Chris Komai

ckomai

Chris Komai is a freelance writer, who has been involved in Little Tokyo for more than four decades. He was the Public Information Officer of the Japanese American National Museum for over 21 years, where he handled public relations for the organization’s special events, exhibitions and public programs. Prior to that, Komai worked for the Japanese-English newspaper, The Rafu Shimpo, for 18 years as a sports writer, sports editor, and English editor. He still contributes articles to the newspaper and writes for Discover Nikkei on a variety of topics.

Komai was Past Board Chair for the Little Tokyo Community Council and is currently First Vice Chair. He also serves on the Little Tokyo Public Safety Association board. He has been a member of the Southern California Nisei Athletic Union Board of Directors for basketball and baseball for almost 40 years and sits on the Board of the Nikkei Basketball Heritage Association. Komai earned a B.A. degree in English from the University of California at Riverside.

Updated December 2019

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sports en

Will Ireton Uses Analytics, Trackman to Help Dodger Players Improve Their Performances

By Chris Komai
18 Oct 2023

What becomes clear after meeting Will Ireton is that there is more to him than meets the eye. Much more. In his eighth year as part of the Los Angeles Dodgers organization and in his second as the Performance Operations Manager, Will’s career path included playing minor league baseball for the Texas Rangers, helping to organize the Philippines’ national team for the World Baseball Classic (WBC) in 2015 and acting as the translator for one-time Dodger starting pitcher Kenta Maeda from 2016-2018. It was during that stint that Dodger President of Baseball Operations Andrew Friedman …

sports en

Stephen Nelson Makes History as New Dodgers Announcer

By Chris Komai
20 Sep 2023

Stephen Nelson has always had a strong interest in history, but because of his new position as a broadcaster for the Los Angeles Dodgers, he is making history this year. Nelson, whose mother is Japanese American, is the first Asian American to work as a play-by-play announcer for a Major League Baseball team. He was hired by SportNet LA earlier this year to broadcast over 50 home and road games when the Dodgers’ primary announcer Joe Davis is unavailable. Stephen, who grew up in Huntington Beach and graduated from Marina High School, views his new position from a historic perspective. …

business en

Pacific Bridges' Innovative Approach to Financial Services

By Chris Komai
14 Mar 2023

As a Japanese American Sansei who has trudged through every practical definition of senior citizenship, I am gratified to have been able to witness the greater acceptance of things unique to our community. While the first step in fighting institutional discrimination has been legislative and judicial, the next phase to overcome is the societal bias against our cultural traditions. As with many Sansei, I felt some embarrassment as a kid when my hakujin friends found out my family ate raw fish with hashi. Today, Japanese fare, especially sushi, is considered one of the great cuisines, and who …

food en

Nikkei Chronicles #11—Itadakimasu 3! Nikkei Food, Family, and Community

JANM Sashimi Potluck Lunches: Extended A Pre-WWII Tradition

By Chris Komai
4 Oct 2022

Most people appreciate that anyone who works for a reputable nonprofit organization is unlikely to get rich. But the intangible rewards for those who feel the satisfaction of helping to fulfill a worthwhile mission often surpass the limited monetary compensation. And if you’re lucky, you might gain access to tangible benefits unique to the Japanese American nonprofit community. As someone who worked for the Japanese American National Museum (JANM) for over 20 years, I witnessed a series of remarkable summer Nikkei grassroots benefits: the sashimi lunches. While potlucks including fresh…

sports en

Appreciating Wat Misaka

By Chris Komai
7 Feb 2022

Appropriately, as the National Basketball Association (NBA) celebrates its 75th anniversary, it included Wat Misaka as an important figure in its history. This might seem remarkable since Wataru “Wat” Misaka’s playing career consisted of only three games with the New York Knickerbockers. But Misaka’s mere presence on a roster in 1947 made him the first person of color to play in the Basketball Association of America (BAA), the predecessor to NBA, in the same calendar year that Jackie Robinson integrated Major League Baseball. Historically, because America’s long…

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Discover Nikkei

Japanese migrants and their descendants

Chris Komai

Nikkei Chronicles #11—Itadakimasu 3! Nikkei Food, Family, and Community

Series this author contributes to

Tad Nakamura’s Art and Activism

Nikkei Chronicles #5—Nikkei-go: The Language of Family, Community, and Culture

The Chuo Gakuen School: The Seeds of Prestige for the Japanese Community in Mexico

Postwar Japanese Emigration to the Dominican Republic — Part 1: A Tragic Tale

Nikkei Chronicles #3—Nikkei Names: Taro, John, Juan, João?

The Child of a Thousand Generations

My Name is Neal

Journal Entry #Written in '34: "The Bizzaro Version..."

Camp Survivor Recalls Killings at Manzanar

ブラジルで活躍する日系企業の今

第５回 生物農薬で注目を浴びる東洋紡ブラジル社

Nikkei View

Interpreting Lost in Translation 20 years later

Ayumi Takenaka: “Even though we don’t have an exact definition of Nikkei cuisine, its origins are in Peru”

書評：和泉真澄『日系カナダ人の移動と運動―知られざる日本人の越境生活史』

1992年渡米、目標は「アカデミー賞」— 俳優の井上英治さん

Kizuna 2020: Nikkei Kindness and Solidarity During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Tiempos pandémicos: teletrabajo y koden digital

Kizuna 2020: Nikkei Kindness and Solidarity During the COVID-19 Pandemic

COVID-19 e os heróis anônimos

香川県海外移民の父：今雪真一の情熱と功績

第３部：金子正則知事の南米訪問とその主な見解

Nikkei Chronicles #12

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Journal Entry #Written in '34: "The Bizzaro Version..."

Camp Survivor Recalls Killings at Manzanar

Interpreting Lost in Translation 20 years later

Ayumi Takenaka: “Even though we don’t have an exact definition of Nikkei cuisine, its origins are in Peru”

Dr. Ryuzo Yanagimachi—Heads or Tails?

In American Dream

The Kawamoto-Wipala Farm in Leland Washington: A Farm for the Ages — Part 4

Journal Entry #First Appeared in 1940: "A Wild Hare..."

Chapter 8—The Way Home

Unlocking Family Mysteries

Relearning our culture

Pictures of Belonging: Rediscovering Three Remarkable Japanese American Artists

Growing Up Nikkei As An Adoptee—A Conversation with Author Susan Ito

Chapter 16 (Part 2) — Activities of Kibei Japanese American Citizens League

The Kawamoto-Wipala Farm in Leland Washington: A Farm for the Ages — Part 1

The Legacy of Resistance: Nimura/Kashiwagi Family at Ireichō

Journal Entry #3 Days Left: "Menacing Mitts..."

Embracing Imperfection: A Journey of Self-Exploration in Japan

The Amazing Tashiro Family - Part 2: Ken Tashiro, Journalist

The Poker Table—Part 2

Shared Memories

Dr. Jiro Takai's Journey of Becoming From the Soo to Nagoya University — Part 4

Continental Drift: How anti-Japanese sentiment in Australia affected Nikkei Communities in the US and Canada

Tribute to Amy Uyemastu: After — Part 6

The Kawamoto-Wipala Farm in Leland Washington: A Farm for the Ages — Part 2

A New Look at Nisei Veterans: Lawrence Matsuda and Matt Sasaki’s Fighting for America

Journal Entry #4 Harbingers: "Armageddon Anxiety..."

Keeping the Beat: The Story of Legendary Drummer Paul Togawa

Chapter 7—Home Leaver

The Poker Table—Part 3

Tribute to Amy Uyemastu: After — Part 5

Dr. Jiro Takai's Journey of Becoming From the Soo to Nagoya University — Part 5

In it for da Long Haul: Grant Kagimoto Shares da Secret to Cane Haul Road's Longevity

Journal Entry #24 Days and Counting: "Samhain's Coming..."

The Kawamoto-Wipala Farm in Leland Washington: A Farm for the Ages — Part 3

Artist Audra Furuichi Meets Her Match—How she created her nemu*nemu comic empire

Journal Entry #1918-2023: "Good Boys..."

Papa Was a Samurai Warrior!

An Albuquerque Childhood

The Poker Table—Part 4

Historian Arthur A. Hansen on his latest book, Manzanar Mosaic

Dr. Jiro Takai's Journey of Becoming From the Soo to Nagoya University — Part 6

Will Ireton Uses Analytics, Trackman to Help Dodger Players Improve Their Performances

Journal Entry #17 Days Left: "Making Faces..."

Collective Memories of the Store

Journal Entry #Only 6? Really?: "The Despair of Driving..."

Beyond Shogun: James Clavell's Japanese American History

Gwen Muranaka’s Drawing by Heart: Cartoons to Spark Conversation and Creativity

第５回生物農薬で注目を浴びる東洋紡ブラジル社

**Read the Growing Up Nikkei stories!**

Artist Audra Furuichi Meets Her Match—How she created her nemunemu* comic empire