Actor Okada Masumi (68) announced at a press conference yesterday that his 26-year old son commited suicide at the end of last month. He said, "I don't know why. It's ben hard... and so sad when the child dies before the parent." His third son was from his marriage to actress Fujita Midori (58), whom he divorced in 1994. He worked for a theater company as an assistant stage designer. He was found hanged on July 27 at his mother's home in the upscale Denenchofu suburb of Tokyo. Okada said he had been too shocked to attend the private funeral the following day. He called the brief press conference after the magazine Shuukan Josei reported on the suicide and claimed that Okada and his son had been on bad terms. Okada said this was untrue. • TV viewership of Saturday's baseball game between the Yomiuri Giants and the Hiroshima Carp was a mere 4.2%, the lowest ever figure for a Giants game. While it was overshadowed by the Japanese medal rush at the Olympics and NTV's 24-hour TV marathon, the figure also reflects the declining interest in pro baseball.
A romantic relationship between Ilmari (29), a member of the 5-main hip hop unit Rip Slyme, and actress Nonami Maho (24) has been revealed by Josei Jishin. The weekly magazine says the pair have been living together since early summer at a Tokyo apartment near Nonami's family home, a claim both their agencies deny. • Entertainer and TV host Kosakai Kazuki (photo, 48) is to return to work next week. The host of the afternoon chat show "Gokigenyou" has been recovering after surgery to remove a tumor from his neck. He will return to hosting the show on Monday, August 30.
Dandy Sakano (37), the comedian who many predicted would not be on our TV screens for long after his "Gets!" gag had faded, has tied the knot. He married his girlfriend Natsuko on August 22, her 24th birthday. The pair met three years ago when Sakano was supporting his struggling comedy career with a part-time job at McDonalds. Sakano made his breakthrough last year when the Gets! gag was featured in a TV commercial for a loan company. • Actor Esumi Eimei has died of stomach cancer at a Tokyo hospital. He was 68. He appeared in soft porn movies early in his career, but also in "Dodesukaden" (1970) by the late master director Kurosawa Akira. • Comedian Nakagawa Tsuyoshi (33) has been hospitalized due to overwork. His younger brother and side-kick in the Yoshimoto duo Nakagawa-kei, Reiji (32), will have to hold his own for the next two weeks. The duo appear on 9 regular weekly shows.
TV Asahi announcer Tokunaga Yumi (29) just can't seem to break up with comedian Uchimura Teruyoshi (40). The two had a well-publicized affair last year, which led to Tokunaga giving up her main TV spot. She divorced her husband, a TV Asahi director, and this April got a job as sports caster on the popular "Hodou Station" news show, on condition that she broke up with Uchimura. But the latest edition of Friday magazine reveals the two are still meeting secretly. Uchimura, one half of the comedy duo U-chan Nan-chan is known as one of Japan's most eligible bachelors but also something of a lady's man. • Actor Kobosuka Yousuke (25) has left the Yokohama hospital where he spent the last two and a half months. He miraculously survived a fall from his 9th-floor apartment on June 6, suffering a cerebral contusion and two broken legs among other injuries. He is said to be already driving his car to the hospital to undergo rehabilitation. • Kabuki actor Ichikawa Somegoro (31) is to be a father. His wife Sonoko (32) is two months pregnant. Somegoro is the son of actor Matsumoto Koshiro (62) and the brother of actress Matsu Takako (27).
Joined: 09 Apr 2004 Posts: 3437 Location: Sao Paulo Country:
Posted: Fri Aug 27, 2004 12:27 pm Post subject:
Quote:
Kabuki actor Ichikawa Somegoro (31) is to be a father. His wife Sonoko (32) is two months pregnant. Somegoro is the son of actor Matsumoto Koshiro (62) and the brother of actress Matsu Takako (27).
Joined: 01 Oct 2003 Posts: 10291 Location: Matsuhama-cho, Ashiya-shi, Hyogo-ken, Japan Country:
Posted: Fri Aug 27, 2004 3:50 pm Post subject:
bmwracer wrote:
Actor Kobosuka Yousuke (25) has left the Yokohama hospital where he spent the last two and a half months. He miraculously survived a fall from his 9th-floor apartment on June 6, suffering a cerebral contusion and two broken legs among other injuries. He is said to be already driving his car to the hospital to undergo rehabilitation.
Good for him. Hope he doesn't jump again after rehab. _________________
Joined: 05 Feb 2004 Posts: 106 Location: US Country:
Posted: Fri Aug 27, 2004 11:41 pm Post subject:
Hey Elt, this article from Japan Today is for you, bud ...
August 27 - Ueto is commercial queen
"Aya Ueto is Japan's TV commercial queen. The ranking of TV commercial queens for this year has been announced. It includes information on how many TV commercial contracts the stars have and how much they get paid for doing the ad campaigns. This information is usually for the sponsors and advertising agencies, rather than the public. Top of the tree this year is 18-year-old Aya Ueto with 12 contracts with companies such as Kao and Nisshin. She is absolutely the new commercial queen. An advertising agency spokesman said that her contract price was 30 million yen until last year, but it rose to 45 million yen this year. Otsuka Seiyaku, one of the companies that use Ueto to pitch their products, commented that her smile is full of pep, which matches the image of their products."
This next one is for all the fans of Kuroki Hitomi, including me!
"However, there are some constants in the fickle world of advertising, one of them being Hitomi Kuroki. She had three contracts last year and is in third place this year. There are few rivals for her because she is in her 40s and still beautiful, and she has a child. She accepts as many sponsors' requests as she can. Moreover, she has a good manner; her politeness keeps her among the frontrunners."
" ... still beautiful ... good manners ... politeness ..." Couldn't have said it any better. She's still one of my idols.
And then, there's all the rest ...
"However, the size of fees doesn't always match the number of contracts. Singer Sayuri Yoshinaga earns the highest guarantee among entertainers who make TV commercials. She gets 100 million per endorsement. She has been popular for so many years and there has never been even a whiff of a scandal about her.
Another singer, Kyoko Koizumi, is the second highest paid for TV commercials. She has been divorced, but her client company didn't mind. Even when she was married, she didn't project the image of a housewife in her TV appearances. Singer Hikaru Utada and actress Miho Nakayama follow Koizumi in the highest-paid rankings. Some talents do suffer once their public image becomes tarnished. After Saki Takaoka divorced actor Naoki Hosaka, she lost her image of being a good housewife. Now she is trying to reinvent herself and has reportedly signed on to do a hard-core love scene in her next movie. Meanwhile, Anna Umemiya is also in a squeeze due to the arrest of her ex-husband.
Thus, TV commercials reflect the talents' life and dramas."
(Translated by Satoko Handa)
Hey Elt, this article from Japan Today is for you, bud ...
August 27 - Ueto is commercial queen
"Aya Ueto is Japan's TV commercial queen. The ranking of TV commercial queens for this year has been announced. It includes information on how many TV commercial contracts the stars have and how much they get paid for doing the ad campaigns. This information is usually for the sponsors and advertising agencies, rather than the public. Top of the tree this year is 18-year-old Aya Ueto with 12 contracts with companies such as Kao and Nisshin. She is absolutely the new commercial queen. An advertising agency spokesman said that her contract price was 30 million yen until last year, but it rose to 45 million yen this year. Otsuka Seiyaku, one of the companies that use Ueto to pitch their products, commented that her smile is full of pep, which matches the image of their products."
This next one is for all the fans of Kuroki Hitomi, including me!
"However, there are some constants in the fickle world of advertising, one of them being Hitomi Kuroki. She had three contracts last year and is in third place this year. There are few rivals for her because she is in her 40s and still beautiful, and she has a child. She accepts as many sponsors' requests as she can. Moreover, she has a good manner; her politeness keeps her among the frontrunners."
" ... still beautiful ... good manners ... politeness ..." Couldn't have said it any better. She's still one of my idols.
And then, there's all the rest ...
"However, the size of fees doesn't always match the number of contracts. Singer Sayuri Yoshinaga earns the highest guarantee among entertainers who make TV commercials. She gets 100 million per endorsement. She has been popular for so many years and there has never been even a whiff of a scandal about her.
Another singer, Kyoko Koizumi, is the second highest paid for TV commercials. She has been divorced, but her client company didn't mind. Even when she was married, she didn't project the image of a housewife in her TV appearances. Singer Hikaru Utada and actress Miho Nakayama follow Koizumi in the highest-paid rankings. Some talents do suffer once their public image becomes tarnished. After Saki Takaoka divorced actor Naoki Hosaka, she lost her image of being a good housewife. Now she is trying to reinvent herself and has reportedly signed on to do a hard-core love scene in her next movie. Meanwhile, Anna Umemiya is also in a squeeze due to the arrest of her ex-husband.
Thus, TV commercials reflect the talents' life and dramas."
(Translated by Satoko Handa)
Elt posted this on the Aya-chan thread a couple of weeks back...
Actress Esumi Makiko (37) is expecting her first baby this winter. She married 38-year old Fuji TV director Hirano Shin in January of last year and made the happy announcement amidst the publicity for her latest movie. She will star alongside Nishida Toshiyuki (56) in the 15th episode of the "Tsuri Baka" (Fishing Fool) series. Esumi and Hirano met on the set of the popular comedy-drama series "Shomuni." They married just two and a half months after they started going out. • Popular TBS announcer Ogura Hiroko (29) has been chosen to host the evening news show "News no Mori" from the end of next month. Ogura has been a main reporter for TBS on the Olympics. Alongside her will be Ikeda Hiroyuki (48).
In a survey that asked people to name the celebrity who was their ideal home tutor, actress Kikukawa Rei (26) came out on top, ahead of actress Matsushima Nanako (30) and comedian/director Kitano "Beat" Takeshi (47). Topping the list of worst home tutors were celebrity - and perennial least popular man in Japan - Degawa Tetsuro, simpering actress Sato Tamao and, surprise, Kikukawa Rei. • Pop duo Chage & Aska played their first outdoor gig in 16 years in Tokyo at the weekend. Celebrating their 25th aniversary, they played live versions of their early hits for the first time in 15 years as well as new songs for a crowd of 20,000. The duo, who enjoyed their biggest success in the late 1980s and early 90s, postponed the second half of a nationwide tour to rehearse for this event. They'll finish the tour between erly September and mid-December.
Actress Esumi Makiko (37) is expecting her first baby this winter. She married 38-year old Fuji TV director Hirano Shin in January of last year and made the happy announcement amidst the publicity for her latest movie.
Prince of the kyogen world, Izumi Motoya (30) has a son and heir. He appeared before the media Sunday with his extended family to show off his son Motokiyo, who was born at the end of July. Present were his wife Aki (35), a former TV celebrity, his daughter Ayame (2), his two sisters and his ever-present mother Setsuko (62). • There were impressive line ups at a couple of "end of summer" concerts over the weekend. The Avex label tried to put its recent problems behind it as it rolled out the stars to kick off this year's "a-nation" concert tour. 48,000 rain-soaked fans watched Hamasaki Ayumi, Porno Graffiti, Tommy February6, ELT, Exile and others perform at Showa Memorial Park west of Tokyo. Among the headliners at a 2-day event sponsored by FM radio station J-Wave in Tokyo were Ulfuls, Okuda Tamio, Begin, and rapidly rising star Moriyama Naotaro (28).
Former Shonentai member Uekusa "Katchan" Katsuhide (photo, 38) caused a traffic accident on Monday. Driving in Tokyo with his son in the rear, he failed to check oncoming traffic at a minor junction and was hit by a female motorcyclist, who in turn was hit by a man on a moped. Both cyclists escaped with minor injuries. Shonentai were one of several popular male pop trios in the 1980s. • On Monday, entertainer Kosakai Kazuki (48) returned to his regular spot hosting the afternoon Fuji TV chat show "Gokigenyou." He recently underwent surgery to remove a tumor from his neck. His usual self apart from a new shock of dyed blonde hair, he made lots of jokes about his brush with cancer saying, "They cut my neck, but they sowed my head back on again!" • Actress Ishiki Sae (27) has had her second child, another daughter. She married entrepreneur and former model Sarfen Satoshi in 2002 and had their first child later that year.
Joined: 25 May 2003 Posts: 2106 Location: singapore Country:
Posted: Wed Sep 01, 2004 4:24 pm Post subject:
bmwracer wrote:
Former Shonentai member Uekusa "Katchan" Katsuhide (photo, 38) caused a traffic accident on Monday. Driving in Tokyo with his son in the rear, he failed to check oncoming traffic at a minor junction and was hit by a female motorcyclist, who in turn was hit by a man on a moped. Both cyclists escaped with minor injuries. Shonentai were one of several popular male pop trios in the 1980s. �
ooh.. lucky it wasn't serious.. i like uekusa a lot.. sometimes even more than higashi..
The story of how Japan and South Korea ended up joint-hosting the 2002 World Cup has been made into a TV docu-drama. It is scheduled to air on Fuji TV in October and will star popular actor Itoh Hideaki (29) as a member of the Japanese bid committee. The successful bid, decided in 1996, was the culmination of ten years of work that included the formation of the professional J-League. The drama will include actual footage of games and other significant events. • The pre-production press conference for next sumer's big movie was held on Tuesday. "Bokoku no Aegis" based on a best-selling novel of the same name, is the story of terrorists taking on the crew of one of the Japan maritime Agency's Aegis destroyers. It will star four accomplished actors, all Japan Academy Award winners: Sanada Hiroyuki (43), Nakai Kiichi (42), Sato Koichi (43) and Terao Akira (57).
80s pop diva Matsuda Seiko (42) is to make her first appearance in a TV drama series in ten years. "Tatta Hitotsu no Takaramono" (My One Treasure) is based on a best-selling book about a father and his child born with Down Syndrome. The mother captured the child's brief, six-year life in a series of moving photographs that illustarted the book. The story was also the inspiration last year for a life insurance company TV commercial that became a talking point. The accompanying song was by singer/songwriter Oda Kazumasa, who will also provide the theme for the new drama. It is scheduled to air on NTV from the end of October. • Singer Yamazaki Masayoshi (32) is to star in his first movie since 1997's "Moon and Cabbage." The movie, to be released in the autumn of 2005, is a remake of a 1999 Korean hit "Christmas in August."
It was revealed this week that double Olympic gold medallist Kitajima Kousuke (21) and model Ochiai Saeri (22) have broken up, though the break is said to have happened this spring. One possible reason, according to one of the weekly mags, is compromising photos published in March of Kitajima and soft-porn star Hagiwara Mai (22). • Actress and singer Nishida Hikaru (photo, 32), currently living in the U.S. due to her husband's business, is to be a "TV Ambassador" at this year's Emmy Awards. She already writes a column on her American lifestyle for the Sankei Shimbun. • Actress Matsushima Nanako (30) has returned to work in a drama series to be aired next January. The third series in the popular Fuji TV hospital drama "Kyumei Byuotou 24 Jikan" will again star Eguchi Yousuke (36). Matsushima and husband, actor Sorimachi Takashi (30) had their first child in May.
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