Yukio Mishima

Yukio Mishima (三島 由紀夫, Mishima Yukio) is the pen name of Kimitake Hiraoka (平岡 公威, Hiraoka Kimitake^?, January 14, 1925 – November 25, 1970), a Japanese author, poet, playwright, actor, and film director. Mishima is considered one of the most important Japanese authors of the 20th century; he was nominated three times for the Nobel Prize in Literature^[1] and was poised to win the prize in 1968 but lost the award to his fellow countryman Yasunari Kawabata, presumably because of his radical right-wing activities.^[2] His avant-garde work displayed a blending of modern and traditional aesthetics that broke cultural boundaries, with a focus on sexuality, death, and political change.^[3] He is remembered for his ritual suicide by seppuku after a failed coup d'état attempt, known as the "Mishima Incident".

• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yukio Mishima