Aguri Yoshiyuki, a pioneering beauty specialist whose life was dramatized in an NHK series, died of pneumonia on Jan. 5, the office of her daughter said over the weekend. She was 107.

Born in Okayama Prefecture, Yoshiyuki opened a beauty shop in Tokyo after marrying writer Eisuke Yoshiyuki at age 15.

Despite the sudden death of her husband in 1940, she raised three children while working as a beautician.

In 1985 Yoshiyuki published an autobiography that resonated with many Japanese women. Based on the book, NHK created the morning TV drama "Aguri," which aired from April through October 1997.

She is survived by one daughter, actress Kazuko Yoshiyuki. Her other two children, novelist Junnosuke Yoshiyuki and poet Rie Yoshiyuki, had already passed.