Category: Interviews with Bob
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From the Publisher About Robert Whiting
by Donald J. Barr (May 15, 1989) — Sports Illustrated — written about Robert Whiting, not by him Author Robert Whiting has never been exactly conventional when it comes to selecting the locales where he settles in to write. His first book, The Chrysanthemum and the Bat-considered the definitive one on Japanese baseball and also…
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Frankly Speaking – Interview with the Transpacific Forum of Japan Air Lines
by Robert Whiting (1987) — “Frankly Speaking…”, published by Gatewood Press for Japan Air Lines When Admiral Perry reached Japan the word for “sport” didn’t exist in Japanese. Today half of all Japanese consider themselves baseball fans, and the annual high school baseball tournaments dominate the nation’s television attention. According to Robert Whiting, author of…
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Japan Does Pop Culture
by James Bailey (May 2, 2009) — Merced Sun-Star American pop culture exported to Japan has a long tradition of losing something in translation. The Denny’s restaurants in this Far Eastern country serve Chinese tan-tan noodles, but no Grand Slam breakfasts, and Shakey’s offers dessert pizza topped with peach slices. But for a taste of…
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If You Still Wanna Have Wa
by Dan Sloan (Jun 2009) — Foreign Correspondents’ Club of Japan Back in 1977 veteran Club member Bob Whiting crafted a whole new genre of serious Japanese reportage with his seminal book The Chrysanthemum and the Bat, which provided his insights as a fan of Japanese baseball into how that sport reflected Japanese culture. Twelve…
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Personality Profile: Robert Whiting
by Vivienne Kenrick (Nov 12, 2000) — The Japan Times For the last 50 years Japan has come under intense Western scrutiny from many quarters. Scholars, writers, professional men and women in different pursuits have contributed observations and analyses of Japanese thoughts and lifestyles and behavior. Bob Whiting crafted a way of his own to…
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Around the Horn: Interview with Ichiro
by Robert Whiting (Nov 11, 2002) — TIME Magazine TIME sent author ROBERT WHITING to find out Seattle Mariner ICHIRO SUZUKI’s take on Japan’s player drain, the future of U.S. baseball and his own hyped-up image. Robert Whiting: You were the best player in Japan when you played with Orix, yet your games were seldom…
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Best-selling author Robert Whiting talks baseball, gangsters, bribes and more
by Mark Schreiber (Apr 4, 2004) — The Japan Times Back in 1972, a 30-year-old New Jersey native who had recently graduated from Tokyo’s Sophia University was in New York City, trying to talk to anyone who would listen about politics and life in Japan. Nobody was interested. “It was only when I started talking…
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Japanese baseball expert explains what awaits Ichiro, Mariners in Japan
by Larry Stone (Mar 17, 2012) — Seattle Times It’s coming fast. While other teams are still rounding into shape, the Mariners are staring down the start of their season, less than two weeks away. The Mariners leave for Japan on Thursday, and will be playing games that count less than a week after that…
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The Chrysanthemum and the – what? And The making of ‘The Chrysanthemum and the Bat’
by Tom Chapman (Jul 10, 1977), Tokyo Weekender Early Fall – and the excitement and tension of baseball pennant races occupy the thoughts of fans of the ancient and honorable sport wherever it’s played. And especially in Japan with the almost fanatical adventure of Yomiuri Giants’ slugging hero Sadaharu Oh approaching, tying and finally last…
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DiMuro Debacle was Predictable, Author Says
Jack Gallagher (Jul 10, 1997) For acclaimed baseball author Robert Whiting, a periodic resident of Japan over the past 34 years, last month’s incident triggering the departure of U.S. umpire Mike DiMuro was no surprise. Whiting, who penned such classics as “The Chrysanthemum and The Bat” and “You Gotta Have Wa,” saw the inevitable clash of…
