Talento Tanaka Minako (40) revealed yesterday that she and actor Okada Taro (33) recently got married. In a fax sent to the media, she said that they registered their marriage on September 12, her birthday. Tanaka received a lot of media attention when she debuted as a singer in the mid-1980s due to the fact that her eyes and long legs had been insured for ¥100 million. Hers was one of the most commonly seen faces on TV and in magazines during the peak of Japan’s “bubble economy”. In recent years she has been working mostly in TV drama, as has Okada. The two met about 15 years ago as they live in the same neighborhood. They still have their separate homes but are thinking of buying a new house together.
• The Spice Girls are to release their upcoming hits album first in Japan but have not announced any dates here in their one-off world tour, which starts in Canada on December 2. The “Greatest Hits” album will go on sale here on October 31, but as the group split six years ago it’s doubtful that they see much of a boost to their present total of about 2 million albums sold in Japan. And fans will no doubt be upset that the Asian leg of the tour includes only Shanghai, Beijing and Hong Kong. But the enduring popularity, or notoriety, of Victoria “Posh Spice” Beckham will at least guarantee plenty of publicity. She is currently in Japan promoting her cosmetics brand “V-Sculpt”.
• TV Asahi announcer Ito Rie (32), a presenter on the “Yajiuma Plus” show, is taking maternity leave as she is five months pregnant. She and a construction company employee married on Christmas Eve 2006.
• Is it just me, or is actress Sawajiri Erika (21) not showing her teeth for a reason? I’ve seen several photos of her at PR events this week and she never shows her usual big smile. My guess is that she’s having her teeth done, as she has that distinctive “yaeba” look with crooked eye teeth. Possibly paid for by her reported wealthy IT entrepreneur boyfriend, Takashiro Tsuyoshi (43).