Yearly Archives: 2011

Rakugo master Tatekawa Danshi died on Monday at the age of 75 after a long battle with larynx cancer. His son and daughter gave a press conference yesterday to announce the news (photo right). The cause of death came as no surprise given their father’s image as a heavy smoker and drinker and history with the disease. The larynx cancer which was first diagnosed three years ago reappeared last November and he was advised to undergo a tracheotomy. But, insisting that his voice was his way of life, he refused surgery until after he gave his final stage performance on March 6 of this year. Following the surgery he was in and out of hospital and at the end of October went into a coma from which he never awoke.

Real name Matsuoka Katsuyoshi, he entered the world of rakugo at 16 as an apprentice to Yanagiya Kosan V using the stage name Yanagiya Koyoshi. He rose to the rank of shinuchi in 1963. Between 1966-69 he was the first emcee of the NHK rakugo weekly show “Shoten,” which airs to this day. Known as the “fuunji” (soldier of fortune) of the rakugo world he was outspoken and controversial figure. He was known for his sharp-tongued style, trademark raspy voice and bandana. In the early 1980s, following a disagreement with his own “kyoshi” (master) Kosan, he broke away from the apotek247.net and set up his own Tatekawa-ryu school. Among his apprentices were comedian-turned-director Kitano “Beat” Takeshi (64) and broadcast writer Takada Fumio (63).

In his second attempt to run for public office Danshi was elected to the upper house of parliament in 1971, and a few years later served briefly as a vice minister in charge of Okinawa development. His first serious health problem came in 1997 when he was diagnosed with esophagus cancer.

A couple of celebrities have been hospitalized with broken bones this week. Singer-songwriter Kawamoto Makoto (37) was involved in a traffic accident on Wednesday night, according to a post on her Twitter account by her colleagues. The post said, “Fortunately she is making good progress but she has suffered broken bones and bruising and is in no condition to perform.” Kawamoto was scheduled to play at a music festival in Tottori Prefecture this weekend.

Meanwhile veteran broadcast writer and talento Ei Rokusuke (78) is in the hospital yet again. He is expected to be admitted for about a month after breaking his hip in a fall at his Tokyo home on Wednesday. He is due to undergo surgery today and will need about a month of rehabilitation before being able to return to work, although his management said that they will wait to see the results of his surgery before deciding if he can host his regular live TBS radio show tomorrow. A concert scheduled for next week has been postponed until February. Ei suffered a broken toe in a fall in 2006 and needed six months before he could walk normally again without a stick. He revealed in October of last year that he is battling Parkinson’s Disease. And last November he was riding in a taxi that was involved in a traffic accident, and suffered some minor injuries.

At the risk of turning Japan Zone into some kind of weddings and births registry, here are some more updates from the showbiz world.

Enka star Kobayashi Sachiko (57, photo left) held a press conference yesterday shortly after she got married to Hayashi Akio (49), CEO of regenerative medicine company TES Holdings. Sacchan, as she is popularly known, said that yesterday was not only an auspicious taian day on the traditional calendar but also the sixth anniversary of the day she and her future hubby first met. The couple’s engagement was announced back in August. After tying the knot at the Minato-ku municipal office in Tokyo, Kobayashi (she plans to continue using here maiden name) spoke with reporters and proudly showed off the chunky wedding ring that Hayashi bought for her two years ago while traveling overseas. The newlyweds are not planning to hold a wedding ceremony or reception but will be taking a honeymoon next February in Vienna, where Hayashi runs a business.

Kobayashi debuted way back in 1964 and has had such massive hits as 1979’s “Omoidezake.” Her incredibly flamboyant costumes have been a key feature of the “Kohaku Uta Gassen” show on NHK every New Year’s Eve for the last 32 years.

Meanwhile actress Itoh Yuko (37, photo right) announced on her blog last night that she is now married and is currently six months pregnant. She didn’t give any further details but it is thought that she and her ippanjingroom tied the knot yesterday. Itoh, who debuted in the 1997 Fuji TV drama series “Hitotsu no Yane no Shita 2,” has been a feature of 2-hour drama specials for several years. She was romantically tied to comedian Watabe Ken (39) of the duo Unjash from 2004. The pair were expected to get hitched but broke up in 2008.

Also tying the knot is pinup girl Tachibana Ayano (23), who blogged yesterday that she and soccer player Kukino Satoshi (24) are planning to get married early next year. Tachibana is said not be pregnant and plans to continue her showbiz career, which is already heading into its second decade. Kukino, who is a striker with the J1 team Kawasaki Frontale, also announced the news on his blog.

Nakanishi Mona (35, photo left), formerly a talento when she used her maiden name of Yamamoto, announced yesterday that she is finally pregnant. As she had previously done with the announcement that she was undergoing infertility treatment, she posted the news on her blog saying that she hoped it would encourage other women hoping to get pregnant in their mid 30s or later. Nakanishi quit show business at the end of June and started her blog in September.

The former TV announcer of mixed Norwegian/Japanese heritage was a popular talento but plagued by several bad choices on the romantic front. Her career was derailed twice by affairs with men who were not only married but also in the public eye. The first was politician Hosono Goshi (41) in 2006, and then in 2008 it was baseball star Nioka Tomohiro (35). She finally settled down when she and her husband (34), the owner of a real estate investment company, got married in August 2010.

Also in the family way is actress Shinohara Ryoko (38, photo right), who is five months pregnant with her second child. She attended an event last night at the Mohri Garden in central Tokyo, which will be lit up until Christmas Day. Shinohara, who is married to actor Ichimura Masachika (62), has been busy during her pregnancy, including a modeling appearance for jewelery brand Tiffany in September.

Hollywood stars Brad Pitt (47) and Angelina Jolie (36) arrived in Japan yesterday with their six children in tow. The family arrived at Haneda Airport near central Tokyo in their private jet and were welcomed by about 500 fans. Pitt is making his eighth visit to Japan, and the first in two years, to promote the new movie “Moneyball,” of which he is both star and producer. The local media is referring to the couple as the first Hollywood stars to come to Japan with their children since the earthquake and tsunami disaster of March 11. The movie, directed by Bennett Miller, opens here on November 11.

Chilli Peppers x Elgrand
The latest single release from American rockers Red Hot Chilli Peppers is to be used in a Japanese TV commercial, a first for the band. During their 28-year career they have previously allowed the use of material for movie soundtracks but “Monarchy of Roses” will be the first to be used in a commercial. From tomorrow, it will feature in CMs for Nissan’s Elgrand line of luxury MPVs. The song will be released here as a CD single on December 14.

Super showbiz couple Higashiyama Hiroyuki (45) and Kimura Yoshino (35, photo left) are the proud parents of a baby girl, it was announced on Saturday. Higashiyama went straight from a studio recording to be by his wife’s side at the Tokyo hospital where she had what was said to be an easy delivery. The couple started dating after they worked on a stage production in 2008 and they tied the knot in October 2010.

Higashiyama became a star as a member of Johnny’s Jimusho idol group Shonentai, and he remains one of the most influential stars in that agency. He regularly performs on stage and in TV dramas and today he is scheduled to meet fans for a preview screening of his latest movie, “Genji Monogatari” (The Tale of Genji). The London-born Kimura made her drama debut in 1996 and is now one of Japan’s top actresses with two dozen movies under her belt. She made her Hollywood debut in the 2007 “Masters of Horror” series, and appeared in the 2008 international production “Blindness.”

Happy news also for Fuji TV announcer Nakamura Hitomi (32) and comedian Ohtake Kazuki (43), who got married in March and held their wedding ceremony and reception yesterday at the Grand Hiatt Tokyo. Towards the end of the reception, a video about the couple’s 8 years together was screened with a surprise at the end for the 250 family members and celebrity guests – an ultrasound video revealing that Nakamura is five months pregnant.

Mezamashi Host Hospitalized
Less happy news for another Fuji TV employee, as Ohtsuka Norikazu (63, photo right) has been hospitalized with acute lymphocytic leukemia. The network said the “Mezamashi Terebi” morning show presenter had been off work since last Wednesday and was currently undergoing chemotherapy treatment. In a released statement, he said, “After the sudden and totally unexpected discovery of my illness, I am taking a break. I am determined to vigorously endure this difficult treatment and promise to return to my 5:25am post with a smile in a few months.”

One of the showbiz rankings that comes around at the end of the year is for the so-called “CM Queen,” the female celebrity with the most commercial contracts. Currently top of the ranking this year is actress Ueto Aya (26) with 14 top brands to her name. She’s followed by child star Ashida Mana (7, photo left), who debuted in 2009 and won a best newcomer award for a TV drama role last year. This year she became the youngest actress to have a starring role in a primetime TV drama series, in Fuji TV’s “Marumo no Okite.” And the catchy single “Maru Maru Mori Mori!”, which she recorded as one half of a duo with Suzuki Fuku (7), has been the smash hit of the year among the pre-teen crowd. Just last week she released her debut solo CD, and she has had 12 CM contracts so far this year.

Also making her breakthrough this year is actress Takei Emi (17, photo right). Yesterday it was announced that she is the new “image character” for top suit retailer Yofuku no Aoyama, bringing her current total to 9 commercial contracts and 11 in total for the year. Takei is with the same management agency as Ueto and, as is expected, talks about her ambitions in terms of showing due respect to her sempai. “I hope I can be like my sempai someday.”

Rockers X Japan kicked off their first ever Asian tour on Friday, playing to 10,000 fans at the Seoul Olympic Gymnasium in South Korea. The venue was to host the band in March 2009, but that show had to be called off due to their legal battle with management. Band leader Yoshiki said, “It has been our dream to come here for a long time. (The late) Hide and Taiji also shared that dream.” The 10-song set included recent releases such as “Jade” and “Born to be Free” as well as standards like “Endless Rain.” As usual Yoshiki knew how to give fans that extra thrill, performing the folk song “Arirang,” sometimes considered the unofficial Korean national anthem, and dressing up in a pink traditional chima chogori.

Famous for their history of calamities and ruined plans, X Japan have already seen their share on this latest tour. A show scheduled for November 2 in Beijing was cancelled due to technical and production problems. And Yoshiki also managed to add a bit of unplanned drama to the Seoul show by badly injuring his finger on a cymbal. Nonetheless the tour headed to Shanghai on Sunday for its first concert on Chinese soil. This time around, Yoshiki played a Chinese folk tune, donned a red China doll dress and brought a stuffed panda on stage. Next up is Asia World-Expo in Hong Kong on November 4, followed by shows the same week in Taiwan and Thailand.

The 24th Tokyo International Film Festival came to a close last night. The big winner was the French film “Untouchables” which was awarded the Tokyo Sakura Grand Prix and $50,000. The film also saw its two male stars, Francois Cluzet and Omar Sy, share the Best Actor award. The film is based on a true tale of an aristocrat paralyzed after an accident, and the young black ex-convict employed as his care-giver. Another French winner was “When Pigs Have Wings,” which took the Audience Award. Director Sylvain Estibal said, “It is truly a great honor for us because this is our first time in Japan, our first movie, first film festival, and first award.”

Other people recognized were Ruben Oestlund, who was named Best Director for “Play”, and Glenn Close, who nabbed the Best Actress prize for her cross-dressing performance in “Albert Nobbs.” Local comedy “Kitsutsuki to Ame” (The Woodsman and the Rain), directed by Okita Shunichi and starring Yakusho Koji and Oguri Shun, was given the Special Jury Prize and S20,000. The Japanese Eyes award for local independent filmmakers went to Kobayashi Keiichi’s “Momo Iro Sora O” (About the Pink Sky). Jeffrey Jeturian was the first Philippino to win the Best Asian-Middle Eastern Film with “Trespassers.”

“Themes related to issues of immigration featured strongly in the films of the competitions, including Untouchables, Play and Pigs Have Wings,” pointed out jury president Edward R. Pressman at the closing ceremony at the Roppongi Hills complex in central Tokyo.

Popular actor Takeda Tetsuya (62) recently underwent heart surgery, his management revealed yesterday. The actor, best known for his long-running role as the philosophizing high school teacher Kimpachi Sensei, was hospitalized on October 13 and went under the knife on the 21st. He is expected to make a full recovery and leave the hospital early next month. He was diagnosed with arrhythmia (irregular pulse) about ten years ago and has been closely monitored since. His heart problem – aortic valve stenosis – resulted from a hereditary condition known as bicuspid aortic valve. It is caused when two of the three valves in the heart become fused together and it affects only about 1-2% of the population. Hollywood star and former California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger also had surgery for the condition.

A medical expert said, “(The condition) is rarely noticed while a patient is young. But as they get older and become less able to handle physical strain, they develop symptoms such as respiratory failure and hardening of the arteries and they become susceptible to heart attack.” Regarding Takeda’s treatment, he added “It is likely that they replaced the non-functioning aortic valve before his condition became too serious. It’s a big operation but is usually completed in 4 or 5 hours so I’m sure there is no cause for concern.”

Takeda played the title role in “3-nen B-gumi Kimpachi Sensei” on TBS for 32 years from 1979 until finally retiring the role earlier this year.