Hiroshi Yamauchi, former president of Nintendo Co., Ltd., has donated over $50 million to fund the construction of a hospital by Kyoto University, according to Nintendo-Inside.jp. Yamauchi was hospitalized in June 2005 at the current Kyoto University hospital for medical treatment to his eyes. It was then he learned the hospital was considering replacing its four old buildings with a new one. The new building will be composed of nine floors and hold nearly 300 beds. The hospital will also house the leading-edge in equipment for medical care. Construction will begin in February 2007.
For a bit of history, Yamauchi was president of Nintendo for nearly 50 years. He retired from his position in May 2002 and was replaced by current president Satoru Iwata. After leaving Nintendo with the idea for the Nintendo DS, Yamauchi requested Nintendo also "give birth to wholly new ideas, create hardware which reflects that ideal and make software that adheres to that same standard." In November 2003, Yamauchi became the president and chief financial sponsor of Ogura Hyakunin Isshu Project foundation, a group dedicated to promoting and preserving the "Ogura Hyakunin Isshu". The Ogura Hyakunin Isshu is a collection of 100 poems written by 100 different Japanese poets between the 7th and 13th centuries. In late September 2004, Yamauchi encouraged Nintendo to look into the production of movie animation and in particular a film based on the Ogura Hyakunin Isshu series.