Japanese Entertainment News & Info HERE! [part II]

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VIZ PICTURES AND NCM FATHOM PRESENT LIVE-ACTION DEATH NOTE: L, change the WorLd IN SPECIAL TWO-NIGHT EVENT

March 6, 2009 by J!-ENT

Riveting Unwritten Chapter Of Edgy DEATH NOTE Psychological Crime Drama on the Big Screen on April 29th and 30th in More Than 400 Theatres Nationwide
L, Change the World - Image courtesy of Viz Media, LLC



San Francisco, CA, March 6, 2009

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Naohito Fujiki, Yoshino Kimura lead "Yakou no Kaidan"
Wed, March 11, 2009 (1:07am EDT)

Seicho Matsumoto's novel "Yakou no Kaidan" is being turned into a television drama series this spring on TV Asahi. The story is described as a male-led version of Matsumoto's "Kurokawa no Techo," which was turned into a drama in 2004 starring Ryoko Yonekura.



Naohito Fujiki stars as a successful beautician who rose from poverty, using women as stepping stones on his way to the top. Yoshino Kimura plays the heroine of the story, a magazine editor and one of the beautician's customers. A victim of love, she ends up entangled in Fujiki's dark past.

"Yakou no Kaidan" airs on Thursdays at 9:00pm, starting in April.

Source: www.tokyograph.com

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SHIHO marries fighter Akiyama
Wed, March 11, 2009 (1:49am EDT)



Fashion model SHIHO (32) and professional judo fighter Yoshihiro Akiyama (33) have tied the knot. The two have been dating since January 2007, and they registered their marriage around the start of this year.

Akiyama has been successful as a K-1 fighter for the past few years. Just last month, it was announced that he has signed with the U.S.-based UFC (Ultimate Fighting Championship). He will be first introduced at a UFC event in Montreal, Canada, on April 18, followed by his proper debut in July.

Source: www.tokyograph.com

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Eita tries out theater in "Botan Doro"
Wed, March 11, 2009 (2:39am EDT)



Popular television and movie actor Eita will be taking his skills to the stage this year. He will star as Hagiwara Shinzaburo in Nobuyuki Onishi's version of the ghost story "Kaidan Botan Doro," directed by Hidenori Inoue.



The well-known story, which has also been adapted numerous times to film and television, revolves around the romantic and physical relationship between a male human and a female ghost. Eita, in his first theatrical role, plays the male lead, while Yuki Shibamoto plays his ghostly lover. The play also depicts two other couples, performed by Yasunori Danta with Ran Ito and Tetsuya Chiba with Natsuko Akiyama.

Performances will begin in August at the Bunkamura Theatre Cocoon in Shibuya.

Source: www.tokyograph.com

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Asahi Kasei's models for 2009
Wed, March 11, 2009 (2:55am EDT)

Asahi Kasei revealed its 2009 campaign models on Tuesday. Continuing the trend of the past few years, the company selected a Japanese and a Chinese representative: 20-year-old junior college student Ayumi Kura and 18-year-old model Shi Weng Lu.

Asahi Kasei's theme this year is "New Standard ~Chikyu no Tame ni Dekiru Koto~," an ecological campaign focusing on using recycled fibers in an attempt to cut back carbon dioxide emissions.

Source: www.tokyograph.com

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Toma Ikuta stars in jury drama series
Wed, March 11, 2009 (12:38am EDT)



Popular young actor Toma Ikuta has a solo starring role in a drama series for the first time. The show, titled "Majo Saiban," will be the first drama to tackle the issue of Japan's new "saiban-in" (lay judge) system.

This May, Japan is reintroducing the jury system, which was previously abolished in 1943. Since then, only judges have decide the outcome of criminal cases, but under the new system, cases will be decided by a combination of judges and lottery-selected citizens.

In "Majo Saiban," Ikuta plays a typical part-timer with little interest in social issues. However, he is unexpectedly chosen as a juror in the trial of a suspected female murderer. While the mystery surrounding the case unfolds, an unknown group is secretly attempting to bribe the jury.



Actress Ai Kato plays a housewife who is also selected as a juror, while Manami Higa plays Ikuta's girlfriend, a newspaper reporter. Yuriko Ishida takes on the role of the accused.

Fuji TV will air "Majo Saiban" on Saturday nights at 11:10pm. The series starts on April 25, about a month before the actual jury system goes into effect.

Source: www.tokyograph.com

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Charts: Arashi sells half a million
Wed, March 11, 2009 (2:15am EDT)



Arashi's latest single, "Believe / Kumori Nochi, Kaisei," dominated the charts this past week. With roughly 502,000 copies sold, it has become the best-selling single of 2009 so far. It is also the first to break half a million in its opening week since KAT-TUN's "Real Face" (754,000) in April 2006. Arashi achieved the same feat once before with their debut single "A-RA-SHI" (557,000) in 1999.

New singles flooded the top ten, occupying the next seven spots behind Arashi. The releases came from GLAY, AKB48, Tsuyoshi Nagabuchi, Yuna Ito, YUKI, Ken (of L'Arc~en~Ciel), and ROCK'A'TRENCH.



On the album rankings, FUNKY MONKEY BABYS edged out a win with their aptly named third album, "FUNKY MONKEY BABYS 3." The album sold 80,000 copies, only 2,000 more than Chatmonchy's "Kokuhaku." Also in the top ten were JUJU, supercell, Mika Nakashima, Dragon Ash, Kalafina, and AI.

Source: www.tokyograph.com

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Talento Hazama Kanpei (59) has completed the second major step in his mammoth Earth Marathon. An experienced endurance runner, he is expecting to spend at least two years becoming the first person to run and sail around the globe. The first leg of his journey started on December 17, when he set out on foot from Osaka and ran about 600km to Kamogawa in Chiba Prefecture. He set sail from there on New Year's Day on a journey across the Pacific by yacht with his former manager Higa Yoshiyuki (46). 70 days and 12,710km later they landed at Long Beach in California on Tuesday, though Higa revealed that the day before, Kanpei had been on the verge of giving up. "I've had enough. I'm going crazy and I'm going to make an announcement once we hit land," he said. But after talking it over for several hours with Higa, he agreed to at least carry on to the next step. Kanpei was in tears as he was greeted by his wife Mitsuyo, and they headed off to enjoy a yakiniku meal in Los Angeles. The next step in his journey will be to run across the U.S. arriving in New York around the end of June. Follow Kanpei's journey in his bilingual video blog: earth-marathon.com.

Source: www.japan-zone.com

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Rod Stewart kicks off Japan tour after 13-year absence

Tuesday 10th March, 02:57 PM JST



OSAKA

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Catherine Zeta-Jones appears in Lux's new TV commercials

Wednesday 11th March, 04:00 AM JST



TOKYO

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Ryoko Shinohara touts 'C1000 Vitamin Lemon'

Thursday 12th March, 05:00 AM JST



TOKYO

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Sayaka Isoyama to try Core Rhythms diet method

Thursday 12th March, 04:00 AM JST

By Taro Fujimoto



TOKYO

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Nakamura, Maeda almost set a wedding date
Thu, March 12, 2009 (1:50am EDT)



Kabuki actor Kantaro Nakamura (27) and actress Ai Maeda (25) have settled on a month for their wedding ceremony. The couple, whose engagement was revealed in early January, plan to hold their wedding at a Tokyo hotel at the end of October. They will have their formal engagement ceremony next month.

The exact date has not been chosen yet, but it is expected to be during the last week of October. October 26 is a strong possibility, as it will be a taian (good fortune) day.

Source: www.tokyograph.com

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Tanimura to star in "Loss Time Life" keitai drama
Thu, March 12, 2009 (4:32am EDT)



Fuji TV's 2008 drama series "Loss Time Life" is returning in the form of a mobile phone drama. A five-minute episode, starring Mitsuki Tanimura, is being created by mobile operator KDDI and media company ROBOT Communications. This is the first time that a mobile phone company has led production on a drama.

The original "Loss Time Life," which aired from February to April 2008, was an omnibus drama series dealing with people on the verge of death who are granted extra time before they die (based on the idea of stoppage time in soccer).

KDDI will distribute the episode on its LISMO Channel and other sites, starting in April.

Source: www.tokyograph.com

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Megumi Okina engaged and expecting
Thu, March 12, 2009 (12:50am EDT)



Actress Megumi Okina (29) is getting married again. She revealed on her official blog that she is currently four months pregnant, and she plans to register the marriage in the coming days.

Her fiance is a 29-year-old salaryman that she has been dating since 2007, around the time that she began writing her autobiography that was published last April.

Okina was previously married to Cyber Agent president Susumu Fujita from January 2004 until July 2005. However, they never had children during their marriage.

Source: www.tokyograph.com

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Amuro does animated music video
Thu, March 12, 2009 (3:52am EDT)



Namie Amuro's new song "Dr." will be made into an anime music video. This is the first time that one of her music videos will be a fully animated work. In addition, Amuro will appear in it as an animated character.

A group of more than forty of Japan's leading creators, deemed the "strongest" in animation, was assembled for the project. Special animators from movies, commercials, and video games are involved, including studios like the up-and-coming Kamikaze Douga, SUNRISE, and Studio Jack. The previous credits of these artists include the "Dragon Quest" series, "AKIRA," "Steamboy," and "Pokemon." Leading the project is creative director Shuichi Sato, known primarily for commercials such as Vidal Sassoon.

The music video's length clocks in at 5 minutes and 43 seconds. Usually a work of this scope would take several months to complete, but with the combined efforts of the group, it was finished in only one month.

The theme of the music video is to "go beyond space and time to bring a message of world peace." The setting is the year 3000 A.D., on an Earth left in ruin by environmental destruction and weapons of mass destruction. Namie Amuro awakens from stasis, and with the help of Dr. Chronos (named after the Greek god of time), she delivers her message to the people of the past. She travels through the years 2500 A.D. and 2200 A.D. and witnesses the world in a sad state. Discouraged but never giving up hope, she finally arrives in 2000 A.D. and successfully gives the message to a young girl. What was her message and what did the girl feel? What happened to world as a result and was the fate of humankind changed? The video ends with "to be continued...," leaving the hint of a sequel.

"Dr." is part of Amuro's new single, "WILD / Dr.," which is being released on March 18. The music video is being included on the CD+DVD version of the single.

Source: www.tokyograph.com

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Meisa Kuroki and Koda Kumi in good form at preview of 'Subaru'

Friday 13th March, 06:00 AM JST



TOKYO —

Actress Meisa Kuroki, 20, attended a special screening of her upcoming ballet movie “Subaru” held at the Shibuya C.C. Lemon Hall this week. The movie, based on the popular comic of the same name and directed by Chi-Ngai Lee, tells the story of a young aspiring ballerina’s journey to the world stage.

Kuroki said she had to train hard for the movie as she had no prior ballet experience, and that she had put on five kilograms since she stopped training.

Kumi Koda, who sings the theme song - “faraway” - for the movie, made a surprise appearance at the preview, and said of Kuroki: “Well even so, she is still hot. She is even more beautiful in person,” presenting Kuroki with a bouquet of flowers.

Kuroki later said: “Having Kumi on board helps a lot. She also smelled really, really good.”

“Subaru” opens in cinemas on March 20, and Koda’s new single “faraway” goes on sale March 31.

Source: www.japantoday.com

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Tom Cruise flies with 40 fans to Osaka for preview of 'Valkyrie'

Friday 13th March, 09:14 AM JST



OSAKA —

Actor Tom Cruise, 46, flew 40 lucky fans to Osaka on Thursday for a preview of his upcoming movie “Valkyrie,” which opens in cinemas nationwide on March 20. The 40 were chosen by lottery from 3,000 applications for the Sky Cruise.

The chartered JAL aircraft, which had the movie’s title painted on the outside, left Haneda Airport in Tokyo around 4 p.m. and landed at the Kansai International Airport about an hour later. Cruise chatted with the guests while signing autographs and posing for photos, and said he was impressed by the view of Mount Fuji from the sky.

Cruise then attended the special preview held in Sakai City with about 500 fans, before flying back to the U.S. Cruise arrived in Japan on March 8, and including the helicopter he used to fly to Tokyo from Narita, and the chartered flight to Osaka on Thursday, the total estimated cost of his promotion expenses reportedly came to around 200 million yen.

Source: www.japantoday.com

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Alaska photographer remembered, three decades of Doraemon, Kansai retro-drama remake

Hoshino made his living with one subject: the natural beauty and people of Alaska, where he lived for much of his life. His nature photography remains extremely popular both in the United States and Japan. The documentary attempts to explain the man through the recollections of his widow, Naoko — who still lives in their home in Fairbanks — and others, rather than through his work. In the process, a portrait of the artist as a member of his community comes into focus.

TV Asahi celebrates three decades of broadcasting the animated adventures of the beloved robot cat Doraemon with the special two-hour program "Doraemon 30 Shunen Special" (Doraemon 30th Year Special") (Fri., 7 p.m.). The producers asked fans of the series to select their favorite episodes, and received more than 25,000 votes. The top 30 episodes will be presented in digest form.

The "masterpiece" of the series was deemed to be the episode entitled "Sayonara Doraemon," in which the famous blue cat, who is from the future, decides to return to his proper time. Nobita, the boy with whom Doraemon lives, is heartbroken, especially since the cat often saves him from bullies and other misfortunes. One of the reasons U.S. broadcasters have never bought "Doraemon" is that they think Nobita is too much of a weakling to appeal to American kids. Nobita attempts to show his robot friend he can stand up for himself without him, and gets badly beaten in the process.

"Sayonara Doraemon" will be remade for the special program, using the current voice cast for the series.

Fuji TV has also remade a classic. As part of its 50th anniversary commemoration, it will broadcast a new, two-part drama about the construction of Toyama Prefecture's Kurobe Dam in the late 1950s, a story that inspired a hugely popular movie starring the late Yujiro Ishihara called "Kurobe no Taiyo" ("The Sun of Kurobe").



This new version (Mar. 21 and 22, 9:04 p.m.) has the same title and stars SMAP member Shingo Katori as Kuramatsu, a manager- foreman for Kumagaya Construction. In order to solve an acute energy shortage in the Kansai region, Kansai Electric Power decided to built a massive hydroelectric dam on the upper Kurobe River. However, the project requires the drilling of a huge tunnel that some, including Kuramatsu, believe is impossible.

A year after construction starts, the project has been marred by accidents and media scandals, pushing Kuramatsu to the edge of his sanity.

Source: www.nt2099.com/J-ENT

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Ikimono Gakari ties in with "Boku no Imouto"
Fri, March 13, 2009 (2:11pm EDT)



A few days ago, it was announced that Ikimono Gakari was chosen to provide the new opening song for the "Naruto Shippuden" anime series. Now, they have been given another major tie-in for the spring, with the theme song to the TBS drama "Boku no Imouto" (starring Joe Odagiri and Masami Nagasawa).



The song is a ballad titled "Futari." It will be released as a single on May 27, but it is not yet known if the single will include "Hotaru no Hikari" (their song for "Naruto").

"Boku no Imouto" premieres on April 19 and airs on Sundays at 9:00pm.

Source: www.tokyograph.com