Masaki Sumitani

Masaki Sumitani as Razor Ramon Hard Gay , 2008

Masaki Sumitani ( Japanese 住 谷 正 樹 , Sumitani Masaki ; born December 18, 1975 in Harima , Kako-gun (today: Tarumi-ku , Kobe )) is a Japanese comedian , wrestler and tarento . He is best known for the character he embodies, Razor Ramon Hard Gay ( レ イ ザ ー ラ モ ン ＨＧ , Reizā Ramon HG ), also known as HG, Razor Ramon Sumitani or mostly Hard Gay . In his role he gained national attention and popularity from 2005 through his appearances on the Bakushō Mondai no Bakuten! , a Saturday night show on TBS Television . The name is derived from the wrestler Scott Hall , who competes under the ring name Razor Ramon . Although WWE holds the trademark rights to Razor Ramon , it so far condones the use of the name Razor Ramon HG .

Career

Masaki Sumitani was born on December 18, 1975 in Harima, Hyogo Prefecture , Japan . After graduating from Kakogawa-East Prefectural High School ( 兵 庫 県 立 加古川 東 高等学校 , Hyōgo-kenritsu Kakogawa-Higashi kōtō gakkō ), he enrolled at Dōshisha University and began studying commercial science . During this time he started wrestling as a hobby and soon joined the Doshisha Professional Wrestling Alliance (DWA). Under his ring name GiveUp Sumitani he won the Kyoto pro-wrestling heavyweight championship, which was organized by the DWA together with the Ritsumeikan Wrestling Alliance (RWA) of the nearby Ritsumeikan University in Kyoto .

Through wrestling in his student days he met Makoto Izubuchi , with whom he formed a comedy duo from 1997 under the name Razor Ramon . During Sumitani’s student days, Razor Ramon won the Fukuwarai Grand Prize ( 福 笑 い 大 賞 , Fukuwarai taishō ) of the Imamiya Kodomo Ebisu Manzai Shinjin Concours ( 今 宮 子 供 え び す マ ン ザ イ 新人 コ ン ク ル ), and collected children through "Ebisuya competition" Live performances in front of an audience at Club Sabuki in Osaka, which was opened by the comedy troupe Yoshimoto Kogyo and helped comedians from the Kansai region to start their careers.

After graduating from Dōshisha University, Sumitani started a job as a vegetable supplier at CO-OP KOBE. However, he quit this after four months in order to advance his comedian career together with Makoto Izubuchi by joining Yoshimoto Kogyo. Razor Ramon made her first television appearance in 1999 and won the Special Jury Prize at the ABC Owarai Grand Prix in 2000. Sumitani and Izubuchi joined the Yoshimoto Kogyo-produced program Yoshimoto Shin-Kigeki and from 2001 played Yakuza , Salaryman , Udon - Restaurant owners, construction workers and other characters in sketches.

Sumitani pursued his wrestling career until 2005 and was under contract with the Japanese wrestling league and host HUSTLE . There he defeated Yinling the Erotic Terrorist in his debut and formed a team with Naoya Ogawa and Yoshihiro Tajiri , with whom he led the HUSTLE army against Generalissimo Takada's monster army in a storyline typical of wrestling leagues .

Hard gay

The best-known role played by Sumitani is Hard Gay ( ハ ー ド ゲ イ Hādo Gei ), which he introduced in 2002 and with which he achieved national fame in 2005. The character's official name is Razor Ramon HG , but it's mostly called Hard Gay . The figure always dresses in a tight, black leather costume, a stereotypical gay fetish outfit. In the role of the character, he commits charitable deeds ( yonaoshi , "social improvement") for uninvolved passers-by, while using his hip swing, which has become a personal identification mark, and exclamations, which are often accompanied by music in cinematic contributions with Livin 'La Vida Loca by Ricky Martin .

Hard Gay makes regular use of certain keywords and poses. So at the beginning of a contribution he always introduces himself with outstretched arms, the words " Dōmō Hard Gay dēsu " ("Hello, this is Hard Gay") and a subsequent 360 ° rotation. He also uses expressions like Fuuuhhh! ( フ ゥ ～! ) Or “ Fooohhh! “( フ ォ ー！ ) as running gags in his performances. He also frequently interrupts people speaking with the words Be, Be, Be, Be, and hold out the palm of the hand in front of the person's face. A possible explanation for the use of the latter expression could be found in the word urusai , literally aloud , meaning "be quiet!" This is the Kansai dialect to うるせー , urusē or just be . Another theory is the reference to the Kanji 静 ( sei ) which also means calm .

In the spring of 2006 Sumitani began to work again with his Razor Ramon Manzai partner Makoto Izubuchi, where Izubuchi appeared as Razor Ramon RG (the RG stands for "Real Gay" in this case). This was done in the wake of the high popularity of Razor Ramon HG. Izubuchi's role wasn't as well received as Sumitani's, but Razor Ramon HG is still a wrestler at HUSTLE. Sumitani's role in the storylines takes on the role of a face who defeats his opponents through speed.

Sumitani has been running his own YouTube channel in his role Razor Ramon HG since 2019, on which he publishes videos with fitness tips and his participation in over 40 bodybuilding competitions. There he also makes use of the poses and catchphrases that made him famous.

marriage

On August 8, 2006 it was announced that Sumitani will marry the gravure idol Anna Suzuki. Suzuki said that after her commitments expired, she would quit her modeling career to focus on starting a family. The two married on November 27, 2006, four days after Suzuki retired.

On March 1, 2008, it was announced that the two were expecting their first child. He also announced that he wanted to appear on television again under his real name Masaki Sumitani. His first appearance as Masaki Sumitani took place in the Jidaigeki Hakana .

Withdrawal from wrestling

Razor Ramon HG retired from professional wrestling after the Hustle Mania, which took place on November 23, 2006 at the Yokohama Arena after a loss to The Esperanza . According to the storyline, he has to end his career because of "erectile dysfunction", but it was officially feared that the league's involvement with the Yakuza could rub off Sumitani's popularity. As with many other retreats from professional wrestling, Razor Ramon HG returned to the ring. On March 18, 2007, he was in the ring again for the first time at Hustle 21.

Awards

• Pro Wrestling Illustrated led Razor Ramon HG in the PWI 500 list of the best 500 lone fighters in wrestling in 2006, ranking 129th
• He was named Rookie of the Year at the Tokyo Sports Awards 2006

criticism

Sumitani's assumed homosexuality turned out to be incorrect when he was found on a date with actress Anna Suzuki, to whom he is now married. He has been criticized for his stereotypical portrayal of homosexual men and for having built his career essentially on distorting and grotesquely parodying a social minority.

Kanako Otsuji , a self-confessed lesbian and member of the Osaka Prefectural Administration, stated in an interview with the Japan Times :

“It makes me angry. This morning I saw [comedian] Razor Ramon for the first time. I never watch TV. I'd only heard about him. He's not homosexual. He just uses gayness for his act, to make people laugh. I'm afraid that people will get the idea that gay people are all like that, yelling and pumping their hips. "

“It makes me angry [the way the media treats sexual minorities]. This morning I saw [the comedian] Razor Ramon for the first time. I never watch tv. I've only heard from him. He's not gay. He only uses gayness in his performances to make people laugh with it. I'm afraid people get the impression that homosexuals are all like him: screaming and swinging their pelvis. "

Hard gay in pop culture

Manga

• Razor Ramon HG got a cameo in chapter 233 of the Manga Gantz by appearing on TV in Kurono Kei's apartment.

Anime

• In episode 12 of the Lucky Star series , Hard Gay is heard announcing a New Year's program on television, but he is not seen.
• He has a brief cameo in episode 12 of Suzumiya Haruhi no Yūutsu ( The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya ).
• In episode 5 of the Macademi Wasshoi series , "Hard Gay" is discussed and the character "Hapshiel" is compared to him.
• In episode 4 of the series Mirai Nikki there is a character with "Twelfth" who expresses himself and moves like Hard Gay. However, it is not known whether this is actually supposed to be an allusion.

music

• Sumitani released his first single, Young Man, on February 8, 2006. It is a Japanese cover version of YMCA by the Village People .

watch TV

• In his role as hard gay, Sumitani portrayed a physical education teacher in the high school episode of the batsu game series on Japanese entertainment show Gaki no Tsukai .
• He appears on a magazine cover in episode 7 of the series Hana Yori Dango . He also appeared personally in an episode in a minor role and portrayed a waiter.
• Razor Ramon was a candidate for Umi Kinniku Ō - Viking and made it to the final there.
• He appeared as a guest on the Dutch / Flemish show Lost in Tokyo .
• He entered several times in episodes of the BBC telecast Japanorama on.

Video games

• In the game Capcom Fighting Jam , the CD contains unused data of a character that looks very similar to Hard Gay.
• In the official Japanese version of the online golf game PangYa (in Europe: Albatross18 ) Hard Gay can be played as a character and there are objects to equip your own character with appropriate accessories.

Sources & individual references

1. ↑ http://www.genickbruch.com/index.php?befehl=bios&wrestler=2173&bild=1
2. ↑ Japan's 'Hard Gay' Sumitani Masaki Weds Model Suzuki Anna ( Memento of the original from August 20, 2006 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. 
3. ↑ http://onigirisensei.wordpress.com/2008/03/01/hard-gay-daddy-to-be/
4. ↑ Archived copy ( Memento of the original from May 1, 2008 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. 
5. ↑ http://www.prowrestlinghistory.com/supercards/japan/hustle/mania.html#2006
6. ↑ PRIDES Yakuza Scandal ( Memento of the original dated November 30, 2007 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. 
7. ↑ Archived copy ( Memento of the original from September 19, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. 
8. ↑ http://extremepuroresu.blogspot.com/2005_12_01_archive.html
9. ↑ Archived copy ( memento of the original dated July 6, 2008 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. 
10. ↑ Masako Tsubuku: Assemblywoman puts sex on the agenda. Lesbian politician Kanako Otsuji talks about gender issues in Japan . In: The Japan Times , September 11, 2005.
11. ↑ Archived copy ( Memento of the original from September 4, 2009 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. 
12. ↑ http://kotaku.com/gaming/hard-gay-man/play-golf-dressed-as-the-hard-gay-man-149226.php ( Memento from July 15, 2007 in the Internet Archive )