KISHIKAWA, Japan (CNN) -- Tama is a 9-year-old calico cat, who used to live a simple life hanging out at the train station next to her home at the grocery store.
Tama the "Super Stationmaster," in her hat cocked at a rakish angle, has become a sensation.
But with the addition of a hat, usually worn at a jaunty angle, she's become a local, national and even international star.
Tama's home of Kishikawa in Japan is an isolated town of just a few thousand people, the last stop on what had been a failing train line.
That all changed when the Wakayama Electric Railway decided to use Tama as a mascot.
They called her a "Super Stationmaster," made a promotional poster for train carriages and gave her that stationmaster's hat.