Sugako Hashida
Sugako Hashida (橋田 壽賀子, Hashida Sugako) (born May 10, 1925) is a Japanese scriptwriter.[1] She is known particularly for writing the NHK Asadora Oshin, and can be considered Japan's most successful TV drama scriptwriter. She established Hashida Cultural Foundation. Her real name is Sugako Iwasaki (岩﨑 壽賀子, Iwasaki Sugako).
Sugako Hashida | |
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![]() Sugako Hashida | |
Native name | Hashida Sugako |
Born | Seoul, South Korea | May 10, 1925
Occupation | Scriptwriter |
Nationality | Japanese |
Alma mater | Waseda University |
Notable work | Oshin |
Spouse | Hiroshi Iwasaki (m. 1965) |
Life
Hashida was born in Seoul in 1925 while Korea was under Japanese control. She moved to Sakai City in Japan with her mother while she was still young. Sugako began studying Japanese literature at Japan Women's College in Tokyo in 1942 but her education was interrupted by World War II. Although her family had lost its savings, she was able later to continue her education, transferring to the Department of Art at Waseda University.[1] Hashida acknowledges that she discovered the work of Kikuchi Kan during her studies and these were a substantial influence on her later work. After completing her studies, she found work in the script department of Shochiku. She was laid off in 1960 but continue to write scripts on a freelance basis and supplemented her income by writing short stories for girls' magazines. In 1965, she married Hiroshi Iwasaki, a producer for the Tokyo Broadcasting System.[1]
In 1973, she wrote the script for the television drama Ai to Shi o Mitsumete. This was followed by other successful scripts: the series Tonari no Shibafu (1976–77), Oshin (1983–84), Fūfu (1979), Michi (1980), Onnatachi no Chuushingura (1981) and Dakazoku (1983). An English-dubbed version of Tonari no Shibafu, The Grass Is Greener on the Other Side, was shown on American cable during the early 1980s.[1]
Oshin, a serialised morning TV drama or asadora, was the first asadora to be both produced and written by women in Japan. Hashida is known particularly for writing Oshin, but she can be considered Japan's most successful TV drama script writer.[2] Oshin was broadcast throughout Asia and became one of Japan's most famous television dramas.[3] The series was developed from Hashida's original script.[4]
Awards
Hashida received the Broadcasting Culture Award, the Golden Arrow and the Most Distinguished Individual Achievement Award in 1979. Four years later she received the Cultural Achievement Award in Broadcasting and the Kikuchi Kan Award.[1]
In 2020, she received the Order of Culture.[5]
References
- Mulhern, Chieko Irie (1994). Japanese Women Writers: A Bio-critical Sourcebook. pp. 95–102. ISBN 0313254869.
- Moeran, Brian (2013). Women, Media and Consumption in Japan. p. 85. ISBN 978-1136782732.
- Rimer, J Thomas; Mori, Mitsuya; Poulton, M Cody (2014). The Columbia Anthology of Modern Japanese Drama. pp. 172–73. ISBN 978-0231128308.
- "Timeless Appeal: Oshin, Ama-chan, and the History of NHK Morning Dramas". Nippon Communications Foundation. September 12, 2013.
- "文化勲章に橋田寿賀子氏ら5人 漫才初の文化功労者に西川きよし氏". Tokyo Shimbun. Retrieved October 27, 2020.