Editor’s note: This is the first in a series about victims of Johnny Kitagawa’s sexual abuse.

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The steady stream of former boy idols who said last year that they had been molested by show-biz guru Johnny Kitagawa finally led to confirmation about his decades of sexual abuse.

But they were not the first to come forward as victims of the sexual predator.

Thirty-five years ago, a book caught the public's attention.

In “Hikaru Genji e” (Dear Hikaru Genji), published by Data House in 1988, Koji Kita, leader of all-male idol group Four Leaves, explained how he was forced to engage in sexual acts with Kitagawa, the founder and face of leading talent agency Johnny & Associates Inc.

At the time, some magazines were covering allegations of Kitagawa’s sexual abuse. But this book is believed to be the first time for a former member of a Johnny’s idol group to identify himself as a victim of Kitagawa.

It became a bestseller with 350,000 copies sold.

But the scandal eventually died down. And nothing was done to stop Kitagawa from continuing to sexually abuse boys.

Nobuhiro Motohashi, a 67-year-old writer, published a book in August last year titled, “Boku to Janiizu” (Me and Johnny’s), in which he revealed that he was the ghostwriter for “Hikaru Genji e.”

“It was my duty as a ghostwriter to reveal behind-the-scenes details of the long-standing taboo issue of Johnny Kitagawa’s sexual assaults,” he wrote.

“I am going to reveal them with the intention of once again opening the curtain that was supposed to have drawn closed.”

In an interview with The Asahi Shimbun, Motohashi explained how “Hikaru Genji e” came about.

TIP-OFF TO ADULT FILM DIRECTOR

It all started with a tip-off to a “bureau” run by Toru Muranishi, an adult film director, in 1988, Motohashi said.

After a falling-out with Johnny & Associates, Muranishi established the “Johnny’s office secret information detective bureau.”

The purpose of the bureau was to collect scandalous information about the agency and its idols.

Motohashi, who had business ties with Muranishi, learned about the information being sent in.

Most of the voicemails received were criticisms against the bureau. But in about a month, more than 1,000 tips had been delivered.

One piece of information was that “Kita had been living with Kitagawa since the late 1960s.”

Muranishi’s staff members visited Kita in his hometown of Tanabe, Wakayama Prefecture. By that time, Kita had retired from show-business and was trying to live an ordinary life.

In summer 1988, Motohashi and Muranishi met Kita for the first time for an interview.

DENIAL AT FIRST

“I know it’s a rumor, but is it true that Ko-chan (Kita) and Johnny-san had an intimate relationship?” Motohashi asked.

Kita fell silent.

When Motohashi repeated the question, the former entertainer said: “I don’t know anything about that. There are rumors about it, but that’s not the case at all.”

Motohashi himself had heard that Kitagawa was sexually abusing boys at the agency, but he was skeptical. Kita’s words reinforced his doubts.

The lengthy interview continued. And on the fourth day, Kita suddenly explained everything.

“I owe you an apology,” he said. “I lied about one thing. The thing with Johnny-san was … it actually happened.”

Kita then began to talk incessantly.

‘LIKE A MARRIED COUPLE’

Kita said that before he turned 16, Kitagawa would crawl into his futon almost daily and perform sexual acts on him.

“Before I knew it, Johnny-san had me out of my pajamas and was licking all over my thin body with his tongue,” a passage in the 1988 tell-all book said.

“I was scared, disgusted and nervous. Unspeakable emotions swirled up inside me because I realized that I had finally gotten a shortcut to debut in the entertainment world, and that the person to whom I owed so much for that was now taking advantage of me, like a toy.”

Kita said that Kitagawa bathed with him, washed and kissed him. The agency founder also demanded anal intercourse, but Kita refused.

He said such acts were a nightly occurrence that continued for four and a half years.

The book also showed the extent of how Kitagawa manipulated the minds of boys under his care.

Kita said his stage name was taken from “Kitagawa.”

“Me and Johnny-san were lovers … . No. We were like a married couple,” Kita said.

Motohashi looked back on the interview.

“It was a ‘deep relationship,’ far beyond anything I could have imagined,” he said.

SILENCE FROM MEDIA

The book generated a buzz among the public.

Motohashi recalled being at an “izakaya” pub and hearing people sitting at a nearby table talking about Kita.

He said he also heard high school students expressing concerns about other stars in the Johnny & Associates agency.

Former members of Johnny’s Jr., an umbrella term for pre-debut idols, started to speak out after reading the book.

Motohashi produced a video, also called “Hikaru Genji e,” featuring testimonies from Kita and seven former Johnny’s Jr. members. It was released in 1989.

In the video, Kita said: “They are boys. They are like 12 to 13 years old. Kids in their early teens are (being assaulted by Kitagawa). I know that. And everybody in the entertainment industry knows that.”

One former member in the video was Junya Hiramoto, who now heads the Johnny’s Sexual Assault Victims Association, which was established in June 2023.

Another former member in the video was Shogo Kiyama, who in 2005 published a book that details Kitagawa’s sexual abuse.

However, “Hikaru Genji e” was rarely mentioned in the book review sections of mainstream media organizations.

The sex-abuse issue lost steam. And after the 1989 video, Motohashi moved away from the Kitagawa issue.

Kita died in 2012. Seven years later, in 2019, Kitagawa died at the age of 87.

KNOWING THE TRUTH

About three years ago, Motohashi heard from the BBC about plans for a program about Kitagawa’s sexual abuse.

He decided to cooperate and be interviewed.

After the BBC program was aired in March 2023, Motohashi began to see online posts calling “Hikaru Genji e” a “lie” and “fiction.”

Although Motohashi did not want to reveal himself as the ghostwriter for the book, he could not tolerate such false posts.

He disclosed his role in the book. And he emphasized his hopes that writing a behind-the-scenes story would get people to understand that Kita was telling the truth.

“At that time (in 1988), there was no awareness of ‘sexual abuse,’ and I can self-criticize myself in that regard,” Motohashi said. “The truth was buried behind the ‘scandal.’”

In April 2023, Kauan Okamoto, a musician and former Johnny’s Jr. member, appeared in front of news cameras and said he was a victim of Kitagawa’s sex abuse.

Afterward, other former members of the agency came forward.

Their descriptions of Kitagawa’s behavior, their dependence on him to advance their careers, and the damage that they suffered were very similar to what was written in “Hikaru Genji e” and mentioned in the 1989 video.

But this time around, many media outlets prominently reported the allegations.

Johnny & Associates finally acknowledged that Kitagawa had sexually abused hundreds of boys for decades. The agency apologized, changed its name and set up an office to provide compensation to Kitagawa’s victims.

Motohashi said the times have changed since “Hikaru Genji e” was published.

“When I think back to those days when those who said they were sexually abused were treated as freaks and oddballs, I feel we are now a world apart,” he said.

“I want people to know that someone had already come forward 35 years ago and to know about the life of a man named Koji Kita,” he added.