Monta Mino


Monta Mino, born Norio Minorikawa, is a Japanese television presenter. Mino is recognized by the Guinness World Records as being the TV host with the most hours of live TV appearances in a week, as of April 2008. This breaks his earlier 2006 record of 21 hours, 42 minutes.

Career

Mino is from Setagaya in Tokyo. He graduated from Rikkyo High School and Rikkyo University. After a short stint in the conservative newspaper Sankei Shimbun, he was transferred to sister company Nippon Cultural Broadcasting in 1967, where he worked as a radio announcer reading the news, covering baseball games, and hosting the late-night program Sei! Young. The name Mino Monta originated in the opening to another NCB program he hosted, "All Japan Pop 20". He left NCB in 1979 to work at his father's company in Aichi Prefecture, but continued to read the news as a contractor for Aichi Broadcasting.
He presents the morning news show Mino Monta no Asa Zuba!, Quiz $ Millionaire, and the Sunday evening Amazing Animals, among other programmes. Mino also hosted the long-running afternoon television programme Omoikkiri TV in which he dispensed lifestyle and health advice; it was discontinued in 2007.
He claims he only needs four hours of sleep every night in spite of hosting eleven TV programmes, including news shows, talk shows, wildlife shows and quiz shows, and appearing on television every day of the week except Sunday.

Family

Mino's wife, Yasuko Minorikawa died on 22 May 2012 of cancer, aged 65. They had been married since November 1970.

Controversies

In September 2013, Mino took a break from television news duties following the arrest on 13 September of his 31-year-old son, Yuto Minorikawa, who was charged with stealing a man's bag on the street in Tokyo.