Kenji Suzuki’s “final thoughtfulness” on the eve of his retirement from NHK.

In 1924, many celebrities sadly passed away. We look back on the activities of the past and remember the deceased, based on the articles we have introduced in the past…

With the History of Television

Former NHK announcer Kenji Suzuki passed away at a hospital in Fukuoka City on March 29 at the age of 95 due to old age. He was an announcer who lived with the history of television, including live broadcasts from the Kuroshi Dam (1963), live broadcasts from the Tokaido Shinkansen bullet train before it opened to traffic (1964), and hosting a special program on the Apollo 11 moon landing (1969).

Born in Tokyo in 1929, Mr. Suzuki joined NHK in 1952, before the start of television broadcasting. He said that he wanted to become an announcer because it was the least popular occupation for which there were few applicants. She mainly demonstrated her abilities in news programs, but from the ’70s onward, she often hosted culture and variety programs. His friendly appearance with his chubby figure, round face, and large dark glasses, as well as his quick-witted delivery, attracted a lot of people.

Suzuki’s most famous program is “Quiz Omoshiro Seminar,” which aired from 1981. On September 12, 1982, the program received a viewer rating of 42.2% (Video Research, Kanto region). It is still the highest ever among the many quiz programs that have been famous in the past.

Mr. Suzuki also participated in the creation of questions for the show, reading 20 books in order to create one question, which is about 1,000 books in a year. As a voracious reader, he has also written more than 200 books in his lifetime, including a book published in 1982. Among them, “Kikubari no susume” (“Encouragement of Kikubari”), published in 1982 by Shosha, became a huge bestseller, selling more than 4.3 million copies in one year.

Mr. Suzuki was one of NHK’s most popular announcers and hosted the Kohaku (red and white) TV show from 1983 to 1985. He attracted more attention for his flamboyant costumes than the performers, but it is the 1984 Kohaku that has become the talk of the town.