Johnny’s Jimusho artists continue their impressive run of chart topping achievements. “Pop Up! SMAP”, the fivesome’s latest double album, has entered the Oricon charts at No.1 as expected. It’s the third time they’ve topped the charts with a double or bigger album, moving them out of a tie with Southern All Stars for the most ever. meanwhile, atop the latest singles charts are fellow Johnny’s stars Kinki Kids. “Natsu Moyo” (Summer Pattern) is their 23rd single in a row to go straight to No.1. That’s every single they’ve ever released, and the feat means an update to their existing entry in the Guinness Book of Records.
• A busy schedule seems to have taken its toll on Korean talento Yoon Sona (30). She was taken to hospital during the studio recording of an NHK show in Tokyo yesterday after feeling faint. One of the relatively few stars to avoid any rumors of romantic liaisons, she only recently announced her engagement to a Korean entrepreneur. Today the media immediately started speculating on whether she was pregnant, but this was quickly denied by her management. They said she had been overworking and was suffering from anemia.
• The recent incident involving the assault of a teenage girl by comedian Yamamoto Keiichi (38) continues to be investigated by police in Hakodate. Fired two weeks ago by the Yoshimoto Kogyo agency after the story was all over the media, the rotund funnyman was questioned again by police yesterday, and criminal proceedings are likely. Yamamoto was in the Hokkaido city to take part in a baseball game as a member of the Ibaragi Golden Goals amateur team run by veteran comedian Hagimoto Kinichi (65). “Kin-chan” briefly threatened to dismantle the team after the incident, which also involved two other tema members.