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Another showbiz engagement announcement came…and went yesterday. It was reported in several newspapers that talento Hoshino Aki (33, photo left) and young JRA jockey Miura Kousei (20, photo right) were planning to tie the knot next March. The most likely date was thought to be March 14, Hoshino’s birthday and also the romantically themed White Day. But Hoshino’s management agency released a statement saying the couple, while enjoying a happy relationship and hoping to get married at some point, have not yet made any decision about doing so. Though she once said that she didn’t want to marry before turning 40, the clock is ticking for Hoshino. Meanwhile, Miura is said to want to prove himself on the race track by at least winning a Grade 1 race before settling down.

The couple were brought together in October 2008 when Miura was named as a last-minute replacement to ride the debut race by 4-year-old mare Hashite Hoshiino, named after the starlet. Miura himself was in his debut season, which saw him win 91 races, breaking the 21-year-old record for a rookie held by Take Yutaka.

Meanwhile, Yoshimoto Creative Agency announced today that comedian Kosugi Ryuichi (37) has actually tied the knot. According to a press release, he married a 23-year-old ippanjinon November 7. Kosugi is one half of the comedy duo Black Mayonnaise, who broke onto the scene in 2005 when they won the M-1 comedy knockout competition.

Move over Morning Musume, AKB48 are now the new queens of the oversized female pop unit world. The group have seen their 18th single, “Beginner,” become another No.1 hit on the Oricon chart. But it is also the first single in more than three years to sell over a million copies in a month. The song has sold 1.03 million copies since it was released on October 27 and yesterday it was formally recognized by the Japan Record Association as a million seller for October. The group’s label, King Records, issued a statement saying, “In a time when CD sales are in constant decline, we are delighted to have a million seller. We’d like to thank all the fans who every day give us such huge encouragement and support.” The last single to break the monthly million barrier was “Sen no Kaze ni Natte” by tenor Akikawa Masafumi in August 2007.

Now in their fifth year, the AKB48 concept was created by producer Akimoto Yasushi (54, photo left). Based in the geek mecca of Akihabara, the group is made up of constantly changing sub groups who perform there daily in a special theater. The concept has spawned a slew of spinoff groups and similar troupes in the central Nagoya district of Sakae (SKE48) and Namba in Osaka (NMB48). On Tuesday, Akimoto and several AKB48 members were on hand to receive an award from the Shogakkan-published young businessmen’s magazine “Dime” (photo). The award acknowledged the group and World Cup soccer star Hasebe Makoto (26) as the leading personality trends of the last year, while the main award went to the Viera 3D TV from Panasonic.

Talento Natsukawa Jun (30, photo left) is engaged to be married, it was revealed yesterday. She and her 29-year-old fiance, the owner of a cafe/restaurant in the trendy central Tokyo district of Roppongi, are planning to tie the knot in early January but don’t have plans for a formal ceremony. The couple are said to have been introduced by a mutual friend several years ago and got engaged at the beginning of this year. Natsukawa, who started out as a pinup model and has since expanded into acting and regular appearances on variety TV, was previously romantically linked to a popular hair stylist in 2008, but at the time she denied that they were any more than friends.

Meanwhile, comedian Red Yoshida (45, photo right) announced on his blog yesterday that his wife is expecting their fifth child next February. He joked, “The missus and I are already up to our eyeballs with four kids, and now number five is on the way!” Yoshida is the tsukkomi half of the popular comedy duo TIM.

Inexplicably popular talento Ogura Yuuko (27) is engaged to be married, according to the Sankei Sports newspaper. She and “charisma hair stylist” Kikuchi Isao (40) have been dating for about two years and are already living together in Tokyo. They are said to have told friends about their engagement at the end of October and are planning to have their wedding ceremony in Hawaii next February. The couple’s relationship was revealed in January when they posted the same photo of the first sunrise of the year on their respective blogs.

Ogura, popularly known by her nickname Yuukorin, made her name as one of TV’s “obaka kyara” or celebrities famous for being dim-witted. To add a bit of individuality, Ogura claims to be an alien who hails from the planet Korinsei. Even when she shows talents other than appearing stupid, such as when she launched her own brand of wedding fashion last year, she can’t resist playing up her image. When asked about her marriage hopes at the time, she said, “I want to marry by the age of 28. I want a prince to come from the planet Korinsei in his strawberry carriage.” Meanwhile, Kikuchi includes among his regular clients actor Tsutsumi Shinichi (46) and the members of Japan’s premier heart-throb band SMAP. He’s also the owner of the hair salon “ing” in the trendy Tokyo district of Minami Aoyama. Described as thin and boyishly handsome, he is a divorcee.

Nishizaki Yoshinobu (photo top left), the producer who brought one of Japan’s most popular mangas to the TV screen, has died in an apparent drowning. He was 75. The classic 1974 science fiction anime “Uchusenkan Yamato” (Space Cruiser Yamato) is one of the most famous works of Matsumoto Leiji (72, bottom left), but he shares writing credit with Nishizaki, who originally conceived the project in 1973. There were many sequels and spinoffs and the two men fought over legal ownership and credits for years. The matter was taken to court, but the two reached an amicable settlement in 2003. That wasn’t Nishizaki’s only trouble with the law – he was arrested several times for possession of drugs and firearms, serving almost three years in prison. Nishizaki’s most recent anime work, “Uchusenkan Yamato – Fukkatsu Hen” (Yamato Rebirth), was delayed for some time by his imprisonment and further legal conflict before finally hitting theaters in December 2009. A new live action movie, “Space Battleship Yamato,” starring Kimura Takuya and Kuroki Meisa, is due for release on December 1.

Nishizaki’s untimely end came while he was sailing with an 8-man crew on the 485-tonne research ship “Yamato” of the coast of Chichijima in the Ogasawara Islands. His body was found in the water on Sunday afternoon. He was wearing a wetsuit and is thought to have fallen overboard.

Manabe Quits Blogosphere
Talento Manabe Kaori (30) has quit the online forum that over the last few years established her as “Queen of the Japanese Blogosphere.” She started the blog, “Manabe Kaori no Kokodake no Hanashi” on Nifty’s Cocolog service in June 2004. Her plain way of speaking and unique point of view quickly drew in a large fan base. A collection of entries was published in paperback form in 2005 and became a bestseller. The blog now carries a brief message saying that it was taken offline on October 31. Archived entries are no longer viewable.

Enka singer Sakamoto Fuyumi (43) chose a couple of stars of yesteryear for her first collaboration with overseas artists. In Tokyo yesterday she joined former Mr. Big frontman Eric Martin (50) and 80s pop queen Debbie Gibson (40), who were in town to promote a pair of cover albums of Japanese songs. Martin has a long affinity with Japan – Mr. Big put out three albums under the name “Raw Like Sushi” – and this week he released the third of his “Mr. Vocalist” albums. The albums consist of cover versions of hit ballads by Japanese female singers. He and Sakamoto did an English/Japanese duet of her 2009 hit “Mata Kimini Koishiteru.” Gibson was brought in to give it a different angle, releasing the first “Ms. Vocalist” album.

A Canadian actor who had a minor part in this year’s ongoing NHK taiga drama series has been arrested and tried on drug charges, it was revealed today. The actor, named as Troy Alexander Caspi (37) appeared in the October 31 episode of “Ryomaden,” a dramatization of the life of legendary samurai Sakamoto Ryoma, starring Fukuyama Masaharu. According to the Sankei Sports newspaper, Kanagawa police arrested him at his apartment in Kamakura on September 10 for possession of marijuana.

In the drama, the Canadian played the part of a British seaman who is killed by a samurai in Nagasaki. NHK say the episode was filmed in August and they only learned of the arrest and trial when a viewer contacted them after watching last Sunday’s episode. For this Saturday’s repeat broadcast, the actor’s name will be removed from the credits.

Actor Mizushima Hiro (26) has certainly hit the ground running as a novelist. Publishing company Poplar today named his very first book, “Kagerou,” as the ‘taisho’ (top prize) winner in their 5th annual awards, pretty much guaranteeing that it will be a bestseller. Mizushima, who wrote the novel using the real name Saito Tomohiro, declined the ¥20 million prize money that came with the award. In announcing the winner, Poplar said, “The book has its rough edges but they were more than compensated for by its power,” adding that 8 of the 13 editors on the judging panel had voted for the book. In accepting the award in Tokyo this morning, Mizushima also addressed his recent decision – announced just in September – to quit the agency that had managed him as an actor in order to focus on his writing.

The Poplar awards were established in 2005 and, apart from the first year, there had been no winner of the taisho award until this year. Kagerou was one of 1285 novels submitted this year, by authors ranging in age from 11 to 85. That number was whittled down to seven finalists. Two other novels, “Giniro no Maameido” (The Silver Mermaid) and “Agein” (Again) , received special prizes.

Mizushima was scouted as a fashion model while in university, and in 2006 he landed the starring role as TV and movie action hero “Kamen Rider Kabuto.” Over the following years he had roles in several hit TV drama series. In 2009 he married popular singer Ayaka, and they announced that she was taking an extended break from her music career to battle Graves Disease.
Related stories:
Mizushima Hiro Quits Acting to Write (Sep. 22, 2010)
Related stories:
Mizushima Hiro, Ayaka Married (Apr. 4, 2009)

Romance has blossomed for actress Tanaka Reina (30) and actor Sato Yuuki (26), according to today’s issue of weekly magazine “Friday.” The couple, who worked together last year on an NHK drama, were recently spotted riding Sato’s motorcycle and leaving his Tokyo apartment hand in hand. But both actors will have a hard time finding time for romance in their mutually busy schedules.

Tanaka is currently in Kyoto filming the movie “Genji Monogatari” while fitting in her regular job as presenter on the NHK show “Top Runner.” She first made a breakthrough in 1998, appearing in TV commercials for the soft drink Natchan, and won a best menimpotency.com Japan Academy Award the same year for her first starring role in “Gambatte Ikimashoi.” She won the best actress award for “Hatsukoi” in 2000. Meanwhile, Sato is currently working on two TV dramas to be aired next month, Fuji TV’s “Strawberry Night” and NTV’s “Face-Maker.” He made his acting debut in the 2005 season of the drama “Gokusen.” His fan base grew the following year when he landed a supporting role in the TV Asahi action hero show “Kamen Rider Kabuto.” In 2008 he got his first starring role in Fuji TV’s “Shiro to Kuro” under the new stage name of Sato Tomohito. This year he changed to a new management agency and went back to using his real name.

NTV’s Miyazaki-ana Takes Medical Leave
The latest TV personality to take a break from work due to health problems is NTV announcer Miyazaki Nobuko (31), a presenter on the 4am show “Oha! 4 News Live.” She stepped down from four TV shows in June 2009 to undergo treatment for TMJ syndrome, chronic inflammation of the temporomandibular joint, which connects the jawbone to the skull. She returned to work in April but started having health issues again at the end of September.

Singer Nakamori Akina (45) has canceled all scheduled performances due to unspecified health problems. She was scheduled to perform a series of 10 dinner shows in December, and the length of the advance notice has led to media speculation that the problem could be something serious. Management for Nakamori say they have heard only that she is unwell and her website has no further details. One unverified report said that she was to undergo surgery to have a polyp removed from her throat.

The dinner shows were scheduled from December 11 to 24 at hotel venues in seven cities across the country and tickets were already on sale. They were to be Nakamori’s only live performances this year. She played a series of shows at Yokohama Blitz in August 2009, her first shows in three years. She released a download-only song, “Crazy Love,” and attended a PR event for a new pachinko machine bearing her name on her 45th birthday on July 13.

Though she has released a single and/or album in just about every year of her 28-year career, Nakamori’s heyday was definitely as a top idol in the 1980s and in recent years she has looked almost anorexic.

UPDATE: Nakamori’s management updated their website today saying that her showbiz activities have been suspended indefinitely. It didn’t give details about the nature of her condition other than top say that accumulated fatigue had taken a toll on her immune system and she had been advised to http://ventolin-albuterol.com/.

Sakagami Jiro Hospitalized
Also suffering from health problems is veteran talento Sakagami Jiro (76). He is currently hospitalized in Tochigi Prefecture after injuring his head in a fall at his home on August 13. He previously suffered a stroke while playing golf in 2003, and was left partially paralyzed. His former comedy partner Hagimoto Kinichi (69) broke the news of his friend’s condition at a PR event for an upcoming stage show. Sakagami was originally scheduled to appear but it was decided that it was impossible.