Matsutarō Kawaguchi

Biography

Matsutarō Kawaguchi was a Japanese writer and screenwriter born on October 1, 1899, in Tokyo's Asakusa district. He received the Naoki Prize in 1935 for his short stories and novella "Meiji ichidai onna" was adapted into a popular film starring Kinuyo Tanaka. During World War II, Kawaguchi joined the Pen butai, a government-sponsored group of writers who wrote favourably about Japan's war efforts. He later worked with notable directors like Kenji Mizoguchi and Kōzaburō Yoshimura.