Bright future for Japan’s Obama impersonator
A couple days ago, I posted about Japanese Obama impersonator Nozomu Sato (Nocchi) and linked to an article about him in the Chicago Tribune. His long-awaited meeting with the real Obama was aired on Japanese TV Wednesday night, so here it is [via Black Tokyo]:
Part 1
Nocchi accepts the TV program’s challenge and travels to Chicago. He first attempts to visit Obama’s house, but is turned away by police.
Part 2:
Nocchi then attempts to visit an Obama offices in Chicago. Since he has no appointment, he is turned away.
His next target is a neighborhood Obama is said to frequent, where Nocchi gets a haircut from Obama’s barber. The friendliness of the people gives Nocchi an optimistic feeling, so he tries to visit another Obama office. This time, security allows him inside the building, but Obama is not there. Staff tell Nocchi that they will notify higher ups about his visit. Nocchi also receives Obama’s business card.
Part 3
Word spreads about Nocchi, and the Chicago Tribune comes to interview him. After the interview, the crew gets word from campaign sources that Obama will appear in New York City that night. Nocchi waits in the street for hours, successfully spotting the Obama motorcade and waving to Obama. Nocchi believes that he has fulfilled his contract, but the TV crew informs him that he needs better proof of Obama acknowledging his existence.
Later that night, they get word of an Obama rally being held the next day in St. Louis. It is the last day of their trip to America, and it will be Nocchi’s last chance to meet Obama.
Part 4
Nocchi inches his way to the front of a huge crowd and listens to Obama’s speech. When the speech ends, Obama comes down to shake hands with people in the crowd. Nocchi grabs Obama’s hand and gets a handshake. Obama seems to acknowledge Nocchi’s existence, so the contract is fulfilled!
Upon hearing of comedian Nocchi’s encounter with the real Barack Obama, the Asahi Shimbun has declared that the Japanese Obama impersonator has a “bright future” ahead of him. We’ll certainly be seeing a lot more of his Obama act on TV for the next 4 to 8 years, but that may not necessarily be a great thing for Nocchi. According to a survey translated at What Japan Thinks, a majority of Japanese TV viewers feel that Obama’s victory will not positively effect Nocchi’s career.
Your thought on Nocchi's Obama impersonation?
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Categories: Japanese TV
Video: Victory celebrations in Obama City
Joyful celebrations in the Japanese city that happens to be called Obama!
From CNN:
From TBS (hula dancing, souvenir foods, and a festive mood):
From N-H-K (a 10 minute profile of Obama City in Fukui Prefecture, and Obama-onsen in Nagasaki Prefecture)
From NTV (mostly just hula dancing):
[via 3Yen]
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Categories: Odd / Strange, Politics
Obama town prepare to celebrate Obama victory
As one might expect, Obama town in Fukui prefecture is preparing an election day party to celebrate Barack Obama’s victory:
Banners with Obama ‘s picture hang on lampposts across the town, where a statue of the senator clad in a Stars and Stripes necktie and a Japanese-style headband that says “I love Obama” now greets residents and visitors.
A year ago, the world of US politics was far from the minds of most residents here. But now they plan to hold a watch party on November 5 when, accounting for the time zone difference, the election results will come in.
Some 50 Obama residents are honing their skills in hula dancing, hoping to put on an Election Day show in tribute to Obama’s original home of Hawaii. The “Obama girls” even travelled to Honolulu to take part in a competition.
“His name is the same as the City of Obama so I’m naturally sympathetic towards him. But I also like him very much,” said dancer Kiyomi Takahashi, wearing an “I Love Obama” T-shirt.
Meanwhile, in nearby Fukui City, the company that made the frames for Sarah Palin’s glasses is hoping for the increased sales that might come with a McCain victory:
CEO Satoru Masunaga is cheering for the hardline conservative vice-presidential candidate who, according to a company spokeswoman, has already delivered “a positive effect” to the 103-year-old brand, founded by Mr Masunaga’s grandfather.
In a recent interview with The New Yorker magazine, the CEO described the MP-704 model as “middle-class” but said that it made the 44-year-old mother of five look like “a real politician. She looks intelligent.”
The designer of the frames, Kazuo Kawasaki, said that although he was “quite right-wing” and approved of many of the Alaskan Governor’s political sentiments, he would prefer not to take sides.
Up until August, when Mrs Palin was chosen to join John McCain’s Republican campaign, Mr Masunaga reportedly sold 500 of the MP-704 glasses a month in the US. Since September, more than 10,000 orders have flooded in.
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Categories: Politics