was a Japanese novelist and historical writer best known for originating the character

Zatoichi is a fictional character created by Japanese novelist Kan Shimozawa. He is an itinerant blind masseur and swordsman of Japan's late Edo period (1830s and 1840s). He first appeared in the 1948 essay ''Zatoichi Monogatari'', part of Shimozawa's '' ...

. He was awarded the

Kikuchi Kan Prize The honors achievement in all aspects of Japanese literary culture. It was named in honor of Kikuchi Kan. The prize is presented annually by the literary magazine '' Bungei Shunjū'' and the Society for the Promotion of Japanese Literature. Histo ...

in 1962 for a series of works set at the end of the

Tokugawa period The , also known as the , is the period between 1600 or 1603 and 1868 in the history of Japan, when the country was under the rule of the Tokugawa shogunate and some 300 regional ''daimyo'', or feudal lords. Emerging from the chaos of the Sengok ...

and the

Meiji era The was an Japanese era name, era of History of Japan, Japanese history that extended from October 23, 1868, to July 30, 1912. The Meiji era was the first half of the Empire of Japan, when the Japanese people moved from being an isolated feu ...

Biography

Kan Shimozawa was born Umetani Matsutaro in

Atsuta, Hokkaido was a village located in Atsuta District, Ishikari Subprefecture, Hokkaido, Japan. The village was situated on the west coast of Hokkaido on Route 231 between Ishikari City and Hamamasu. As of 2004, the village had an estimated population of ...

on February 1, 1892. He was the half-brother of painter Migishi Kōtarō. He graduated from the law school of

Meiji University is a Private university, private research university in Chiyoda, Tokyo, Chiyoda, Tokyo, Japan. Originally founded as Meiji Law School () by three lawyers in 1881, it became a university in April 1920. As of May 2023, Meiji has 32,261 undergradu ...

in 1914 and initially returned to his hometown where he worked for a lumber company. He moved back to Tokyo in 1918 to work for an electric company, and in 1919 joined the newspaper ''

Yomiuri Shimbun The is a Japanese newspaper published in Tokyo, Osaka, Fukuoka, Fukuoka, Fukuoka, and other major Japanese cities. It is one of the five major newspapers in Japan; the other four are ''The Asahi Shimbun'', the ''Chunichi Shimbun'', the ''Ma ...

'' as a reporter. He would move to the newspaper ''

Tokyo Nichi Nichi Shimbun The (lit. ''Tokyo Daily News'') was a newspaper printed in Tokyo, Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of ...

'' in 1926. While working as a reporter, he collected interviews with former

Shinsengumi The was a small secret police organization, elite group of swordsmen that was organized by commoners and low rank samurai, commissioned by the (military government) during Japan's Bakumatsu period (late Tokugawa shogunate) in 1863. It was ac ...

under the guidance of jurist Takeshi Osatake. These interviews served as the basis for the novel ''Shinsengumi Shimetsuki'' published in 1928 and adapted into a film in 1962. He would write two sequels, ''Shinsengumi Ibun'' (1929) and ''Shinsengumi Monogatari'' (1931), later collected together as the Shinsengumi Trilogy. His most famous character, the blind swordsman

, first appeared in the 1948 essay "Zatoichi Monogatari" (座頭市物語), part of Shimozawa's "Futokoro Techō" serials in the magazine ''Shōsetsu to Yomimono''. Originally a minor character, Zatoichi was dramatically altered by

Daiei Film Daiei Film Co. Ltd. ( Kyūjitai: Shinjitai: ''Daiei Eiga Kabushiki Kaisha'') was a Japanese film studio. Founded in 1942 as Dai Nippon Film Co., Ltd., it was one of the major studios during the postwar Golden Age of Japanese cinema, produci ...

and actor

Shintaro Katsu was a Japanese actor, singer, and filmmaker. He is known for starring in the ''Akumyo'' series, the ''Hoodlum Soldier'' series, and the ''Zatoichi'' series. Life and career Born Toshio Okumura (奥村利夫 ''Okumura Toshio'') on 29 Novemb ...

for the 1962 film ''

The Tale of Zatoichi is a 1962 Japanese ''chanbara'' film directed by Kenji Misumi and based on the 1948 essay of the same name by Kan Shimozawa. It is the first installment in a long-running ''jidaigeki'' film series starring Shintaro Katsu as the blind swordsman ...

'' and further developed in 25 sequels to become one of Japan's longest-running film series. Shimozawa died of a

heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when Ischemia, blood flow decreases or stops in one of the coronary arteries of the heart, causing infarction (tissue death) to the heart muscle. The most common symptom ...

on July 19, 1968 in Tokyo.

Works

He is the creator of several fictional works, including: *''Shinsengumi Shimetsuki'' (1928), adapted into film in 1962 *''Shinsengumi Ibun'' (1929) *''Shinsengumi Monogatari'' (1931) *''Yataragasa Shunyodo'' (1932), basis of TV series ''Tabito Izaburo'' *''Kaito Yakuza'' (1933) *''Katsu Kaishu'' (1946) *"Zatoichi Monogatari" (1948), basis of the

TV series and films *''Oyakodaka'' (1955-1956), adapted into a film in 1956 and TV dramas in 1961, 1964, 1972, and 1994 *''Otokodaka'' (1960-1961)

Historical figures

He has written several historical figures into his works, including: *

Takeda Kanryūsai Takeda Kanryūsai (武田観柳斎, 1830 or 1834 – died June 22, 1867) was the captain of the fifth unit of the Shinsengumi, a special police force for the Tokugawa regime. Background He was a samurai born in Izumo, in the late Edo period. Bo ...

* Yamazaki Susumu

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Shimozawa, Kan Japanese historical novelists 1892 births 1968 deaths 20th-century Japanese novelists Writers from Hokkaido