About Osamu Dazai
Shūji Tsushima (津島 修治, Tsushima Shūji; 19 June 1909 – 13 June 1948), known by his pen name Osamu Dazai (太宰 治, Dazai Osamu), was a Japanese novelist and author. A number of his most popular works, such as The Setting Sun (斜陽, Shayō) and No Longer Human (人間失格, Ningen Shikkaku), are considered modern classics. His influences include Ryūnosuke Akutagawa, Murasaki Shikibu and Fyodor Dostoevsky. His last book, No Longer Human, is his most popular work outside of Japan. Another pseudonym he used was Shunpei Kuroki (黒木 舜平), for the book Illusion of the Cliffs (断崖の錯覚, Dangai no Sakkaku). He wrote at a feverish pace and used the pen name "Osamu Dazai" for the first time in a short story called "Ressha" ("列車", "Train"), published in 1933. On the night of December 10, 1929, Dazai made his first suicide attempt, but survived and was able to graduate the following year.
Biography source: Wikipedia. The profile adds birthday-specific historical context from the Celebs Birthday Today editorial database.