Hisashi Inoue, the prolific author and essayist who wove both comedy and social commentary into a broad spectrum of Japanese culture, passed away on Friday evening at 10:22 p.m. He was 75. According to his family, he had been diagnosed with lung cancer at the end of last October, and he had been receiving medical treatment since November.

Inoue was born in the northern Japanese prefecture of Yamagata on November 16, 1934. He began writing scripts as a member of the France-za theatrical troupe in Tokyo's Asakusa district while he was still a student at Sophia University. One of his first commercial works was NHK's televised 1964-1969 Hyokkori Hyoutan-jima (The Madcap Island) puppet show, which Toei Animation later adapted into a cel-animated film of the same name in 1967. Thus began a long writing career that included novels, screenplays, song lyrics, and essays.

He contributed to the writing of many Toei Animation productions, such as Andersen Stories, Himitsu no Akko-chan, and Puss in Boots. He also wrote the lyrics to such well-known theme songs as Moomin, Himitsu no Akko-chan, and Hyokkori Hyoutan-jima. Studio Ghibli and director Isao Takahata (who worked with Inoue on Himitsu no Akko-chan) honored him with "special thanks" credit in Pom Poko.