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Natsuko Fukue
An employee at the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department Lost and Found Center in the Iidabashi area of central Tokyo bags, tags and organizes thousands of items.
JAPAN
Nov 23, 2024
Tokyo police care for lost umbrellas, keys and flying squirrels
In Japan, lost items are rarely disconnected from their owners for long, even in a megacity like Tokyo — population 14 million.
Just 1 in 10 researchers and 1 in 5 students at the prestigious University of Tokyo are women.
JAPAN / Society / FOCUS
Oct 10, 2024
Women at Japan's top university call out gender imbalance with posters
Gender bias begins early in Japanese education.
Visitors play Super Mario on a giant video game console during a media preview of the new Nintendo Museum, located inside a renovated old factory, in the city of Uji in Kyoto Prefecture, on Sept. 24.
BUSINESS / Companies
Oct 2, 2024
From cards to consoles: Nintendo opens its first museum
The museum is part of Nintendo's efforts to broaden its brand that include the release of a Super Mario animated movie last year.
Anna Sawai (left), winner of the outstanding lead actress in a drama series award, and Hiroyuki Sanada, outstanding lead actor in a drama series for "Shogun," at the 76th Primetime Emmy Awards in Los Angeles, California.
CULTURE / TV & Streaming
Sep 18, 2024
Japanese are jubilant over 'Shogun' — even without having watched the series
"Shogun" is only available via Disney's streaming platform, which is relatively new in Japan. Nonetheless, people are buzzing with excitement over the show's Emmy wins.
"Shogun" star Hiroyuki Sanada attends the premiere for "John Wick: Chapter 4" in March 2023.
CULTURE / TV & Streaming
Sep 15, 2024
Hiroyuki Sanada: the actor and producer driving TV's 'Shogun'
Having started his acting career in Japan at the age of 5, the actor, now 63, is seeing decades of hard work pay off in the U.S. TV series "Shogun."
The team behind "Shogun" sought out the advice of Kyoto-based historian Frederik Cryns for the hit TV series.
CULTURE / TV & Streaming
Sep 15, 2024
'Groundbreaking' realism key to 'Shogun' success
The cast of the hit TV show learned how to walk without swinging their arms and rise from a seated position without crouching first.
A guest uses chopsticks to grab and taste raw meat from a fin whale at the exhibition and business meeting of domestically produced fin whales hosted by Japan's whaling company Kyodo Senpaku at Tokyo's Toyosu market on Friday.
JAPAN / Society
Sep 14, 2024
Hearts, tails and blubber at Japan fin whale tasting
"Once young people eat it and they realize it's good, they will eat it more and more," said Hideki Tokoro, the head of Japan's main whaling firm.
Takeo Suzuki from the Pentax division of Ricoh Imaging demonstrates the Pentax 17 half-frame film camera at the Pentax Club House in Tokyo on June 28.
JAPAN
Jul 25, 2024
New Japan film camera aimed at 'nostalgic' young fans
Japan's major camera brands stopped making analogue models in the 2000s, prompting sellers in big cities to refurbish old models for new analogue enthusiasts.
Emperor Naruhito speaks during a news conference at the Imperial Palace in Tokyo on Wednesday, ahead of his visit to Britain from Saturday.
JAPAN
Jun 20, 2024
Emperor recalls time with British royals ahead of visit to U.K.
"I have very fond memories of the Queen driving a car and inviting me to a barbecue," Emperor Naruhito said.
Bidet toilets are the norm in Japan, where more than 80% of homes have one. But their numbers are growing worldwide.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 2, 2024
Feeling flush: Japan's high-tech toilets go global
Sales are surging abroad and especially in the United States, led by A-list bidet fans such as Drake, the Kardashians and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.
Wim Wenders (left) co-wrote the script for “Perfect Days” with top advertising creative Takuma Takasaki. Japanese star Koji Yakusho (right) won best actor at Cannes last year for his performance as the film’s protagonist, a taciturn toilet cleaner in Tokyo.
CULTURE / Film
Feb 27, 2024
Oscar-nominated 'Perfect Days' is 'not about toilets,' Wenders says
The director's film about a taciturn cleaner who keeps Tokyo's public toilets spotless prompts reflections on urban solitude, community and growing older.
Toyota raised its annual net profit forecast to a record high ¥4.5 trillion in the year ending in March.
BUSINESS / Companies
Feb 6, 2024
Toyota raises annual net profit forecast as chip shortage eases
But scandals involving rigged engine and safety tests at subsidiaries led the firm to slightly revise down its sales target for the financial year.
A Korean Air plane (left) and Cathay Pacific aircraft made contact with each other at New Chitose Airport on Tuesday.
JAPAN
Jan 17, 2024
Korean Air plane 'strikes' Cathay aircraft in Japan; no injuries
The incident at New Chitose Airport serving Sapporo came two weeks after a near-catastrophic collision at Tokyo's Haneda Airport.
Umbrellas are displayed at Komiya Shoten, a company that has made handcrafted umbrellas for rain or shine for nearly a century, in Higashi-Nihombashi, Tokyo, on Aug. 3.
BUSINESS
Sep 21, 2023
Heat brings hope for handmade umbrella-maker in Tokyo
One of Tokyo's last handmade umbrella shops has weathered many storms and is now thriving, thanks to booming demand for parasols.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies / FOCUS
Jul 18, 2023
Suntory's Yamazaki Distillery turns 100 as whisky demand enjoys renewed boom
Japan's acclaimed aged whiskies are commanding increasingly eye-watering prices thanks to growing demand and long-standing shortages.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics
May 20, 2023
Women take on Japan's political gender gap for 'true democracy'
A Tokyo-based foundation has organized a series of seminars by leading politicians for 20 women age under 40 in a bid to address the nation's political imbalance.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
May 19, 2023
Takeshi Kitano returns to Cannes with an 'indifferent' outlook
The director's first feature-length film in six years will premiere at the festival, but Kitano says he does things his own way, regardless of success.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Stage
May 3, 2023
Kabuki kids: The children of Japan's traditional theater
The son of a renowned actress and grandson of a famed kabuki actor, 10-year-old Maholo Terajima has made history as the first recognized dual national to make his debut in the art form.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Society
Apr 1, 2023
'Don't blame women': Japan's birth drive sparks online debate
Japan's government has made tackling its falling birthrate a top priority, but with few women involved in official debate on the issue, some are making themselves heard on social media.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Science & Health
Feb 14, 2023
Japan rolls out 'humble and lovable' delivery robots
From April, revised traffic laws will allow self-driving delivery robots to navigate streets across the country.

Longform

People in cities across Japan will pop into their local convenience store for any number of products they believe will help them with a night of drinking.
Hangover cures are everywhere in Japan — but do they work?