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BASEBALL / BASEBALL BULLET-IN
Jan 29, 2012

Expect Hall of Famer Ryan to be a positive influence for Darvish

Did you watch on TV that news conference last week introducing Yu Darvish as a member of the Texas Rangers?
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Jan 28, 2012

Watching Nishikori Down Under

All Japan was watching as Kei Nishikori, the first Japanese tennis player to make it to the quarterfinals in a Grand Slam since Shuzo Matsuoka at Wimbledon in 1995, took on the No. 4 seeded Brit, Andy Murray, at the Australian Open Wednesday night. Nishikori, ranked 24th in the world, knew he was up...
Japan Times
SPORTS / SPORTS SCOPE
Jan 25, 2012

Darvish could be in for rude awakening with Rangers

The worst way to start a new relationship of any kind is with a lie.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / LIGHT GIST
Dec 27, 2011

2011: a year of disaster in quotes

This year produced more than its share of memorable quotes, many of which were inspired by the March 11 disaster and its aftermath. But figures from other fields, from sports to entertainment, also said things worth repeating. Here is a sampling, in chronological order:
CULTURE / TV & Streaming / CHANNEL SURF
Dec 25, 2011

'Takeshi Art Beat' on tap dancing; New Year's Eve TV roundup; CM of the week: Dorea

Ever wonder where director/star "Beat" Takeshi Kitano got the idea of the big tap-dancing finale for his 2003 remake of the samurai classic "Zatoichi"? It came to him after he saw the American dancer Savion Glover, who the program information says influenced Michael Jackson's Moonwalk.
BASKETBALL / HOOP SCOOP
Dec 18, 2011

Don't expect Japanese basketball to embrace a real, workable plan

Every few months a false sense of hope surfaces on the blogosphere and in the mainstream media, where optimists peddle the message that Japan's basketball "leaders" finally have their act together, that a new men's pro league will, ahem, finally replace the outdated, increasingly irrelevant JBL and the...
BASEBALL / BASEBALL BULLET-IN
Dec 11, 2011

Free agency likely to make negative impact on Hawks

They call the baseball off-season the "Hot Stove League" but, this winter, it might be called the "Overheated Stove" or the "Microwave League." As predicted in this column a few weeks ago, the flurry of activity in December would be fast and furious, especially because of the delayed end to the Japan...
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Dec 1, 2011

Green is the big thing at this year's Tokyo Motor Show

Japanese carmakers highlighted their latest green technology concept cars during Wednesday's media preview at the Tokyo Motor Show as they bid to lead the global trend toward energy efficiency and reignite interest among young people in automobiles.
BASKETBALL / NBA / NBA REPORT
Nov 27, 2011

Dr. J sale conjures up memories

For someone who did Julius Erving's bidding for almost three decades, it warmed my innards to see so many others still have the touch.
SUMO / SUMO SCRIBBLINGS
Nov 10, 2011

The next big thing, and one that never quite made it

Leading up to the 2011 Kyushu tourney down in Fukuoka, the world of sumo is looking to round off another annus horribilis.
COMMENTARY
Oct 19, 2011

NBA labor dispute illustrates an economic truth

Kevin Garnett, 35, the Boston Celtics forward who has had a stellar career, was with the Minnesota Timberwolves in 2004 when a teammate, Latrell Sprewell, augmented the national stock of unfortunate pronouncements. Dissatisfied with a three-year $21 million contract extension offer, Sprewell said: "I've...
COMMENTARY
Oct 14, 2011

Why the sudden backlash against the wealthy?

The context for Occupy Wall Street and proposals to tax the rich — "rich" being constantly redefined — is the broader issue of economic inequality. For years, liberal politicians, academics and pundits have complained about growing inequality, but their protests barely resonated with the public....
Japan Times
BASKETBALL
Oct 14, 2011

Gardow has expansion Jets prepared for takeoff

The bj-league's Eastern Conference is overflowing with newness this season.
BASKETBALL / HOOP SCOOP
Sep 25, 2011

Problems plague every level of game

Without drastic changes in the way it operates — and stuck with a mentality that is out of date with current reality — the Japan Basketball Association (JBA) will continue to be a deterrent to success and progress in men's and boys basketball at all levels.
Japan Times
LIFE
Sep 25, 2011

Students' skills help to forge a new Tohoku

In late July, when the students of Osaka Institute of Technology's Department of Architecture first arrived at the tiny port of Oharahama, an air of negativity hung over the conversation of the locals.
Japan Times
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Sep 20, 2011

You name it: Rights for more municipal sites go on sale

C.C. Lemon isn't just the name of a soft drink — it's also the name of a famous concert hall in Tokyo more popularly known as Shibuko — a mecca for aspiring rock stars throughout Japan.
BASEBALL / HIT AND RUN
Sep 20, 2011

Fighters keep focus on PL pennant after Nashida bombshell

Bobby Keppel's translator stood at the ready, but the Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters pitcher didn't need him.
MORE SPORTS / ICE TIME
Sep 14, 2011

Hino, Tanaka, Shoji begin Junior Grand Prix season with podium finishes

With the first two weeks of the Junior Grand Prix season in the books, Japanese skaters have posted encouraging results so far.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Sep 8, 2011

"Jamaica Rocks"

A group of Jamaican musicians and dancers led by explosive "singjay" Abijah, as well as Tessanne Chin and rising star I Eye, have set off on a major tour of Japan. The tour is being coordinated by the Min-On Concert Association, in collaboration with the Embassy of Jamaica in Tokyo, and Jamaica's Ministry...
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Aug 18, 2011

There's gold in them there wardrobes!

More people are mining closets and wardrobes for the precious metals they might contain.
COMMUNITY / Voices / HOTLINE TO NAGATACHO
Jul 12, 2011

Boycott sumo, a sport tainted by racist rules

To the Japan Sumo Association:
Japan Times
SPORTS / SPORTS SCOPE
Jul 10, 2011

Kim's contribution crucial to Pyeongchang's victory

In a performance almost as dominating as the one that earned her the Olympic gold medal 16 months ago, South Korea's Kim Yu Na put on a show for the ages this week at the International Olympic Committee's meeting in South Africa.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY
Jul 9, 2011

Don Morton raises a mug to bicycles and cold beer

Film buffs may know American Don Morton for the reviews he writes for Metropolis magazine. During a recent interview in his apartment, though, he mostly talked about bicycles. In fact the 67-year-old native of San Francisco is the founder of the Tokyo-based Half-Fast cycling club.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / CLOSE-UP
Jul 3, 2011

Kotaro Horiuchi: A life spent in uncharted waters of boat design

Considering the current state of Japan's economy, it's remarkable to recall that 60 years ago there were hundreds of companies both old and new jockeying restlessly to fill the vacuum left after almost all the nation's cities were heavily bombed in World War II — jockeying, that is, with the kind of...
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Jun 26, 2011

Game changer as advertisers take a sporting chance

Earlier this month, teen golf sensation Ryo Ishikawa was driving his Audi when he was stopped by police and told that his international driver's license, obtained in the United States, was not valid in Japan. It was an innocent faux pas, but Ishikawa was forced to apologize profusely through the media...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY
Jun 25, 2011

'Reluctant' musician blows success his way with horn

Over half his lifetime ago, reluctant horn player Jonathan Hammill, at 15, slumped in the back seat of the family car. Sweaty and bored on a family trip to his grandparents' house in Florida, Hammill watched as his mother impulsively popped in a tape his music teacher had given him as encouragement at...
Japan Times
BASKETBALL
Jun 15, 2011

Gardow named first coach of Chiba Jets

The Chiba Jets, a bj-league expansion team set to begin play in the fall, have hired veteran American mentor Eric Gardow as their first coach.
BASEBALL / BASEBALL BULLET-IN
Jun 12, 2011

Ireton, Guam schools, MLB Japan team up to help rebuild baseball in Tohoku

Earthquake and tsunami disaster relief efforts continue in the Tohoku region, and two schools in the area whose buildings and playing grounds were washed away have been able to re-establish their baseball and other sports programs thanks to the generosity of friends in Guam and Tokyo and also Major League...

Longform

A small shrine perched atop rocks braves the waves hitting the shoreline during a storm in Shimoda, Shizuoka Prefecture. The area is under threat of a possible 31-meter-high tsunami if an earthquake strikes the nearby Nankai Trough.
If the 'Big One' hits, this city could face a 31-meter-high tsunami