Ichizō Kobayashi
Kobayashi’s acumen for public relations anticipated the sort of commercial messages we see today. His masterpiece in this vein came when he opened a line to Kobe in 1920 and produced a newspaper advertisement sniping at the crowded trains of his Hanshin rivals. “Our new express trains between Kobe and Osaka are clean, fast, and nearly empty, with great views and cool carriages.” It should not be surprising that he also wrote more than 20 theatrical pieces for the Takarazuka Revue.