Japan Entertainment News - March 2007
Sanada the Sunshine Boy | March 30, 2007 |
 The latest movie project for actor Sanada Hiroyuki (46) sees him captaining a spaceship. In "Sunshine 2057" he plays the captain of a ship that sets out to re-ignite the dying sun 50 years into the future. The movie is directed by Danny Boyle, of "Trainspotting" fame, and written by Alex Garland. The pair teamed up previously on the movie adaptation of Garland's novel "The Beach". Sanada appeared at a PR event in Tokyo yesterday along with co-star Cillian Murphy (32), who praised the cooking and guitar skills that Sanada displayed during the making of the movie. Another major Asian name among the ensemble cast is actress Michelle Yeoh.
• British rock band The Police are coming to Japan for the first time in 27 years. Drummer Stewart Copeland (54) was in Tokyo yesterday promoting his documentary "Everyone Stares: The Police Inside Out". He announced that the band, recently reformed 30 years after their debut and 23 years after they split, will play dates in Japan next February. The shows will be at the tail end of their upcoming world tour, due to start in Vancouver on May 28.
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A Galactic Battle | March 29, 2007 |
 The court battle has begun between legendary manga-ka Matsumoto Leiji (69, photo left) and songwriter Makihara Noriyuki (37, right). Their lawyers met yesterday at the Tokyo District Court with both parties prepared to fight the charges of plagiarism and libel. Back in October of last year, Matsumoto claimed that some of the lyrics to the song "Yakusoku no Basho" were lifted without permission from his famous manga "Ginga Tetsudo 999" (Galaxy Express 999). The phrase used is almost identical to the famous line which translates as, "Time does not betray a dream as long as the dream does not betray time." Matsumoto said last year, "I've been using this phrase in speeches to cheer up young people for more than ten years. I don't want to take the matter to court or anything, but I just want a sincere apology." But Makihara's agency deny any attempt at plagiarism and have called Matsumoto's continued claims libelous, and are seeking ¥22 million in compensation. The next hearing will be held in mid-May. The "Ginga..." manga dates back to 1977 but many TV and movie spinoffs have been put out over the years. Recently, Matsumoto collaborated with French duo Daft Punk on the 2003 full-length anime feature "Interstella 5555: The 5tory of the 5ecret 5tar 5ystem". The major club hit "One More Time" featured a video by Matsumoto.
• Also looking to fight it out in court is actor Hayashi Yoichi (65). He held a press conference in Tokyo yesterday to explain his case against Toto Maintenance. Back in January, the company carried out three days of work on the bathroom of his family's 4LDK apartment in Osaka. But the whole apartment became filled with dust and family members came down with respiratory infections. Hayashi, his wife and four children have been living in hotels since.
• Yesterday actor Emori Toru (63) made his first public appearance since being hospitalized following a stroke a month ago. He attended the 70th anniversary celebrations of the Bungakuza theater company, with whom he had been rehearsing when he had a cerebral hemorrhage in 2005. His latest hospitalization forced him to drop out of a planned TV drama series and give up drinking, but he says he is suffering no after effects. He will begin rehearsal for a new theater production next month.
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Farewell to a Funny Man | March 28, 2007 |
 Ueki Hitoshi, one of Japan's top postwar comedians, died yesterday morning of respiratory failure ata Tokyo hospital. He was 80. He worked up until last November, making a guest appearance in the movie "Maiko Haaaan!!!", and his final public appearance was at the funeral of writer, talento and former Tokyo governor Aoshima Yukio in December. Aoshima wrote the lyrics for "Suudarabushi", the best-selling song that launched the massively successful career of Ueki and the band Crazy Cats (photo, Ueki center). From 1961, the comic band made more than a dozen hit movies with vocalist Ueki playing an irresponsible salaryman in a Japan at the peak of its economic confidence. But Ueki could also play a serious role, as he did in Kurosawa Akira's "Ran" in 1985. In 1993 and 1999, he was officially recognized with purple-ribboned medals awarded for scholarly or artistic achievement. The Crazy Cats marked their 35th anniversary in 1990 with an appearance on NHK's annual Kohaku Uta Gassen song spectacular, getting a top audience rating of 56.6%.
• Former Morning Musume member Kago Ai (19) has finally thrown it all away. Caught up in a second scandal she's been dropped by her management and will retire from showbiz. The latest issue of weekly magazine "Shuukan Gendai" published a story about an overnight trip she took to Kusatsu Onsen resort with 37-year-old Ishimoto Haruo, a cafe owner. And to make matters worse, it included photos of her smoking (the age limit is 20) in Ishimoto's car. Kago fessed up and, after consulting with her parents, her management at Up Front Agency decided to cancel her contract. Already confined to her Nara home since being caught smoking at the beginning of last year, she had only been allowed to return to work in Tokyo in January. Even then she was not allowed to perform and restricted to office work. Last month she expressed her desire to return to singing. With her baby face, Kago was one of the more popular members of Morning Musume and the Hello! Project, and was also active in spinoffs Mini Moni and the duo "W", with fellow member Tsuji Nozomi (19).
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Ultra Variety Movie | March 22, 2007 |
 Yesterday saw the unveiling of the official poster for the 13th movie by Kitano "Beat" Takeshi (60). "Kantoku Banzai", due for release on June 2, is billed as an "ultra variety movie" and combines a whole host of cinematic and television styles. In that sense it reflects the multi-faceted nature of Kitano's career - he has worked as an emcee in a strip club, a manzai comedian, a talk show and variety show host, a writer, an actor and a movie director. Asked about the new movie, he said, "People will either get it and be laughing all the way through or they'll just be stumped." Kitano has always pushed at the boundaries of taste and his latest project is bound to offend some. He sees it as being equal to or even better than the often ultra-violent movies that earned him international fame and respect but doubts that it will be seen that way. And he admitted he would be a bit embarrassed to show it at a film festival like Cannes.
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Nakatani Miki Wins Best Actress Award | March 21, 2007 |
 Actress Nakatani Miki (31) was the only big Japanese winner yesterday at the first ever Asian Film Awards. The event was held last night in Hong Kong to coincide with the opening of the 31st Hong Kong International Film Festival. Nakatani won the best actress award for her starring role in "Kiraware Matsuko no Isshou" (Memories of Matsuko), based on Yamada Muneki's novel of the same name and adapted last year as a TBS drama. She beat such prominent nominees as Gong Li, Zhang Ziyi and Miyazawa Rie, nominated for her role in "Bushi no Ichibun" (Love and Honor). The movie, the third in a trilogy of samurai dramas directed by Yamada Yoji, was nominated for best film but lost out to Korean hit "The Host". That movie's star, Song Kang-ho, beat out Watanabe Ken, who poignantly played a middle-aged Alzheimers sufferer in "Ashita no Kioku" (Memories of Tomorrow).
• The Tokyo home and office of controversial kyogen actor Izumi Motoya (32) has been seized by the tax authorities, it was revealed yesterday. According to the "Shuukan Bunshun" weekly magazine, the two-storey building in Itabashi Ward was seized last year following large scale local and national tax evasion. The Izumi Souke company, run by the actor's domineering mother Setsuko (64), allegedly evaded some ¥150 million in taxes over five years. The company has appealed the imposed penalty.
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Next Up for Miyazaki Hayao | March 20, 2007 |
 The first details have been revealed of the next project for master animator Miyazaki Hayao (66). "Gake no Ue no Ponyo", his follow up to 2004's "Howl's Moving Castle", will be drawn entirely by hand and is scheduled for release in July 2008. An original story that draws on the classic tale of the Little Mermaid, it tells of the relationship between a mermaid princess who longs to be human and the 5-year-old Sousuke. The inspiration for the story came to Miyazaki in 2004 when he and Studio Ghibli employees took a company trip to a small town on the Seto Inland Sea. Miyazaki ended up spending two months in the town. The character of the young boy is said to be modeled after Miyazaki's own son Goro (40), who made his directorial debut with last year's "Gedo Senki" (Tales From Earthsea). The elder director is following his usual unorthodox style, and so far has drawn out a story board for about the first hour of the movie, with the remainder yet to be decided. Fans of the animator in Japan will be able to watch a rare documentary on his creative process on NHK's "Professional" on March 27. The show documents the first several months of the development of his latest project.
• Actor Funakoshi Eiji died on Saturday night of a brain hemorrhage at a Shizuoka Prefecture hospital. He died on his 84th birthday. One of the leading actors of the Daiei movie studio in the 1950s, he made his real breakthrough in 1959's "Nobi", directed by Ichikawa Kon. After a career of some 200 movies and high-profile TV drama roles, he retired from acting in 1999. His eldest son is the actor Funakoshi Eiichiro (46).
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Red Hot Chili Peppers Dotakyan! | March 19, 2007 |
 The Red Hot Chili Peppers have suddenly cancelled their Japan dome tour. Due to start at the Kyocera Dome in Osaka today and move to Tokyo Dome on March 22-23, the sold-out tour was called off on Saturday. The reason given was that vocalist Anthony Kiedis (44) has come down with bronchitis. Disappointed fans will have to wait to hear from promoters Smash about ticket refunds and any rescheduling of dates. For now they say they are aiming to reschedule the shows for the autumn. Kiedis has been told to take 10 days rest, which would mean the band's tour of Australia should go ahead as planned. The 9-date tour is due to start in Adelaide on April 7.
• The Cannes golden boy and the Oscar nominee are to make their anime debuts. Actor Yagira Yuya (16) and actress Kikuchi Rinko (26) will provide their voice talents for the anime omnibus feature "Genius Party". The pair will play the young couple at the center of a segment called "Baby Blue", directed by Watanabe Shinichiro. The movie is scheduled to open here in July, and will be shown at the Japan Festival in New York next February. Yagira became the youngest ever winner of the best actor award at the Cannes International Film Festival in 2004 for his breakthrough role in "Nobody Knows". While Kikuchi's role in "Babel" earned her a nomination for this year's best supporting actress Oscar.
• Actress and singer Koizumi Kyoko (41) made her first concert appearance in three years on Friday. She performed three songs at an environmental event in Tokyo at the request of Kobayashi Takeshi, who produced her first million selling hit. And Koizumi is to make her radio comeback after 19 years. "Kyon-Kyon", as she is know to fans, will host the Nippon Housou show "All Night Nippon" for one night only on March 26. She was the first-ever idol singer to host the show, which she did for two and a half years during the peak of her popularity in 1986-88. Marking her 25th anniversary in showbiz, this week she will also release a greatest hits album "K25 - Koizumi Kyoko All Time Best".
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Morning Musume Goes International | March 16, 2007 |
 Call it a new era in Japan-China relations. The man behind Morning Musume has decided to give the group a more international look, and producer Tsunku (38) announced yesterday that the latest addition to the lineup will be two Chinese teenagers. The first audition was held in Beijing last year and included those who failed to qualify for the local "Super Girl" auditions. Chosen from that group was Li Chun (19, photo left), known as "Jun Jun". 16-year-old Qian Lin (photo right) has been appearing on Chinese TV since she was in elementary school and was introduced to Tsunku through a friend. She has already appeared as a backing dancer on the Hello! Project national tour in January and is nicknamed "Lin Lin". Both girls need to take dance, vocal and Japanese language lessons, but judging from their photos, they will blend easily among the Japanese members. They will make their first appearance on the "Hello! Morning" show on TV Tokyo on March 18. Officially part of the 8th version of the lineup, which also includes the recently added Mitsui Aika (14), they will perform in front of fans for the first time at the May 6 concert which will mark the "graduation" of leader Yoshizawa Hitomi (21).
• Academy Award nominated actress Kikuchi Rinko (26) is living with a handsome Argentine talento, according to the latest issue of weekly magazine "Friday". Her agency refused to comment on the story, but it was confirmed by the management of Aletta Federico (26), who also said he accompanied Kikuchi to last month's Oscar ceremony. The two are said to be sharing an apartment in central Tokyo. Kikuchi, who received widespread praise for her role in "Babel", is currently in Europe filming her next project. Aletta speaks Japanese, English and Italian as well as his native Spanish.
• Actress Hara Fumina (25) and former J-League soccer player Nakanishi Tetsuo (37) are to get married next week. Their management agencies made the announcement yesterday, in Hara's case including a mention of the fact that she is not pregnant and that she plans to continue working. The couple met in 2002 on a soccer program but didn't start dating until January of last year, and Nakanishi proposed last Christmas. Hara made a name for herself in last summer's TBS drama series "Taiyou no Uta", while Nakanishi is now a soccer commentator. He started his J-League career with his hometown team of Nagoya Grampus Eight, later moving to Kawasaki Frontale. While on the bench for a Grampus game, he had the dubious distinction of being the first J-League player to receive a red card without even setting foot on the pitch. He retired in 2000.
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Star of Psychedelic Era Dies | March 15, 2007 |
 Singer and actor Suzuki Hiromitsu died yesterday of liver cancer at a Tokyo hospital. He was 60. He made his name in the late 1960s as the vocalist of The Mops, a band that was part of the "group sounds" era and introduced psychedelic rock to Japan. They managed to survive longer than any other group of their genre, breaking up in 1974. The members kept in touch after the split, but had not seen each other for some years. The band's songwriter, Hoshi Katsu (58), visited Suzuki in hospital just the day before he passed away. In the 70s Suzuki became a successful character actor and TV talento and appeared in a series of movies and TV dramas. He was found to have cancer just three months ago.
• Actress Daichi Mao (51) is getting married again, and this time is going for a younger man. The former Takarazuka top star announced her engagement to interior designer Morita Yasumichi (39) on her official homepage yesterday. The couple met at the end of last year and plan to hold a wedding ceremony in August. Daichi was married to actor Matsudaira Ken (53) for 13 years until their divorce in December 2003 (best known for his serious samurai roles, after the split Matsudaira went a bit wild, reinventing himself as the sparkling kimono-wearing "Matsuken" and recording a smash hit samba record. He remarried in 2005). Morita, also a divorcee, designs shops and restaurants both in Japan and abroad and his trademark is his shoulder-length brown hair.
• In Tokyo yesterday promoting their latest movie were Hollywood stars Cameron Diaz (34) and Jude Law (34). "The Holiday", directed by Nancy Meyers and also starring Kate Winslett and Jack Black, opens here on March 24.
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Kumi the ¥20-Billion Queen of J-Pop | March 14, 2007 |
 Pop singer Koda Kumi (24) was Japan's best-selling artist again last year. She was in Tokyo yesterday to receive the 21st Nihon Golden Disk Award, given to the artist with the most sales during the year. Koda amassed 2006 sales of 3.5 million albums, 2.41 million singles, 140,000 music videos, and 12 million downloads, giving her a total in the region of ¥20 billion. The singer, whose sex appeal has always been central to her success, said she lost two kilos for yesterday's presentation. And she was showing lots of skin as usual in a bright emerald green dress. The award makes it two years in a row that Koda has easily eclipsed the sales record of fellow Avex star Hamasaki Ayumi. But she's not resting on her laurels and today sees the release of a new single, the love ballad "But/Aishou".
• 2,500 Chinese fans got a chance to see some of Japan's top young pop stars in action yesterday. Former Morning Musume member Goto Maki (21) and other J-pop stars performed at the "Nicchu Super Live" joint Japanese-Chinese concert in Beijing. The show was held to kick off a year of sports and cultural events that marks the 35th anniversary of the normalization of relations between Japan and China. Also on stage were singers Hirahara Ayaka (22) and Atari Kousuke (26), boy band w-inds, and local artists Ji Minjia (24) and Han Xue (24). The day before, about 1,000 screaming fans caused a mass panic at the airport as they awaited the arrival of the three members of w-inds. The arrivals area echoed with fans singing the group's debut song "Forever Memories", and some tried to chase the group's car in a taxi after they left the airport. Yesterday's concert will be broadcast on NHK satellite on April 12.
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Model to Join Hills Tribe | March 13, 2007 |
 Entrepreneur and playboy Nojiri Yoshitaka (34) is to settle down with popular model Tanami Ryoko (32). The pair are planning to get married this summer. Nojiri is a member of the so-called "Hills-zoku", or Hills Tribe, the rich and famous people who live in the Roppongi Hills complex in central Tokyo. He is the founder of the wedding planning company Take & Give - Needs, which has facilities across the country and was listed on the Nasdaq Japan index in 2001. He has had a string of widely publicized relationships with celebrities. The most recent was with actress Shaku Yumiko (28), but they broke up last summer. Nojiri was also romantically linked with actress Umemiya Anna (34) after her brief marriage ended in 2003, as well as TV announcers Uchida Kyoko (30) and Takeuchi Emi (29). Tanami has been a model for magazines such as "JJ" and "Classy" and is considered a fashion leader for Japan's OL's (office ladies). She is also an actress, having made her movie debut starring in "Ame Yori Setsunaku" in 2005. Other Hills-zoku entrepreneurs who married celebrities include IT company owner Ozeki Shigeo (32), who married talento Yamaguchi Moe (29), and Cyber Agent president Fujita Susumu (33), who won and then lost the heart of actress Okina Megumi (27).
• Another soon-to-be trophy wife is talento Kanda Uno (31). She and pachinko company president Nishimura Takuro (36) yesterday announced plans to hold their wedding in the autumn. The pair had originally talked of marrying in April but their busy work schedules have been blamed for the delay in plans. Uno suggested that they would hold the ceremony at a Shinto shrine, as actress Fujiwara Norika and comedian Jinnaiu Tomonori did last month.
• Already married is comedian Takakura Ryo (26). His agency announced yesterday that he and indie band vocalist Rika (21) tied the knot on February 17 after an 18-month relationship. Takakura is one half of the manzai duo Sanbyoshi.
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Bye Bye, Iijima Ai | March 12, 2007 |
 Talento Iijima Ai (34) has confirmed the rumors about her retiring from showbiz. On yesterday's edition of TBS's "Sunday Japon" she made the statement she had so doggedly avoided a week before, saying she will quit by the end of this month. She denied another rumor that she would be moving to New York, saying she planned to continue living in central Tokyo. As widely speculated, she said the main reason for her decision is her deteriorating health, which caused her to miss the show twice at the end of last year. She has suffered from bladder and kidney infections. The former top porn star made the crossover to variety TV in the early 1990s and became hugely popular with young women. Her frank and uncompromising autobiography "Platonic Sex" was a million-seller in 2001. She is expected to hold a formal press conference once she has finalized matters regarding her existing contracts.
• Actress Ishihara Mariko (43) yesterday admitted that she had a criminal record in the U.S. She held a press conference to explain her two arrests, in 1997 and 2003 on stalking charges, that were revealed last week by a weekly gossip magazine. The 1997 case, in which she received a 20-month suspended sentence, came about when she wrote some 30 letters to a musician on the advice of a fortune teller, who she claims defrauded her of some ¥40 million. The letters included death threats, which she insists were added by a jealous band member. The 2003 case, in which she broke a restraining order taken out by another musician, led to her imprisonment in Las Vegas for more than 4 months. One of Japan's top actresses in the late 1980s, she left the country in 1991, and only finally returned to showbiz here last year. She immediately upset things by publishing a book revealing the names of several top stars she had affairs with in her youth. And she is currently directing a movie based on the book.
• When asked yesterday about the recent marriage of her old boyfriend, actress Adachi Yumi (25) simply said, "Yokatta desu ne. Omedetou gozaimasu" (That's good. Congratulations). The age difference of 21 years was often cited as a main cause of her split with actor Kuroda Arthur (46), but the problem obviously wasn't on his side as he married a woman 23 years his junior on February 25. Adachi herself can afford to be generous, after marrying comedian Itoda Jun (33) at the end of 2005 and having a baby last year. She said she hadn't heard about Kuroda's marriage until Saturday.
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A Happy Day for Angela Aki | March 09, 2007 |
 Popular singer songwriter Angela Aki (29) is getting married again, according to her official website. The lucky man is 41-year-old "A-san", who has worked with her as a music director since before her major label debut. They plan to register their marriage today. Angela was born in Tokushima Prefecture but the family moved to Hawaii when she was in junior high and later to Washington D.C. Her mother is Italian-American and her Japanese father is Aki Kiyoshi, the owner and co-founder of the major AEON chain of English conversation schools. Angela started playing the piano at the age of three and continued her interest in music after moving to the U.S., where she graduated from George Washington University and also had a short-lived marriage. She returned to Japan in 2003 and made her indie debut with the mini-album "One" in March 2005. She moved to the major Sony Music label and released "Home" in September of the same year. Her big successes to date include singing "Kiss Me Goodbye", the theme for Final Fantasy XII, and performing at the venerable Nippon Budokan in December 2006. She is known for her bilingual ability, "haafu" looks and trademark glasses. She is scheduled to perform her latest single "Sakura Iro" on tonight's edition of "Music Station".
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Race Queen of the Year | March 08, 2007 |
 24-year-old Yamazaki Midori is Race Queen Of The Year '06-'07. She was presented with her award at the KDDI Design Studio in central Tokyo yesterday. The award has led to showbiz careers for former winners such as Yoshioka Miho (2000-01) and Morishita Chisato (2001-02).
• JASRAC, the association that protects Japanese artists' copyright, has published an unusual warning on its homepage. Following the demands of songwriter Kawauchi Kouhan (87), the site warns against anyone singing the altered version of his 1971 song "O-fukuro-san". The warning applies to any singer and even the country's thousands of karaoke bars, but of course is indirectly aimed at enka singer Mori Shinichi (59), who has been singing the disputed version of his signature tune for some thirty years. His much-publicized attempts to meet with and appease the elderly songsmith have only resulted in making him more angry. Kawauchi has said he won't allow the singer to perform any of his songs again, a demand Mori has said he will respect until he receives forgiveness. JASRAC recently received attention abroad when it made demands for the removal of thousands of Japanese video clips from the popular YouTube service.
• The recent showbiz baby rush extends to Europe, too. Former popular actress and model Goto Kumiko (32) recently gave birth to her third child in Switzerland. She is married to retired French Formula 1 racer Jean Alesi (42). And former Fuji TV announcer Nakamura Eriko (37) had her second baby this week. She and her French businessman husband live in Paris.
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New Face, and Sound, of Amex | March 07, 2007 |
 Southern All Stars vocalist Kuwata Keisuke (51) has put out his first original song in four and a half years. "Konna Boku de Yokattara" is being used for the new American Express TV commercial that airs from today. The commercial features Kuwata, who is the first musician to take on the company's image character role previously portrayed by Robert De Niro, Tiger Woods and Watanabe Ken. Two versions of the commercial were filmed in January using locations as diverse as Kyoto, Okinawa and Thailand. The recording is Kuwata's first since the album "Rock and Roll Hero", released in October, 2002. No plans to release the song as a single have yet been announced.
• Tamashiro Chiharu (29), vocalist of the popular duo Kiroro, is expecting her second child in August. She and her fellow Okinawa native husband married in January 2005 and had their first child in February of last year. Tamashiro has been on "maternity leave" since then. Musical partner Kinjo Ayano (29) is also the mother of a young child, born in November 2005. But the duo plan to perform at a one-off event in Okinawa in June, their first concert appearance since two years ago when both were pregnant. Kinjo is releasing a new solo album of piano music today.
• His star may have fallen but Michael Jackson can still rake in the bucks. A spokeswoman for Positive Productions, the company promoting a pair of fan events this week said, "We don't think the ¥400,000 yen ticket is too expensive. It simply responds to Michael Jackson's value as a global star, fans' acknowledgement of that and their willingness to pay for it." Fans can meet the former Prince of Pop at a party on Thursday and have their photo taken with him. Similar events were held last year.
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Weddings and Children (Of All Ages) | March 06, 2007 |
 On his latest trip to Japan, Michael Jackson (48) took over the Bic Camera electronics store in Tokyo's downtown district of Yurakucho yesterday for two and a half hours. Staff formed a barricade around the store's emergency exit, but Jackson sneaked in through the main entrance around 10:15pm. He and several children spent a couple of hours mostly in the toy section and left shortly before 1am. Even at that late hour, about 200 fans and curious onlookers were on hand to scream their love and surround his car. Sources say Jackson originally wanted to go to the chains Shibuya store but was refused. Jackson is expected to visit Tokyo Disneyland today and will be attending fan events on March 8 and 9.
• Respected actress Terajima Shinobu (34) recently married French creative art director Laurent Ghnassia, her management announced yesterday. The couple started dating after meeting through work in the autumn of 2005 and tied the knot on February 26. They are currently living together and plan to hold a wedding ceremony and reception in the near future. Ghnassia is the the former artistic director for fashion brand Agnes b.
• Actress Sakurai Atsuko (34) and TV Asahi producer Shimakawa Hiroatsu (35) are expecting their first baby. The couple married in May 2003 having met the previous year on the TV Asahi drama series "Omiya-san". Meanwhile, Da Pump member Ken (27) is one step ahead, his wife having recently given birth to their first child. His management announced yesterday that his wife gave birth to a baby girl on January 26. They have named their daughter Kairi. The couple got married last July after a nine-year romance. And already on baby number four is talento Nakayama Hideyuki (39), whose wife, former Takarazuka top star Shiraki Ayaka (39), gave birth to their fourth son on March 2.
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Divorce for Hikki...and Parents! | March 05, 2007 |
 Singer Utada Hikaru (24) and filmmaker Kiriya Kazuaki (38) have divorced. And it was revealed that her parents also divorced yet again last year - for the seventh time! Just as her marriage to Kiriya was announced on Hikki's website four and a half years ago, on Saturday she used the same website to reveal that they had divorced the previous day. She thanked fans fopr their support and apologized for the sudden announcement. She cited different views of the future and a lack of communication due to her business international work schedule as the main reasons for the split. Kiriya posted his message on the same site, an indicator of the one-sided nature of their respective levels of success and fame. The two met in 2000 during the design of the sleeve for Hikki's 7th single, "Can You Keep a Secret?" Two years later, she underwent surgery for ovarian cancer and just five months later they were married. They worked together in several different capacities, one being Utada's title song for "Casshern", Kiriya's 2004 debut as a movie director. He also supported her during her attempt the same year to break into the U.S. market. According to a friend of the couple, neither of them are particularly sociable or talkative types and so communication was a problem for them. Utada, whose parents have divorced and re-married each other a ridiculous seven times since 1981, was looking to him as an older man who could support her emotionally. She made no mention of the split during her live appearance on Friday's "Music Station", where she performed her new single "Flavor of Life". Bittersweet is probably the flavor one would use in English to refer to her life right now, though she referred to it as being like "green pepper tempura".
• Former porn star turned popular TV regular Iijima Ai (34) hinted on her blog at the weekend that she plans to retire from showbiz at the end of March. She appeared as scheduled on yesterday's edition of "Sunday Japon" on TBS but didn't give details of her reasons. She missed the show twice at the end of last year due to health problems with her liver and bladder. When quizzed by other panel members, she seemed reluctant to discuss the matter but retorted "Don't you ever feel like quitting?" With contracts often running from April to March, she may announce soon that she will quit after her current four regular shows finish their run.
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Japan Gets Spiderman 3 First | March 02, 2007 |
 Japanese fans will be the first in the world to get a look at the latest in the Spiderman series. Stars Tobey Maguire (31, photo left) and James Franco (28, photo right) were in Tokyo yesterday as it was announced that the world premiere of "Spiderman 3" would be held at the Roppongi Hills cinema complex on April 16. The movie, again directed by Sam Raimi and originally scheduled for worldwide release on May 5, will now open in Japan first on May 1. Made on a budget of $300 million (¥36 billion), the latest in the series is also the most expensive. But the previous two movies have done very well in Japan, bringing in ¥14 billion between them.
• The drama is turning into a farce. Enka singer Mori Shinichi (59) is going out of his way to apologize to Kawauchi Kouhan (87), but each time he only succeeds in making the elderly songwriter madder than ever. Having previously being refused a meeting at Kawauchi's hotel in Tokyo, Mori and his staff made the 1,200km journey from the capital to his home in Hachinohe but found no one at home (Kawauchi was seeing his doctor and slamming Mori to the media in Tokyo at the time). In the tradition of a visiting guest, he left a souvenir on the doorstep. Yesterday Kawauchi described Mori's intrusion into his home as "ilegal entry", said he had returned the souvenir to Mori's office, and called his recent behavior a "cheap drama" and Mori himself a "liar". He insists he has no intention of meeting with Mori or allowing him to perform any of his songs ever again. The drama began last month when Mori canceled a meeting with Kawauchi at the last minute. He was to apologize to Kawauchi for performing an altered version of his 1971 hit "O-Fukuro-san", though he had already been doing so for almost 30 years.
• The master and the pupil were reunited under new circumstances. Recently elected Miyazaki Prefectural governor Higashikokubaru Hideo (49) was in Tokyo yesterday to receive a special award. Formerly a comedian under the name Sonomanma Higashi, he found himself in the awkward situation of having higher social status than his old mentor, Kitano "Beat" Takeshi (60), who presented him with the award. It was the first meeting for the two since the election, but the always acid-tongued Takeshi took no prisoners, emabrrassing the former Takeshi Gundan member time and again. Another recipient of an award from the master funny man was announcer Yamamoto Mona (35), who is with the same Office Kitano agency. He was the only one who covered for her last year after she was caught up in a scandal with a married politician.
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Together Again After All These Years | March 01, 2007 |
 Can one studio really hold these two egos? For the 1,000th edition of his "Sanma No Manma" talk show, comedian Akashiya Sanma (51) has chosen fellow comedy veteran Kitano "Beat" Takeshi (60) as his special guest. The show was recorded in Tokyo yesterday, with the pair sharing a bottle of ¥1.9-million Romanee Conti wine and reminiscing about old times. They both achieved huge fame and notoriety on the "Ore-tachi Hyokinzoku" show in the early 1980s, building on that success to become two of the biggest names in Japanese showbiz. While Takeshi has fitted work as an actor and movie director in between his frequent talk and variety show appearances, Sanma has stuck almost entirely to the variety circuit and remains Japan's most high-voltage talk show host. One of his several regular shows, "Sanma No Manma" has been on the air for 22 years. For some reason the special will air in Tokyo on Fuji TV at the late hour of 2:05am on April 6, though in the Kansai area it will be on March 23 at 7pm.
• Actor Oda Yuji (39) is to team up with actress Iijima Naoko (39) for the first time in 11 years. The pair will co-star in the new TBS drama series "Jodan Ja Nai!", set to run on Sunday nights starting April 15. The romantic comedy tells of 40-year-old Keita (Oda) who marries a 20-year-old woman (Ueno Juri) only to discover that her mother is an old flame (Otake Shinobu). Laid off from his job, Keita finds work at a family restaurant run by Iijima. The last time the two appeared together was in another popular TBS drama, "Mahiru no Tsuki" in 1996, in which Oda co-starred with Tokiwa Takako. A bit of trivia: Iijima is one of those rare people whose birthday falls on February 29.
• Nagabuchi Ayane (18), daughter of singer Nagabuchi Tsuyoshi (50) and former actress Shihomi Etsuko (51), is to make her showbiz debut. And she will hit the ground running, having landed the starring role in the new movie by director Sasabe Kiyoshi (49). The budding actress has studied ballet and Japanese dance and is said to be proficient in English.
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