January 12:

Events

• 1898 - Ito Hirobumi begins his third term as Prime Minister.

Births

• 1914 - Mieko Kamiya (d. 1979), psychiatrist
• 1935 - Tomiko Ishii, actress
• 1949 - Kentarō Haneda (d. 2007), pianist and composer
• 1949 - Haruki Murakami, author, translator, and academic
• 1968 - Junichi Masuda, director, producer, and composer
• 1976 - Miki Nakatani, actress and singer
• 1983 - Miho Tanaka, model, entertainer, and actress
• 1986 - Ayako Imoto, comedian and television personality
• 1992 - Mao Kobayashi, model and singer
• 1993 - Yu Inaba, Japanese actor
• 1993 - Aika Mitsui, singer
• 1996 - Ai Hashimoto, model and actress

Deaths

• 2003 - Kinji Fukasaku (b. 1930), actor, director, and screenwriter

Film and television

• 2004 - Pride begins airing on Fuji Television, starring Takuya Kimura and Yūko Takeuchi
• 2012 - Saigo Kara Nibanme no Koi begins airing on Fuji Television, starring Kyōko Koizumi and Kiichi Nakai
• 2012 - Saiko no Jinsei begins airing on Tokyo Broadcasting System, starring Tomohisa Yamashita, Nana Eikura, and Takashi Sorimachi