Comedian Kimimaro Ayakoji appeared on Tetsuko Kuroyanagi's long-running talk show "Tetsuko's Room" (TV Asahi), which aired on February 6th. He spoke about how his fan base has changed since he turned 75 last year and became a senior citizen, as well as his thoughts on health management.
He turned 75 last December and commented, "I was surprised." He took a course for seniors to renew his driver's license, and was given a cognitive function test. He was shown various illustrations, listened to another talk for about five minutes, and then asked if he remembered the illustrations.
Recently, she feels that the audience has changed. "I made my breakthrough at 52, so at the time, most of the audience were my generation or older," she says, but now, "there are no people over 75 at the venue." The generation that her parents enjoyed stand-up comedy with are now in their 30s to 50s, and she reveals, "It's like they're coming to see me again." With the venues nearly full, she feels a sense of accomplishment, saying, "It's very rewarding, and I'm working hard."
In her 70s, "health comes first." She says she wants to stay healthy until she's about 80, and recalls that when she appeared on the show at age 68 and mentioned her plans to retire, Kuroyanagi replied, "What are you talking about? Look at me." "That was a turning point, and it got me going again," she says, bracing herself.
As people get older, their voices tend to become thinner, so to prevent this, he says, "I try to exercise hard, talk a lot, and speak loudly," and reiterates, "Being able to work is my greatest purpose in life."
