Monta Mino, who hosted many television shows in Japan, died in the early hours of Saturday, Nikkoku Corp., the water meter company he chaired, said. He was 80.
Mino, whose real name was Norio Minorikawa, joined Nippon Cultural Broadcasting in 1967. After leaving the company, he became a freelance announcer and came under the spotlight for his narration on a TV program featuring Japanese professional baseball.
He hosted TV programs such as “Gogo wa Marumaru Omoikkiri TV,” “Mino Monta no Asa Zuba!,” “Dobutsukisotengai” and “Himitsu no Kenmin Show.”
“Final Answer?” became a buzzword after Mino made the remark in a quiz show he hosted.
In 2006, when Mino appeared on 11 TV shows a week, he was recognized by the Guinness World Records as the TV host with the most hours of live TV appearances in a week.
