Japanese TV is fascinated with the lives of people who were famous in their youth, as shown on "Tama no Koshi ni Notta no ni, Sono Go Donzoiku ni Ochita Onna-tachi" ("Women Who Married Rich But Later Fell to the Bottom"; TV Asahi, Mon., 7 p.m.).
As the title explains, the subject of the special is former stars who wed rich guys and have since fallen on hard times. Among the four women studied is Sakiko Ito, an 1970s pop idol remembered for one hit song and a scandalous love affair with a male idol that finished her career. She married a rich man, but later they divorced and her life has been miserable ever since.
Then there's Kozue Saito, a brilliant child actor who moved to New York City by herself where she lived hand-to-mouth for a number of years before meeting another expat Japanese. They married and opened a restaurant together that was very successful — until the terrorist attack of Sept. 11, 2001, after which her life unravelled.