The future finally looks a little brighter for singer Suzuki Ami (21) after the Tokyo district court ruled that she is free of any legal ties to the Sony Music Entertainment record label. Hugely popular just a couple of years ago, things went sour with her management agency and Sony, and her career was put on hold while they tried to unwrangle the legal mess. She had talks with the giant Yoshimoto agency but it was said they backed out when Suzuki’s side demanded too much money.
• Mori Hosachi (28), the fastest ever to become a Takarazuka top star, is to make her debut as a TV regular in the long-running “Hagure Keiji” detective series. The show has aired on TV Asahi for the last 15 years.
• Actor Nishida Toshiyuki (55) has been released from hospital, 9 kilos lighter, after having suffered a heart seizure several weeks ago.