Showa 30s Movie Revives Interest in Danchi

By Tsutomu Yamashita, Asahi Weekly

　年末の邦画界を盛り上げている「ALWAYS 続・三丁目の夕日」に見られるように、今年は「昭和30年代」がちょっとしたブームでした。伊豆では映画のセットのような「昭和30年代村」の建設も本格化しています。この時代に建てられた団地の再評価がブームになり、筆者も各地で取材してきました。団地愛好家にとっては、外観は古びても「あのころ」に戻れる夢のテーマパークであり、郷愁を誘うものです。

　With the popularity of "Always Zoku 3-chome no Yuhi," now playing in theaters throughout Japan, many moviegoers have been struck by feelings of nostalgia for the Showa 30s.

　For a local glimpse of life in that era, people can get a modern-day feel through the danchi (public housing complexes), which were built in that era.

　Many danchi are very old, but have not been "retired" yet because people are still living in them all over Japan. When these danchi were built, they were gleaming and modern, a symbol of the Japanese economic boom that would produce the second largest economy in the world.

　In the past, Japan has a long history of traditional wooden houses. By comparison, the concrete danchi complexes look modern and imposing, although some say they are now shabby and slum-like.

　Most danchi were built in suburbs, as a result of Japan's rapid population and economic growth, which created a serious housing shortage.

　For example, the population of Kanagawa Prefecture - now at 8.9 million - was only 3.1 million in Showa 33 (1958) at the time "3-chome no Yuhi" is based.

　The former Japan Housing Corp., now called UR -- Urban Renaissance Agency - was founded in 1955. It built a lot of the "modern" danchi for the tremendous swarm of young people from rural Japan who moved to big cities such as Tokyo, Osaka and Nagoya in search of work.

　At the time, many young Japanese yearned for a Western danchi lifestyle that featured housing with thick concrete walls, and equipped with flush toilets and stainless-steel kitchen sinks. Those lifestyles were introduced first by the American TV dramas that started to be shown during the Showa 30s era in Japan.

団地オタクが集まった！

　In April, the first unofficial national gathering of danchi enthusiasts was held in Suginami. The enthusiasts came from all walks of life, such as a musician, an architectural designer, a Tokyo government official, a graphic designer and so on. Most were young and had other interests, such as railroads, old cars or mechanical antiques such as old cameras. Now, danchi are becoming the next "craze." Under the cherry blossoms in the garden of an old but grand-looking danchi, they discussed their common interests. Some of them even are collecting old water taps and massive bathroom porcelain that were seen in Showa 30s' danchi.

　In the Tsujido Danchi in Fujisawa in Kanagawa Prefecture, well-known danchi buff Yoshihisa Eguchi, who is in his 30s, bought an apartment in the housing complex several years ago for about 12 million yen. The danchi, built in 1964, is actually older than he is, but the walls have been repainted white and the interior completely redone, giving it a fresh look. A surfboard lends a resort hotel-like feel to the room.

　"I was longing for a danchi life for a long time," Eguchi said. "I remade my rooms in my taste, and the panoramic Pacific Ocean view from my danchi room also gives me great comfort."

　Others are finding bargains in old danchi apartments, priced from about 5 million yen. In Saitama and Chiba prefectures, the old Showa 30s-era danchi is even being brought back to life in a modern-day version.

　"Showa 30 Nen Mura" (Village in Showa 30, 1955) is now under construction in Ito, Shizuoka Prefecture, on a hill overlooking the Pacific Ocean. The village will recreate a town like the studio sets of "3-chome no Yuhi."

　Retirees, especially baby boomers around Tokyo, are expected to move to the Izu danchi in the future. The village will attempt to recreate the homey community that older generations remember from their youths.

　Sadly, there are few glimpses left of life in the Showa 30s, and few living local communities with strong ties to the era, like what is depicted in the movie.

　The current popularity of looking back on the Showa 30s seems derived from the Japanese state of mind. Today, the average Japanese lives more comfortably with more room, but many still look back fondly on danchi life and a simpler, less-complicated time.

• moviegoer(s)　映画ファン
• public...complexes　公団（公営）団地　
• imposing　堂々とした、立派な
• serious...shortage　深刻な住宅不足
• former...Corp.　旧日本住宅公団　
• Urban...Agency　都市再生機構
• yearned for　〜にあこがれた
• buff　マニア、専門家
• interior...　redone　室内の内装は完全に一新されている
• like...movie　映画で描かれていたような