Nisei Week ball and Nisei returning from Korea, August 1953

Vol. 37, No. 8, August 21, 1953. 8 pages. View this issue

The Nisei Week coronation ball led this eight-page issue. Henry Mori reported that some 9,500 Japanese Americans filled the Hollywood Palladium, where Judy Sugita of Long Beach was crowned Miss Nisei of 1953. Korea was the other main subject. Sgt. Hiroshi Miyamura learned on his release from captivity that he had won the Medal of Honor, Lawrence Nakatsuka described the welcome for Hawaii prisoners of war at Hickam Air Force Base, and Mike Masaoka gave final figures on Nisei battle casualties.

Elsewhere, Issei were sworn in as citizens in Stockton and honored with Americanization certificates in East Los Angeles. Tamotsu Murayama wrote about anti-Nisei feeling in Japan, and Harry K. Honda looked at programming for newly naturalized Issei. Larry Tajiri’s column took up Broadway and film portrayals of Japan. Sports pages cover swimming, golf and bowling.

What’s in this issue

Community

• Judy Sugita Crowned Miss Nisei of 1953 at Nisei Week Coronation Ball, by Henry Mori, page 1. Some 9,500 Japanese Americans attended the Nisei Week coronation ball at the Hollywood Palladium, where Judy Sugita of Long Beach was crowned Miss Nisei of 1953. City officials also proclaimed the Nisei Week Festival, which closes with events in Li’l Tokio.
• Semanticist Hayakawa Visiting Folks in Osaka, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Noted semanticist Samuel I. Hayakawa is visiting his parents in Osaka for the first time since 1935. He remarked that Hawaii’s mix of cultures could serve as a model for improving language difficulties on a global scale.
• First Stockton Issei Group Naturalized, by P.C. Staff, page 3. The first group of San Joaquin County Japanese aliens eligible for citizenship under the McCarran-Walter Act was sworn in before Superior Judge George F. Buck on Aug. 13. Among those naturalized was Rev. Taro Goto of Lodi.
• Flood Relief Funds Mounting Past $56,000, by P.C. Staff, page 3. Japan flood relief campaigns in Northern and Southern California have raised tens of thousands of dollars. Northern California expected to pass $20,000 while Southern California collected about $36,000.
• Midwest Pow-Wow Sept. 4-6 Set as True Minnesota Welcome Promised to Delegates of 3rd Biennial Dist. Confab, by P.C. Staff, page 4. The third biennial Midwest District Council convention will be held Sept. 4-6 in Minneapolis, with a Minnesota Indian-themed program. Events include a mixer, business sessions, a banquet with speakers and a sightseeing tour.
• Japan Air Lines Planes Undergoing Test Flights, by P.C. Staff, page 5. Japan Air Lines’ first Douglas DC-6B for twice-weekly San Francisco to Tokyo service via Honolulu and Wake is undergoing acceptance tests. The inaugural passenger flight is scheduled for Nov. 1.
• M. View Nisei Freed in Operation Big Switch in Korea, by Haruo Ishimaru, page 5. Sgt. Thomas T. Sueki of Mountain View was released in Operation Big Switch after his family had waited 20 months without direct word. His family celebrated his return and planned a reunion.
• Rocky Ford Growers Send First Melons to President Eisenhower, by P.C. Staff, page 5. Rocky Ford Japanese American growers delivered the season’s first cantaloupes to President Eisenhower, Gov. Dan Thornton and Denver Post publisher Palmer Hoyt. The growers represented the Arkansas Valley Growers Association.
• 348 Character Witnesses, by P.C. Staff, page 5. Yenkichi Ito, 86, who has lived in California for 64 years, secured 348 character witness signatures in his bid for U.S. citizenship. His community support reflected his civic spirit, including using his truck to transport Encanto schoolchildren.
• Gunman Risks Life Imprisonment to Rob Grocery of $1, by P.C. Staff, page 5. An armed gunman robbed a Berkeley neighborhood grocery owned by Mrs. Tohru Koide on Aug. 10, taking only a single dollar bill from the register. He fled in an old sedan.
• Nisei Golfers Seek Nisei Week Honors, by P.C. Staff, page 6. A record 179 golfers are scheduled to compete in five flights over three courses for Nisei Week golf tournament trophies. The event is handled by Wada, Asato and Omatsu Insurance Agency.
• Konno, Oyakawa Win Double Victories at Indianapolis AAU Outdoor Meet, by P.C. Staff, page 6. Ford Konno won the 400 and 1,500 meter titles and Yoshi Oyakawa won the 100 and 200 meter backstroke events at the national outdoor senior swimming championships. Richard Tanabe and Arthur Fujino also placed in multiple events.
• L.A. Buddhist Coordinating Council Bowling Tournament in Third Running, by P.C. Staff, page 6. The third Pacific Coast Nisei Bowling Tournament, arranged by the L.A. Buddhist Coordinating Council, was held at the Vogue Bowl with a field of 42 men’s teams and 12 women’s teams. Paul Ishizawa took high scratch series and men’s singles honors.
• Nisei Gals as Far as 5th Round of City Golf Meet, by P.C. Staff, page 6. Harry Sakamoto advanced to the fifth round of the City Amateur Tournament at Jackson Park before losing to Dante Vicini. John Doi was also eliminated in the Lower Bracket third round.
• Bloomer Girls in League Lead, by P.C. Staff, page 6. The Chicago Bloomer Girls, featuring Nancy Ito at shortstop, took the lead in the National Girls Baseball League after a 3-0 win. The All-Stars lost a 1-0 game to the defending champion Queens.
• Hawaii Nisei Golfer Ted Murata Turning Professional, by P.C. Staff, page 6. Ted Murata, a longtime Hawaii amateur champion, announced he is turning professional. The 31-year-old has won several major amateur titles including the Hawaiian Public Links in 1946 and 1947.
• Los Angeles Newsletter, by Henry Mori, page 7. Several Japanese American medical and dental professionals opened new practices in the Los Angeles area. The column also covers smog concerns and Reiko Sato’s role in the Kismet production.
• Japanese Bank Loan to Appliance Dealer Finances Apartment Building, by P.C. Staff, page 7. Ben Yahata, a Los Angeles electrical appliance merchant, received a large loan from The Bank of Tokyo’s Los Angeles branch to finance a 22-unit apartment building. The loan is noted as rare for a Japanese bank since World War II.
• Lafcadio Hearn’s Granddaughter to Wed Lt. Brandes, by P.C. Staff, page 7. Ranko Koizumi, granddaughter of Lafcadio Hearn, married Lt. Gordon Charles Brandes of the Far East Air Force in Tokyo. The couple plans to return to Milwaukee.
• Hawaii Branch of ACLU Headed by Rev. Komuro, by P.C. Staff, page 7. A charter group of 58 persons organized the Hawaii branch of the American Civil Liberties Union. The Rev. Harry Komuro was chosen temporary chairman, with Daniel K. Inouye and Matsuo Takabuki on the executive board.
• Over 100 Issei Receive Americanization Certificates in East Los Angeles, by P.C. Staff, page 7. Over 100 Issei completed Americanization classes sponsored by the East Los Angeles JACL chapter and received certificates at Roosevelt High School. George J. Inagaki, National JACL president, gave the principal address.

National

• Nelson K. Doi Slated to Become Hawaii County Attorney, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Nelson K. Doi, Big Island’s 1952 Man of the Year, is set to succeed Albert M. Felix as Hawaii County Attorney. Doi, a 32-year-old Hawaii-born lawyer, previously served as Deputy County Attorney.
• Additional Statehood Hearings in Hawaii Scheduled for Fall May Help, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Senate Interior Committee Chairman Hugh Butler said more Hawaii statehood hearings may be held this fall and he hopes to report a separate Hawaii bill next session. He indicated the committee’s Alaska hearings may ease Democratic demands to link the two territories.
• Appeal Ruling on Citizenship Case, by P.C. Staff, page 2. Katsumi Yoshida, denied naturalization by Judge J. Frank McLaughlin of Honolulu, has appealed the ruling. The case turns on a provision of the McCarran-Walter Act that took effect Dec. 24, 1952.

Military & Veterans

• Scene of Returning POWs From Korea Helms Reporters in Hawaii, by Lawrence Nakatsuka, page 1. Hawaii prisoners of war returning from Korea in Operation Little Switch were welcomed with leis and emotional family reunions at Hickam Air Force Base. The article describes the homecomings of several Hawaii Nisei, including Cpl. Susumu Shinagawa and Cpl. Tadao Naito.
• Sgt. Hiroshi Miyamura Awarded Medal of Honor After Release From Communist Captivity, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Sgt. Hiroshi Miyamura of Gallup, N.M., learned upon his release from Communist captivity that he had won the Congressional Medal of Honor for his defense of a Korean hill. He had been captured after holding off Chinese forces to cover his men’s withdrawal.
• Three Nisei Instructors at West Point for Summer, by P.C. Staff, page 1. Three Nisei members of the 278th Regimental Combat Team are serving as demonstrators and assistant instructors at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point this summer. Army Maj. Hisato T. Yamasaki is also on duty at Ladd Air Force Base.
• Nisei Battle Casualties in Korea, by Mike Masaoka, page 2. Final Department of Defense figures show Nisei Americans suffered 706 battle casualties in the Korean fighting, roughly three times the national average. The article breaks down killed, wounded and missing totals, mostly from Hawaii.

Commentary

• Anti-Nisei Fever Rising in Japan, by Tamotsu Murayama, page 3. Japanese newspapers have increasingly attacked Nisei living in Japan, and the author attributes the hostility largely to resentment left over from the Occupation. He argues the JACL should respond by sending conscientious Nisei to Japan to reorient their peers.
• Editorial: Nisei Week Ball, by P.C. Staff, page 8. The editorial praises the success of the L.A. JACL Coordinating Council in staging the Nisei Week coronation ball at the Hollywood Palladium. It argues the ball should remain a permanent part of the festival tradition.
• Issei Programming, by Harry K. Honda, page 8. The column reports on debates at the Northern California-Western Nevada District Council about integrating newly naturalized Issei into JACL chapter activities. It suggests treating Issei as equal members and adjusting programming to suit different age groups.
• Minority, by P.C. Staff, page 8. This brief column reports on racial violence at Chicago’s Trumball Park housing project, President Eisenhower’s strengthening of anti-discrimination committees, and a discrimination suit over a Greyhound bus seat.
• Vacation Post-Mortem, by P.C. Staff, page 8. The author describes returning home from a nine-day road trip to find the house undisturbed and the lawn mowed. The column includes anecdotes about the author’s children and a recollection of a car breakdown on an earlier trip with Yoichi Masuda.

Arts & Entertainment

• 73,000 View Japan Arts in Seattle, by P.C. Staff, page 3. The Seattle Art Museum recorded 73,756 visitors for its month-long Japanese art exhibit, outdrawing New York’s attendance despite a shorter run. The show ran 32 days in Seattle compared with 46 days at the Metropolitan Museum.
• Vagaries: Quaint, Charming, Stereotyped, by Larry Tajiri, page 8. This column examines how Broadway and film productions with Japanese and Asian settings, such as Madame Butterfly, The King and I and Rashomon, have succeeded or failed. It notes that the upcoming Teahouse of the August Moon relies on familiar stereotypes.

Sports

• Japan’s Pro Golfer Hits 289 at Tam O’Shanter, by P.C. Staff, page 6. Yoshio Hayashi, Japan’s top professional golfer, finished 39th in the 72-hole All American championship at Tam O’Shanter with a 289 total. He finished 14 strokes behind winner Lysyd Marigriith.

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