Some happy news on this, our last entertainment news update of 2009. Actor Kane Kosugi (35, photo left) revealed yesterday that he got married last month. In a fax sent to the media via his management agency, Kosugi said that he married a Hong Kong beauty (32) on November 21. The two met in 2006 when Kosugi was working overseas. Kane and his father, Hollywood ninja actor Sho Kosugi (61), were reportedly on bad terms in recent years but were reunited in Hong Kong for the wedding. Kane, who has been based in Japan for the last decade, is currently working on a joint US/Japanese/Hong Kong/Korean movie project. He was previously romantically connected from 2002-05 with pro golfer Higashio Riko (34), who is currently engaged to actor Ishida Junichi (55).
• And happy news for 14-member J-pop group Exile, who finished off another successful year by becoming the first male vocal group to defend the top prize at the Nihon Record Taisho music awards. Their song “Someday” took he top prize at last night’s 51st annual awards show, the group’s 16th music award of the year. The Best Newcomer award went to dance-vocal quintet BigBang, the first Korean artists to take the award since 1990. The group were to tour Japan in August, but that was re-scheduled to next February after member D-Lite (20) was injured in a car crash. Other award winners included GReeeeN, whose million seller “Shio, Kosho” was chosen as Best Album.