Howl’s Moving Castle Lyricist, Shuntaro Tanikawa, Dies st 92

Shuntaro Tanikawa, one of Japan’s most beloved songwriters and poets, passed away at the age of 92. During his remarkable career, Tanikawa wrote the lyrics to the following song: Astro Boy theme song, ending theme song, “The Promise of the World” Howl’s Moving Castleand I translated the timeless comic book, Peanutto Japanese.

The news broke as follows: NHK Confirming that Shuntaro Tanikawa passed away on November 13 at 22:05 JST. The poet died of old age in a Tokyo hospital. According to a chirp His son, Kensaku’s Shuntaro Tanikawa, was accompanied by his daughter in the hospital at the time of his death. Kensaku’s post read: “I was returning from a performance in China and couldn’t make it in time, but my sister came running to me and I was finally with her. It was a peaceful ending. Like everyone else, I was surprised and impressed by Shuntaro’s poems, they made me laugh and cry, I liked them very much. It may sound cliché, but his poems will always be with you. Thank you.”

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Shuntaro Tanikawa was born in Tokyo in 1931 and fell in love with poetry in high school. He published his first poetry collection called. Two Billion Light Years of SolitudeIn 1952. Since then Tanikawa has published over 60 books of poetry. His prose and poetry were admired worldwide and were often taught in Japanese schools. In addition to bringing contemporary Japanese poetry to the Western world, Tanikawa was also responsible for bringing American cartoons to Japan. He translated the famous works of Charles M. Schulz. Peanut Comics into Japanese.

In the animation, Shuntaro Tanikawa wrote the lyrics to the original 1964’s opening theme song. Astro Boy anime Modern anime fans will better remember Tanikawa for writing the lyrics to the closing song of Studio Ghibli’s timeless hit Howl’s Moving Castle -A loose adaptation of Diana Wynne Jones’ novel. Joe Hisaishi’s “Carousel” is the film’s most popular score (thanks in part to social media trends), but Tanikawa’s “The Promise of the World” is a touching song with inspiring lyrics about friendship, optimism and optimism. and the beauty of life.

In an interview in 2022 Associated PressThe poet and songwriter said he was looking forward to his final moments, wondering where he would go. Poet Tanikawa said: “I am more curious about where I will go when I die. It’s a different world, isn’t it? Of course I don’t want to suffer. I don’t want to die after a major surgery or something. “I want to die at once.”

Fans shared on social media their condolences to Tanikawa’s family and that they enjoyed his work. While fans of his poetry shared their favorite lines and poems, anime fans also shared screenshots and audio snippets of Tanikawa’s work. Howl’s Moving Castle.

Shuntaro Tanikawa is survived by two children and several grandchildren. The family held a private funeral to commemorate his life and passing.