The graphics department must be on vacation
NTV’s graphics department must be off for the silver week holiday, because one of their news programs used this crude drawing while discussing a story about a train that nearly hit a small child:
- Akihabara News – Gadgetry from Japan (Subscribe)
- dannychoo.com – Your portal to Japan (Subscribe)
- Kirainet.com – A geek in Japan (Subscribe)
Categories: Japanese TV
Hugh Jackman visits Japan, eats sushi
Hugh Jackman was in Japan this week to promote the upcoming theatrical release of X-Men Origins: Wolverine*. As part of his promotional activities, he went on NTV’s “Sukkiri” morning news show and visited Tsukiji with Mari Sekine:
It lacks much of the awkwardness one usually finds when foreign celebrities appear on Japanese TV. He was friendly and polite towards everyone and really seemed to enjoy himself. The narrator keeps mentioning how Hugh is such a nice guy, and I’m inclined to agree.
In the segment, Hugh is taken to a tamagoyaki store owned and operated by TV producer Terry Ito’s brother. The day after they filmed there, Hugh and his family had some free private time to explore Tokyo. Apparently Hugh loved the tamagoyaki so much that he brought his wife and kids back to Tsukiji and visited the store so they could try the food prepared by his new friend!
*Note: Yes, that’s correct. X-Men Origins: Wolverine won’t hit Japanese theaters until September 11, 2009. According to IMDB, the film was released in the states back in May and Japan is dead last on the release date calendar. While Japanese fans will be seeing the film for the first time in theaters, Americans will already be buying it on DVD.
- Akihabara News – Gadgetry from Japan (Subscribe)
- dannychoo.com – Your portal to Japan (Subscribe)
- Kirainet.com – A geek in Japan (Subscribe)
Categories: Celebrity News, Foreigners in Japan
Enjo Kosai : Compensated dating in Japan
A special investigation of the teenage prostitution in Japan (“compensated dating”), from a Japanese TV news program:
The narrator introduces information about a “new” type of underage prostitution in Japan. It is not like traditional prostitution, which usually involved girls working for an adult pimp or brothel owner. Instead, teenage girls go onto the internet and act as freelance prostitutes.
The girls join online dating sites and put up a profile containing slang terms that let men know their age and the price they expect to be paid for sex. Their reporter tries this method and meets up with a 15-year-old junior high school student. When she arrives at their meeting place, the man is shocked by how young and normal she looks. He interviews her, and she claims that she has only sold herself once, for 10,000 yen to a man who was about 25 or 26-years-old. She says it is very easy to arrange it through the internet, where there are a wide variety of message boards and dating sites available. When asked why she did it, she says she wanted money. She doesn’t know any classmates who are also engaging in prostitution, but she guesses there might be other girls in her school who do it. After the reporter gives her a little lecture on how dangerous her actions are, she claims that she will stop. She’s heard stories about girls who have had pictures and video of their encounters put on the internet, and doesn’t want it experience that herself. She also doesn’t really enjoy selling her body. The reporter lets her leave, hoping that she really does intend to quit.
The second clip shows police in Kanagawa prefecture arresting a man who had paid for an underage prostitute. A 15-year-old girl who had engaged in enjo kosai presented police with evidence of her encounter with the 37-year-old customer, so they send a team to his house with an arrest warrant. They wait for him to leave his house for work, apparently because they don’t want to disturb his wife and children. However, once they arrest him, they escort him back into the house and ask him further questions. He is then taken away. It would be pretty safe to say that his marriage, his relationship with his children, and his career have probably been ruined.
- Akihabara News – Gadgetry from Japan (Subscribe)
- dannychoo.com – Your portal to Japan (Subscribe)
- Kirainet.com – A geek in Japan (Subscribe)
Categories: Japanese TV
Company rushes to produce Yukio Hatoyama merchandise
TBS TV news reports on how a company is rushing to produce merchandise related to Japan’s soon-to-be Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama:
A company that makes novelty tea mugs featuring a timeline of Japanese prime ministers has begun to produce mugs that include Hatoyama. However, since it isn’t 100% clear how long Hatoyama will take to form a cabinet and assume his office, the company is printing leaving the exact date blank and printing that he took office in the month of September.
- Akihabara News – Gadgetry from Japan (Subscribe)
- dannychoo.com – Your portal to Japan (Subscribe)
- Kirainet.com – A geek in Japan (Subscribe)
Categories: Politics
