Robert Whiting
Veteran author and journalist known for books on Japan, especially its underworld and baseball; author of Gamblers, Fraudsters, Dreamers & Spies and Tokyo Junkie, who provides firsthand anecdotes and reportage about Tokyo's colorful figures.
Best podcasts with Robert Whiting
Ranked by the Snipd community
Mar 27, 2026 • 35min
Robert Whiting, "Gamblers, Fraudsters, Dreamers & Spies: The Outsiders who Shaped Modern Japan (Tuttle, 2024)
Robert Whiting, author and longtime Japan observer, shares colorful tales of Tokyo outsiders from the 60s and 70s. Stories include a boisterous Australian hostess famed for cutting patrons’ ties, a tattooed female yakuza with a revolver, North Korean drug-smuggling and meth’s rise, and how MK Taxi transformed rude cabs into polished service.
Mar 27, 2026 • 35min
Robert Whiting, "Gamblers, Fraudsters, Dreamers & Spies: The Outsiders who Shaped Modern Japan (Tuttle, 2024)
Robert Whiting, veteran author and journalist celebrated for books on Japan and baseball, shares colorful firsthand tales from 1960s-70s Tokyo. He recounts flamboyant figures like Maggie the necktie-cutter, female yakuza with a revolver, North Korean drug-smuggling ties, and the Korean founder who transformed rude taxi culture into white-gloved service. Short, vivid stories paint a surprising portrait of modern Japan's outsiders.
