Discover Nikkei

https://www.discovernikkei.org/en/interviews/clips/1412/

Japanese Fans

Well, NHK televised each and every start that he made that first couple years and I was in the T.V. truck all the time and we could just hear – inside a T.V. truck you’re sort of basically in a different world but – you could hear the fans roar, even in the T.V. truck. And I believe it was American fans also that were cheering on, I know a lot of Japanese tourists came, one of their highlights was to see a Nomo game and I believe there were packages just for Nomo start games.

At NHK we had big screens around Shibuya station, which is one of the biggest stations in the world I want to say, but big screens were set up there, and also Shinjuku, a few other places and people would just stop and just watch. Because of the time difference, most of the games would start at eleven o’clock in the morning their time, so they were able to watch during their lunch hours, I believe a lot of housewives became very familiar with American baseball – because of Nomo-san – they became dedicated fans.

It was really cool to wear the sixteen, the…his number tee-shirt. It was really cool to wear that and also a stadium jacket, those were the two coolest things that you could wear the first couple years that he was with the Dodgers.


baseball broadcasting Hideo Nomo Japan Japan Broadcasting Corporation NHK (firm) Nihon Hoso Kyokai United States

Date: December 20, 2013

Location: California, US

Interviewer: Mark Langill

Contributed by: Watase Media Arts Center, Japanese American National Museum

Interviewee Bio

Margaret Narumi, Producer at NHK Cosmomedia America, Inc., in Santa Monica, California, for two decades has produced broadcasts to Japan of Major League Baseball in the United States, featuring Japanese players such as Hideo Nomo, Hideki Matsui and Yu Darvish. Her interview for Discover Nikkei was conducted in both English and Japanese as part of a documentary on Hideo Nomo for the Japanese American National Museum exhibit, Dodgers—Brotherhood of the Game. (September 2014)

Horikiri,Edward Toru

Longing to be an imperial soldier as a youth (Japanese)

(b. 1929) Kibei Nisei

Kohrogi,Acey

Welcoming Nomo

Former Director of Asian Operations for Los Angeles Dodgers

Kohrogi,Acey

Nomo's impact on later Japanese players

Former Director of Asian Operations for Los Angeles Dodgers

Kohrogi,Acey

Nomo's personality

Former Director of Asian Operations for Los Angeles Dodgers

Kohrogi,Acey

Nomo attendance boost

Former Director of Asian Operations for Los Angeles Dodgers

Kohrogi,Acey

Dodgers relationship with Japan

Former Director of Asian Operations for Los Angeles Dodgers

Kohrogi,Acey

Walter O’Malley’s philosophy

Former Director of Asian Operations for Los Angeles Dodgers

Schneider,Jean Hamako

Why I’m glad I immigrated to America (Japanese)

(b. 1925) War bride

Uesugi,Takeo

Returning to Japan after studying in New York

(1940-2016) Issei Landscape Architect

Uesugi,Takeo

Decision to remain in the US and become an American citizen

(1940-2016) Issei Landscape Architect

Hirano,Paulo Issamu

Moved to Japan as my dekasegi father called on me (Japanese)

(b. 1979) Sansei Nikkei Brazilian who lives in Oizumi-machi in Gunma prefecture. He runs his own design studio.

Hirano,Paulo Issamu

The difference between Nikkei community in Oizumi and Brazil (Japanese)

(b. 1979) Sansei Nikkei Brazilian who lives in Oizumi-machi in Gunma prefecture. He runs his own design studio.

Hirano,Paulo Issamu

Oizumi-machi is my hometown (Japanese)

(b. 1979) Sansei Nikkei Brazilian who lives in Oizumi-machi in Gunma prefecture. He runs his own design studio.

Shikota,Antonio Shinkiti

The reason why he immigrated to Japan (Portuguese)

(b. 1962) Japanese Brazilian owner of a Brazilian products store in Japan.

Shikota,Antonio Shinkiti

Advantages of living in Japan (Portuguese)

(b. 1962) Japanese Brazilian owner of a Brazilian products store in Japan.