<figure id="attachment_393555" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-393555" style="width: 6642px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><a href="#" data-ident_hash="0fb9e0b8"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/fridaydigital/image/private/t_article_image/wpmedia/2024/10/1bd2fedd82a169857235855efb495ab6.jpeg" alt=""></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-393555" class="wp-caption-text">Katsuyuki Mori and Mami Yamase starred in the drama &#8220;Tsuyoshi shikkari shinshinasai&#8221; (NTV) (March 3, 1989).</figcaption></figure>
<p> On September 24, a trailer for the documentary film &#8220;Auto Racer Katsuyuki Mori: The Promised Oval, The Movie,&#8221; scheduled to be released nationwide on November 29, was released.</p>
<p> The film stars Katsuyuki Mori (50), a former member of the well-known &#8220;SMAP&#8221; group.</p>
<div data-friday-ad-slot="AD_inArticle"></div>
<p><span class="strongInContent"> In May 1996, when he was at the peak of his popularity as an idol, he left SMAP to become an auto racer, which had been his dream since childhood. He also retired from show business. The film was produced by adding new footage to &#8220;Auto Racer Katsuyuki Mori: To the Promised Oval,&#8221; which was screened at the TBS Documentary Film Festival in March of 2011. In the trailer, he talks about how he said at a press conference when he was in training school that he wanted to be the best in Japan, the competition where he won the championship, his rehabilitation after his serious injury, and his passionate bond with the members of SMAP.</span></p>
<h3> The most &#8220;idol-like&#8221; of all.</h3>
<p> Mori became a member of SMAP in April 1988. The following year, he made his debut as the lead in a TV drama series, &#8220;Tsuyoshi Shikkashimashinasai&#8221; (Nippon Television). She was the first of the members to achieve this feat.</p>
<div data-friday-ad-slot="AD_inArticle"></div>
<p><span class="strongInContent"> He was the most popular member of the group, and was said by SMAP fans to be &#8220;the most idolized of the group,&#8221; and he and Takuya Kimura (51) were the two most popular. The popular &#8220;Bistro SMAP&#8221; corner on &#8220;SMAP x SMAP&#8221; (Fuji TV) was also created for Mori, who was a good cook, and was initially a battle between Kimura and Mori.</span></p>
<div data-friday-nextpage-lead=" Debut as a leading actor in a TV drama at the age of 14"></div>
<p>Mori was a member of SMAP for only eight years, but his illustrious idol days have not faded away. FRIDAY&#8221; has paid attention to Mori since March 1989, one year after the group&#8217;s formation, when he made his debut in a commercial, and has reported on him in various ways, from the way he posed with a smile when he got the commercial to his passionate love affair with the woman who would later become his wife. We would like to look back at an article we reported in the March 3, 1989 issue.</p>
<div data-friday-ad-slot="AD_inArticle"></div>
<h3> A two-shot with a popular idol</h3>
<p> Sitting on a large stepladder in the studio, with her face turned to the side and showing a silly expression, is Mami Yamase, a very popular idol at the time who had 10 regular TV programs. The boy with a beaming smile next to her is Katsuyuki Mori. In fact, this is a commemorative photo taken during a visit to a recording session for &#8220;Tsuyoshi Shikkari Shisshinasai,&#8221; a TV show that began airing in February 1989.</p>
<div data-friday-ad-slot="AD_inArticle"></div>
<p><span class="strongInContent"> Yamase looks bigger than Mori in the photo, but Mori was in his third year of junior high school at the time. With her height of 174 cm, long legs, and outstanding style, she quickly became a very popular idol. In fact, another young actor was initially chosen to play the lead role in this drama, but he died suddenly in a car accident. As a result, the drama had to be re-selected from scratch, and Mori was chosen as the lead.</span></p>
<p> (TV magazine writer) &#8220;The producer of the drama at the time said,</p>
<p><span class="strongInContent"> The producer of the drama at the time said, &#8220;I don&#8217;t mean that he is a substitute actor. His looks and talent are as good as those of the original lead actor.</span></p>
<p> He was a great admirer of Yamase&#8217;s performance. Yamase told the magazine about Mori: &#8220;I have a younger brother who is the same age as him,</p>
<p><span class="strongInContent"> I have a younger brother the same age as Mori, but he is much cuter.</span></p>
<p> Yamase said of Mori, &#8220;I have a younger brother the same age as him, but Mori is much cuter than him. Mori, on the other hand, was just honeycombing.</p>
<div data-friday-nextpage-lead=" At the press conference, he still gives lip service like an idol."></div>
<p>Mori turned 50 in February 2012, and on September 29, he entered the &#8220;semifinal&#8221; race at Kawaguchi Auto Race Course in Saitama Prefecture, defending second place and advancing to the &#8220;final&#8221; the next day.</p>
<div data-friday-ad-slot="AD_inArticle"></div>
<h3> Kissing a bear at the end</h3>
<p> When Mori was asked to be photographed for an interview with &#8220;Sports Hochi,&#8221; he replied, &#8220;Do I look tired?</p>
<p><span class="strongInContent"> When asked for a photo for &#8220;Sports Hochi,&#8221; Mori replied, &#8220;Do I look tired?　(omission) The cause of my fatigue is my dreams. I keep having strange dreams, so maybe I am tired because I am not sleeping well&#8230;. What kind of dreams?　It is a dream in which I am being chased by a bear (chuckles). And after being chased, somehow I become friends with the bear this time (more giggles). And in the end, I ended up kissing the bear (laughter). (Laughter). I was so overwhelmed, wasn&#8217;t I?</span></p>
<p> (Sports Hochi, September 29, 2012). As a former idol, she is still a first-rate talker who entertains her interviewers. We will keep an eye on Mori as he continues his career&#8230;.</p>
<div data-friday-ad-slot="AD_inArticle"></div>
<div data-friday-nextpage-lead=" Shining images of Katsuyuki Mori in his SMAP days"></div>
<figure id="attachment_393559" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-393559" style="width: 966px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><a href="#" data-ident_hash="b33c3451"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/fridaydigital/image/private/t_article_image/wpmedia/2024/10/4d0b05aee8c219dfcacf3470e29b419c.png" alt=""></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-393559" class="wp-caption-text">The members of &#8220;SMAP&#8221; appeared in a commercial for drinking water named &#8220;SMAP&#8221; one year after the formation of &#8220;SMAP. Mori is in the front row on the left (January 19, &#8217;96 issue).</figcaption></figure>
<div data-friday-ad-slot="AD_inArticle"></div>
<figure id="attachment_393560" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-393560" style="width: 3611px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><a href="#" data-ident_hash="1066416d"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/fridaydigital/image/private/t_article_image/wpmedia/2024/10/ae99144e3ecda47c2597ad86ecc09a39.jpeg" alt=""></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-393560" class="wp-caption-text"> Mori (second from left) with Ms. A (far right), with whom he was dating at the time. They later got married (March 15, 1996 issue).</figcaption></figure>
<div data-friday-ad-slot="AD_inArticle"></div>
<figure id="attachment_393561" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-393561" style="width: 3228px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><a href="#" data-ident_hash="d7ca61c3"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/fridaydigital/image/private/t_article_image/wpmedia/2024/10/3cb42236513035295b757406d2900906.jpg" alt=""></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-393561" class="wp-caption-text"> Mori leaving his home with his hobby, radio-controlled cars (March 15, 1996 issue).</figcaption></figure>
<div data-friday-nextpage-lead=" A collection of &quot;shining&quot; images of Mori after becoming an auto tracer"></div>
<figure id="attachment_393562" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-393562" style="width: 2383px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><a href="#" data-ident_hash="d2fa9b06"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/fridaydigital/image/private/t_article_image/wpmedia/2024/10/b8417d0e8c01bcc256b36dcb32466a41.jpg" alt=""></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-393562" class="wp-caption-text">Mori being interviewed at his debut as an auto racer (&#8217;97, July 25).</figcaption></figure>
<div data-friday-ad-slot="AD_inArticle"></div>
<figure id="attachment_393566" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-393566" style="width: 2853px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><a href="#" data-ident_hash="bb60bf47"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/fridaydigital/image/private/t_article_image/wpmedia/2024/10/c02bf02917d028e7abefb10df7fd931b-1.jpg" alt=""></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-393566" class="wp-caption-text"> Mori being interviewed after the race. The spectator stands were filled with female fans and filled with unusual enthusiasm (July 25, &#8217;97 issue).</figcaption></figure>
<div data-friday-ad-slot="AD_inArticle"></div>
<figure id="attachment_393567" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-393567" style="width: 3206px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><a href="#" data-ident_hash="68617ce5"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/fridaydigital/image/private/t_article_image/wpmedia/2024/10/81db42fb7c55ca1c8155369c6bd13033.jpg" alt=""></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-393567" class="wp-caption-text"> Mori after changing to a racer. After shopping at a supermarket, he returned home to his lodgings (October 8, 2010 issue).</figcaption></figure>
<figure id="attachment_393568" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-393568" style="width: 3206px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><a href="#" data-ident_hash="aa97070e"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/fridaydigital/image/private/t_article_image/wpmedia/2024/10/d489ce6a7e48a6893cf34df48cd51ba6.jpg" alt=""></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-393568" class="wp-caption-text"> Mori enjoying his favorite game of pachinko (October 8, &#8217;10 issue)</figcaption></figure>
<figure id="attachment_393569" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-393569" style="width: 3780px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><a href="#" data-ident_hash="53ce8444"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/fridaydigital/image/private/t_article_image/wpmedia/2024/10/c6e22327c3224bcc9beaa3a0b4017d3b.jpg" alt=""></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-393569" class="wp-caption-text"> Mori appeared on a talk show at a pachinko parlor business. Despite being at a pachinko parlor, young girls lined up in front of him (August 15, &#8217;14 issue).</figcaption></figure>


 Shinya Inui, Koichi Kikuchi, Noriyoshi Koizumi, Toshihiro Nakaikawa, Naoki Shimizu (5th and 6th photos), Junsei Todoroki (7th and 8th photos),

 A documentary film, "Auto Racer Katsuyuki Mori: The Promised Oval, The Movie," will be released in theaters on November 29. Here is a collection of "brilliant" images of former "SMAP" driver Katsuyuki Mori, who is still as popular as an idol even in the world of auto racers.

A documentary film will be released in November&#8230;A collection of &#8220;brilliant&#8221; images of former &#8220;SMAP&#8221; member Katsuyuki Mori.

A documentary film will be released in November…A collection of “brilliant” images of former “SMAP” member Katsuyuki Mori.

Access Ranking