Article by Dr. Anthony Al-Jamie (continued)

AKIO Morita was born the eldest son of a sake brewer and was groomed from childhood to take over as the fifteenth head of what is now a 400-year-old sake brewery. Morita studied physics at Osaka Imperial University. After graduating in 1944, he joined the Japanese Imperial Navy, where he met his future business partner, Navy researcher Masaru Ibuka.

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Akira Kurosawa was born in Tokyo and from a young age was inspired by art and reading. He began his film career as an assistant director for the renowned Japanese director Kajiro Yamamoto. Kurosawa was well read, and Yamamoto appreciated his vast knowledge. Within five years Kurosawa was writing scripts and directing sequences for Yamamoto’s films. In addition to being a great filmmaker, Kurosawa had an eye for selecting actors. He chose people with strong emotions and distinct facial expressions. He went on to make some 30 movies, many featuring his favorite leading actor Toshiro Mifune.

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SOICHIRO Honda was born in Shizuoka, Japan. His father, a blacksmith, owned a bicycle repair shop and Honda spent his early childhood helping him fix bikes. As a child, he was fascinated by airplanes and it is said that after he viewed an airplane demonstration by pilot Art Smith, Honda’s love for machinery and invention was instilled in him forever.

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KISHO Kurokawa was born the son of an architect in Aichi, Japan. During WWII he was sent to live with his grandparents in a Buddhist temple. He bunked in a teahouse there that later served as an inspiration for his creative works.

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Osamu Tezuka was a Japanese manga artist and animator, a producer, political activist and a medical doctor who never practiced medicine. He is often referred to as “Manga-no-Kami Sama” (the God of Manga), and is best known as the creator of “Astro Boy” and “Kimba the White Lion”. Although he graduated from Osaka University with a medical degree, his professional career as a manga artist began while he was still at university. He decided to follow his heart and devote himself to manga. Later, in the sci-fi manga “Black Jack,” he was able to apply his scientific knowledge.

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SEIJI Ozawa began his music career as a piano student only to sprain his finger playing rugby as a teenager. Unable to continue the piano, his teacher at the Toho Gakuen School of Music in Tokyo brought Ozawa to a performance of Beethoven’s Symphony No. 5, a life-changing event that shifted his focus from piano performance to conducting.

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ICHIRO Suzuki likes to go simply by “Ichiro.” Since the age of 12, he has focused on building a career in baseball. His father mentored Ichiro with rigorous training from a young age, and it has been said that Ichiro built strength and stamina by hurling car tires and by hitting whiffle balls with a heavy shovel. These strenuous exercises helped to develop power and endurance for his thin frame. In high school he had an incredible batting average of .505 with 19 home runs. Despite these impressive numbers, Ichiro was not drafted until the fourth and final round of the Japanese professional baseball draft as teams were concerned about his physique due to his very light frame. Ichiro was with the Orix Blue Waves from 1992 to 2000, proving to be one of the best players in the game before leaving for the American Major Leagues to play with the Seattle Mariners in 2001.

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