Tiger Mask's Influence On The Japanese Society

Tiger Mask (タイガーマスク Taigā Masuku^?) is a Japanese manga series written by Ikki Kajiwara and illustrated by Naoki Tsuji. The series was first published in Kodansha's Bokura Magazine from 1968 to 1969 and was later published in Weekly Shōnen Magazine from 1970 to 1971. It was later adapted into an anime series by Toei Animation which first aired on Yomiuri TV on October 2, 1969 and ended its run on September 30, 1971, airing 105 episodes.

Main Character:  Naoto Date (伊達 直人 Date Naoto^?) /aka Tiger Mask (タイガーマスク Taigā Masuku^?)

In real life, the name Tiger Mask has been used by a succession of Japanese professional wrestling characters as a gimmick. The Tiger Mask persona is instantly recognizable by its trademark mask, designed to look like a tiger's head, as well as the combination of high flying attacks and martial arts in the ring.

• In the early 1980s, the bookers in the New Japan Pro Wrestling promotion licensed the character and created a real-life Tiger Mask, originally portrayed by Satoru Sayama, to help boost their junior heavyweight division.^[2]
• In 2010 and 2011, several people in Japan donated to children's homes and other social welfare centers by using the name "Naoto Date" as an alias.^[3]