PeterPayne.net Personal blog of Peter located in Isesaki, Gunma, Japan
Title
J-List side blog
Description
Excerpted from the website:
- Commomorating Karaoke Culture Day, a cruel joke on the population front, and all about mixed bathing in Japan
- Japan is a big fan of naming special days to create awareness about things we take for granted, like Sweet Potato Day (Oct. 13) or Rubber Manufacturing Day (May 6) or Teddy Bear Day (Oct. 27, the birthday of Theodore Roosevelt, from who the name originates). Why do I know these silly dates? Because every time I start my car, a computerized voice greets me and tells me what special day it is. Today happens to be Karaoke Culture Day, a day to pause and think about the beneficial effects karaoke has had on all or our lives, or something like that. Karaoke sprung into being in 1971, created by musician/inventor Daisuke Inoue, who had been asked by customers at a live house he performed at to record instrumental versions of his songs so they could sing them at company events. With the recent invention of high-tech 8-track tape players, stereos were getting smaller, and Daisuke got the idea for a portable song machine with a microphone jack that would allow people to sing their own songs. The company he founded to market tape-based karaoke machines launched the modern karaoke industry, but it fell on hard times when Laserdisc-based karaoke came along and stole the marketplace, causing Inoue to step down as president to take responsibility for not leading the company more effectively. Unfor- tunately for Daisuke, it never occurred to him to patent the idea or trademark the name "karaoke," mistakes which would cost him hundreds of millions. The name, incidentally, comes from "kara" (empty, as in karate, which means "empty hand") and "orchestra." Since I learned Japanese in part by hanging out at Japanese karaoke restaurants in San Diego and reading the words as they appeared on the screen, I tip my hat to Mr. Inoue, and hope he's enjoying his retirement.
Languages
English
