#casa brutus

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Casa Brutus

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CASA BRUTUS

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Kokontozai: KASHIYUKA’s Shop of Japanese Arts and Crafts —Uchiyama Shoji paper

Searching all of Japan for handcrafted items that express its heart and soul, our proprietor, KASHIYUKA, presents things that bring a bit of luxury to everyday life. This visit took her to the city of Iiyama in Nagano prefecture, where we were introduced to Uchiyama-gami, a handmade washi paper that is soft, yet sturdy, and crafted from fibers of the kōzo plant that are cured in snow.

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looking at coffee dripper

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Casa Brutus

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The 80s "Popeye" Extended Universe

Popeye’s Revolution (Part 1)

Popeye’s Revolution (Part 2)

In 1980, four years after the explosive launch of "Popeye," Yoshihisa Kinameri and Jiro Ishikawa envisioned a new title for former readers who had outgrown the publication. They named it "Brutus," after the antagonistic character in the original Popeye cartoon.

Almost every long-lasting fashion/lifestyle title -- including Popeye -- underwent style and format changes through the years. But, throughout its five decades, Brutus' original concept remains the same, down to its bi-weekly periodicity. It's one of the most consistent success stories in Japanese fashion/lifestyle publishing history.

Throughout its four decades, Brutus became a guide to society's aspirations while reflecting the reality of the magazine business. In this post, we will focus specifically on Brutus' first decade.

With legendary designer Seiichi Horiuchi serving as its first art director, Brutus -- much like Popeye and AnAn -- quickly became a reference for its high-quality, creative magazine design.

Brutus' target is "males in their 30s," and each issue focuses on a specific theme. Still, the magazine appeals to men and women of all ages interested in sophistication and the particular issue's theme.

The publication was launched when Japan was rising to become a global superpower. Its first decade was highly prosperous, encompassing most of the miraculous "Bubble years" of the Japanese economy. This background helps explain some of the classic themes in the magazine, which are still present to this day: high-quality fashion, food, and alcohol.

Looking at 80s issues, we can identify plenty of subjects still part of present Brutus, like culture, travel, and city life. Others, like the coverage of certain sports (sailing/America's Cup; Formula 1) or the focus on cars and motorcycles, were indicative of specific 80s/early 90s trends.

Early Brutus was a snapshot of a country bustling with energy, money, and optimism.

Brutus was originally a magazine for the post-Popeye generation: men who had graduated college and were now part of the workforce, a.k.a. "salarymen." The depiction of salarymen often has a depressing tone: faceless men in dark suits, overworked in bureaucratic, boring jobs, passed out on trains from exhaustion or drinking too much to cope with their burdening responsibilities. Not in early Brutus, where the portrayal of salarymen resembled how female fashion magazines characterize office ladies: young workers who should use their hard-earned financial independence to have fun and enjoy life.

With the bubble years as the backdrop, BRUTUS could convincingly sell the "salarymen" life as glamorous and a path to affluence. It told its readers to invest in expensive, glamorous suits; use their salary in fun ways, and leave the "salarymen" mindset behind, aiming instead to become a "business elite." A very 80s, optimistic way to see your career prospects, which would be much less convincing nowadays.

With the very generous budgets of the Bubble period, the magazine was known for travel-themed editions. The editors and the young staff would go on long trips to destinations perceived as "exotic" -- Africa, Vietnam, Thailand, China, South America, Cuba, Mexico -- and produce an entire issue around it.

Europe was also a popular destination for Brutus, with several issues exploring the continent and its culture. Decades before Scandinavian minimalism went mainstream, Brutus had an issue dedicated to the region's charms. Brutus highlighted East and West German culture. There were issues about traveling to Spain and Portugal, England, French culture and fashion…

But 80s Brutus had a particular obsession with Italy. Italian fashion, Italian "dolce vita," Italian cuisine, Italian design, and the charm and style of Italian men were thoroughly examined by the magazine.

US culture was the basis for Popeye. And while Brutus preferred to explore Europe in its first decade, it also had several issues dedicated to American culture and travel tips. Some of the themes were very "bubble year 80s," such as an issue advising readers to go skiing in Texas and another centered on buying real estate in Hawaii.

While the US often took a backseat to Europe, Brutus' favorite international city was New York City, as crystalized by two special mega-issues in 1982.

Popeye and Brutus explored many similar subjects: traveling, fashion, Tokyo city life, and where and what to buy. But 80s Brutus had something Popeye initially didn't: sex. A subject that completely matched Brutus's "pleasures of life" concept.

While "Hot Dog Press" had love manuals and sex guides for young teen boys (crucial for the magazine to surpass Popeye's sales), Brutus packaged that content in a more sophisticated, adult way. During the 80s, there were eight sex issues.

Regarding nudity, the 80s were very permissive compared to today's standards. While artistic shots of topless women on a magazine cover are unimaginable in 2022, '80s Brutus had several covers depicting nudity. In fact, its fifth-anniversary issue invited famed photographers to shoot nude pictorials. The edition was a hit, and the theme was repeated in other issues in the following years.

Brutus also had annual issues dedicated to architecture and interior design. It became such a standard Brutus topic that, in 1998, it spawned a spin-off title, "Casa Brutus."

But we're getting a little ahead of ourselves here. Going back to the 80s, it was the decade when the Popeye family grew exponentially.

One of the goals of Popeye magazine was to introduce Japanese youth to a more health-conscious lifestyle inspired by America. Besides sports, such as frisbee, skateboarding, and jogging, Popeye editors were fascinated by a concept that was somewhat foreign to Japan: muscle training. From the initial issue, the publication ran features on how to "shape up." Soon, Jiro Ishikawa started using another fictional character name to define the prototype of a muscular, fit guy: Tarzan.

The Tarzan lifestyle was particularly prominent in BRUTUS.

In 1985, for example, BRUTUS had an issue dedicated to the new "Tarzan era." Then, a few months later, in 1986, Tarzan became bi-weekly muscle training and fitness magazine, with Ishikawa as the founding editor. The first cover was shot by famed American photographer Reid Miles.

"Tarzan" is still in publication and is Japan's leading fitness publication.

But, of course, the Popeye family wouldn't be complete without Olive.

Olive magazine, aimed at the female public, was launched in 1982 as the "magazine for city girls." But it became a social phenomenon the following year when a female editor-in-chief took over and changed its entire concept. It wasn't solely the "female version of Popeye," but its own magazine, with a different vision: a dreamy, girly-like visual book aimed at teen girls. The "magazine for romantic girls" and its "lyceene" fashion were so influential that they'll be the theme of a future post. Despite its success in the 80s and 90s, "Olive" folded in 2000, the only one of the four spin-off titles that are not in circulation anymore.