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Kyotaro Nishimura

にしむら きょうたろう

Nishimura Kyotaro

Pen Names: Kihachiro Yajima（Real name）, Shunsuke Kurokawa（Pen name used for Edogawa Rampo Prize applications）, Kyo Nishizaki（Pen name used for SF contest applications）

Profile

Gender
Male
Born
1930-09-06 （Ebaramachi, Tokyo Prefecture (now Shinagawa-ku, Tokyo)）
Died
2022-03-03 （Yugawara Town, Ashigarashimo District, Kanagawa Prefecture） age 91
Nationality
Japan
Languages
Japanese
Residence History
Ebaramachi, Tokyo Prefecture (now Shinagawa-ku, Tokyo) → Chofu City → Hatagaya, Shibuya-ku → Honcho, Shibuya-ku → Nakagyo-ku, Kyoto → Fushimi-ku, Kyoto → Higashiyama-ku, Kyoto → Yugawara Town, Ashigarashimo District, Kanagawa Prefecture

Career

Occupations
Novelist, Mystery writer
Active Years
1961-2022
Influenced By
William Irish
Influenced
Misa Yamamura

Education

Tokyo Metropolitan Electrical Industrial School
Country: Japan
Dropped out of the old-style industrial technical school and entered the Tokyo Army Cadet School, but returned after the war ended.

Awards

All Yomimono Mystery Novel Newcomer Award
1963
Work: Distorted Morning
Organization: All Yomimono
Result: 受賞
Edogawa Rampo Prize
1965
Work: Angel’s Scar
Organization: Edogawa Rampo Prize Executive Committee
Result: 受賞
Mystery Writers of Japan Award
1981
Work: The Last Station Murder Case
Organization: Mystery Writers of Japan
Result: 受賞
Japan Mystery Literature Award
2005
Organization: Japan Mystery Literature Award Executive Committee
Result: 受賞
Eiji Yoshikawa Literary Award
2019
Work: Totsugawa Detective Series
Organization: Eiji Yoshikawa Literary Award Committee
Result: 受賞
Futaba Newcomer Prize Second Place
1962
Work: Sick Heart
Organization: Futaba Corporation
Result: 入選
Hayakawa SF Contest Effort Award
1964
Work: Spaceship 307
Organization: Hayakawa Publishing
Result: 受賞
21st Century Japan, Creative Division, Grand Prize
1967
Work: Sun and Sand
Result: 受賞
Japan Literary Club Award Special Prize
1997
Organization: Japan Literary Club
Result: 受賞
Elan d’Or Award Special Prize
2004
Organization: Elan d'Or Award Executive Committee
Result: 受賞
Hasegawa Shin Award
2010
Organization: Hasegawa Shin Award Committee
Result: 受賞

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

Angel’s Scar

1965 Mystery

The Limited Express Murder Case

1978 Mystery

A representative travel mystery featuring a murder on a limited express sleeper train.

Travel mysteryMurder
Adaptations
  • [TV drama] Kyotaro Nishimura Travel Mystery

The Last Station Murder Case

1981 Mystery

Style & Themes

Literary Style
Social mystery novelsSpy novelsClosed circleParody novelsHistorical novelsTravel mystery
Recurring Motifs
RailwaysMaritime accidentsKidnappingAlibi tricksYacht

Health

  • Liver cancer
    晩年
    Died of liver cancer in 2022.
  • Kidney stones
    1987年
    Emergency hospitalization but discharged within two days.
  • Stroke
    1996年
    Collapsed and left with partial paralysis of the left side, but continued writing.

Legacy

Had a significant impact on Japanese mystery literature and established the travel mystery genre.

Museums

  • Kyotaro Nishimura Museum Yugawara Town, Ashigarashimo District, Kanagawa Prefecture Opened in 2001

Academic Societies

  • Mystery Writers of Japan

In Popular Culture

  • Numerous TV drama adaptations

Quotes

  • I would like to write 635 books, surpassing the Tokyo Skytree’s 634 meters. Just kidding.
    Source: Interview (2017) (2017)

Trivia

  • Original manuscripts are exhibited at the Kyotaro Nishimura Museum.
  • His hobby was shogi and some works feature shogi players.
  • He never obtained a driver’s license.