Monthly Archives: May 2003

Kabuki actor and “living national treasure” Nakamura Tomijuro looks set to break a showbiz record. His wife Masae (40) is expecting their second child in August and is hoping the baby will wait until after her father’s 74th birthday that month. The record is currently held by the late actor Uehara Ken who became a dad at 71.

• Taking over from presenter Tokunaga Yumi (27) at the Super Morning wide show will be Akae Tamao (photo, 28). Tokunaga recently announced on the air that she was quitting the show following the revelation of her affair with comedian Uchimura Teruyoshi (38) of the duo U-chan Nan-chan.

• It’s been revealed that Kaneko Noboru (28) who plays super hero Gao Ranger Red married last November and is the father of a baby girl. Actors who play the young super heroes are popular with young boys but even more so with their mothers. So this announcement will be a shock to some housewives.

It was indeed third time lucky for actor Kubozuka Yosuke (24). He and dancer “Non-chan” (21) managed to finally register their marriage at the Shibuya Ward Office in Tokyo yesterday. Their previous two applications had been turned down because of problems with their documents. They are expecting a baby in October.

• Former actress and NHK wide show presenter Ikeda Yuko (46) has published a book about her ongoing fight with cancer. Diagnosed with the disease three years ago, it has since spread to almost her entire body. But hormone treatment and a very positive outlook have helped her overcome many of the hardships.

Former TV personality Nomura Sachiyo (71) has won a libel case against a journalist with the Shuukan Jitsuwa (Weekly True Stories) magazine. She filed for ¥16.5 million but was awarded ¥2.2 million. The magazine printed claims in 1999 about Sachi’s debts and embezzlement of funds after she failed in an attempt to launch a career in politics. Her lawyer says that this libel case is just the first of 31 against various newspaper and magazine publishers and TV stars. Following her unceremonious, but totally deserved, dumping by the entertainment world, this is probably the only way she can support her extravagant lifestyle. She is the wife of former baseball great Nomura Katsuya (70).

Actress Sakurai Atsuko (30), who became a familiar face on the popular Fuji TV comedy series “Shomuni,” married TV Asahi producer Shimakawa Hiroatsu (31) yesterday. The couple met a year ago while working together on location in Kyoto. Both have busy work schedules and don’t plan to have a wedding ceremony.

• TV personality Nagashima Kazushige (37) has sued the SKK company for more than ¥20 million for the unauthorized use of his name and image in their advertising. Kazushige is the son of baseball legend Nagashima Shigeo.

• SMAP “leader” Nakai Masahiro (30) is said to be living with his new girlfriend, a 24-year old “freeter” from Aomori. Freeter is a word used to describe someone who jumps between part time jobs.

Rumors of a split between Hosaka Naoki (photo, 35) and his wife Takaoka Yuki (30) have been circulating for several years. This in spite of his winning a Best Father award, their No.1 ranking as an Ideal Couple, and their appearing together as doting parents in a regular TV commercial. The latest is that Hosaka is said to have a mistress living in a “love nest.” He has denied that there is any truth to the rumor.

• Super pop group SMAP are taking their summer concert tour to a new level this year. They will play 19 dates at soccer stadiums, including Yokohama International Stadium, which hosted last year’s World Cup final, as well as Fukuoka and Osaka Domes. Last year’s tour was watched by more than 1.1 million fans at eleven venues, including the country’s five major dome stadiums.

• Watanabe Minayo (33), a former member of the 80s idol group O-Nyanko Club, is expecting her second child in October. Watanabe married businessman Yajima Masaki (38) in 1996.

Tamura Ryo (photo right, 31) of the comedy duo London Boots is to open a new restaurant this weekend in the upscale Tokyo district of Akasaka. The restaurant, “Na no Ya, Wainchi,” will specialize in seasonal vegetable dishes.

• The “All-Japan National Young Beauty Contest” is to be expanded throughout Asia. The contest has been held on and off over the last 17 years and was revived in 2002 after a five-year break. It has produced such stars as Sato Aiko, Yonekura Ryoko (1992) and Ueto Aya (1997).

• Keanu Reeves is to be a presenter at the upcoming MTV Music Video Awards Japan 2003. The event is scheduled for May 25th at the Saitama Super Arena.

Fueki Yuko (24) is more of a star in Korea than at home, being the first Japanese actress to play the lead in a regular TV series. But in a dispute between agencies in the two countries, the Korean company A Stars has called for her arrest on robbery, embezzlement and other charges. Her Japanese agency Riku Corporation tried to have all contracts annulled after A Stars failed to make payments last year. Fueki started as a model in 1999 and made her acting debut in the 2001 movie Hotaru. In the same year, she found success in Korea under the stage name of Yumin.

• In a world first, a TBS “fantasy/love” drama is to use a Sting song as its theme tune. The series “Ai suru tame ni ai saretai”, set to start in July and starring Sakaguchi Kenji (27), will feature a new acoustic version of Sting’s 1985 hit “The Moon Over Bourbon Street.”

Comedian Endo Shozo (31) of the duo Cocorico and his wife, perennially child-like TV personality Chiaki (30), are the proud parents of a baby girl. They wanted to name the baby “Ichigo” (strawberry) but found that the kanji character is not among the ones officially recognized for use in names. Both parents are big fans of the Hanshin Tigers baseball team and said they may try to incorporate some aspect of that into the name.

Pop duo Every Little Thing (ELT) kicked off their first national tour in two years yesterday in Ichihara, Chiba Prefecture. The 27-show tour will finish in Osaka on July 8. Vocalist Mochida Kaori (photo, 25), considered something of a fashion leader for teenage girls, appealed to fans by wearing that annoying high-school girl combination of a skirt over sweat pants. Mochida is backed up by guitarist Itoh Ichiro (35). Former group leader Igarashi Mitsuru (33) left in 2000 and now acts as producer.

Yasuda Kei (22) made her farewell to Morning Musume in a recent concert that also saw the official arrival of four new members. The group played its final show in their national tour at the Saitama Super Arena. The group now stands at 15 members.

• Renowned musician Chikubo Shoyaku (45) has been arrested for sexually molesting a junior high school girl at his home in a Tokyo suburb. Chikubo is a naturalized Chinese who plays the traditional Kokyu instrument.

• Singer Shima Koichi (60) has been arrested for swindling a woman out of ¥6 million in 2001. He told the woman he needed the money to pay for the release of a new CD and that he would pay her back from book royalties. He indeed made his recording debut two months later but never repaid the money.