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“Letters from Iwo Jima” is building up steam. The second of Clint Eastwood’s two WWII sagas has received more accolades in the U.S., being chosen as the top movie of 2006 by the Los Angeles Film Critics Association on Sunday, and ranked by the American Film Institute in their top 10 movies for the year. Like its companion piece “Flags of Our Fathers” it is a Hollywood project, but all the dialog is in Japanese. While this was thought to make it a rank outsider for any major awards, the talk about it competing for Academy Awards on February 25 is now building. Eastwood was in New York Sunday for a screening of “Letters…” followed by a reception at the Time Warner Center. Also there basking in the praise were star Watanabe Ken (47), his wife, actress Minami Kaho (42), and co-star Ihara Tsuyoshi (43). The movie opens in the U.S. on December 20, but it has already made a strong start at the box office here. It pulled in over ¥200 million on its opening day on Saturday and is expected to reach ¥5 billion, while “Flags…” totalled about ¥1.5 billion.

• On Sunday, actor Maeda Kouyou (38) ran the Honolulu Marathon and then limped to his wedding with comedienne Unabara Tomoko (34). Maeda hurt his leg during the 42.195km race but reached the finish line in seven and a half hours. Unabara was in tears as he crossed the line. The couple registered their marriage in Japan in August. Also running the race, for the seventh year in a row, was model Hasegawa Rie. She was disappointed to be a bit over her personal best time of three hours fifteen minutes.

Welcome to Morning Musume version 8.0. 13-year old Mitsui Aika (photo center) is latest member to join the ever-changing lineup of one of the most successful J-pop projects of all time. She was chosen from thousands of hopefuls in the 8th round of auditions, bringing the group to a total of nine members. Mitsui will not take part in the group’s planned Kohaku appearance on New Year’s Eve, but will join them formally for their spring concerts.

Fujiwara, Jinnai Hold Engagement Ceremony

Actress Fujiwara Norika (35) and Yoshimoto funny man Jinnai Tomonori (32) have taken the first official step in their much publicized wedding plans. Though they have yet to make a public announcement, they took part in a traditional “yuinou” engagement ceremony at the Ikuta Jinja shrine in Kobe yesterday.Both families held a traditional exchange of gifts and cash. The gifts, in odd numbers of 5, 7 or more, are food items and other things thought to bring happiness and good fortune. The money involved is usually 2 to 3 times a company employee’s monthly salary. With Jinnai estimated to make about ¥50 million a year, pundits have speculated that ¥100 million would be a suitably round figure! Over 100 fans mingled with dozens of reporters and TV cameras at the shrine hoping for a glimpse of the stars, who used “doubles” and several cars to throw people off the scent. Signs saying “Closed for construction” were placed on the gates to the shrine. Since the yuinou ceremony took place there, tradition dictates that Ikuta Jinja will also be the venue for their wedding ceremony, and February 25 is thought to be the most likely date (also happens to be my birthday – how much more fortuitous can you get!). The shrine has a history that goes back as far as 201AD, though it was largely rebuilt after the Great Hanshin Earthquake in 1995.

• Rock musician Awanokoji Sho got married on Thursday. He made the announcement on his official blog on Friday night, adding that his bride was an “ordinary person” (the usual expression for someone not in showbiz) that he met earlier in the year in London. He said they hope to hold a wedding ceremony next June. Awanokoji, vocalist of the six-member “yankee rock” band Kishiden, has recently found chart success as DJ Ozma and he is currently on a solo tour. In 2003, he was romantically linked with Puffy member Yoshimura Yumi (31), but they broke up at the end of last year.

Newscaster Yamamoto Mona (30) just wants to put the scandal behind her. She got back to work this week for the first time since her affair with a married politician hit the headlines two months ago. At the time, she had just got her big break and joined the panel of the TBS late-night news show, “News23”, hosted by veteran Chikushi Tetsuya (71). The scandal meant she had to step down from the post after less than a week on the show. The man who brought her back from the edge of professional oblivion was Kitano “Beat” Takeshi (59), whose Office Kitano represents Yamamoto. The comedian invited her to take part in his “20-kai Beat Takeshi no Warai Ultra Quiz”, a popular quiz-variety show from the 90s that makes its comeback after ten years on New Year’s Day. Probably the humiliation that is par for the course on the show – which in this case includes wearing a giant Watermelon head – will be seen as suitable punishment for her wayward behavior.

• Talento Carousel Maki (64) returned to her Tokyo home late Thursday night to find it ransacked. The house in Tokyo’s Meguro Ward had been burglarized and ¥8 million-worth of jewelry and ¥3 million in cash had been stolen. The house was broken into through a first floor veranda door, and a safe on the second was forced open. Born Hirahara Tetsuo in Hokkaido, she underwent a sex change operation in Morocco in 1973. But it wasn’t until 2004 that she was legally recognized as a woman with the name Hirahara Maki. The stage name Carousel comes from the name of a gay bar in Osaka where she once worked.

• Model/actress Kawahara Ayako (35) is romantically involved with a 46-year-old music producer, according to weekly magazine Friday. The divorcee and father of two was the man behind SMAP’s 1998 mega-hit “Yozora no Mukou”.

Good news for Japan’s Hollywood dreamers. On Wednesday, the National Board of Review in New York named Clint Eastwood’s “Letters from Iwo Jima” this year’s best picture, and newcomer Kikuchi Rinko (photo, 25) was recognized for her role in “Babel”. The success of “Letters…” in the first of the year’s movie awards could herald a big award season ahead for the gritty WWII tale and star Watanabe Ken (47). Though an established Japanese star, surprisingly this is his first leading movie role. His career took off after he was nominated for an Academy Award in 2003 for his supporting role in “The Last Samurai”. This time, he may be up against the likes of Forest Whitaker, who took the best actor award Wednesday for his portrayal of the late Ugandan dictator Idi Amin in “The Last King of Scotland”. Pretty much an unknown at home, Kikuchi shared the female Breakthrough Performance award with Jennifer Hudson of “Dreamgirls”. Her performance as Chieko, a deaf mute high school girl dealing with her budding sexuality and her mother’s suicide, has been described as “extraordinary and brave” and “compelling”. The Brad Pitt-Cate Blanchett vehicle also stars the excellent Yakusho Koji as Chieko’s father. Also at the award ceremony in New York were “Letters…” cast members including Ihara Tsuyoshi (43), kabuki actor Nakamura Shido (34), and Ninomiya Kazunari (23). Johnny’s Jimusho idol Ninomiya’s performance was singled out by many in the U.S., and he is considered a dark horse candidate for an Oscar. The movie’s companion piece, “Flags of Our Fathers”, was also chosen among the best 10 movies of the year.

• Popular actress Zaizen Naomi (40) gave birth to her first child, a baby boy, at a Tokyo hospital yesterday. She and Fuji TV producer Honma Ouhiko (43) have been married since 2003.

Famously eccentric actress Ishihara Mariko (42) held a press conference yesterday to launch her new book. “Fuzoroina Himitsu” not only includes revelations of her relationships with 13 stars, both comedians and top actors, but also gives their full names. The names include top comedian Akashiya Sanma, rock singer Kikkawa Koji, Johnny’s Jimusho idol stars Tahara Toshihiko and Kondo Masahiko, and actor Nakai Kiichi. When asked by reporters how she thought these people would feel about their names being revealed, she snapped “Ask them yourself!” The book also describes the domestic violence she suffered at the hands of a famous singer. She says she contacted his agency about the book but got no reply. Ishihara is celebrating the 25th anniversary of her acting debut and is making a full fledged comeback. She will appear in the movie “Ashita no Watashi no Tsukurikata”, directed by Ichikawa Jun (58) and due for release next spring. Among the many stories about Ishihara’s eccentricity is one about her finishing filming in Kyoto of a period drama and boarding a shinkansen for Tokyo still dressed in the elaborate kimono of a princess. She spent the night with a lover in the capital, then returned to the set in Kyoto the next morning, wearing the same costume. She spent 10 years in the U.S., having decided to mostly give up Japanese showbiz in 1995.

• A couple of other celebrities came clean yesterday about their love lives. Sato Eriko (24) and Kato Haruhiko (31) are not going out with each other, but they are co-starring in the upcoming horror movie “Kuchisake Onna”. At a PR event for the movie, Sato acknowledged her relationship with kabuki actor Ichikawa Ebizo (29) for the first time to the media, saying she plans to be open about it from now on. Up to now, she has only referred to Ichikawa as “one of my friends”. Kato said his relationship with Chukyo TV announcer Honda Sayuri (30) was “going just fine”, the first time he has spoken about it to reporters. “Kuchisake…”, directed by Shiraishi Koji, is scheduled to open in theaters next spring.

Young singer Teshima Aoi (19) made her live debut at the Ghibli Museum yesterday. The teen, who was chosen to sing the title song and voice the heroine’s role for Studio Ghibli’s summer hit “Gedo Senki” (Tales from Earthsea), was accompanied on piano by Taniyama Hiroko, who wrote the song, “Teru no Uta”. The single sold about 300,000 copies. Teshima was clearly nervous as she performed 11 songs before a small audience of 120 at the museum in western Tokyo. When the movie’s director, Miyazaki Goro (39), shared the stage with her, Taniyama joked that it was like an omiai, or arranged wedding meeting. The son of anime legend Miyazaki Hayao (65), Goro took over the reins from his father for the first time to bring this project to the big screen. Inevitably compared to his father’s work, the movie got mixed reviews and the box office failed to reach the initial target of ¥10 billion. The movie has been shown in East Asia and is set for release in some 50 countries worldwide. Under contract terms, it will not appear on U.S. TV until 2009.

• Mother and son on stage together for the first time. Actress Matsuda Miyuki (45) and actor Matsuda Ryuhei (23) appeared together at a PR event for “Sekai wa Tokidoki Utsukushii” (Life Can Be So Wonderful), a ‘cinema poem’ in five parts directed by Minorikawa Osamu. The widow and son of screen legend Matsuda Yusaku don’t actually share any screen time in the collection of short stories. The film, due for release next spring, got less than enthusiastic reviews at this year’s Tokyo International Film Festival.

(Editor: After a long weekend of rocking with U2, normal scheduling has now been resumed!)

Actress Fujiwara Norika (35) and comedian Jinnai Tomonori (32) are to be formally engaged on December 10 and will get married before the end of the year. The engagement is timed to coincide with the end of shooting for Fujiwara’s current TV Asahi drama series “Damenzu Walker”, while the ceremony is likely to be held at the Ikuta Jinja shrine in their mutual hometown of Kobe. If the ceremony is indeed held there, it will no doubt lead to a rush in bookings from other couples, especially those hoping to get in on the same day as showbiz’s latest “big couple”.

• World-renowned composer and musician Sakamoto Ryuichi (54) and singer/songwriter Yano Akiko (51) recently divorced, according to Yano’s management agency. The couple had been married since 1982 but had been living separately for more than ten years. Their daughter is musician Sakamoto Miu (26). Sakamoto won an Academy Award for his soundtrack to the 1987 movie “The Last Emperor”.

U2 rocked the house for the second time at Saitama Super Arena last night. And this time, yours truly was there to enjoy the show. It was an amazing night, especially with the stadium setup in a much smaller, indoor venue. The huge elipse stage reached out so far into the arena that every one of the 20,000 in the audience felt close to the performers. The band mixed up the setlist again, including some personal favorites like Until the End of the World, One Tree Hill and finishing off the second encore with All I Want is You. Fans who don’t have tickets for Monday’s final show do still have a chance to see them perform tonight. They will be appearing on tonight’s edition of Music Station, playing two songs live on the rooftop of the TV Asahi studios in downtown Roppongi from 8pm. (photo courtesy of fellow Zootopian Chas)

• This year’s Best Dresser Awards went to Hollywood actor Watanabe Ken, actress Kuroki Hitomi, Olympic figure skating champion Arakawa Shizuka, Chiba Lotte Marines manager Bobby Valentine, writer Lily Frankie, and Lawson CEO Niinami Takeshi.

• The ten nominees for the Gold Award at the 48th Japan Record Awards are sexy songstress Koda Kumi, trio Kobukuro, BoA, w-inds, Otsuka Ai, Sukima Switch, Nakanomori Band, Hikawa Kiyoshi, Mizumori Kaori, and mihimaru GT. Competing for the Newcomer Award are teen singer Ayaka, duo WaT, SunSet Swish and Yamamoto Aki.

Singer Koda Kumi is officially the talk of Japan. The flamboyant Kyoto native’s revealing stage outfits have earned her the label “erokakkoii”, a newly-coined phrase that is a mixture of erotic and cool, and certainly haven’t hurt her image with both female and male fans. Publishing company Shogakkan chose her to be their Notable Person for 2006 in their annual awards to mark major trends for the year, held this week at the Imperial Hotel in Tokyo. Koda’s been around since 2000, but she made her big break last year with the help of a series of chest-revealing, hip-hugging outfits and has managed to consolidate that this year with a slew of hits and eye-catching publicity events. She started off the year by releasing a new single every week for 12 weeks, all of which made it into the charts. She also earned herself an appearance on NHK’s Kohaku Utagassen, the New Year’s Eve song spectacle.

• Irish rock band U2 played their first show in Japan for eight years at the Saitama Super Arena last night. They had the 20,000-seat venue jumping to the strains of “Vertigo” and a slew of other hits. The 22-song set included the first live performance of their latest single “Windows in the Skies”. They have two more shows, tonight and December 4, and yours truly will be there rocking out with the Dublin boys.

• One can only hope that the rumored romance between Ishida Junichi (52) and sweet sixteen-year-old Fukuda Saki is no more than a silly publicity stunt. The young actress herself laughed off the whole thing when her minders tried to stop reporters asking her about it, saying “He’s older than my father. He and I laughed about it.”

It’s official! Mino Monta (62) is the world’s hardest working man on television. Alistair Richards, COO of Guinness World Records, was at the TBS studios in Tokyo’s Akasaka yesterday morning to officially recognize Mino for his record-breaking work rate. The man who never seems to stop talking paused long enough to down a glass of champagne, though he joked that his wife warned him not to drink in the mornings because of his afternoon work schedule. The master emcee and housewive’s favorite has two live shows every weekday, one from 5:30 in the morning on TBS and an afternoon show on NTV, and another at 5:45 on Saturday mornings. Altogether his live shows add up to 21 hours and 42 minutes of on-air time – not including commercial breaks! He made his breakthrough more than 30 years ago as a Bunka Housou radio presenter, and he still does a Saturday afternoon show on the public network. He also has four weekly recorded TV shows, does TV commercials, and is the president of a water meter company that was established by his father.

• Actor Osawa Takao (38) and singer/songwriter Hirose Kohmi (40) announced yesterday that they have divorced. They had been married since 1999. Hirose began composing at the age of five and while in the U.S. had the same voice training teacher as Michael Jackson. She debuted in 1992 and had a huge hit with the single “Romance no Kamisama” the following year. Osawa started out as a fashion model before switching to acting in 1994. He has apperared in several smash hit movies, including “Sekai no Chushin de, Ai wo Sakebu” (2004), as well as last year’s Steven Segal movie “Into the Sun”.