Hideo Oguma1901~1940 小熊秀雄

OGUMA Hideo (September 9, 1901 – November 20, 1940) was a Japanese poet, novelist, manga scenarist, and painter, born in Inaho, Otaru, Hokkaido. After spending his youth in Wakkanai, Akita, and Karafuto, he became a newspaper reporter at the Asahikawa Shimbun in 1922 before moving to Tokyo to pursue poetry. Known especially for his long narrative poems, his major works include “Oguma Hideo Poetry Collection” and “Tobu Sori (Flying Sleigh).” He was reputedly the originator of the name “Ikebukuro Montparnasse,” associating with painters such as Terada Masaaki, and produced his own paintings. Under the pen name Asahi Taro he wrote the manga “Mars Expedition” (1940), a pioneering work of Japanese SF manga. He died of tuberculosis in Tokyo at age 39.