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Occupational hazards: Japan’s ‘pink’ writers literally scribbling their hearts out

Nikkan Gendai Nov. 20
Nikkan Gendai Nov. 20
Each Tuesday in Nikkan Gendai, a column titled “Yoru no Sekai Toshidensetsu” (Urban legends from the world of the night) sets out to confirm or debunk various stories about the sex industry.

This week the tabloid attempts to settle once and for all whether there’s any truth to the rumor that writers who cover the “pink” industry tend to die prematurely.

“Well, it’s half true,” a veteran writer (still living, we note) attests.

It seems that first of all, by the nature of their occupation, such men are generally shunned by females. And as lifelong bachelors they don’t get a proper diet. What’s more, they also tend to consume lots of booze, and everybody knows what alcohol can do to truncate one’s lifespan.

There are other hazards as well.

“They pop ED medications and swill pep tonics, and might go to three or four soaplands (erotic bathhouses) or massage parlors in a single day,” the aforementioned writer relates. “It’s obvious that places a strain on the heart.

“And sometimes girls who are new at the business can’t get those tired writers hard, and they’ll break down in tears, saying ‘Sorry, I’m just no good at this.’ So to avoid that from happening the writers will pop even more ED pills. That’s why there you’ll find cases of writers still in their 40s who kick the bucket due to heart attacks or strokes. And while it’s rare, I’ve even heard of writers who were so debilitated from ejaculating they couldn’t walk a straight line, and wound up getting struck by a car.”

Of course it’s hardly surprising that such writers are unable to restrain themselves from wanting to perform oral sex on some of the lovelier female specimens they encounter on the job; and others may get lucky and find willing dates among female sex workers. Both can easily lead to sexually transmitted diseases.

“There have even been cases where writers exchanged deep kisses with a girl and contracted influenza, which led to a fatal case of pneumonia,” the editor of a “pink” magazine confides to Nikkan Gendai. (K.S.)

Source: “Fuuzoku raitaa wa wakajini surutte honto?” Nikkan Gendai (Nov. 20, page 20)

Note: Brief extracts from Japanese vernacular media in the public domain that appear here were translated and summarized under the principle of “fair use.” Every effort has been made to ensure accuracy of the translations. However, we are not responsible for the veracity of their contents. The activities of individuals described herein should not be construed as “typical” behavior of Japanese people nor reflect the intention to portray the country in a negative manner. Our sole aim is to provide examples of various types of reading matter enjoyed by Japanese.