The electric guitar, invented by Fujigen Gakki in the 1950s, has become a staple instrument in popular music worldwide.

Astro Boy, created by Osamu Tezuka in 1963, is considered the first modern anime and helped to popularize the genre both in Japan and around the world.

The Meiji Restoration in the late 19th century saw the overthrow of the Tokugawa shogunate and the modernization of Japan.