Many Japanese felt that an era had ended with the announcement of the last print edition of Pia, the "Time Out" of Japan. Providing information on film showings, stage productions, concerts and art exhibitions as well as various countercultural events, Pia was founded in 1972 by university students influenced by the student democracy and antiwar movements. (The name Pia comes from "utopia.")
Viewing the reproduction of the first issue (26 pages, ¥100) accompanying the special collector's issue dated Aug. 4 to 18, one can only feel nostalgic for a time of jazz kissaten and of second-run films being shown by cheaper theaters (most now defunct) and student film societies in various obscure corners of Tokyo.
In a sense, a major role of Pia ended with the emergence of videos and DVDs, which made it possible to view movies at one's convenience. Of course, the death knell was sounded by the Internet and spread of cellphones, when print sources for such information became superfluous.