Mamoru Watanabe

Mamoru Watanabe was a Japanese film director, screenwriter and actor, known for his work in the pink film genre. Along with directors Genji Nakamura and Banmei Takahashi, Watanabe was known as one of the Three Pillars of Pink.

Watanabe was born in Tokyo on March 19, 1931. His father owned a neighborhood movie theater, giving the young Watanabe an early interest in and a familiarity with the cinema. The family lived near the Daito Eiga studios, and Watanabe would go to watch the filming of jidaigeki. Daito was one of the studios that would be joined into the Daiei Motion Picture Company by the government during World War II. Watanabes older brother, born about 1919, was also a film enthusiast. When he died of tuberculosis in 1941, Watanabe inherited his older brothers large collection of movie memorabilia, including film scripts and magazines.

Source: Wikipedia