Monthly Archives: May 2004

All media attention on Tuesday was focused on the tax declarations of the rich and famous. Making the top 10 rankings is a real status symbol and you can usually predict most of the names on the list. The biggest entertainment earners were in music: rock duo B’z dominated, with vocalist Inaba Koshi (39) at No.1 and guitarist Matsumoto Tak in 3rd (photo). Sandwiched between them was last year’s No.1 Hamasaki Ayumi (25). King of the TV mc’s Mino Monta (59) was fourth and the top 5 was rounded out by Utada Hikaru (21). Last year’s No.1, Nakai Masahiro (31) of SMAP didn’t get his declaration in on time and was not included in the rankings. Also highly ranked as usual were the top comedians, Downtown’s Hamada Masatoshi (41) and Matsumoto Hitoshi (41) and the Tunnels duo of Ishibashi Takaaki (42) and Kinashi Noritake (42).

• The other big news story of the moment is politicians who have failed to pay national pension premiums. Meanwhile actress Esumi Makiko (37), a poster girl for the pension scheme who turned out not to have paid premiums herself, made her first public appearance since that scandal broke. She attended a PR event for the upcoming 15th movie in the “Tsuri Baka” (Fishing Fool) movie series, but made no comment on the ongoing scandal.

• Veteran actor of the postwar period Mitsuhashi Tatsuya died on Monday of heart failure in a Tokyo hospital. He was 80. He worked until very recently, appearing in “Casshern”, the currently-showing debut film by Kiriya Kazuaki, husband of Utada Hikaru.

Actress Fujiwara Norika (32) grabbed a bit of the Cannes limelight on Sunday. In town to promote the movie Shrek 2, for which she provides the Japanese voice of Princess Fiona, she turned a lot of heads – and cameras – with her classic Asian look. Long, straight black hair accented her low-cut bustline and kimono-inspired sequined red dress as she hogged the red carpet for a full five minutes. Reportedly, the glamorous Norika drew a dinner invitation from an impressed Antonio Banderas, accompanied though he was by wife Melanie Griffith.

Over in South Korea, Amuro Namie (photo, 26) finished the final leg of her Asian tour at the Olympic gymnastics arena in Seoul on Saturday. The last show, for which she shared the headline with popular Korean male R&B singer Rain, brought the total number of fans for the three nights she played in Seoul to 25,000. The local media gave the event a lot of attention, welcoming Amuro as the “uta-hime” (song princess) of the Japanese pop world.

• Another J-pop star trying to relive her glory days, Suzuki Ami (22), gave her showbiz comeback a good publicity boost by playing a “mini live” before a J-League game on Saturday. Wearing a Kashiwa Reysol shirt, ‘Amigo’ sang three songs, including her new single, before the game between Reysol and Kashima Antlers at the National Stadium.

Japanese movies are making a strong showing at this year’s Cannes Film Festival. Koreda Hirokazu’s “Nobody Knows”, the first movie shown of the 19 works contending for the prestigious Palme d’Or, received a resounding ovation from the audience yesterday. It has a good chance of becoming the first Japanese movie to take the top prize since 1997’s “Unagi”. Leading actress You (photo, 39) – a veteran TV personality but in her first real dramatic role – said tearfully, “It was the longest round of applause I’ve ever heard!” The Ishii Katsuhito-directed “The Taste of Tea” was the first Japanese movie to be chosen to open the Director’s Week at the event. The film stars Asano Tadahito (30) and includes a special appearance by SMAP member Kusanagi Tsuyoshi (29). Fellow SMAPer Kimura Takuya (31) stars in the Wong Kar Wai flick “2046”, also showing at the festival.

Actress Tomosaka Rie (photo, 24) is four months pregnant with her first child. She married producer and actor Kawahara Masahiko (34) in April of last year. She is currently starring alongside Yoshida Eisaku (35) in the TBS political drama series “Atarashii Kaze” (A New Wind), due to finish filming in June.

• Kono Akiko (25), a “sub-caster” on the TV Asahi “Houdou Station” news show and member of the Japanese lacrosse team, is romantically linked with head coach and former national team player Okubo Yoshihiro (36).

Actress Mifune Mika (photo, 21) is four months pregnant with her first baby. The daughter of screen legend Mifune Toshiro married rock vocalist Takahashi Joji (45) on her 16th birthday in 1998. She announced the pregnancy as the reason for taking a break after finishing a recent stage production in Tokyo.

• Tetsu (34), the red-sweatsuited half of comedy duo Tetsu & Tomo, announced this week that he recently got married on his bithday. His wife is a 29-year old accessory designer. Tetsu & Tomo got their break in showbiz last year with the “Nandedaro” song and dance routine.

• Wedding bells also for comedian Nishii Ryuji (28) of the manzai duo Rainbaku, who announced this week that he tied the knot with 30-year company employee Sachimi way back on Valentine’s Day. By the way, the name “Rainbaku” is a tribute to former Hanshin Tigers slugger Mike Reinbach, a popular star with the team in the late 1970s.

• And former TV Asahi presenter Kawakita Momoko (29) is engaged to marry a 32-year old director at a company that produces shows for NTV.

Dreams Come True vocalist Yoshida Miwa (photo, 39) announced yesterday that she had married video director Sueda Ken (30) in a small private ceremony. The couple have not registered their marriage, and have no plans to do so, making it unofficial in the law. They met on a DCT video shoot 2 and a half years ago, while Sueda was still married. He got a divorce in March of last year.

• Nemoto Mitsuyo (46), better known as Mii of the pop duo Pink Lady, recently noticed that her bank account had been “skimmed” of ¥17 million. After reporting the theft to the police, it was discovered that the money had been withdrawn from her account over the course of the last six months. She hadn’t missed the ATM card, which she says she seldom used.

Fuji TV’s summer drama series is to be a remake of the 1977 movie “Ningen no Shomei” (Proof of the Man). It will star Takenouchi Yutaka (33) and air at 10pm on Thursdays from July 8. Other big names lined up include veterans Matsuzaka Keiko (51) and Ogata Ken (66). The original movie teamed up some of the biggest Japanese stars of the time – Matsuda Yusaku, Mifune Toshiro, Tsuruta Koji – with Hollywood star George Kennedy. When an American is murdered in a Japanese inn, Tokyo detective Munesue (Matsuda) follows the trail of the killer to New York, where he teams up with detective Shuftan (Kennedy).

Imai Eriko (20) of the defunct Okinawan pop group Speed is to marry 175R vocalist Shogo (24) next month. Imai is currently five months pregnant. Speed got their start as backing singers for J-pop queen Amuro Namie and became one of the top groups of the late-90s. They broke up in 2000 and Imai has pursued a solo acting and singing career.

• There will be two Japanese movies competing at this year’s Cannes Film Festival. Oshii Mamoru’s anime “Innocence” and “Nobody Knows” by Koreeda Hirokazu are both entered for the Palme d’Or grand prize. Japan’s perennial #1 heart throb, Kimura Takuya (31) may also be in attendance, as he is a star of Wong Kar Wai’s “2046”, also selected for competition.

• “Free caster” Katsu Keiko (37) and magazine editor Ebihara Takaaki (47) got married at the Imperial Hotel in Tokyo on Saturday.

• Baseball legend Nomura Katsuya (68) and his wife Sachiyo (72) have both written new books. They gave a simultaneous “sain kai” (book signing) in Tokyo yesterday. Widely hated TV personality “Satchi” has dropped out of the limelight since highly publicized libel and tax evasion cases put her under an effective “gag order”.

Actress Mizuno Maki (34) and politician Gotoda Masazumi (34), who recently registered their marriage, will hold their wedding ceremony in the city of Tokushima tomorrow. Mizuno says she is a big Hugh Grant fan and plans to have the theme tune to one of his movies at the ceremony. Before leaving Tokyo, she attended a press conference for her upcoming TV Asahi drama, “Jakou” (Evil Light). The suspense story is based on a prize-winning bestseller novel from last year. Mizuno plays the heroine, whose husband – played by Sawamura Ikki (36) – cheats on her. Asked what she thought of such things, she replied “I guess it’s okay if I don’t know. Some things are just better not known. Secrets should be taken to the grave”.