Kyosen Ohashi was born in Tokyo in 1934 and studied journalism at Waseda University. He enjoyed a long career as a respected jazz critic and TV presenter, before quitting the entertainment world in 1990.
Last year, he shocked his fans by running for the Diet as a candidate for the Democratic Party of Japan. He was elected, but resigned just six months later. (His seat is now filled by Finnish-born Marutei Tsurunen, profiled in last month's Close-Up)
Ohashi is also the author of the best-selling lifestyle book "Jinsei no Sentaku (A Choice in Life)," which describes his experience of "semi- retirement." On April 25, Kodansha released another book, "Kokkaigi-in shikkaku (Are you a Statesman or a Politician?), about his brief brush with Japan's political world.