Yearly Archives: 2007

Singer Hitomi (31) chose a strange date to announce her impending divorce from her husband of five years. She and design company employee “U-san” (38), formerly a rapper with the hip hop group Gasboys, married on November 2 2002, so her announcement on her blog yesterday came on their 5th anniversary. Sources say they have not yet filed for divorce but plan to do so soon. They have no children. Hitomi is with the Avex record label, who refused to comment on what they said was a private matter. She started out as a magazine model and made her CD debut under producer Komuro Tetsuya in 1994. Her discography includes eight original albums and more than 30 singles.

• Miike Takashi’s 2000 film “Audition” was the only Japanese feature to be included in Time magazine’s recent Top 25 horror films of all time. The listing is probably not one all horror fans will take too seriously (it includes Disney’s 1942 classic “Bambi”) but it would have been unforgivable not to have included at least one Japanese movie. Especially considering how influential Japanese horror has been in Hollywood in the last few years.

The Chunichi Dragons had to wait 53 years for their second Japan Series crown, and they won it in perfect style in front of their home fans last night at the Nagoya Dome. Surprise starter Yamai Daisuke and star closer Iwase Hitoki combined to pitch the first ever perfect game in the 57-year history of the Japan Series, totally dominating the Nippon Ham Fighters to clinch the series 4-1. Yamai struck out six over eight perfect innings and Iwase retired the final three batters in order in the ninth. Losing pitcher Darvish Yu (20), who got the win in game 1, only gave up the one run and struck out 11, showing again why he is considered the best young hurler in the country. Journeyman power hitter Nakamura Norihiro, who had four RBIs in five games, was in tears as he was named Series MVP. After becoming one of the best hitters in Japan in the 1990s, he failed twice in attempts to make it in the Major Leagues and took a huge pay cut to play for the Dragons this season. It is his first ever Japan Series title.

The series was an exact reversal of last year, but this time the Dragons were on a roll having swept the Hanshin Tigers and the Yomiuri Giants in the first-ever Central League playoffs. It was third time lucky for manager Ochiai Hiromitsu, whose teams had fallen at the final hurdle in and 2006. Fighters coach Trey Hillman, who will lead the Kansas City Royals next season, said, “They outpitched us, they outhit us and they threw a perfect game at us and that’s pretty good.” He was philosophical about the last game of his five years in Japan, “This was a very rewarding experience for me,” he said. “I like to think I’m a better person because of the time I’ve spent in this society.”

• Talento couple Fujii Takashi (35) and Otoha (26) became proud parents on October 31. Married since July 2005, they announced the arrival of their baby girl to the media by fax yesterday. Also a mother for the first time is singer/songwriter Michiyo (28), who revealed on her website yesterday that she recently had a baby girl. She made her debut in 1997, produced by SharanQ, whose vocalist Tsunku is the man behind the Hello! Project.

Rakugo-ka and talento Hayashiya Ippei (36) announced at a Rakugo Association press conference in Tokyo yesterday that he plans to take on his late father’s stage name. Real name Ebina Taisuke, he will become the second Hayashiya Sampei, with a series of events to mark the succession from March 21, 2009. His father, one of the leading figures in rakugo during the postwar period, passed away in 1980, leaving the Sampei name unused for almost three decades. Though normally Ippei’s elder brother would have been expected to take his father’s name, he instead succeeded as the 9th generation Hayashiya Shouzou (44) last year. That was said to have been because he has been more successful as a talento and media personality than a rakugo-ka. He was penalized earlier this year for tax evasion.

• It seems that former idol singer Akasaka Akira (34), busted for drugs at the weekend, had been having a bad year. His lawyer revealed yesterday that he and his wife of six years divorced at the end of March, with her retaining custody of their son. Akasaka has said that he first started using amphetamines in April. He is still being held at the Ohtsuka olice station. Fellow former Hikaru Genji member Sato Atsuhiro (34) apologized to his close friend via the media for not having realized the trouble he was in. He also apologized to Akasaka’s fans for the inevitable cancellation of a dinner show that had been scheduled for December.

• Japan-based singer Agnes Chan (52) performed in Beijing yesterday, her first concert since undergoing surgery for breast cancer last month. The charity concert at the Great Hall of the People marked the 35th anniversary of the normalization of ties between China and Japan. In the audience was her 81-year-old mother, who had flown in from Hong Kong. Chan sang 17 songs in English, Japanese, Cantonese and Mandarin. The concert had originally been planned for September 25, but was postponed due to a metformin with the Communist Party Congress. Chan was found to have breast cancer in mid-September and underwent surgery in early October.

Actor and former Johnny’s Jimusho idol singer Akasaka Akira (34) has been arrested for drug possession. He was found with a gram of methamphetamine stimulant drugs in the early hours of Sunday morning when stopped by police on the street in Tokyo’s Toshima Ward. Akasaka was a member of the hugely popular 1980s roller-skating idol group Hikaru Genji, for whom current superstars SMAP were backing dancers. After the group broke up in 1995, Akasaka became an actor, working mostly in theatrical drama and musicals. Johnny’s announced to the media by fax that they had fired him from the agency as of Monday.

• Rakugo-ka Sanyuutei Enkou was discovered dead at his Tokyo home on October 26, police revealed this week. He was 58. Neighbors reported to his apartment caretaker that they hadn’t seen him in some time, and he was found on the floor of his bedroom. He’s believed to have died of heart failure around October 11. The traditional comic storyteller was single and lived alone, and had been experiencing health problems for some time.

Former Morning Musume member Goto Maki (22) has left the Hello! Project. She announced the decision as she finished her nationwide tour on Sunday, saying the recent arrest of her younger brother is causing “meiwaku”, or hassle, for other members of the musical collective.

Hello! Project is a loose and often interconnected collection of girl groups which grew out of the massive success that the Svengali-like producer Tsunku had with “MoMusu” in the late 1990s. Goto joined MoMusu in 1999 and of the several “graduates” who have continued with solo careers, she is the most successful. Largely thanks to her fame, her brother Yuuki (21) had a brief career as one half of the duo EE Jump but his wayward behavior quickly got him into trouble. He was arrested earlier this month on charges of leading a gang of young thieves whose modus operandi (a member rented a getaway truck in his own name) made them seem like teenage delinquents rather than hardened criminals. But Maki could hardly avoid being tainted by the scandal and her move is seen as the only way to atone for it. When the time came for her first “talk break” at yesterday’s show at Omiya Sonic City, she simply bowed deeply to the audience as a sign of apology. She held the bow for so long that fans fell into an eerie silence before breaking into warm applause. Also said to be a factor in her decision is that she is aiming to build a solo career along the lines of Beyonce or Janet Jackson and so felt somewhat hampered by being one of a large group of idol singers. As she entered her 20s, she has been creating more of a sexy image.

• Another former MoMusu member, Abe Natsumi (26), was apologizing to fans yesterday, too. At a show in Osaka that kicked off her latest tour, she said she was sorry for “worrying” fans with the trafic accident she caused earlier in the month. Meanwhile, the news is brighter for the current MoMusu lineup. A 10th anniversary collection of the group’s hits has made No.1 in the latest Oricon album chart. With 11 albums now having made the Top 10, they share top spot for a female group with top 1980s band Princess Princess.

• Taking the No.1 and No.2 spots on the Oricon singles chart are Bump of Chicken with “Hana no Na” and “May Day”. It’s the first time an artist has held both the top two spots since Rag Fair did it more than five years ago.

• Talento Rinka (34) is reaching out to all those Japanese women with a broken heart. She was chosen to record a cover of Blondie’s 1999 song “Maria” as the theme tune for the Japan release of Korean movie “200 Pounds Beauty”. The movie is based on a Japanese manga by Suzuki Yumiko, “Kanna-san Daiseikou Desu!” Producers say they chose Rinka because of her popularity among young Japanese women and her “dramatic life”. The recently revealed breakup with her boyfriend of six years no doubt influenced Rinka as she wrote her own Japanese lyrics for the song. Blondie keyboard player Jimmy Destry also took part in the project. “Maria” goes on sale December 12 and the movie opens in Japanese theaters on December 15.

Orix Buffaloes manager Terry Collins (58) didn’t have a good first season in Japanese baseball but he did find love. In a recent meeting with pitcher Miyamoto Daisuke (26) at fall training, the divorcee acknowledged his relationship with Yoshimoto Kogyo talento Silk (44, real name Kasatani Ayako). It was the first time he had spoken about the relationship since it was first rumored back in June. A former manager of the Houston Astros and the Anaheim Angels, Collins arrived in Japan in January on a 3-year contract to manage the Buffaloes. They ended the season in the Pacific League cellar. Miyamoto married another Yoshimoto comedienne, Unabara Yasuyo (31), in 2005 and is currently making a return from the Orix farm system. He continues to recover from a condition known as ossification of the yellow ligament, a problem that has ended the career of many players.

• The 20th Tokyo International Film Festival wound up Sunday with “The Band’s Visit,” a joint French-Israeli production directed by Eran Kolirin, taking the Tokyo Sakura Grand Prix and $50,000 prize money. It tells the tale of an Egyptian police band that gets lost while visiting a small town in the desert in Israel and of the members’ exchanges with the local people. Other winners: the Special Jury Prize – “The Western Trunk Line”, directed by Li Jixian; Best Director – Peter Howitt for “Dangerous Parking”; Best Actress – Shefali Shah in “Gandhi My Father”; Best Actor – Damian Ul in “Tricks.” The Audience Award went to “Leroy” by director Armin Voelckers.

• Johnny’s Jimusho veteran Masahiko Kondo (43) became a father for the first time earlier in the month, he revealed last Friday. He and his wife Atsuko (41) married in 1994, and had been through years of miscarriages and infertility treatment. They finally had an addition to the family at a Tokyo hospital on the afternoon of October 8. Kondo, who has largely swapped singing for a career as a racing driver and team owner, rushed to the hospital from a pre-scheduled traffic safety event on the day, but missed his son’s arrival by less than five minutes. They named him Gousuke, using a kanji that is made up of three “cars”. The boy was born two months premature and is in an incubator – his father has yet to have a chance to hold him – but is said to be developing well.

Actor Uchino Masaaki (39) and former top Takarazuka star Ichiro Maki (42) held their wedding reception at a historical Tokyo restaurant yesterday. Helping them celebrate was their 1-year-old daughter Rio, and the guest list included a host of theatrical and TV celebrities. The couple first started dating when working together on the stage musical “Elizabeth” in 2000. They announced their engagement in May 2006 and registered their marriage the following July. Ichiro left the all-female theatrical troupe in 1996 and has performed on stages around the world. She and Uchino met when they played together in the musical “Elizabeth” in 2000. Ichiro appeared in the 1997 NHK taiga historical drama, while Uchino is playing the lead role of medieval warrior Yamamoto Kansuke in this year’s production, “Fuurinkazan”. His busy schedule working on the series was the main reason for the delay in holding their reception. The event was held at the Ogasawara Hakushaku-tei, a 75-year-old Spanish villa-style addition to what was the home of the Count Ogasawara in the Edo Period.

Eccentric manga artist (aren’t they all?!) Umezu Kazuo (71) is having a hard time realizing his dream house project. Famous for always wearing red and white stripes, he wants to build his new house in the Tokyo suburb of Kichijoji in the same style. Not only that, but with a design that incorporates a likeness of Makoto-chan, one of his most famous characters. His new neighbors in the residential area have been up in arms, though they failed in an earlier legal attempt to have the project cancelled. Construction went ahead as planned but now two neighbors have appealed to the Tokyo District Court to stop the house being painted in red and white.

• Actress Kikuchi Maiko (33) revealed on her blog this week that she is expecting her first child next spring. She married a 39-year-old businessman in July. She made her name as the heroine of the NHK morning drama series “Futarikko” in 1996. Her co-star, Iwasaki Hiromi (30), married last April and is expecting her first child in December.

• Globe vocalist Keiko (35), the wife of producer/musician Komuro Tetsuya (48), announced her new solo project set to begin early next year. She will use the stage name KCO, both as a singer and a TV personality. Part of the new image is to chnage her dyed blonde hair her to brown. Her first single as KCO, “Snow Story” goes on sale on January 23. Not surprisingly it’s produced by hubby Komuro.

• Shogo(27), vocalist of rock band 175R, already has a new woman in his life, according to this week’s issue of women’s weekly “Josei Seven”. Shogo and former Speed member Imai Eriko (24) divorced only a month ago but had been separated since the spring. And it seems that Shogo lost no time dating pin-up idol Kosaka Yuka and they have shared apartment keys for several months.

Chikushi Testsuya has formally announced his retirement as main anchor on the TBS “News 23” show, and a replacement has been named. Current Kyodo News managing editor Goto Kenji (58) is expected to take over the role within the year. The program’s official name will remain as “Chikushi Tetsuya News 23” for the time being and Chikushi (72), who is still undergoing treatment for lung cancer, will make occasional appearances as a “special anchor”. After 18 years hosting the late-night news show, he announced that he had cancer in mid-May and it was almost five months before he appeared on the screen again on October 8. He looked leaner and admitted to wearing a hairpiece. Goto, who joined Kyodo in 1973, spent about a year as a guest commentator on TBS news shows from the spring of 2005 before being promoted to managing editor at the major news agency. He will quit on October 31 and plans to take on his new TV role in December.

• Iwabori Seri (30), a model and the wife of Glay leader Takuro (36), gave birth to their second child, at the beginning of the month. She announced the arrival the baby girl on her blog yesterday. The couple married in 2004 and had a boy in 2005.

• Veteran comedian Haruno Piichiku died of lung cancer at a Tokyo hospital yesterday. He was 82. Real name Naoi Toshihiro, he made his debut as a manzai comedian with the late Ohsawa Mitsuru in 1953 and they renamed themselves Haruno Piichiku-Paachiku in 1959. After they split in 1973, Piichiku started a caricature-based solo act. He was performing on stage as recently as October 6, though his cancer was discovered in early September.

Legendary rock band X Japan took a major step towards their long-awaited comeback yesterday, recording the promo video for their new single. Ten years after they split, the four surviving members of the band were on the Tokyo waterfront to record a live performance on the rooftop of the Aqua City Odaiba mall. The ¥42 million production used helicopters and fire trucks to create artificial rain. Some 10,000 fans gathered to watch the performance on a large screen monitor set up in a nearby car park as leader Yoshiki on drums, Toshi on vocals, Pata on guitar and bassist Heath performed “I.V.”, the all-English theme tune for the Hollywood horror movie “Saw IV” which opens in the U.S. this weekend. The track includes previously un-released guitar tracks made by former lead guitarist Hideto “hide” Matsumoto, who died in a suspected suicide in 1998. Yoshiki was characteristically topless as he showed that he hasn’t lost his frantic drumming style. There had been plans to meet with fans in a nearby hall after the recording, but the crowd was just too big. Speaking to fans via the monitor, Yoshiki remembered hide, “What I really wanted was for us to make our world debut with hide. But seeing as you’ve all taken the trouble to come here tonight, we’re going to play a concert in Tokyo next spring!”

• Health problem have once again forced singer songwriter Yoshida Takuro (61) to cancel a string of concerts in his nationwide tour. He postponed 8 shows from the end of August after coming down with asthmatic bronchitis, but was thought to have made a full recovery and played six shows up to October 17. But he was told by his doctor that he has acute bronchitis and a lung infection and needs to rest for three months. This means calling off the remaining 19 shows, which had been scheduled between today and January 23.

• Police have sent the recent traffic accident case against former Morning Musume member Abe Natsumi (26) to prosecutors. She hit a motorcyclist while pulling out of a car park on the evening of October 7, causing minor injuries to the 33-year-old rider.

• Yamada Shinji, a singer and movie star during the 1950s and 60s, died yesterday of pneumonitis at a Tokyo hospital. He was 70. He had his biggest hit with “Aishuu no Machi ni Kiri ga Furu” in 1959.

• Talento Aoki Sayaka (34) is engaged to be married to a 31-year-old dancer. She made the revelation in an interview in today’s issue of women’s weekly “Josei Jishin” and has written about the romance in her autobiography “34”, which goes on sale this week. Aoki made her name in the last few years as a solo comedienne with a short fuse and is now one of the most familiar faces on the variety show circuit.

• Actor Tamaki Hiroshi (27) and singer Shimatani Hitomi (27) are the latest young showbiz couple. Their romance was also revealed in today’s “Josei Jishin”. They have both worked with the same record label and are said to have started dating at the beginning of September. Tamaki’s agency made no comment on the story, but Shimatani’s management acknowledged the relationship.

• Mihimaru GT vocalist Hiroko (23) has teamed up with breakthrough reggae singer Kusuo (28) on the new single “Tegami”. The two friends co-wrote the song, which will be released on iTunes tomorrow. Kusuo raised his profile this summer when his mini album “Koi ga Ore Desubai”, released in June, held the No.1 spot on the Oricon indie chart for five weeks.