Archive for June, 2009

Former gravure idol does strip show in defiance of court order

Minako Komukai (shown in the old commercial above), a former gravure idol who was in the news last year after giving a post-retirement interview in which she claimed that it was common for girls in the industry to be pressured into prostitution, has become a stripper.

Her post-idol life has pretty much been a disaster, supposedly involving quite a lot of drug use. After her ex-boyfriend told police she had used stimulants with him, she was arrested and a court gave her a suspended sentence after she confessed and displayed remorse for her crime. To earn a living, she has become a stripper and gave her first show a couple days ago at the Asakusa Rockza theater.

Here’s a news report about what happened (in Japanese):

After she had announced her intention to give a strip show, her former talent agency, which still profits from the sales of her gravure idol products, took her to court and demanded that she not be allowed to work as a stripper. They claimed that Minako had agreed that she would not pose for nude photos or make porn movies when they made her retire last year, and that the strip show represented a breech of this agreement. The court ruled in their favor, ordering her not to strip. However, she ignored the court order and did the strip show.

Hundreds of men lined up in front of the theater on Friday morning in anticipation of her first appearance on stage. For some reason, the first show of the day was canceled. Not long after representatives of the theater told the press that there would be no other shows, they reversed their decision and she went on stage that evening. Fans say that the show, in which she appeared topless, was great. On Saturday, she appeared in all four scheduled strip shows.

No news yet on what legal action the talent agency will take in response, but it seems likely that they will demand some sort of financial compensation.
[via JapanSoc]

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Pile of cash found inside lump of concrete

A recycling company in Gifu found 3,000,000 yen in cash inside a lump of concrete (displayed in this video in a typical Japanese police drug bust fashion):

It is believed that the piece of concrete came from part of a building in either Aichi or Gifu. Police have collected the money and are waiting for its owner to come forward and claim it.

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Yamanashi to offer Mt. Fuji climbing certificates in multiple languages

The Yamanashi Prefecture Tourist Association is hoping that offering Mt. Fuji climbing certificates in multiple languages will draw foreign tourists to their climbing routes (as opposed to the Shizuoka Prefecture routes):

As the present A5-sized certificate uses mainly Japanese characters, it has not been popular with foreign climbers. Beginning this summer, the certificate will be enlarged to B5 size and the background will be filled with an image of Mt. Fuji. Recipients of the certificate will be able to choose from four different languages, including English and Chinese.

The number of foreign climbers of Mt. Fuji has steadily risen. Last year alone, out of 305,000 climbers, 30 percent were foreigners.

Information on how to apply for the certificate, can be found on their official homepage.

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Hedgehog found in parking lot

This hedgehog was found in a parking lot in Shimane Prefecture, and somehow became a national news story (due to its cuteness, no doubt):

He was found inside a styrofoam box left in a parking lot. He appears to have been somebody’s pet, and police are looking for its owner.

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Entrance exam stress relief

Let us take a brief break from Japan-related postings to bring you a scene of entrance exam stress relief in a neighboring country:

It is almost time for the “gaokao” [university entrance exam] and yesterday morning and the third years [final year of high school in China] at our school had a pledge ceremony. Afterward, the third year students began to throw their exam papers, their books. At first people tore them into pieces, later they were throwing entire sheets and sheets, and even later they were throwing bundles and bundles. It was spectacular. It was a release from the stress of the third year.

More details/photos at China Smack!

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Yuri Fujikawa Apple Cakes

Hachinohe city assembly woman Yuri Fujikawa, who is nationally famous for being “too beautiful” to be a politician, now has her own apple cakes:

The cakes, which contain Aomori apple jam, will be sold in packs of 10 for 630 yen.　　They are being produced by the same Tokyo company that makes various other souvenir snacks for fans of politicians.

Her gravure DVD, which was released last year, can be viewed here.

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