The Very First Issue of 成人映画

Seijin Eiga, issue #1, July 1965, Michi Kanako on the cover

What we have here, ladies and gentlemen, is an honest-to-goodness very first issue of the magazine Seijin Eiga (Adult Movies). It's not mine but someone I know was able to get this from Yahoo Auction for a quite reasonable sum, I would say, considering how popular this magazine seems to be.

The mag was first published in July 1965, pretty much at the dawn of the pink movie era. I can't really say when the pink era began (some claim as early as 1962); I guess it depends on your definition of a pink film. But I think it's fair to say that the boom really started around 1965.

Whatever the case, this magazine certainly was a pioneer in its field and it continued publishing for at least 93 monthly issues (or until 1973), however, I don't know exactly when it ceased publication.

Over its lifetime, Seijin Eiga chronicled the ups and downs of the pink film industry, focusing on such actresses as Matsui Yasuko, Uchida Takako, Kano Kazuko, Nitaka Keiko, Katsura Nami, and so on. Top directors such as Wakamatsu Koji were frequently profiled.

Here's a view of the back cover.

Seijin Eiga, issue #1, back cover, July 1965

The publisher of Seijin Eiga was Gendai Kobo and its editor was Kawashima Nobuko.

March SM Safari

Hizo-ban Fuzoku Gaho magazine, July 1964

A recent SM Safari yielded the above magazine, the July 1964 issue of Hizo-ban Fuzoku Gaho. I got this at the same place I went to last time.

This is a pretty good mag, especially considering it came out in 1964, the same year as the Tokyo Olympics. I think the best magazines came along in the '70s but I just can't resist some of these more obscure periodicals. This is another one I had never heard of before.

Two Long-Forgotten Pink Films from 1967

Onna no Seidan -- Yamabe Pro, 1967

Right up there with SMpedia and Nawapedia is Eigapedia for information on long-forgotten early pink films.

I came across two such films there recently. The one above, Onna no Seidan, was one of many produced by Yamabe Pro (J). It came out in 1967, the same year Tani Naomi appeared in her first film.

Not long after her debut, Tani began appearing in SM pink flicks and she eventually teamed up with Yamabe Nobuo both personally and professionally as Yamabe became Tani's husband and manager. That union didn't last and he went on to marry Azuma Terumi, a model and actress who co-starred with Tani in Wife to Be Sacrificed.

Azuma Terumi

The other film is Akai Niku (Red Flesh). This one came out on August 20, 1967 and was written by Dan Oniroku. Dan had written other screenplays prior to this under different pen names. This film was also produced by Yamabe Pro and it was distributed by Okura.

Red Flesh -- Yamabe Pro, 1967

For more information on these and many other Japanese films, check out Eigapedia. 

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Nichigeki Music Hall and Tani Naomi, Pt. II

Tani Naomi performance at Kyobashi Academy Gekijo

As mentioned in the previous post, Nichigeki wasn't the only venue in town where one could enjoy an evening of risque entertainment back in the sexy '70s.

The above poster (which I found on Yahoo Auction) has a nude Tani Naomi in bondage promoting her performances at the Kyobashi Academy Gekijo (theater).

There was a bunch of these theaters around. This one was within walking distance of both Tokyo station and Nichigeki.

Nichigeki Music Hall and Tani Naomi

Nichigeki in 1933; photo from Wikipedia

The Nichigeki Music Hall, aka Nihon Gekijo and just Nichigeki, was a giant theater complex which opened in 1933 in the Yurakucho section of Tokyo near Ginza. It was torn down in 1981 and replaced by something else.

It was famous for its "Las Vegas style" revues of scantily clad dancers performing choreographed numbers with full orchestral accompaniment. It seems to have been managed by both the Nikkatsu and Toho film studios at various times in its history. Some Toho actresses took part in the bawdy entertainment when they weren't appearing in films.

Sunday SM Safari

Photo Rope and Woman, Misaki Shobo, 1970

My Photo Safari turned into a regular old SM Safari this past Sunday when I happened upon a cool used bookstore in a town a few stations down the tracks from where I live.

They had tons of old magazines, including old movie magazines. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to find any issues of Seijin Eiga (Adult Movies), but apparently that mag is pretty hard to come by.

WiP Flicks Few and Far Between

Scene from The Jail: A Women's Hell

Next to SM pink flicks, we really like WiP (women-in-prison) films around here. I thought they had completely gone out of style, but then I came across this one from 2006 called The Jail: A Women' s Hell.

It was directed by Bruno Mattei, an Italian filmmaker with a history of sex and violence schlock going back to 1970. Mattei passed away in 2007, aged 75. I'm not sure I've seen any of his other films but there are certainly a lot of them if you check that IMDb link.