WashPost Quotes Society President on Anime Boom

Japan America Society President John Malott was quoted twice in a major Washington Post feature article on the growing American passion for Japanese pop culture. Says the February 17 article:

"Malott admits to being "amazed when I see young [American] kids singing the theme song from 'Hi Hi Puffy AmiYumi' in Japanese." A former State Department "Japan hand," Malott tallies "three generations of people who got interested in Japan. There was the original group after World War II, who were attracted to the cul ture. Then there was the next generation -- I would consider myself at the start of that -- who were attracted to Japan because of what was happening there economically. And now we have the next wave, of people who are attracted to Japan because of the popular culture."

The Post reports that " manga and anime fever has not cooled, so it is no wonder that more staid local institutions continue to reach out to anime fans: The Freer Gallery will present its Fourth Annual Cherry Blossom Anime Marathon on April 1, and for the first time this year, the Japan-America Society of Washington will add a "J-Pop Land" to its Sakura Matsuri . Although plans for the April 8 event are not complete, says Malott, president of the society, "we will most likely be featuring anime and manga ourselves. We may have some performers from Japan that are aimed more at the younger set."