How am i suposed to call japan from my american cell?

Question:

here the deal, i found my friends phone number and he is Japanese. So i go to call him from my American cell phone only to be told, and i quote, "Welcome to Verizon wireles, we were unable to complete your call." So what do I do

Answer:

You need to call the country code first, then the city code and finally his personal phone number.
The country code is 81.
Doing this is very expensive. It is cheaper to buy a phone card, then dial the local access number, personal ID, country cod, city code and his number.