Shugoro Yamoto (1903-1967).
Born in Yamanashi Prefecture, he made his debut as a writer in 1926. In 1943 he won the prestigious Naoki Prize (one of the most important in Japanese literature) for his work Nihon fudōki (Lives and customs of Japanese women). However, he refused to accept it, being to date the only author who has rejected it in his 84-year history. Many of his popular-themed novels have been adapted for the small screen, film and theater.
In 1988, the Shinchosha publishing house created the Shugoro Yamamoto literary prize, which is awarded annually to novels of great narrative power aimed at the mass market. Some of the winners have been Banana Yoshimoto (1989), Miyuki Miyabe (1993) and Natsuhiko Kyogoku (2003), among others.