96-608: Toho Co., Ltd. ( 東宝株式会社 , Tōhō Kabushiki-gaisha ) is a Japanese entertainment company that primarily engages in producing and distributing films and exhibiting stage plays. It is headquartered in Chiyoda, Tokyo , and is one of the core companies of the Osaka -based Hankyu Hanshin Toho Group . Toho is best known for producing and distributing many of Ishirō Honda and Eiji Tsuburaya 's kaiju and tokusatsu films as well as
192-502: A New Left student movement. However, the movement proved unpopular with the broader public, and the JCP was able to use its image as a "peaceful" and "positive" force during the protests as a recruitment tool. Membership in the party soared during the course of the protests, doubling from 40,000 to 80,000, and most of the new recruits wound up supporting the Kōza Ha line. Over the remainder of
288-585: A proletarian party . Those members arrested in 1923, and released in 1924 believed that the conditions for a communist party were not present and decided to dissolve the party at the Morigasaki Conference in March. However, Grigori Voitinsky rejected this and ordered them to reestablish the party. In August, a committee with Tokuda as chair was formed to reestablish the party. Masanosuke Watanabe and Sano held positions in this committee and Arahata
384-542: A brief electoral resurgence after the collapse of the JSP in 1996; however, the party has generally been in decline since in terms of electoral results and party membership. The party at present advocates the establishment of a democratic society based on pacificism . It believes that this objective can be achieved by working within an electoral framework while carrying out an extra-parliamentary struggle against " imperialism and its subordinate ally, monopoly capital ". As such,
480-455: A communist party and calling for work to be done solely within labor unions. Katayama's theoretical understanding of Marxism also remained low. In the aftermath of the 1923 Great Kanto Earthquake , there was a campaign of rumors instigated by Japanese state authorities that incited widespread massacres of suspected enemies of the state by military, police, and vigilante forces. Military and police officials assassinated key leftist leaders under
576-569: A controlling 67.4% stake in TIA, making the studio a subsidiary, and ultimately renaming the studio into Toho Animation Studios. In December 2023, Toho announced their intent to acquire a 25% stake in Fifth Season for $ 225 million via Toho International. Following the completion of the deal, Fifth Season will be valued at $ 900 million; CJ ENM will remain the majority shareholder in the company, with former owner Endeavor also continuing to serve as
672-571: A joint candidate for governor or mayor so that all parties are assured of being part of the ruling coalition. If the JCP did not offer a candidate, there would be a walkover and Japanese voters would be offered a fait accompli without an electoral avenue of protest. Promoting women candidates in elections to win women's votes is another characteristic of the party. More women are elected under the communist label than other political parties in Japan." In 2008, foreign media recorded an increase in support for
768-605: A line from its platform which described China as a country "that is beginning a new quest for socialism". JCP members have stated that this was due to human rights conditions in China . The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of China denounced the accusations of the JCP as "groundless and biased". The party officially upholds democratic centralism . The party constitutions states decisions "shall be based on democratic discussion and finally decided by majority vote" and that "there shall be no factions or splinter groups". Along with Komeito ,
864-538: A meeting of members of the Japanese Communist Party in Atami . According to a March 1933 article on the raid, the accused were not the "rag-tag-and-bobtail" of the people. Only a very small minority of the accused were laborers. Almost all the accused were of the "better classes". Among the accused were two judges, two professors of universities, lawyers, teachers, and students. Professor S.H Roberts of
960-657: A prominent member on 18 March 1929. This resulted in mass arrests that left Yamamoto, who was sick in Moscow, as one of the few leaders not in prison. 81 high-ranking members of Zenkyō were arrested in April. The party was reconstituted by Seigen Tanaka, Zenshirō Zennō, and Hiroshi Sano in July. Many members wanted to dissolve the party as the Peace Preservation Law was amended to inflict the death penalty. Jōkichi Kazama
1056-591: A series of games based on Godzilla and a 1992 game called Serizawa Nobuo no Birdy Try . It also published games such as Super Aleste ( Space Megaforce in North America). They even worked with Bandai on Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde , released in Japan in 1988 and in the United States in 1989. dates as company employee The Toho Cinderella Audition is an audition to discover new young actresses, first held in 1984 and irregularly held since then. It
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#17327832647431152-401: A strategic shareholder. CEOs Graham Taylor and Chris Rice stated that this investment would empower the company to continue the expansion of its premium slate and create opportunities for collaboration between Fifth Season, Toho and CJ ENM to produce global content as well as content produced in Japan. Following the success of Godzilla Minus One (2023) as their first self-distributed film in
1248-461: A strategy to increase content, platform, real-estate, beat JPY50 billion profits, and increase character businesses on Toho intellectual properties such as Godzilla. Hiroyasu Matsuoka was named the representative director of the US subsidiary. In 2020, Toho acquired a 34.8% stake in the animation studio TIA, with ILCA and Anima each retaining a 32.6% stake. In 2022, Toho acquired Anima's 32.6% stake to take
1344-527: A training school for Korean revolutionaries was operated jointly by the JCP and several Korean organizations, including the Communist Party of Korea . In South Korea, the JCP is known as the only "pro-South Korea" political party in Japan. Although it is illegal to form a communist party in South Korea, Mindan maintains friendly relations with the JCP. In 2003, due to the consideration of
1440-436: A union affiliated with the JCP, had around 1.5 million members as overall Japanese union membership rose to 6 million in the post-war period. The JCP benefited from Japan's Korean population that was more favorable to communism due to discrimination and high unemployment rates. The JCP made dramatic gains in the 1949 general election , tripling its popular vote support and increasing its seat total from 4 to 35. Beginning in
1536-420: Is a Japanese anime production label founded in 2012, and owned by Toho Co., Ltd., which is one of the top three film distributors in Japan. Toho has produced revivals and original works. Years shown refer to when they staged each piece. In more recent years and for a period, they have produced video games . One of their first video games was the 1990 NES game titled Circus Caper . Later, they followed with
1632-538: Is considered one of Japan's "Big Three Actress Auditions", along with Oscar Promotion 's National Bishōjo Contest and Horipro 's Talent Scout Caravan. Toho's headquarters, the Toho Hibiya Building ( 東宝日比谷ビル , Tōhō Hibiya Biru ) , are in Yūrakuchō , Chiyoda, Tokyo . The company moved into its current headquarters in April 2005. Chiyoda, Tokyo Too Many Requests If you report this error to
1728-627: Is the largest shareholder (7.96%) of Fuji Media Holdings Inc. Toho is one of the four members of the Motion Picture Producers Association of Japan (MPPAJ), is the largest of Japan's Big Four film studios, and is the only film studio that is a component of the Nikkei 225 index. For filmography, see List of Toho films . Toho was created by the founder of the Hankyu Railway , Ichizō Kobayashi , in 1932 as
1824-531: Is the oldest political party in the country . It has 250,000 members as of January 2024, making it one of the largest non-governing communist parties in the world. The party is chaired by Tomoko Tamura , who replaced longtime leader Kazuo Shii in January 2024. The JCP was repressed by the Japanese government in the three decades immediately following its founding. The Allied occupation of Japan legalized
1920-588: The Godzilla franchise , as well as spin-offs. Toho has also been involved in the production of numerous anime titles. Its subdivisions are Toho-Towa Company, Limited (Japanese exclusive theatrical distributor of Universal Pictures via NBCUniversal Entertainment Japan ), Towa Pictures Company Limited (Japanese exclusive theatrical distributor of Paramount Pictures ), Toho Pictures Incorporated, Toho International Inc. , Toho E. B. Company Limited, and Toho Music Corporation & Toho Costume Company Limited. The company
2016-501: The 1928 election , but a crackdown on 15 March resulted in 1,200 people, including Communist leaders, being arrested and the Japanese government dissolved Hyōgikai and Labour-Farmer Party. Sano, Watanabe, Shoichi Ichikawa , Kenzō Yamamoto, and Hideo Namba avoided arrest as they were serving as representatives to the 6th World Congress of the Communist International and reorganized the party. The Labour-Farmer Party
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#17327832647432112-548: The Allied military occupation of Japan . The first issue of Shimbun Akahata after the end of the war thanked the Allied occupation for the "democratic revolution" that was occurring and called for the recreation of a communist political party. A national conference was held on 8 November 1945, and the 4th Party Congress was held from 1 to 2 December. Nosaka returned to Japan after fourteen years in exile on 10 January 1946. Under
2208-1021: The Communist Party USA . Katayama founded the Association of Japanese Socialists in America and served as chair of the Far Eastern People's Congress. In 1921, Katayama was informed by the Communist International (Comintern) that the First Congress of the Toiler of the Far East would be held on 21 January 1922 in Irkutsk. Three men from his organization (Watanabe Haruo, Taguchi Unzo, and Maniwa Suekichi) served as delegates. The Japanese Communist Party
2304-734: The National Diet . By the mid-1960s, the United States Department of State estimated party membership to be approximately 120,000 (0.2% of the working-age population), Miyamoto reported a membership above 100,000 in 1964, and the party had acquired around 300,000 members by 1970. The JCP's vote totals in the prefectural assemblies doubled between the 1959 and 1963 elections and their seats rose from 12 to 22 despite running 200 fewer candidates. The JCP's vote totals and seats in city council elections rose from 509,069 to 880,991 votes and 218 to 369 seats. Their vote totals in
2400-552: The Social Democratic Party (SDP), and Reiwa Shinsengumi . The JCP has maintained a friendly relationship with the Japanese feminist camp since its inception, and is still the most active in women's rights issues among Japan's major political parties. The JCP was the first party to call for universal suffrage for women . The party supports eliminating the wage gap between men and women and has called for
2496-692: The Tokyo-Takarazuka Theatre Company ( 株式会社東京宝塚劇場 , Kabushiki gaisha Tōkyō Takarazuka Gekijō ) . It managed much of the kabuki in Tokyo and, among other properties, the eponymous Tokyo Takarazuka Theatre and the Imperial Garden Theater in Tokyo ; Toho and Shochiku enjoyed a duopoly over theaters in Tokyo for many years. After the end of World War II , the new Occupation government allowed and encouraged
2592-579: The United Nations Charter . The JCP took a neutral stance during the Sino-Soviet split and Miyamoto believed that it was unnecessary for the JCP to take a side. A pro-Chinese faction under the leadership of Hakamada Satomi and pro-Soviet faction under the leadership of Yoshio Shiga and Shigeo Kamiyama existed within the JCP. However, both groups were in the minority compared to the neutral faction. Another pro-Soviet faction of
2688-527: The University of Sydney reported in a 1934 newspaper that "all Japan was stirred when it was realized that only a minority of prisoners were laborers." In addition, the arrested were also accused of being connected to the Omori Bank Robbery . Kazama and other leaders were arrested in fall 1932. The party was reformed by Masami Yamamoto, who was also sent from Moscow, in January 1933, but he
2784-526: The dissolution of the Soviet Union , the JCP released a press statement titled "We welcome the end of a party which embodied the historical evil of great power chauvinism and hegemonism ". The party also criticized the Eastern Bloc countries which abandoned socialism, describing their decisions as a "reversal of history". Consequently, the party did not suffer an internal crisis as a result of
2880-413: The left–right political spectrum . The JCP strives to change the nation's economic policy of what it views as serving the interests of large corporations and banks to one of "defending the interests of the people". It advocates establishing "democratic rules" that will check the activities of large corporations and "protect the lives and basic rights of the people". Regarding the international economy ,
2976-518: The national anthem , both of which the party views as relics of Japan's militarist past. The JCP has been one of the political parties to vocally back LGBTQ+ rights in the country ; communist lawmakers have been working to win the passage of same-sex marriage and anti-discrimination laws in parliament. The JCP jointly supports the passing of an LGBT equality law with the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan (CDP),
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3072-495: The one-party politics of China and the Soviet Union, and purged pro-Soviet or Chinese members. His efforts to regain electoral support were particularly successful in urban areas such as Osaka, Kyoto, and Tokyo, and the JCP worked with the Japan Socialist Party (JSP) in the 1970s to elect a number of progressive mayors and governors. By 1979, the JCP held about 10% of the seats in the National Diet . The party saw
3168-585: The "Thought Police". JCP members and sympathizers were imprisoned and pressured to " convert " ( tenkō suru ) to anti-communist nationalism. Many of those who refused to convert remained imprisoned for the duration of the Pacific War . The Japanese Communist Party member Hotsumi Ozaki , who was part of the Richard Sorge spy ring for the Kremlin , was the only Japanese person hanged for treason under
3264-486: The 1930s, while the JCP was still illegal, it was the only political party to vocally oppose Japan's war with China . The JCP supports Japanese territorial claims over the Kuril and Senkaku Islands and Liancourt Rocks . Furthermore, the JCP has condemned North Korea's nuclear-weapons testing, calling for effective sanctions, but opposing the prospect of a military response. The JCP's leading politicians are known to be
3360-471: The 1960s, the Kōza Ha was able to purge many members from the Rōnō Ha faction, and others, dissatisfied with JCP policies, quit the party of their own accord. Miyamoto was able to cement his control over the party and reigned as party chairman all the way until 1982. Meanwhile, the party's membership continued to grow rapidly, and the party began to make steady gains at the ballot box, winning more and more seats in
3456-559: The 2014 elections, receiving 7,040,130 votes (13.3%) in the constituency section and 6,062,962 (11.37%) in the party lists. During the nomination period of the July 2016 House of Councillors election , the party signed an agreement with the Democratic , Social Democratic and People's Life parties to field a jointly endorsed candidate in each of the 32 districts in which only one seat was contested, uniting in an attempt to take control of
3552-599: The House from the LDP–Komeito coalition. JCP leaders expressed willingness to enter into a coalition with the Democratic Party, a notion which was rejected by then-Democratic Party President Katsuya Okada as being "impossible" in the near future due to what he viewed as some of the "extreme leftist policies" promoted by the JCP. The party had three Councillors up for re-election and fielded a total of 56 candidates in
3648-414: The JCP after World War II , but the party's unexpected success in the 1949 general election led to the " Red Purge ", in which the Japanese government removed tens of thousands of actual and suspected communists from their jobs. The Soviet Union encouraged the JCP to respond with a violent revolution; the consequent internal debate fractured the party into several factions. The dominant faction, backed by
3744-456: The JCP argued that the main enemy was American imperialism, and along with affiliated groups, focused its protests around the U.S. Embassy in Tokyo. Accordingly, JCP-linked groups were the driving force behind the " Hagerty Incident " in which the car carrying U.S. President Eisenhower 's press secretary James Hagerty was mobbed outside of Tokyo's Haneda Airport on 10 June 1960, provoking a major international incident and helping to precipitate
3840-422: The JCP became a more traditional democratic socialist party after modifying its policies in the 1990s. This analysis is supported by the Japanese political scientist Kōji Nakakita [ ja ] , who is often cited as a specialist on the JCP. The JCP follows a Marxist ideology, stating that the theory of Marx and Engels is the foundation of their program. The party sits on the left to far-left of
3936-684: The JCP does not advocate violent revolution but rather a "democratic revolution" to achieve "democratic change in politics and the economy". It accepts the current constitutional position of the emperor but opposes the involvement of the Imperial House in politics. A staunchly anti-militarist party, the JCP firmly supports Article 9 of the Japanese Constitution and seeks to dissolve the Japan Self-Defense Forces . It opposes Japan's military alliance with
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4032-420: The JCP gradually began to pull back from its militant line, a process facilitated by the death of Stalin in 1953. At the 6th Party Congress in 1955, the JCP renounced the militant line completely, returning to its old "peaceful line" of gradually pursuing socialist revolution through peaceful, democratic means. Shigeo Shida [ ja ] and Ritsu Itō [ ko ] were informally controlling
4128-417: The JCP has advocated establishing a new international democratic economic order on the basis of respect for each country's economic sovereignty . The party strongly opposed Japan's consideration of the failed Trans-Pacific Partnership . The JCP views the United States, transnational corporations, and international financial capital as the main pushers of globalization , which it asserts is negatively affecting
4224-481: The JCP in the early 1950s. Tokuda's death in 1953 created a power vacuum in the party. Shida won and Itō was expelled from the party, having been accused of being a spy. Shida's influence waned in the late 1950s as Miyamoto, who became General Secretary in 1958, gained power. Members of Shida's faction later broke away to from a new JCP in September 1965. This group performed poorly in elections despite support from
4320-430: The Kōza Ha (Lecture Faction), which dated back to the prewar era. Among other disagreements, the two factions disagreed over which stage of Marxist development Japan was currently in; the Rōnō Ha believed that Japan had already achieved full capitalism, which meant that an immediate socialist revolution was possible, whereas the Kōza Ha argued that Japan's transition to capitalism was not yet complete and that therefore what
4416-498: The Peace Preservation Law. Police also widely used methods of torture against arrested communists. One of the JCP members killed by police torture in this period was the writer Kobayashi Takiji . Hyōgikai was formed on 25 May 1925, and this union served as a vehicle for the communist party. Other proletariat parties ( Japan Farmers Party , Japan Labour-Farmer Party , Social Democratic Party , and Labour-Farmer Party ) were formed during this period. These parties won seven seats in
4512-673: The Soviet Union and China. A purge of pro-Chinese elements in the JCP, including Tokuda's son Nishizawa Ryūji from the Central Committee, was conducted in 1966. In 1976, mentions of "Marxism–Leninism" in the party program were changed to " scientific socialism ". In 2020, the JCP revised its platform for the first time since 2004. The new platform criticized the Chinese Communist Party , denouncing China's "great-power chauvinism and hegemonism" as "an adverse current to world peace and progress". The JCP also removed
4608-463: The Soviet Union's collapse in 1991, nor did it consider disbanding or changing its name. However, owing to a significant loss in electoral support, the party revised its policies in the 1990s and became a more traditional democratic socialist party. Lam Peng Er argued in the Pacific Affairs in 1996 that "the JCP's viability is crucial to the health of Japanese democracy" because "[i]t is
4704-403: The Soviet Union. In 1960, the JCP played a central role in organizing the massive Anpo protests against the U.S.–Japan Security Treaty , which were the largest protests in Japanese history. The JCP took a different line than the Japan Socialist Party , Sohyo labor federation, and other groups who argued that the main target of the protest movement was Japanese monopoly capitalism. Instead,
4800-536: The Soviet-led Cominform , at the behest of Soviet premier Joseph Stalin , issued a blistering criticism of the JCP's peaceful line as "opportunism" and "glorifying American imperialism". It also demanded that the JCP carry out an immediate violent revolution along Maoist lines. This devastating "Cominform Criticism" led rival JCP factions to compete for the Cominform's approval, and ultimately led to
4896-590: The Soviets, waged an unsuccessful guerrilla campaign in Japan's rural areas, which undercut the party's public support. In 1958, Kenji Miyamoto became the JCP's leader and moderated the party's policies, abandoning the previous line of violent revolution. Miyamoto also began distancing the JCP from the Eastern Bloc in the 1960s. The party maintained a neutral stance during the Sino-Soviet split , declared its support for multi-party democracy in opposition to
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#17327832647434992-514: The U.S., Toho declared in March 2024 that Godzilla is their " Intellectual property (IP) treasure" and they had regained retailing rights overseas (which were once abandoned), and now are able to sell, advertise, and distribute their own products to consumers outside Japan directly. The company also said that the film winning Best Visual Effects at the 96th Academy Awards is helping them gain more recognition and advancing more business extension overseas. Toho Animation (stylized as TOHO animation )
5088-416: The United States as an unequal relationship and infringement of Japan's national sovereignty . Sanzō Nosaka became a communist in the late 1910s and was a founding member of the Communist Party of Great Britain . Sen Katayama left Japan for the United States in 1914, after serving a prison sentence for supporting a strike. He became a communist during his time in the country and was a founding member of
5184-750: The United States during the 1950s through Henry G. Saperstein , Toho took over the La Brea Theatre in Los Angeles to show its films without the need to sell them to a distributor. It was known as the Toho Theatre from the late 1960s until the 1970s. Toho also had a theater in San Francisco and opened a theater in New York City in 1963. The Shintoho Company, which existed until 1961, was named New Toho because it broke off from
5280-545: The Wikimedia System Administrators, please include the details below. Request from 172.68.168.132 via cp1112 cp1112, Varnish XID 942734279 Upstream caches: cp1112 int Error: 429, Too Many Requests at Thu, 28 Nov 2024 08:41:05 GMT Japan Communist Party The Japanese Communist Party ( 日本共産党 , Nihon Kyōsan-tō , abbr. JCP ) is a communist party in Japan . Founded in 1922, it
5376-608: The aim of both cutting expenses and eliminating Communist leaders from the union. Negotiations failed and the union occupied the studio on April 15, joined by activists from the Japan Communist Party and other organizations, erecting barricades and closing the main gates. On August 13, the Tokyo District Court decided in Toho's favor, and on the morning of August 19, a district police chief arrived at
5472-474: The best ten films of the year in Kinema Junpo . However, each film had double or triple the budget of films produced by other studios, and the company suffered severe losses. In 1948, the new Toho president Tetsuzo Watanabe ordered a return of the wartime quota of 24 films per year and the end of control over production by the union. In April, Toho management announced the dismissal of 1200 employees, with
5568-480: The bills. It was the first time the party had called for such cooperation with other parties. The JCP is generally regarded as the most progressive party in Japanese politics. The JCP has traditionally been opposed to the existence of the Imperial House since its inception. However, the party changed its stance in 2004 by acknowledging the Emperor as Japan's head of state. The JCP has stated that it supports
5664-584: The cover of martial law, including Ōsugi Sakae . In May 1923, a roster of the JCP's membership was found by police at Manabu Sano's quarters at Waseda University . A series of protests were occurring at the university about military training. On 5 June, almost every member of the party, except those in rural areas or outside the country, were arrested. A group of Japanese communists, including Arahata, assembled in Vladivostok in August, and decided to create
5760-482: The delegates. The Anpo protests greatly strengthened the hand of the Kōza Ha faction. During the protest, the JCP, still scarred by the backlash to its violent line in the 1950s, consistently advocated peaceful, orderly, and restrained protests. This stance was highly unpopular with the radical student activists of the Zengakuren student federation, who broke decisively with the JCP as a result and began to build
5856-520: The downfall of the Nobusuke Kishi cabinet. The Anpo protests were a turning point in the JCP's ongoing attempts to revive its political fortunes after the disastrous turn toward violent revolution in the early 1950s. Although the Maoists had been purged from the party following the earlier disaster, the JCP was still riven by the age-old rivalry between the Rōnō Ha (Worker-Farmer Faction) and
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#17327832647435952-452: The election, down from 63 candidates in the 2013 election, but still the second-highest number after the LDP. However, only 14 of those candidates contested single- and multi-member districts, while 42 contested the 48-seat national proportional representation block. Councillor Tomoko Tamura was appointed as the party's first chairwoman on 18 January 2024, replacing Kazuo Shii who had occupied
6048-569: The end of 1949. In May 1953, Toho established Toho International , a Los Angeles -based subsidiary intended to target North American and Latin American markets. Seven Samurai was among the first films offered for foreign sales. Toho and Shochiku competed with the influx of Hollywood films and boosted the film industry by focusing on new directors of the likes of Akira Kurosawa , Kon Ichikawa , Keisuke Kinoshita , Ishirō Honda , and Kaneto Shindo . After several successful film exports to
6144-406: The establishment of a democratic republic, but also that "[the monarchy's] continuation or discontinuation should be decided by the will of the majority of the people in future, when the time is ripe to do so". In 2000, the party opposed legislation which reintroduced two symbolic practices to secondary school graduation ceremonies in Japan, namely the raising of the national flag and the singing of
6240-412: The fall of 1949, in reaction to the JCP's electoral success and as part of the " Reverse Course " in Allied occupation policy amid rising Cold War tensions, the Allied occupation authorities and the Japanese government carried out a sweeping Red Purge , firing tens of thousands of communists and suspected communists from government posts, teaching positions at schools, and private corporations. The purge
6336-499: The films of Akira Kurosawa and the anime of Studio Ghibli , CoMix Wave Films , TMS Entertainment , and OLM, Inc. The company has released the majority of the highest-grossing Japanese films , and through its subsidiaries, is the largest film importer in Japan. Toho's most famous creation is Godzilla , featured in 33 of the company's films. Godzilla, Rodan , Mothra , King Ghidorah , and Mechagodzilla are described as Toho's Big Five due to their numerous appearances throughout
6432-604: The formation of labor unions , which had been banned under the Imperial government. During a general strike of film studio employees beginning in October 1946, a group of Toho's ten top stars led by Denjiro Okochi split from the main Toho union along with 445 employees. During the resolution of the strike, a closed-shop provision with the main union led to the establishment of the Shintoho Company, which comprised
6528-454: The front gate to read out the court decision. Two thousand policemen surrounded the studio, reinforced by soldiers, three airplanes, and several armored cars and tanks sent by the U.S. Eighth Army . The union leaders agreed to end their occupation on the condition the union was not disbanded. Toho was severely weakened after the strikes and produced only four films in 1948 and five films in 1949, and continued to distribute Shintoho films until
6624-460: The global economy by further widening the North–South economic divide and creating irrevocable environmental problems. The JCP advocates the "democratic regulation of activities by transnational corporations and international financial capital on an international scale". In September 2015, after the passage of the 2015 Japanese military legislation , the JCP called for cooperation from other opposition parties to form an interim government to abolish
6720-432: The guidance of Nosaka, the party pursued a policy of portraying itself as "lovable". Nosaka's strategy involved avoiding open calls for violent revolution and taking advantage of the seemingly pro-labor stance of the Allied occupation to organize the urban working classes and win power at the ballot box and through propaganda. In particular, the party was successful in winning acceptance of the notion that communists had been
6816-537: The idea that Japan, as an Asian country, must not allow its relationship with the United States and the G8 to define its foreign relations and should put its East Asian neighbors at the center of its diplomatic efforts. It supports establishing an "independent foreign policy in the interests of the Japanese people" and rejects "uncritically following any foreign power". The JCP advocates that Japan issue further apologies for its actions during World War II and has condemned prime ministerial visits to Yasukuni Shrine . In
6912-465: The imperial regime's expansionist policy in Asia . Following the outbreak of the 1931 Japanese invasion of Manchuria , the Japanese Communist Party had infiltrated the military, including in Tokyo, and Osaka. They would distribute leaflets, and newspapers opposing the war. On 4 October 1945, all political prisoners, including communists that had been imprisoned for decades, were ordered to be released by
7008-505: The long term, international situation permitting. The JCP opposes the possession of nuclear weapons by any country, military blocs, and attempts to revise Article 9 of the Japanese Constitution , which says that "never again ... [will Japan] be visited with the horrors of war through the action of government". Regarding the resolution of disputes, it argues that priority must be given to peaceful means through negotiations, not to military solutions. The JCP says that Japan must adhere to
7104-542: The members of the dissenting union and former Toho facilities. The loss of major stars led to the hiring and training of new stars, including Toshiro Mifune . The contract made after the strike stipulated that Toho would only produce films approved by a committee that included union members, which led to filmmakers gaining unprecedented creative and productive control over their films. While Toho produced only thirteen films in 1947, six Toho films, including One Wonderful Sunday , directed by Akira Kurosawa , were ranked among
7200-426: The militant "1951 Platform" ( 51年綱領 ) which declared that "it would be a serious mistake to think that Japan's liberation can be achieved through peaceful, democratic means" and called for an immediate violent revolution. This thesis was a combination of late Stalinist and Maoist thought. The result was a campaign of violence in which JCP activists threw Molotov cocktails at police boxes and cadres were sent up into
7296-459: The most active opponents of anti-Korean racism and xenophobia in Japan. Contemporary JCP politicians criticize mainstream Japanese politicians for instigating contempt towards Korea, and oppose historical revisionism in regard to Korean history and Japanese war crimes. The JCP was one of the few Japanese parties which supported the Korean independence movement . In the latter half of the 1940s,
7392-459: The mountains with instructions to organize ostensibly oppressed farmers into " mountain guerrilla squads ". The backlash to the JCP's new militant line was swift and severe. Militants were rounded up, tried, and sentenced to lengthy prison terms, and in the 1952 general election, Japanese voters vented their ire at the JCP by stripping the party of every single one of its 35 Diet seats, a blow from which it would take two decades to recover. Stunned,
7488-424: The only established party in parliament that has not been coopted by the conservative parties. It performs the watchdog role against the ruling parties without fear or favor. More importantly, the JCP often offers the only opposition candidate in prefectural governorship, city mayoral and other local elections. Despite the ostensible differences between the non-communist parties at the national level, they often support
7584-461: The only ones to resist Japanese wartime militarism . This propaganda effort won the party thousands of new members and an even larger number of sympathizers, especially among artists and intellectuals. Party membership, which never exceeded 1,000 in the pre-war period, rose from 1,180 in December 1945, to 7,500 by February 1946, 70,000 by December 1947, and over 100,000 by April 1950. Sanbetsu ,
7680-419: The original company. Toho has contributed to the production of some American films, including Sam Raimi 's 1998 film, A Simple Plan and Paul W. S. Anderson 's 2020 military science fiction / kaiju film, Monster Hunter . In 2019, Toho invested ¥15.4 billion ($ 14 million) into their Los Angeles-based subsidiary Toho International Inc. as part of their "Toho Vision 2021 Medium-term Management Strategy",
7776-637: The participation of more women in Japanese politics and political life. One of the JCP's main objectives is terminating the Japan–United States military alliance and the dismantling of all American military bases in Japan , with a goal to make Japan a non-aligned and neutral country , in accordance with its principles of self-determination and national sovereignty . There are about 130 American military bases and related facilities in Japan, with Okinawa Prefecture alone hosting more than half of United States Forces Japan personnel. The JCP adheres to
7872-493: The party due to the effect of the global financial crisis on Japanese workers. However, the party failed to increase its number of seats in the 2009 general election . Subsequently, the projected decline of the party was halted, with the JCP becoming the third-largest party in the Tokyo Metropolitan Assembly and making gains in the House of Councillors, going from six to 11 seats. The party surged in
7968-625: The party for voting in favor of the Partial Nuclear Test Ban Treaty in 1963. Shiga and Suzuki were praised in Soviet publications, including Pravda . The publication of Shimbun Akahata faced restrictions in the Soviet Union while Shiga's Voice of Japan did not. The JCP supported China during the Sino-Indian War . Miyamoto announced the JCP's opposition to the 1968 Soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia . At
8064-566: The party was under the leadership of Shōjirō Kasuga . Kasuga's faction formed the Preparatory Commission for a Socialist Reform Movement on 9 October 1961. This group broke away on 3 May 1962, and formed the Unified Socialist League with 600 members. Relations between the Soviet Union and JCP soured as the Soviets attempted to court the JSP. Shiga and Ichizo Suzuki [ jp ] were expelled from
8160-499: The role for over 23 years. The JCP is one of the largest non-governing communist parties in the world; it is, however, politically moderate and advocates a peaceful transition to communism. Marxism–Leninism , which former party chairman Tetsuzo Fuwa had worked for years to make acceptable to the electorate, was abandoned in favor of scientific socialism in 1976. According to the Encyclopædia Britannica ,
8256-416: The same time, the party had distanced itself from Mao and Maoism, which allowed it to avoid being associated with China's Great Leap Forward and Cultural Revolution once they started coming more fully to light in the 1970s. In July 1969, the JCP declared that if it ever came to power, it would permit the free functioning of opposition parties, in an effort to distinguish itself from the one-party states in
8352-521: The then liberal South Korean president Roh Moo-hyun , formal exchanges between the JCP and the South Korean government began. The JCP has traditionally championed pacifism . With regards to the Japan Self-Defense Forces (Japan's armed forces), the JCP's current policy is that it is not principally opposed to its existence (in 2000 the party stated that it would agree to its use should Japan ever be attacked), but that it will seek to abolish it in
8448-482: The town council elections doubled and their seats rose from 168 to 314. In the 1972 general election , the JCP won an astonishing 38 seats in the Diet, surpassing its 1949 high of 35 and signaling the party's full recovery from the disastrous militant line of the early 1950s. Party membership continued to grow in the 1970s, albeit at a slower rate than in the 1960s, reaching approximately 500,000 members by 1980. After
8544-414: The turn of the century. From the former came Yamakawa Hitoshi , Sakai Toshihiko , and Kanson Arahata , who had all been supporters of Kōtoku Shūsui , an anarchist executed in 1911. Katayama, another early party leader, had been a Christian socialist for much of his political life. The three former anarchists were reluctant to found the JCP, with Yamakawa shortly after arguing that Japan was not ready for
8640-613: Was an organizer in the Kansai region . The JCP was formally reestablished on 4 December 1926. Fukumoto Kazuo , a rising figure in Japanese communism, was a member and his ideology, Fukumotoism, was a main part of the platform. The JCP was outlawed in 1925 with the passage of the Peace Preservation Law , the JCP was subjected to repression and persecution by the Special Higher Police ( Tokkō ), nicknamed
8736-448: Was arrested in May. Manabu Sano, Kazama, Tanaka, and other imprisoned Communist leaders denounced communism starting in May. The leadership of the party's central committee passed from Eitaro Noro to Kenji Miyamoto to Hakamada Satomi as a result of each person's arrests. The party lost its organization after Satomi's arrested in 1935. The JCP campaigned against the invasion of China and
8832-512: Was founded in Tokyo on 15 July 1922, at a meeting where Kyuichi Tokuda discussed sessions held between the Japanese delegation and Comintern officials. Two delegates were sent to the 4th World Congress of the Communist International and a general meeting of the party was held in Ichikawa, Chiba , on 4 February 1923. The party's early leadership was drawn from the anarcho-syndicalist and Christian socialist movements that developed around
8928-593: Was further intensified in response to the outbreak of the Korean War . Douglas MacArthur considered banning the JCP on 3 May 1950. Twenty-four members of the party's central committee were removed from office on 6 June and its newspaper, Shimbun Akahata , was suspended on 27 June. A total of 11,000 workers and 1,200 government workers were fired from 1949 to 1950. Union divisions and attacks on communist influence in labor led to Sanbetsu's membership falling to 400,000 by 1949. Against this backdrop in January 1950,
9024-446: Was needed was a "two-stage" revolution—first a "democratic revolution" that would overthrow American imperialism and establish true democracy, and then a "socialist revolution" that would establish communism. Although the "mainstream" of the JCP, led by Kenji Miyamoto , favored the Kōza Ha interpretation, as late as the 7th Party Congress in 1958 the "anti-mainstream" Rōnō Ha faction, led by Shōjirō Kasuga , still controlled around 40% of
9120-660: Was reconstituted, with opposition from the Comintern-affiliated communists, into the Proletarian Masses Party with Mosaburō Suzuki as Secretary General. An attempt to reform Hyōgikai resulted in arrests so a new organization, the National Council of Japanese Labor Unions (Zenkyō), was formed as an underground group with 5,500 members on 25 December 1928. Police found a chart of the JCP's district organization in Tokyo after arresting
9216-523: Was sent from Moscow to rebuild the party in December 1930. He and Noboru Matsumura wrote the 1931 Draft Thesis, but the Comintern was displeased with it. A new document supported by the Comintern, the 1932 Draft Thesis, was written by Nosaka and served as the JCP's main document until 1946. This document stated that a bourgeois revolution to eliminate feudalism and the emperor must occur before the proletariat revolution. In 1932, Japanese authorities raided
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