Tamori announces end of 'Waratte Iitomo' after 32 years

Not sure I'd classify Beat Takeshi as a comedian.

Anyway, sorry to see the show go. While I didn't watch it often, I enjoyed it when I did.

Aboiut time, he has traded on audience canned laughter for 20 of those 32 years. Sunglasses are due to an eye injury he got once.

He used to wear an eyepatch in the old days....

Tamori has long been considered one of Japan’s most famous three television comedians, along with Beat Takeshi and Akashiya Sanma.

Beat Takeshi, commedian ? NO. Tamori : so so, Akashiya Sanma : Yes

A Japanese TV institution. Sorry to see him go. Will he remain as host of Music Station?

The thing about the sunglasses is that without them you would probably never recognize him on the street.

I have met both Tamori and Beat Takeshi, and Tamori was quite a gentleman. Beat Takeshi sprayed our team of non Japanese panelist with a fire extinguisher, is this a comedian?? Not too sure because we were all choking from the white smoke the fire extinguisher makes. Anyway, Waratte Itt to mo made it to the Guiness Book of World Records, longest running show LIVE on tv. Otsukaresama Mr. Tamori!

Sanma is not a comedian but an announcer, however a funny one at that. :)

Best comedians are Matsumoto and Hamada from downtown. Noone comes even close to them.

About time!!

You mean that annoying idiocy that is on tv in the company cafeteria every day at lunch time wiil finish? Hooray! I am sure they will replace it with something equally or more annoying however.

How on earth are they going to find something less funny to replace this with? I guess the slot will have to go to yet another program dedicated to watching people eat everyday mundane food and declaring it extremely delicious, perhaps with a panel of little known tarento watching on.

From all the dour and stressed looking faces of the people here, seems they never got his message about laughing.

For a guy who wears sunglasses, he does well at getting his joke across with facial expressions and actions. 32 years is a good run. Well done, Tamori San.

the show was beyond cheesy with the same silly game shows and corny guests,never understood why anyone found the show amusing

If you like him, or you hate him,you got to appreciate his 32 continuous years MCing the show. Much respect!

I hope he slows down a little and enjoys some much deserved life.

I remember when this show began its run ! Otsukaresama, Tamori-san !

And don't forget Tamori Club shown late Friday nights with sora mi mi hour. That also started back in October 1982.

I always liked Tamori! Otsukare sama deshita. No one can compare to him, not Beat Takeshi nor the most annoying to the max,Sanma. The good ones always leave ahead.

One thing Tamori did that I liked was when he had all 48 members of AKB48 on Iitomo. He introduced each one. Of course it took so long that AKB48 did not have the time to perform. Nice gesture on his part to recognize all the members, and not just the most popular.

I met him once. It was on a flight to Okinawa. The passengers were deplaning, and I was out there saying goodbye. I saw a very familiar pair of sunglasses. As he walked by he said to me "thanks for not crashing the plane." I responded that I did not know he was onboard. He then laughed in a good-natured way. I cannot imagine Beat Takeshi being like that.

Personally, I find Tamori quite vulgar. On the other hand, I have it from a very reliable source that Beat Takeshi on stage, and Beat Takeshi travelling abroad are like two completely different people. He has been described as an extremely polite, real gentleman when travelling.

I grew up in Japan with this show. Sad that its the end of an era, but I think it ha shad its day. Otsukaresama,, Tamori san.

What a shame, this was one of the best shows of all time.

One down, two to go!

Beat Takeshi a comedian? Now that's a joke.

In 1982 when the program started, I was 2 years old. It has just always been there. Even though I only watch it occasionally (if I like the Telephone Jockey guest), the world will be different without it. There are few certainties in life, that that is one of them. 12PM on Ch 8.

I always enjoyed watching it a lot. I will always have the great memories. The shows I used to love and watch all the time are all ending as the years go by.

Why shut down the show? Just wheel out some other old guy to take Tamori-sans slot ... Mino Monta anyone?

Watching this show I often thought, yeah, I wouldn't mind laughing, and this stuff ain't gonna help me do that. Soz I asked my mother-in-law, is it a language thing? A cultural thing?

Nah, she says, he aint that funny.

One of the more watchable shows on daytime tv. I always enjoyed it when they had foreign guests on who looked bewildered.

Within the world of Japanese "TV entertainment", his show was actually kind of classy. Which is not saying much... I found it good to learn Japanese though, with all those kindergarten level games.

The end of a great era in Japanese TV! Noon time in Japan will not be the same.

Tamori looks pretty young for 68. I wonder what his secret is.

I was going to say about bloody time, but then I remembered back to the early days before I became a jaded expat, and the show brings back great memories. Japanese daytime tv really won't be the same without it. I like gokai's post- there are few certainties in life, and iitimo was one of them. Sad to see it go.

I envy all of you above me who are able to be at home watching TV at noon everyday.

I've always like Tamori, from way back in the day when he was more a comedian than an MC. He always struck me as being a bit more intellectual than his peers/competitors, racy but not nearly as vulgar (or juvenile) as Takeshi, and some of his interests--as shown on other programs he's done--and the degree to which he's studied them, impressed me. IMO, he's always been a much classier act than Takeshi or Sanma, and a far better and much classier MC than Mino Monta.

I rarely watch Iitomo these days, not much liking many of the regulars, guests, and activities the show has turned to in the last decade or so, but I will miss that certainty of media life, as papasmurf says.

Tamo san, otsukaresama deshita! I wonder what show will replace Iitomo. Kinda hard to beat that kind of show. It's apparent that most of the posters here don't like the show but most of the Japanese folks do. That's why it has continued for this long.

For those of you who can't see Takeshi as a comedian, you must only know him as a movie producer/director. He was a comedian back in the day. Google "Hyoukin zoku" or "Takechanman". Very funny stuff. He, along with Sanma and Tamori (and probably Tokoro George) no longer have to be "funny" because they already climbed the ladder of success and are quite well respected. They can just be talk show hosts ;)

I'd rather go to the dentist than sit through this programme. But I'd prefer a hoof to the nuts than to spend five minutes watching Takeshi shouting and gurning, so I suppose that relatively speaking Tamori is a bit better.

Better than being hoofed in the nuts is my yardstick for Japanese TV shows. I read a lot of books.

Beat Takeshi a comedian? Now that's a joke.

What part of plastic mallet do you not understand?