carp The is a professional baseball team based in Hiroshima, Japan. They compete in the Central League of Nippon Professional Baseball. The team is primarily owned by the Matsuda family, led by , who is a descendant of Mazda founder Jujiro Matsuda ...

and singer Hitomi.

Quiz King

Ujihara frequently appears in

quiz show A game show (or gameshow) is a genre of broadcast viewing entertainment where contestants compete in a game for rewards. The shows are typically directed by a host, who explains the rules of the program as well as commentating and narrating whe ...

s. He won championship titles in "Brain Survivor II" ( TBS) a special program broadcast in the Spring of 2002 and "Quiz! Nihongo-oh" (TBS) broadcast on June 24, 2008. On the TV program "Cho Time Shock -- Saikyo Quiz-oh Ketteisen," he won the first place in his first appearance. He revealed there that he had earned approximately 5 million yen from quiz shows.

Media

TV

;Semi Regular :*Quiz Presen Variety Q-sama!! (クイズプレゼンバラエティー Qさま!!) --

TV Asahi JOEX-DTV (channel 5), branded as , and better known as , is a Japanese television station serving the Kanto region as the flagship station of the All-Nippon News Network. It is owned-and-operated by the a subsidiary of , itself controlled by ...

:*Nekketsu! Heisei Kyoiku Gakuin (熱血!平成教育学院) --

Fuji TV JOCX-DTV (channel 8), branded as or , is a Japanese television station that serves the Kantō region as the flagship (broadcasting), flagship station of the Fuji News Network (FNN) and the Fuji Network System (FNS). The station is owned-and- ...

/CX ;Irregular :*Quiz! Hexagon (クイズ!ヘキサゴン) -- Fuji TV :*

Quiz! Hexagon II was a Japanese quiz variety show on Fuji Television, airing Wednesdays from 19:00-19:57 Japan Standard Time. The show began airing on October 19, 2005, ending on September 28, 2011 with 247 episodes aired; its predecessor, aired from June 5 throu ...

(クイズ!ヘキサゴンII) -- Fuji TV :etc.

External links

Ujihara's official Website provided by Yoshimoto Kogyo

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ujihara, Fuminori 1976 births Living people Japanese male comedians People from Shijōnawate Kyoto University alumni