The Life and Legacy of Haruki Kadokawa: A Journey of Triumphs, Struggles, and a Remarkable Comeback
My grandfather, who went from selling fish to becoming the largest rice merchant in the Hokuriku region
Haruki Kadokawa (83), who continues to be active in various fields such as publisher, film director, and producer, has a new book titled Complete Edition: The Last Haruki Kadokawa (Kawade Bunko). This book is based on a 50-hour interview with Kadokawa by Akihiko Ito, and it covers his life as well as the history of post-war Japanese publishing culture and entertainment.
Ito points out that Kadokawa’s original landscape is rooted in his grandfather, Genzaburo Kadokawa, who established the rice merchant business “Kadokawa Shoten” in 1910. Ito continues as follows (with subsequent quotes being from Ito):
“Genzaburo became the largest rice merchant in the Hokuriku region, but as the eldest son of seven siblings, he dropped out of school after two years to support his family. He became an adopted son of the Kadokawa family and started his business as a fish vendor. He would carry fresh fish from Toyama Bay, using an oak balance pole, and walk through the mountainous regions to sell them. Fish’s freshness was crucial, and if the fish changed color or smelled rotten, it would harm his reputation. Throughout his fish vending days, ‘Trust first’ became Genzaburo’s motto.
He also interacted equally with the marginalized communities living in the mountain villages. When he started the rice merchant business, he actively hired people from these communities as employees. Because he himself had suffered as an adopted son, he never judge people based on their background, instead he would trust people based on their character and judge their authenticity with intuition.
In 1918, a rice riot occurred in Toyama, with riots against the wealthy merchants. However, Kadokawa Shoten was not targeted and escaped the trouble. This was entirely because Genzaburo had treated the people from marginalized communities with sincerity. This ‘Trust first’ philosophy and his ability to judge people’s character were passed down to Haruki Kadokawa.”
Kadokawa has many famous and scandalous episodes, such as five divorces and six marriages. During his student years at Kokugakuin University, he fought with 200 people in Shibuya, making headlines. Upon graduation, one right-wing organization and two gangs came to scout him. His life is filled with such reckless stories. However, it is less known that, like his grandfather, he practices the principle of not judging people by their titles.
“He is the kind of person who remembers the names of the waitstaff at a restaurant and is considerate. When using a restaurant for business meetings, he would see off his guests, but then return through the back entrance. When the waitstaff saw him return, they would be worried that something had gone wrong with the meeting. But Kadokawa would say, ‘Today’s successful negotiation was thanks to [insert waitstaff’s name].’ He remembers the name of the staff who handled the service and thanks them personally.
Rather than just thanking the head chef or the owner, Kadokawa would personally thank the people working on the ground, which deeply moved the waitstaff. He would also win the respect of the owner and the chefs. Despite the ups and downs of his life, the relationships he built in such a way never broke.”
It wasn’t just about turning a novel into a movie
At the age of 34, in 1976, as a film director and producer, Haruki Kadokawa established the foundation for film production with the creation of Kadokawa Haruki Office. In the same year, his first Kadokawa movie, The Inugami Clan was released, followed by numerous hits such as Proof of the Man and Sailor Suit and Machine Gun. Novels by authors like Seishi Yokomizo, Seiichi Morimura, Akimitsu Takagi, Yoshio Kataoka (86), and Jiro Akagawa (77) were also adapted into films. In addition to the films, soundtrack LPs were released in conjunction with their release, creating a synergy between publishing, movies, and music, which came to be known as the “Kadokawa business model” and became a forerunner of media mix.
“With an innovative business model, this method was something only Kadokawa could have achieved. Rather than relying solely on box office earnings, they also sold videos of the movies at theaters at the same time. For the release of The Tragedy of W (1984), the theme song Woman ‘Tragedy of W’ was played in a Shiseido commercial featuring Hiroko Yakushimaru. Works featuring Tomoyo Harada were tied up with Toshiba’s cassette player, which she was promoting, and they received advertising fees from various companies. Kadokawa Bunko inserted bookmarks in their books, with the front side serving as a discount coupon for movies and the back featuring corporate advertisements. Kadokawa movies created a business model involving not only publishers but also companies, record labels, and television stations.”
Additionally, it was Kadokawa who made it possible for manga artist Katsuhiro Otomo and illustrator Makoto Wada to become film directors. When conversing with people, Kadokawa would mostly listen, asking, “Is there something more interesting?” He would listen to people of different generations and from different genres, expanding his own unique sensibilities and bringing in unknown artists and young directors into Kadokawa films.
Though Kadokawa achieved great success in the media mix, the background of his success in films also included his grandfather’s inherited thoughtfulness.
“Compared to the publishing and music industries, the film industry was often based on a loose system, with a low awareness of copyright and a tendency to proceed with verbal agreements. Emerging screenwriters, after taking time to write their scripts, would often sell them for whatever price, sometimes undercutting the value. The general rule in established movie companies was to keep costs as low as possible, but Kadokawa disagreed. He insisted on paying the people involved in the film properly. In conjunction with movie releases, Kadokawa Shoten published the movie scripts in paperback, ensuring that not only the original authors but also the screenwriters earned royalties.
Kadokawa treated the staff with sincerity and made sure that the names of those who had previously worked behind the scenes, like the promotion staff, were properly credited in the movie. He paid all staff double the typical salary in the Japanese film industry at the time. Often, movies would not be completed, but Kadokawa made sure that compensation was decided beforehand, ensuring no one worked for free. Directors and lead actors were given incentives, and profits were distributed to those involved in the project. Kadokawa movies built an era, thanks to the care he showed towards everyone involved.”
As the president of Kadokawa Shoten and also an editor himself, Haruki Kadokawa firmly believed that movies and their source material are separate entities, allowing differences between the endings or characters in films and novels. In fact, he actively sought changes.
“Kadokawa’s belief was that when people read a novel, they expand their imagination freely from the spaces between the lines and the printed words. No matter what kind of imagery is provided in a film, it cannot surpass the imagination of the reader. Therefore, he intentionally made films with different settings from the novels. Nowadays, there is a stronger trend of staying true to the source material, but in Kadokawa films, the basic philosophy was that a movie would not be interesting if it was the same as the original. And as writers watched the films, they would be inspired to start on their next work, returning to Kadokawa Bunko—this shows his skill as a savvy editor.”
Did prison make him a bigger person!?
In 1993, when Kadokawa was 51 years old, he was arrested on charges of violating the Narcotics Control Law, the Customs Law, and embezzlement. Although it was expected that he would receive a suspended sentence since it was his first offense, his lawyer’s courtroom strategy of advising him to deny everything backfired, and he was sentenced to four and a half years in prison. As a result, those who had once celebrated him as the darling of the era began to abandon him one by one.
“In prison, titles from society have no value, and people are judged based on their raw humanity. This is a quote from Yohei Sasakawa (86) of the Nippon Foundation. According to him, 95% of people in prison become crushed, but the remaining 5% become larger people when they are released, and Kadokawa was one of them.
When Kadokawa first entered prison, he was apparently in shock. However, he thought, ‘Now that I’m here, everything is an experience. I’ll throw away my pride and enjoy it.’ He was assigned to assemble boxes for marinated trout sushi as part of his prison labor, and became a model prisoner due to his efficient and neat work.
At the sports day, he arranged a karate performance and became the cheerleader captain, gaining the affection of foreign inmates. He spread haiku poetry, and the haiku class, which initially had only about five members, soon attracted many prisoners. Kadokawa adapted to prison life, and there, he grew his character as a person.”
The book ends with Kadokawa’s efforts to protect local bookstores and written culture, involving figures like Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba (68). His passion for preserving local bookstores facing extinction is evident.
“Before Ishiba ran for his fifth leadership election, Kadokawa had a hunch while having lunch at a diner in Azabu-Juban (Minato Ward) that ‘Shigeru Ishiba will become prime minister, and I’ll get him to implement measures to support bookstores.’ He shared this feeling with his vice president, Minoru Ebihara. On the way back, while driving past the National Diet Library (Chiyoda Ward), he saw Ishiba walking back to his office at the Diet Members’ Hall, carrying a pile of books. Ishiba is known as a book lover, and because solving problems requires cooperation from various ministries, Kadokawa decided to visit him himself.
When they met, it turned out that Ishiba, who had read ‘Love Story: A Poem of Love’ in middle school and grew up watching Kadokawa movies like ‘The Girl Who Leapt Through Time’ and ‘W’s Tragedy,’ was of the same generation. The two hit it off. Kadokawa remarked that Ishiba, though known for his academic reading, was also familiar with detective novels by authors like Seishi Yokomizo and Seiichi Morimura, and was impressed by the breadth of his interests. ‘I knew he was a bookworm, but I was impressed to see that he didn’t just read academic books, but also popular novels. I was amazed by the diversity of his interests.’ The desire to protect the cultural light of local bookstores remains strong, and even now that Ishiba is the prime minister, they continue to consult each other.”
With many achievements and accomplishments, and multiple titles to his name, Kadokawa is both reckless and sensitive. What is Kadokawa Haruki? The fact that there is no clear answer is probably part of his charm.
