JAPANESE SCREENWRITER YASUNORI KAWAUCHI DEAD AT 88

Yasunori Kawauchi, one of Japan's most prominent action and science-fiction screenwriters, died early Sunday morning at a hospital near his home in Hachinohe. He was 88. The cause of death was bronchial pneumonia. Kawauchi was rarely seen without a cigarette. Also known as Kouhan Kawauchi and Kôhan Kawauchi, he was executive producer of Ai Planning Centre's 1975 anime seriesManga Nihon Mukashibanashi, known in English as Japanese Folk Tales and Manga Japanese Folk Tales. Still running in 2001, this is anime's second-longest TV series after Sazae-san. The series has run for over 1,255 episodes. It originally ran on TBS from 1975 to 1994 and remains popular today. Kawauchi created numerous tokusatsu (live-action special effects) series, including the first, the hugely successful Gekko Kamen (Moonlight Mask), in February 1958. He also wrote the scripts for Gekko Kamen. An anime version of the series, Seigi o Aisuru Mono(Moonlight Mask: The Man Who Loves the Justice), was co-produced by Ai Planning Centre and Knack; it aired for 39 episodes on Nippon TV in 1972. In 1981, the anime series was parodied in Go Nagai's Kekko Kamen, which featured the Great Toenail of Satan as a school principal. In 2000, it was remade as a comedy anime, Look! It's Little Moonlight Mask!, directed by Toshio Takeuchi and written by Yoshio Urasawa. This featured the characters Naoto and Satan's Claw. Kawauchi continued to write scripts for several Gekko Kamen series and movies over the years. In 1972, he created another superhero, Rainbowman, for the TV series Ai no senshi Reinbôman. Born Kiyoshi Kawauchi in Hakodate on February 26, 1920, he wrote lyrics for such top stars as Shintaro Katsu and Aki Yashiro. A poet, lyricist, novelist and comic writer, he joined Toho Film Company as a scene shifter in 1941. His first script came in 1952. Starting in 1955, he worked closely with the film industry, first for Shin Toho and then for all the six "majors." The success of Gekko Kamen led Kawauchi to write a manga adaptation, which was drawn by Jiro Kuwata and serialized in Shonen Club magazine, starting in May 1958. Films soon followed, starting in July 1958. Though the TV and film franchise was canceled in 1959, the comic version ran until 1961. Kawauchi wrote similar TV series, beginning with Seven Color Mask (1959), and Allah Messenger (1960). Moonlight Mask reappeared in a 1981 live-action film from 1981, which Kawauchi himself produced and supervised. Kawauchi wrote many novels which were adapted into films. He also composed the music and lyrics for several theme songs for his creations. Last year, Kawauchi publicly chastised singer Shinichi Mori for making changes to the lyrics of his signature tune "Ofukuro-san" without his permission. Mori retorted that the changes were made some 30 years ago. An infuriated Kawauchi refused to allow Mori to sing any of the hits that he had written for him ever again -- even enforcing the ban through legal means. Mori tried several times to change Kawauchi's mind, but the composer refused to speak with the singer or even read his letters.