Akihiro Miwa

, better known by his stage name , was a Japanese singer, actor, director, composer, author and drag queen. He appeared in the productions of Shūji Terayama, Tenjō Sajiki, Kinji Fukasaku, Yukio Mishima, and was a voice actor in two Hayao Miyazaki films.

Early life Akihiro Maruyama was born in Nagasaki on May 15, 1935, as one of ten siblings. His family operated a café and a restaurant. He attended Sako National Elementary school. Miwa was drawing when the atomic bomb went off and he experienced an intense flash of light. The blast shook his house and caused the windows to explode. The family maid evacuated Miwa and his brother, seeking cover at the nearby Daitokuji air raid shelter as they worried further bombs might be dropped. The entire family later evacuated to Tadewara-machi. Miwa suffered from radiation exposure and developed anemia.

In junior high school Miwa's music teacher invited him to join a female soprano group. By the age of 17 he was working in cabaret at gay bars. Miwa later explained that the song was inspired by the mother of one of his classmates, who had an injured leg and worked on building sites. The phrase Yoitomake comes from the cry of "yoitto make", which roughly translates to "heave and wind it up" and it was often used as a chant on building sites.

Theatre and acting On stage and film, Miwa appeared in the productions of Shūji Terayama, Tenjō Sajiki, and Yukio Mishima.

Miwa was a voice actor for the Studio Ghibli films Princess Mononoke (1997) and Howl's Moving Castle (2004). He was the narrator for the television series Hanako to Anne.

Writing Miwa wrote columns and articles for multiple newspapers. From 2008 to 2011, he wrote a column for Sports Nippon. 1971 Throw Away Your Books, Rally in the Streets

1983 Genma Wars: Har-Magedon Froy Voice actor

2005 Takeshis'

Life is Easy (生きるって簡単, 1996) Heavenly Voice Beautiful Words (天声美語, 2000) Stories of Love, Stories of Happiness (愛の話 幸福の話, 2002) Ping-Pong-Pan: A Conversation Between Two (ぴんぽんぱん ふたり話, 2003) How to Turn Hell into Heaven (地獄を極楽にする方法, 2003) Spirits Aren't Scary At All (霊ナァンテコワクナイヨー, 2004) A Hymn to Life - Joyful, Free, Beautiful, and Unrestricted (人生讃歌―愉しく自由に美しく、又のびやかに, 2004) War and Peace: A Message of Love (戦争と平和 愛のメッセージ, 2005) Akihiro Miwa's Grand Encyclopedia of Style (美輪明宏のおしゃれ大図鑑, 2005) Musings on Social Reform (世なおしトークあれこれ, 2007) The School of Life: Ultimate Guide (Continued) (続・人生学校虎の巻, 2008) A Maiden's Classroom (乙女の教室, 2008) Slicing Right Through Worries and Suffering! (悩みも苦しみもメッタ斬り！, 2011) Life is Okay, Don't Worry (人生はドンマイドンマイ, 2013) Life Advice for Living with Greater Ease (楽に生きるための人生相談, 2015) Turn the Storm in Your Heart into a Blue Sky (心の嵐を青空に, 2016) Life Advice for Living Peacefully (おだやかに生きるための人生相談, 2019) Keep Smiling. Let's Go With a Spring in Our Step (ほほえみを忘れずに。ルンルンでいきましょう, 2020) My Philosophy on Life: Don't Judge by Appearances (私の人生論 目に見えるものは見なさんな, 2024) Advice for Living with a Smile (ほほえんで生きるための人生相談, 2026)