What if the rise of modern Japan was n’t shaped just by its politicians, academics, and company leaders but also by a motley crew of players, thieves, dreamers, and scouts? What if the people who had the biggest influence on Japan’s post-war conversion were n’t the historical figures but the strangers who lived in the dark?
Robert Whiting ‘s , Gamblers, Fraudsters, Dreamers &, Spies: The Outsiders Who Shaped Modern Japan , takes you on a journey into the lives of these very characters – risk-takers and rule-breakers who, through their daring and often illegal techniques, changed the face of the nation forever.  ,
Whiting’s earlier works for as , Tokyo Underworld , and , You Gotta Have Wa have explored both the legal underbelly and Japan’s love for baseball and in his latest work, Whiting brings us into the dark, complex world of people who never quite fit into Japan’s firm society but also managed to leave their mark. It navigates through a tricksters ‘ exhibition of personalities who defied convention and altered the course of the nation.
The authors ‘ characters range from post-war gang leaders and foreign spies to hustlers and intellectuals who saw Japan as a land of opportunity. Whiting skillfully uncovers the relationships between them, demonstrating how frequently their actions impacted the development of history in unintended methods.
Although Yoshio Kodama is not the main character in the book, I have a story about her, and I’ve also written about her in an article called” Who is Yoshio Kodama” ( ). – , is often entertaining. Whiting wrote about Kodama in , Tokyo Underworld , but he pops up again in this guide.
Kodama’s history reads like a drama, blending high-level social influence, strong ties to organized crime, and secret involvement with the CIA. Kodama was a plumber, a nationalist, and a gentleman who understood the power of working in the darkness, which is the kind of personality Whiting excels at monitoring.
And, believe me, there are so many excellent reports in , Gamblers, Fraudsters, Dreamers &, Spies: The Strangers Who Shaped Modern Japan , that you’ll come back to it over and over again to learn. What I really like about Whiting’s new text is that you can learn the pages at any time you want and return and read it over and over again.
Kodama’s lifestyle, like many of the different characters in this book, completely encapsulates the book’s key theme: Often, it’s not the constitutional or spiritual figures who shape a nation, but the outsiders willing to take risks and bend the rules to succeed.  ,
Whiting has a real gift for turning history into an engaging narrative. This book is both thrilling and informative thanks to his thorough research and a storytelling that almost seems to be cinematic. The gamblers and fraudsters he writes about were n’t just criminals; they were visionaries who saw Japan as a land of opportunities, frequently daring to make moves that the conventional power structures could n’t possibly imagine.
In the same way, the spies and dreamers he encounters saw Japan as a crucial battleground during the Cold War, and their covert actions affected both Japanese and international policy. I was surprised to also read about a CIA agent who has the same last name as mine and I wrote about it on my , substack,  , too.
In , Gamblers, Fraudsters, Dreamers &, Spies, Whiting also shows that it was n’t always men who played dubious roles in shaping post-war Japan.
Figures with significant political influence included Viscountess Tsuruyo Torio, who had a scandalous relationship with Colonel Charles Kades, a senior US Occupation force in Japan after World War II, and had a scandalous relationship with him.
She proves that women, too, could wield power and stir controversy behind the scenes.
Kades, a Harvard-educated lawyer, played a crucial role in drafting Japan’s post-war constitution. Despite being married, he openly visited Viscountess Torio, with her husband’s knowledge and approval.
The Viscount even seemed proud of their union, hosting Kades while still maintaining his own extramarital affairs, which led to a notable scandal.
The Moonies story is by far my absolute favorite book chapter. The CIA was a crucial component of the establishment of the Korean Central Intelligence Agency (KCIA ) in 1961, which was modeled after the CIA itself, in an effort to contain communism in East Asia after the Korean War. The KCIA’s goal was to safeguard South Korea from communist influence, particularly from the North, while also serving as a tool for US geopolitical goals in the area.
Sun Myung Moon’s Unification Church, a religious organization with vehement anti-communist ideology, quickly became associated with the KCIA. Brigadier General Kim Jhong-pil, the KCIA’s founder, embedded several agents within the church, recognizing its utility in combating communism.  ,
With CIA backing, the Unification Church expanded rapidly, aligning with pro-American political forces in both South Korea and Japan. The Unification Church’s influence spread internationally, particularly in the US, where it was involved in various political campaigns, and the CIA provided initial seed money and contacts to Moon’s ventures in the United States.
Moon’s organization was seen as a tool for shaping US foreign policy, and its support for right-wing politicians strengthened its ties to intelligence agencies. The church’s anti-communist stance and the covert support of the CIA and KCIA helped it develop into a political force, using funds raised abroad, but primarily from Japan, to further its goals.
Whiting brilliantly weaves the complex relationship between the Moonies and Japan’s political elite, particularly with his grandson Shinzo Abe and former prime minister Nobusuke Kishi.
The church gained influence within Japan’s ruling Liberal Democratic Party ( LDP ), growing in popularity with the KCIA and receiving financial support from powerful Japanese ultranationalists like Kodama. Kishi’s ties to the church allowed the LDP to benefit from donations, free labor and political support.
Abe continued to have close ties to the church as a result of decades of this alliance. Abe even congratulated Unification Church members as late as 2021, extending the family’s relationship with the organization. In the end, his 2022 assassination resulted from the connection.
The assassin blamed the church for his family’s financial ruin ( his mother had donated vast sums to the church, driving the family into bankruptcy ) and this personal connection, combined with the church’s broader controversial practices in Japan, motivated the assassin to target Abe, believing that Abe’s political support for the church was responsible for his family’s downfall.
For someone like me, who has long been fascinated by the intersection of politics, power, and morality, this book is an absolute gem. My own interest in Japan’s hidden influencers is deeply influenced by Whiting’s investigation into the lives of the characters. It’s these untold stories, of people who live on the margins but exert enormous influence, that truly shape a country’s identity.
Whiting captures this theme brilliantly, drawing the reader into a world where the stakes are high, the moves are bold, and the consequences are often game-changing. The book does n’t glorify these figures, but does argue that their roles were essential to Japan’s development, shedding light on a darker side of history that is often overlooked.
In , Gamblers, Fraudsters, Dreamers &, Spies: The Outsiders Who Shaped Modern Japan,  , Whiting presents a variety of compelling stories from Japan’s postwar underworld. For me, three of the most fascinating things are:
- The Allies and the Soviet Union battled for influence in Japan after World War II. Whiting delves into the Canon Agency, a black-ops spy network created by US Army Major Jack Canon. A formidable Texan with a background in explosives, Canon was given the task of conducting covert operations to expel communist sympathizers and Soviet spies. His agency was involved in sabotage, drug smuggling, and even kidnapping double agents like Wataru Kaji, all in the name of keeping Japan under American influence. Canon recruited a diverse group of Euro-American, Nisei ( second-generation Japanese-American ), and Korean-American agents, setting new standards for postwar covert operations. [ Whitting’s writings on the Canon agency have been published or republished by Asia Times. ]
- The Girard Incident:  , Whiting details the killing of 46-year-old Japanese woman Naka Sakai by United States Army soldier William S. Girard in Soma, Gunma Prefecture, on January 30, 1957. When Girard shot an empty grenade cartridge at her, apparently for his own amusement, Saki, a housewife who was collecting shell casings from a military base to sell for scrap, was killed. The incident led to disputes between Japan and the U.S. Army over jurisdiction, which resulted in Wilson v. Girard, a US Supreme Court case. The US Army demoted Girard, and the incident resulted in a reduction in US troops stationed in Japan. Girard also received a three-year suspended sentence from Japanese authorities.
- The Korean Taxi Barons: Whiting profiles the rise of the Aoki family, ethnic Koreans who overcame discrimination to build MK Taxi, one of Japan’s largest taxi firms. Sadao Aoki, the family patriarch, battled both Japanese taxi competitors and government regulators, who were reluctant to see an ethnic Korean succeed. His son Masaaki Aoki, despite facing racism in both Japan and the US, eventually took over the business, leading it to new heights, including introducing revolutionary practices like late-night taxi services. A cliffhanging book can be written about Masaaki’s demise.
Gamblers, Fraudsters, Dreamers &, Spies , is a must-read for anyone intrigued by Japan’s modern history, especially those curious about the unsung individuals who played critical roles in its rise as a global power. Whiting invites us to consider a more nuanced and complex version of history, where the influence of outsiders and misfits is equal to, if not more, that of the famous figures we read about in books.
You wo n’t be disappointed by the tales of ambition, risk, and rebellion that shaped the Japan we know today.
( A footnote: Whiting was incredible in my documentary film , The Ones Left Behind: The Plight of Single Mothers in Japan ��
Rionne” Fujiwara” McAvoy is a Tokyo-based Australian professional wrestler and filmmaker whose documentary” The Ones Left Behind: The Plight of Single Mothers in Japan” recently began showing in K’s Theaters in Tokyo’s Shinjuku. This article, originally published on his Substack, is republished with permission.