Mistress-keeping has had a long and “illustrious” history in Japan, with fascinating traditions and customs that were unique to Japanese culture.
The practice underwent dramatic changes following the end of the Shogunate era in 1867 and again following the end of World War II in 1945—when it was revitalized by thousands of American and United Nations military and civilian personnel who were part of the forces occupying Japan.
I was part of that extraordinary phenomenon, and have chronicled the past and present-day status of mistress-keeping in Japan in a book that covers the nature and role of mistress-keeping during the Shogunate era, in the aftermath of WWII, and how it continues today as part of Japan’s mizu shobai [mee-zoo show-by], or “water business”, with insights into the entertainment trades that play major roles in business and politics.
One especially interesting fact is that during the first decade after Japan's defeat in World War II an estimated 5 million young women were employed in the "water business," with the luckier ones becoming the mistresses of businessmen and politicians. Large numbers of this group were kept by American businessmen, both those resident in Japan and the huge number who flocked into Japan from 1947/8 on as importers looking for cheap goods.
In 1958 Sears had 65 buyers stationed in Tokyo alone. An apartment building just five minutes walk from my office was famous for its compliment of mistresses kept by foreigners who came to Tokyo only two or three times a year for stays of 5 to 15 days. When their patrons were not there, the girls had a ball...!
The book, Mistress-Keeping in Japan - The Pitfalls & the Pleasures [Then and Now], notes that present-day mistress-keepers have a much wider choice than the early days when red-light districts and in more recent times cabaret hostesses were the primary sources for mistresses.
The role that high-tech plays in mistress-keeping today is another element that makes the "water business" a significant factor in Japanese life. The book is available from Amazon.com
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