About George Abe
Lived 1937 – 2019 (aged 82). George Abe was a Japanese novelist, boxer, professional wrestler, mangaka, yakuza and flight attendant.
, known by his pen name , was a Japanese author and former yakuza. Outside Japan, he is best known for writing the manga series Rainbow: Nisha Rokubō no Shichinin in collaboration with artist Masasumi Kakizaki. As a teenager, Abe became a member of the Ando-gumi yakuza family, and was later recruited by the Koganei-ikka. In 1986, after leaving the yakuza life, he wrote a novel about his time in Fuchū Prison titled , which became a bestseller and was adapted into a film. Abe died on September 2, 2019, from pneumonia, aged 82. He was the model for Jōji Miyagi, the main character in Yukio Mishima's entertainment romance novel Fukuzatsuna Kare (複雑な彼 That Complicated Guy) published in 1966. Abe's pen name "Jōji" was adapted from the character in the novel.
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Important facts
People in George Abe's life
Named in this biography and alive at the same time
Contemporaries
People whose lives overlapped George Abe's
Frequently asked questions
Who was George Abe?
Japanese comics artist and novelist
When was George Abe born?
George Abe was born on 17 May 1937 in Tokyo.
When did George Abe die?
George Abe died on 1 September 2019.
What was George Abe's occupation?
George Abe was a novelist, boxer, professional wrestler, mangaka, yakuza and flight attendant.
What nationality was George Abe?
George Abe was Japanese.
Sources & further reading
Cite this page
APA: Biography.guide. (2026). George Abe. https://biography.guide/george-abe/
MLA: "George Abe." Biography.guide, https://biography.guide/george-abe/.
Chicago: "George Abe." Biography.guide. https://biography.guide/george-abe/.
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