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Kaoru Kanetaka

かねたか かおる

Kanetaka Kaoru

Pen Names: Rose Kanetaka（Birth name (legal name)）

Profile

Gender
Female
Born
1928-02-29 （Kobe, Hyogo, Japan）
Died
2019-01-05 （Minato, Tokyo, Japan） age 90
Nationality
Japan
Languages
Japanese, English
Residence History
Kobe, Hyogo, Japan → Tokyo, Japan → Los Angeles, United States (studied) → Awaji Island, Hyogo, Japan (Kaoru Kanetaka Travel Museum) → Yokohama, Japan (Director of Yokohama Doll Museum)

Career

Occupations
Journalist, Reporter, Narrator, Producer, Director
Active Years
1954-2017
Affiliations
Japan Travel Writers Association (Honorary President), Ecotourism Promotion Council (Chairperson), Yokohama Doll Museum (Former Director), Kaoru Kanetaka Travel Museum (Honorary Director), Travel Journal Educational Foundation (Honorary Principal)
Memberships
Japan Travel Writers Association, Japan Broadcast Writers Association

Education

Kōran Girls' School (middle & high school)
Period: 卒業 1946
Year of Graduation: 1946
Country: Japan
Completed middle and high school courses
Los Angeles City College
Period: 1954年 留学
Year of Graduation: 1954
Country: United States of America
Studied abroad (attended/short-term study)

Awards

Japan Broadcast Writers Association Award (Planning Award)
1962
Organization: Japan Broadcast Writers Association
Result: 受賞
Arts Encouragement Prize (Newcomer)
1967
Organization: Agency for Cultural Affairs
Result: 受賞
Galaxy Awards (7th)
1969
Organization: Galaxy Awards
Result: 受賞
Japan Women Broadcasters Association Award
1979
Organization: Japan Women Broadcasters Association
Result: 受賞
Broadcast Woman Award (1979)
1980
Organization: Broadcast Woman Award
Result: 受賞
Foreign Minister's Commendation
1985
Organization: Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Result: 受賞
Order of Merit of the Italian Republic (Cavaliere)
1987
Organization: Government of the Republic of Italy
Result: 受章
Hyogo Prefecture Cultural Award
1988
Organization: Hyogo Prefecture
Result: 受賞
Galaxy Awards 25th Anniversary Special Prize (Love Award)
1988
Organization: Galaxy Awards
Result: 受賞
Japan Travel Writers Association Award
1989
Organization: Japan Travel Writers Association
Result: 受賞
Diamond Lady Award (Tokyo Fashion Association)
1989
Organization: Tokyo Fashion Association
Result: 受賞
Kikuchi Kan Prize
1990
Organization: Kikuchi Kan Prize Committee
Result: 受賞
Diamond Personality Award
1990
Organization: Diamond Inc.
Result: 受賞
Arts Encouragement Prize (Minister of Education Award)
1991
Organization: Agency for Cultural Affairs
Result: 受賞
Medal with Purple Ribbon
1991
Organization: Government of Japan
Result: 受章
Yokohama Cultural Award
1999
Organization: City of Yokohama
Result: 受賞
Minister of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism Special Commendation
2002
Organization: Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism
Result: 受賞
Inducted into the Japan International Tourism Hall of Fame
2004
Organization: Japan International Tourism Hall of Fame
Result: 殿堂入り
Good Ager Award
2004
Organization: Good Ager Award
Result: 受賞

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

Travels Around the World

1959 Travelogue

An early travelogue compiling field notes and encounters from various countries.

travelcultural exchangefield reporting

World Travels

1961 Travelogue

A collection of reports tied to her TV program, reflecting a visual-documentary perspective.

international understandinginteraction of visual media and prose

Kaoru Kanetaka: Journey in Africa

1967 Travelogue

Reporting on the cultures and nature of various African regions, illustrated with photos and records.

ethnographynature conservation

What I Learned from Travel

2010 Memoir / Essays

Reflections and lessons from decades of reporting and travel, explaining why she continued traveling into old age.

philosophy of travelaging and activity

Bibliography

  • Travels Around the World (1959)
  • World Travels (1961)
  • World Travels: Oceania (1962)
  • Kaoru Kanetaka: Journey in Africa (1967)
  • Paradises of the World (1970, editor/supervisor)
  • Nung Boy and Madame Hippo (translation, 1979)
  • Kaoru Kanetaka Travel Album (1985)
  • Tea Time in the Suitcase (1985)
  • My Beloved Places of Rest (1992)
  • My Favorite Cities of the World (1996)
  • What I Learned from Travel (2010)

Adaptations

  • TBS TV program 'Kaoru Kanetaka's World Travels' (1959–1990)

Translations by Author

  • Nung Boy and Madame Hippo (translation, 1979)

Style & Themes

Literary Style
Descriptive reportage emphasizing on-site immediacyEngaging, conversational narration
Recurring Motifs
travelcross-cultural encountersethnographic observationanimals and nature

Health

  • Heart failure
    2019-01-05（死去）
    Died of heart failure on 2019-01-05.
  • Illness / health issues (unspecified)
    断続的（2010年時点で過去に数回の体調不良あり）
    Had intermittent health issues reported up to 2010; these affected fieldwork at times but she largely continued her activities.

Legacy

As the host of 'Kaoru Kanetaka's World Travels', she pioneered travel television and overseas reporting in Japan, reporting from over 150 countries and significantly influencing Japanese international awareness and travel culture. She received numerous honors and was inducted into the tourism hall of fame.

Museums

  • Kaoru Kanetaka Travel Museum Tsunacho, Awaji (now Awaji City), Hyogo, Japan — inside Awaji World Park Opened in 1985

Academic Societies

  • Japan Travel Writers Association
  • Japan Broadcast Writers Association

Archives

  • National Diet Library (collections / digital archive)
  • NHK Archives (appearance materials)
  • Wikimedia Commons (photos and related media)

In Popular Culture

  • Her long-running TV program became synonymous with travel documentary programming in Japan.

Quotes

  • I simply prioritized the ease of movement of dresses.
    Source: Interview (source: Precious magazine and others) (2016)
  • There is no life as wonderful as traveling.
    Source: Book: 'What I Learned from Travel' (2010) (2010)

Trivia

  • She remained single throughout her life.
  • Reported from approximately 150 countries and is said to have traveled the equivalent of 180 times around the Earth.
  • Set a then-record for fastest round-the-world trip in 1958: 73 hours, 9 minutes, 35 seconds.
  • One of the first ordinary women to reach the South Pole (1971).
  • Was gifted an island in the Marshall Islands called 'Kaoru Ene'.