Summers (Owarai)
Encyclopedia
Summers are a Japan
ese comedy
duo under Horipro
Inc., a large talent management company in Tokyo
. Frequent guests on many Japanese variety
and quiz show
s, they are probably most famous as guests on the late night conte show, Uchimura Produce
(Uchi-P). Along with Teruyoshi Uchimura
and the rest of the show's guests, they are two members of the musical comedy group NO PLAN
.
(大竹一樹), born December 8, 1967, and Masakazu Mimura (三村マサカズ), born June 8, 1967. Both comedians were born in Sumida, Tokyo
.
Usually functioning as the boke, Ōtake is famous for his ability to spontaneously spurt out meaningless, yet funny lines, and for his crude jokes (shimoneta). His amazing ability to entertain audiences with strange, nonsensical gags was dubbed "Ōtake World" on Uchi-P. He was told many times that he looked like his partner Mimura, and decided to wear glasses in order to distinguish himself. He does not, however, normally wear glasses. He enjoys wearing short sleeves over long sleeved T-shirt
s, and has been given the title "King of Sexual Harassment".
As the tsukkomi of the group, Mimura is also known to perform tsukkomi on himself, and was given the nickname "Kantō
's #1 Tsukkomi King". He attempted to become a boke once on Uchi-P but couldn't pull it off as he continually resorted to using shimoneta. He is a prolific game show contestant, and once won ¥1,000,000 on Quiz$Millionaire
, the Japanese equivalent of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?
. He is also considered a decent manga
artist.
Mimura is also a frequent target of dokkiri
subjected on him by Ōtake and the rest of the crew on Uchi-P. He jokes that he has become so accustomed to being surprised by dokkiri that he can predict when he is going to be fooled in the morning before he leaves his home to go to work.
on a leisurely trip to Horipro in 1988. They began performing under the name "Bacardi", but in 2000, after numerous appearances on the "New Un-Nan's Feel So Nice" show, they were forced to change their name to "Summers" by Teruyoshi Uchimura
. Cream Stew
was also forced to changed their name in the same way.
Mimura's style of tsukkomi became famous—he frequently suffixes his sentences with kayo!, a very strong question form, comparable to the English
, "The hell?"—and Summers has become increasingly successful ever since their big break in 2001. They also enjoyed moderate success with their books さまぁ〜ずの悲しいダジャレ (Summers' Sad Bad Dajare
) and さまぁ〜ずの悲しい俳句 (Summers' Sad Haiku
), published by Takarajimasha.
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
ese comedy
Owarai
is a broad word used to describe Japanese comedy as seen on television. The word owarai is the honorific form of the word warai, meaning "a laugh" or "a smile". Owarai is most common on Japanese variety shows and the comedians are referred to as owarai geinin or owarai tarento...
duo under Horipro
Horipro
is a large Japanese talent agency. It was founded in 1963 as Hori Productions and changed to its present name in 1990.In 1989, Horipro purchased the publishing assets of famed rock band, KISS. Next, the company moved on to invest in more catalogs. A year later, Horipro Entertainment Group opened...
Inc., a large talent management company in Tokyo
Tokyo
, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
. Frequent guests on many Japanese variety
Variety show
A variety show, also known as variety arts or variety entertainment, is an entertainment made up of a variety of acts, especially musical performances and sketch comedy, and normally introduced by a compère or host. Other types of acts include magic, animal and circus acts, acrobatics, juggling...
and quiz show
Quiz Show
Quiz Show is a 1994 American historical drama film produced and directed by Robert Redford. Adapted by Paul Attanasio from Richard Goodwin's memoir Remembering America, the film is based upon the Twenty One quiz show scandal of the 1950s...
s, they are probably most famous as guests on the late night conte show, Uchimura Produce
Uchimura Produce
Uchimura Produce ~produced by UCHIMURA~ is a Japanese TV comedy program that aired from 2000 to 2005 on TV Asahi.-A summary:The program that "producer・Teruyoshi Uchimura" produces various things in original technique and concept every week....
(Uchi-P). Along with Teruyoshi Uchimura
Teruyoshi Uchimura
, half of the Japanese comedy duo Utchan Nanchan, is one of the most famous and influential comedians in the owarai community. His nickname is Utchan , and his partner, Kiyotaka Nanbara, is known as Nanchan. He was born on July 22, 1964 in Hitoyoshi, Kumamoto. Though he has worked for years as a...
and the rest of the show's guests, they are two members of the musical comedy group NO PLAN
NO PLAN
NO PLAN is a Japanese konto style comedy group, and is also occasionally known for their music. The group is best known for appearing regularly on the late night owarai show, Uchimura Produce until late 2005, when the show was cancelled...
.
Otake and Mimura
The group consists of Kazuki ŌtakeKazuki Otake
' , also known as Otake, is Japanese comedian. He is former member of Japanese band UltraCats and current member of owarai group Summers.- References :...
(大竹一樹), born December 8, 1967, and Masakazu Mimura (三村マサカズ), born June 8, 1967. Both comedians were born in Sumida, Tokyo
Sumida, Tokyo
is one of the 23 special wards of Tokyo, Japan. It calls itself Sumida City in English.As of 2008, the ward has an estimated population of 240,296 and a density of 17,480 persons per km²...
.
Usually functioning as the boke, Ōtake is famous for his ability to spontaneously spurt out meaningless, yet funny lines, and for his crude jokes (shimoneta). His amazing ability to entertain audiences with strange, nonsensical gags was dubbed "Ōtake World" on Uchi-P. He was told many times that he looked like his partner Mimura, and decided to wear glasses in order to distinguish himself. He does not, however, normally wear glasses. He enjoys wearing short sleeves over long sleeved T-shirt
T-shirt
A T-shirt is a style of shirt. A T-shirt is buttonless and collarless, with short sleeves and frequently a round neck line....
s, and has been given the title "King of Sexual Harassment".
As the tsukkomi of the group, Mimura is also known to perform tsukkomi on himself, and was given the nickname "Kantō
Kanto region
The is a geographical area of Honshu, the largest island of Japan. The region includes the Greater Tokyo Area and encompasses seven prefectures: Gunma, Tochigi, Ibaraki, Saitama, Tokyo, Chiba, and Kanagawa. Within its boundaries, slightly more than 40 percent of the land area is the Kantō Plain....
's #1 Tsukkomi King". He attempted to become a boke once on Uchi-P but couldn't pull it off as he continually resorted to using shimoneta. He is a prolific game show contestant, and once won ¥1,000,000 on Quiz$Millionaire
Kuizu $ Mirionea
, also referred to as Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? in the show's logo, is a Japanese quiz show based on the original British format of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?, having been broadcast on the Fuji Television network in Japan since April 20, 2000...
, the Japanese equivalent of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?
Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?
Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? is a television game show which offers large cash prizes for correctly answering a series of multiple-choice questions of increasing difficulty. The format is owned and licensed by Sony Pictures Television International. The maximum cash prize is one million pounds...
. He is also considered a decent manga
Manga
Manga is the Japanese word for "comics" and consists of comics and print cartoons . In the West, the term "manga" has been appropriated to refer specifically to comics created in Japan, or by Japanese authors, in the Japanese language and conforming to the style developed in Japan in the late 19th...
artist.
Mimura is also a frequent target of dokkiri
Glossary of owarai terms
This page describes words and terms relating to owarai . Many of these terms may be used in areas of Japanese culture outside comedy, including television and radio, music, or some may even be used in normal Japanese speech...
subjected on him by Ōtake and the rest of the crew on Uchi-P. He jokes that he has become so accustomed to being surprised by dokkiri that he can predict when he is going to be fooled in the morning before he leaves his home to go to work.
History
As friends, Ōtake and Mimura decided to become manzai-shiManzai
is a traditional style of stand-up comedy in Japanese culture, which usually involves two performers —a straight man and a funny man —trading jokes at great speed...
on a leisurely trip to Horipro in 1988. They began performing under the name "Bacardi", but in 2000, after numerous appearances on the "New Un-Nan's Feel So Nice" show, they were forced to change their name to "Summers" by Teruyoshi Uchimura
Teruyoshi Uchimura
, half of the Japanese comedy duo Utchan Nanchan, is one of the most famous and influential comedians in the owarai community. His nickname is Utchan , and his partner, Kiyotaka Nanbara, is known as Nanchan. He was born on July 22, 1964 in Hitoyoshi, Kumamoto. Though he has worked for years as a...
. Cream Stew
Cream Stew
Cream stew or kurimu shitu is a popular Yōshoku dish consisting of meat, usually chicken or pork, and mixed vegetables, onion, carrot, potato and cabbage, cooked in thick white roux. The vegetables are sauteed before the meat is added with some water. The surface fats are removed by degreasing and...
was also forced to changed their name in the same way.
Mimura's style of tsukkomi became famous—he frequently suffixes his sentences with kayo!, a very strong question form, comparable to the English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
, "The hell?"—and Summers has become increasingly successful ever since their big break in 2001. They also enjoyed moderate success with their books さまぁ〜ずの悲しいダジャレ (Summers' Sad Bad Dajare
Dajare
is a kind of comic Japanese word play, similar in spirit to pun relying on similarities in the pronunciation of words to create a simple joke.Dajare are popular in advertising...
) and さまぁ〜ずの悲しい俳句 (Summers' Sad Haiku
Haiku
' , plural haiku, is a very short form of Japanese poetry typically characterised by three qualities:* The essence of haiku is "cutting"...
), published by Takarajimasha.