Latest News from Japan Zone & Japan Store

Hollywood star Will Smith (39) was in Tokyo again yesterday, this time for the Japan premiere of his superhero movie “Hancock.” For the red carpet walk, producers had set up a mock up car that Smith was supposed to use his “super powers” to send flying into the air. But the car was blown over by a strong gust of wind and the helium gas balloon inside ended up in the nearby Suidobashi train station. Smith joked that indeed his super powers were to blame, but that’s not likely the story organizers told local police when they had to report the incident. before the screening at the JCB Hall next to Tokyo Dome, Smith was joined on stage by co-star Charlize Theron (33) and sumo yokozuna Asashoryu (27). The movie is in Japanese theaters from August 30.

Veteran actress Yoshinaga Sayuri (63) is to play the legendary and controversial shaman queen Himiko in the upcoming movie “Moboroshi no Yamataikoku.” According to ancient records, Yamataikoku was a country that existed within ancient Wa (Japan) in the third century AD and was ruled by Himiko. The controversy comes from the fact that nobody knows for sure where the land was or whether Himiko even really existed. She is mentioned by name in the Chinese “Records of Three Kingdoms” but not once in the oldest Japanese chronicles, the “Kojiki” (Records of Ancient Matters) and “Nihon Shoki” (Chronicles of Japan). There is speculation, for example, as to whether she and Empress Jingu are in fact one and the same. Though it has been described as “the greatest debate over the ancient history of Japan,” this hasn’t stopped Japanese scholars from establishing Himiko as a historical figure and her story is the most famous in the history textbooks of young school children.

Yoshinaga is often described as the “face of Japan” and is an obvious choice to take on the role of Himiko. She spent two hours getting made up, using an image she herself had distilled from sources as varied as the onnagata of kabuki to Elizabeth Taylor’s “Cleopatra.” The silk kimono she wore was hand-made over two months by a team of 20 artisans at a cost of ¥10 million. And all this for the role of Himiko that lasts for about one minute of the movie. The rest of the time, she plays Miyazaki Kazuko, who spent the 1960s searching for the lost Yamataikoku with her husband, the blind history researcher Miyazaki Kouhei. The movie, directed by Tsutsumi Yukihiko, opens on November 1 and a set of commemorative stamps are to be issued at post offices next month.

• Former top idol singer Aida Shoko (38) announced yesterday that she recently married a doctor. She said through her management agency that she and Aizawa Hiromitsu (37), an anesthesiologist, tied the knot on August 31. They first met in the summer of 2006 and their relationship was revealed in a weekly magazine in April of last year. Aida says she was happy to start a new chapter in her life in a year that marks the 20th anniversary of her showbiz career. She and Suzuki Sachiko (39) debuted in 1988 as the pop duo Wink with “Sugar Baby Love.” They won a record award the following year and had a string of hits until they split up in 1996. Aida went solo and developed a career as an actress and TV talento. Aizawa is the son of former politician Aizawa Hideyuki (89) and actress Tsukasa Yoko (74).

The Louvre museum in Paris yesterday allowed the first ever PR event in front of the Mona Lisa for the Japanese movie “20-seiki Shonen” (20th Century Boys). The manga adaptation was also the first Japanese movie to have its world premiere in the French capital, screening at the Publicis Cinéma on the Champs Elysées. Star Karasawa Toshiaki (45) and actress Tokiwa Takako (36) had visited the Louvre before but never had the Mona Lisa to themselves. Well, apart from museum personnel and about 80 reporters. Security was tight and cameras were strictly prohibited from shooting any artwork other than the da Vinci masterpiece. Toikiwa was something of a work of art herself, wearing a bright purple kimono. “20th Century Boys” is a three-part adaptation of a hit manga series that sold over 20 million copies. There are already plans to screen the movie, which opens in Japan on August 30, in more than 20 countries.

• At last night’s Japan premiere of “Sex and the City” actresses Fujiwara Norika (37) and Itoh Misaki (31) wore the wedding dresses featured in the movie. Director Michael Patrick King said he wants to make his next movie in Tokyo and work with the two Japanese beauties. Also at the event were pop group Max, with Aki (27) making one of her last appearances as a member before she quits at the end of this month.

• An update to yesterday’s story about the engagement of actress Hatano Hiroko (32) and J-League star Suzuki Keita (27). Both of them made official statements yesterday, with Hatano revealing that she is pregnant and has stepped down from her role in an upcoming TV Asahi drama series. She was set to reprise her role in “Salaryman Kintaro,” the drama in which she made her debut in 1999. Suzuki didn’t update his blog until after the international friendly between Japan and Uruguay, though he was on the bench for the game. Any wedding plans will have to fit into a busy schedule for the star midfielder. He is expected to play in next month’s final World Cup qualifier against Bahrain and also has the upcoming Asian Champions League with his club team, Urawa Reds.

Actress Hatano Hiroko (32) and J-League soccer player Suzuki Keita (27) are engaged to be married, it was revealed yesterday. The two started dating last year. Hatano was a top model with the popular fashion magazine JJ before entering showbiz, making her acting debut in the drama “Salaryman Kintaro” in 1999. The same year, she made a name for herself when she took over from Fujiwara Norika as a presenter on the “SRS” martial arts show. She appeared in several drama series before choosing retirement following her marriage to actor Kashiwabara Takashi (32) in June 2004. But a year later she was back at work and their marriage ended in February 2006. Suzuki is a defensive midfielder with Urawa Reds and the national team. He played for his country at the 2004 Olympics and has had 28 international caps since 2006.

• It seems that NHK have forgiven singer Kikkawa Koji for his past misdeeds. Famously banned from the national network following an incident in 1985, he has been named to a key supporting role in next year’s taiga drama. “Tenchijin” will star Tsumabuki Satoshi (27) as Naoe Kanetsugu (1560-1620), a retainer to the Uesugi clan, while Kikkawa (43) will play warlord Oda Nobunaga (1534-82). The cast also includes Tokiwa Takako, Abe Hiroshi, Matsukata Hiroki and Nagasawa Masami among other top stars. The year-long series started filming this week and will air from January 2009. Kikkawa incurred the wrath of NHK when he appeared on the annual “Kohaku Utagassen” on New Year’s Eve 1985. As he sang the song “Monica” he sprayed champagne on the stage and set it alight, causing a major disruption to the live broadcast. The role as Oda is his first in a drama since NHK gave him a break in 2002 with a part in the series “Mayonaka wa Betsu no Kao.”

• The four members of pop group Speed are to get back together for NTV’s 24-hour telethon on August 30-31. It will be their third reunion since they officially split in 2000. Member Imai Eriko (24) says she wants to give her young son, who she revealed for the first time is deaf, a chance to see her perform. Imai and musician Shogo of the group 175R divorced last September. Speed will perform a medley of their hits at the Nippon Budokan on the afternoon of August 31.

• Korean star Ryu Siwon (35) was at the same Budokan for the third time last night for the first of three shows to round off his “Motto Motto” Japan tour. He performed 20 songs including his latest, “Kimi to Boku.” He announced that later this year he will be the first Korean actor to play at Tokyo Dome, with two shows on December 23-24.

Amuro Namie (30) has become the first artist to have a million-selling album in her teens, twenties and thirties. Her latest hits collection, “Best Fiction,” has been at No.1 on the Oricon album chart since it went on sale July 30 and the latest sales tally is 1.09 million copies, making it the third album this year to break the million barrier. Other artists who have managed to go “platinum” (by the U.S. standard, anyway) in more than one decade include Inoue Yosui (in his 20s and 30s), Utada Hikaru and Nakashima Mika (in their teens and 20s). Amuro debuted in 1992 and was very much a 90s phenomenon, becoming a fashion leader for a whole generation of girls. Though her last million-selling album was 1998’s “181920,” her failed marriage to TRF dancer Sam and motherhood seem to have only broadened her appeal. She is currently top of the lineup of Avex artists on the “a-nation ’08” tour, which she joined this year for the first time, and she has a 16-venue, 40-show arena tour coming up in October. The latest sales figures show that she can still claim to be at the top of the J-pop world.

• The NHK taiga period drama “Atsu-hime” has reached new heights of popularity. The August 17 episode had a superb audience rating of 27.7%, making it the second-most watched show of the week after the hugely anticipated women’s Olympic marathon. The series had already set new high with last week’s rating of 26.4%, and the latest episode featured the first appearance of the key character Kazunomiya, played by popular young actress Horikita Maki (20).

• New Zealand-born singer/songwriter Jay’Ed (26) yesterday announced the release of his second single. The ballad “Zutto Issho” is the follow up to his May debut single “Superwoman.” The song has already done well in download rankings before it’s official release on August 27. Raised in Osaka, Jay’Ed says his new song has the warm island music influence of his other home country.

• Visiting Japan again is Hollywood star Jodie Foster (45), here to promote the movie “Nim’s Island,” which opens in Japan on September 6. Foster, who first visited Japan when she was 12, brought her two young sons with her this time. She said she wants them to have as many experiences as possible while young, but added, “I didn’t know it could get this hot in Japan!”

Singer Crystal Kay (22) has been given a crack at a Hollywood breakthrough. It was revealed at the weekend that her rock song “Hold On” has been chosen as the theme for an adaptation of the Steven King short story “Dolan’s Cadillac.” Due for U.S. release next year, it tells the tale of a mild-mannered teacher (Wes Bentley) seeking revenge against the mobster (Christian Slater) who murdered his wife. The movie has been in the works for several years, with names like Kevin Bacon, Sylvester Stallone and Dennis Hopper linked with the project. But the latest attempt looks likely to be completed, and filming has taken place in Canada and Las Vegas. Producer Ellen Wander says she chose Kay’s unreleased song after one listen, “I’m excited to be working with a singer overflowing with such stimulating talent. This is an exceptional movie that provides the perfect backdrop for her beautiful and exciting music.” The song, with all English lyrics, is her first for an overseas movie, though she has provided themes for a few domestic productions. The Yokohama-born Kay plans to embark on a U.S. career in September after graduating Japanese university. She recently worked with top producers Jam and Lewis in L.A. on two tracks for her latest album “Color Change!”

• Actor Kanasugi Taro recently died from injuries he suffered earlier this year. He was 33. After a night of drinking with school friends in March, he fell onto the subway tracks at Ikebukuro station in Tokyo. He underwent surgery for a brain contusion, but remained in a coma until his death on August 2. Real name Fukazawa Taro, he began acting as a child and landed a role in the popular school drama series “3 Nen B Gumi Kinpachi Sensei” in 1988. He later had a role in the long-running TBS afternoon series “Ten Made Todoke.” He was married in 1999.

Another young female idol has found that work and romance are not allowed to mix. Kikuchi Ayaka (15) has been kicked out of the popular idol group AKB48 for indulging in “behavior that was careless and lacking in self awareness.” Photos of Kikuchi and a boyfriend were recently circulated on the Web leading to her being disciplined and dropped from performances since August 2. Her contract with the Production Ogi management agency was also canceled.

• “Blindness,” the multinational Hollywood movie that features local stars Kimura Yoshino (32) and Iseya Yuusuke (32), is to be shown in almost 80 countries worldwide. The Japanese-Canadian-Brazilian production also features Julianne Moore, Danny Glover and Mexican actor Mexican actor Gael García Bernal and received a lot of international interest after it was chosen to open this year’s Cannes film festival. The Japanese pair were already romantically involved off-screen before they headed for Canada for several months last year shooting the movie on location. But, as we reported here in early June, they have indicated that their relationship is now over. Yesterday in Tokyo, they took the stage together for the first time since then, appearing with director Fernando Meirelles at a PR event for the movie, which opens in Japan in November.

Singer Wada Akiko (58) was diagnosed with some potentially serious health problems during a medical checkup on Sunday’s edition of her TBS show “Akko ni Omakase.” The so-called “Godsister” of Japanese showbiz, Akko is a renowned boozer and heavy smoker so such health issues hardly come as a surprise. Her current condition was diagnosed when she went for a second checkup following signs of pulmonary emphysema on the first screening. The doctors told her she had chronic respiratory problems and possibly hardening of her coronary arteries, putting her at risk of suffering a heart attack. She was urged to give up smoking. Meanwhile another guest on the show, Degawa Tetsuro (44), was diagnosed with kidney stones in both kidneys and inflammation of his liver. And it was revealed yesterday that Degawa had suffered a broken collarbone while filming a TV show just days before.

• Talento/model Kawabe Chieko (21) revealed on her blog that she and TBS producer Ochi Masato got married last Friday. They chose the date of August 8, 2008 adhd-drugs.net to register their marriage at the local municipal office as they both claim their lucky number to be 8. At 42, Ochi is twice Kawabe’s age. Kawabe, who is half Philippina on her mother’s side, says she plans to continue her entertainment career.

Among the performers at the weekend’s major Summer Sonic rock festival was a familiar but unexpected face. Many in the festival crowd were not born when Koizumi Kyoko‘s major hit “Nantettatte Aidoru” was released in 1985, and she hadn’t sung the number in more than 15 years. She arranged open auditions to assemble a 21-member brass section specially for the number, and got a rapturous reception from the 5,000 who gathered to watch her early morning performance. Though she has been more of an actress than a singer for many years – her last concert was a year and a half ago – Koizumi (42) is still best known as “Kyon-Kyon”, one of Japan’s first and most popular idol singers. And she wasn’t the only blast from the past at the weekend event held in Makuhari, east of Tokyo, and Osaka. In addition to the current chart toppers like Coldplay and Alicia Keys were names like the Sex Pistols, Devo and The Jesus and Mary Chain. The Japan Zone award for best band name is shared by Dallas group Forever the Sickest Kids and locals Maximum the Hormone!

• X Japan vocalist Toshi (42) and his new band performed for the first time on Saturday night. “Toshi with T-Earth” played four songs, including “Fire City,” for 300 fans at the Rockmaykan club in Tokyo’s Meguro, a venue where X Japan performed before making their major label debut. The band kick off a nationwide tour on Tuesday, with Luna Sea drummer Shinya scheduled to join them for the latter half. They are also scheduled to perform in Sao Paulo, Brazil on October 10, Toshi’s birthday.

• The “Gorgeous Kano Sisters” are now officially anime characters. And for once, surrounded by cosplay fans of all kinds at the weekend’s “Otakon” convention in Baltimore, they didn’t look quite so out of place. The pair were at the event to launch the “Abunai Sisters” DVD, which features ten 3-minute episodes of the busty crime-fighters Koko and Mika. Presumably it was decided that elder sister Kyoko needed a simpler name for the non-Japanese audience. The animated heroines were created by Matsushita Susumu, one of Japan’s leading character designers. The DVD is being sold by pre-order via a group buying service. This means that the more copies are ordered, the cheaper they become, a handy safety net for a product likely to appeal only to the unpredictable otaku crowd.

• “Detroit Metal City,” the Matsuyama Kenichi rock comedy vehicle, has been invited to screen at two international film festivals in Canada: in Toronto in September and Montreal in October. Matsuyama (23) and co-star Kato Rosa (23) attended a talk event held yesterday at the Shibuya branch of Tower Records in Tokyo, which was used as a location in the movie.

The serious PR has started for the movie adaptation of “20-Seiki Shonen” (20th Century Boys). A post-production event was held last night at the Roppongi Hills complex in central Tokyo for the first of the three movie installments, which opens in theaters on August 30. As we reported back in February, the movie has a star-studded cast, and they were all called out for yesterday’s event. But stealing the show was a 9m high reproduction of the movie’s robot. The Toei studio is said to have shelled out about ¥40 million for the PR event, with most of that being the cost of the robot. As it’s CG-generated in the movie, the cast were seeing it “in the flesh” for the first time. Star Karasawa Toshiaki (45) described it simply: “It’s intense!” The movies are based on the sci-fi drama manga that ran in the “Big Comic Spirits” magazine from 1999 to 2006. There have been distribution negotiations in more 20 countries worldwide, and the movies are likely to be bigger than the recent “Death Note” series. Servers for the official website (http://www.20thboys.com) have been overwhelmed in the last couple of days.

• Actress Katsumura Mika (28) revealed on her blog yesterday that she has divorced from actor and former Johnny’s Jimusho idol Tomoi Yusuke (28). The couple married in January 2006 and had a baby girl the following August. Katsumura filed the divorce papers in June and has custody of their daughter. Tomoi made his debut with kansai Johnny’s Jr back in 1994. He had a major supporting role in the “Kamen Rider Agito” tokusatsu series in 2000 and a Godzilla movie in 2002, but has since dropped in and out of showbiz.