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Japan Times
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Sep 7, 2010

Anime makes Japan a cultural superpower

Japan may be on a slow decline as far as being a global economic force, but the "soft power" of its modern entertainment genres, from manga to "anime," has global appeal, especially among young people.
JAPAN
Sep 3, 2010

Festival of manga, 'anime' opens in Kyoto

KYOTO — An exhibition of the latest manga, "anime," art and the next generation of electronic entertainment technology from Japan and abroad opened Thursday in Kyoto.
Japan Times
LIFE / Travel
Jun 20, 2010

Resort to sheer pleasure on Ishigaki Island

Want to get away from it all? Then why not fly 2,000 km toward the Equator from Tokyo to Ishigaki, the main island of the southerly Yaeyama group in Okinawa Prefecture. And once there, then treat yourself to a stay at Club Med Kabira Beach, where you can do almost anything you want — or nothing at...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
May 28, 2010

Rising star set to shine

In September 1984 — three years after MTV: Music Television had kicked into life with British electro-pop duo The Buggles' appropriately titled 1979 classic "Video Killed the Radio Star" — Madonna strode onto a New York stage for the fledgling channel's first Music Video Awards.
JAPAN / LOOMING CHALLENGES
Jan 6, 2010

Japan urged to exploit its tech, pop culture

Last of five parts
BUSINESS
Nov 21, 2009

Sony head sees big things for 3-D

Sony Corp. Chairman Howard Stringer forecast 3-D movies, pictures and games will be the electronics maker's next $10 billion business, challenging investors and analysts who say the technology isn't ready to become mainstream.
Events / Events Outside Tokyo
Sep 25, 2009

Video-game show offers kids shot at design

This year's Tokyo Game Show 2009 is themed "Game: It's so energetic!" and is targeted at demographic groups both young and old with the latest information on the computer-entertainment market.
BUSINESS
Sep 25, 2009

Nintendo reduces price of Wii in attempt to keep lead on rivals

Nintendo Co. has cut the price of the top-selling Wii for the first time since the game console's debut in 2006 to maintain its lead after Microsoft Corp. and Sony Corp. reduced the cost of their systems.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Sep 24, 2009

Etiquette 101 seminars a hit

How to enter a room with bamboo mats, where to place chopsticks, what not to wear — these are just some of the essential rules of etiquette young professionals are learning from Michiko Noguchi, a veteran restaurant mistress whose seminars on table manners are growing in popularity.
EDITORIALS
Sep 4, 2009

Indictment of a pop idol

Singer and actress Ms. Noriko Sakai was indicted Aug. 28 on a charge of possessing a stimulant drug (amphetamine). Her arrest and indictment are regrettable not only because her popularity as a pop idol extends beyond Japan to China, Taiwan and Hong Kong but also because she took part in a government...
JAPAN
Jul 7, 2009

Balanced news key for Yahoo Japan

While Yahoo Japan's news service has grown bigger and more powerful with the rise of the Internet, it has become tougher for the media to broadcast news with important value to its audience, said Michihiro Okumura, who leads a team that selects Yahoo Japan's news topics for its front page.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / CLOSE-UP
Jul 5, 2009

Motoko Inagawa: Japan's foreign-talent guru shares her worldly wisdoms

In need of a couple of Portuguese missionaries? How about a boatload of Dutch traders — or a platoon of World War II U.S. grunts?
Japan Times
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Jun 23, 2009

Fans make troupe phenomenon it is

Takarazuka Revue Co., Japan's all-female musical troupe, is a love-it or hate-it theatrical landmark.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Mar 20, 2009

Key actor tells of plot to kill Hitler

Until almost the end of 2008, British actor Bill Nighy was one of those faces you couldn't put a name to.
CULTURE / Film
Mar 20, 2009

Key actor tells of plot to kill Hitler

Until almost the end of 2008, British actor Bill Nighy was one of those faces you couldn't put a name to.
BUSINESS
Mar 17, 2009

Game publishers to Sony: Cut PS3 price or lose out to Nintendo

Sony Corp. is under pressure from video game publishers to cut the price of the PlayStation 3 console or risk seeing more development funds shift to Nintendo Co.'s Wii.
Japan Times
CULTURE
Nov 13, 2008

Understanding Ueto, Japan's reluctant star

"I never wished to become an actress or a star who performs on TV," explains Aya Ueto, the prominent model and actress. "I took this role because my management gave it to me."
JAPAN / ALSO OUT THERE
Oct 8, 2008

Kimutaku — enduring heartthrob

Of Japanese male celebrities, actors Ken Watanabe of "The Last Samurai" and Masi Oka of "Heroes" are among the better-known overseas. But domestically, no one beats Takuya Kimura.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Sep 13, 2008

WWE's U.S.-style rassling brings pay-per-view mat dramas here

Posing proudly for a snapshot with a glittery championship belt, Seigi Nishiyama was among some 600 wrestling fans packed into a Tokyo theater who can't get enough of World Wrestling Entertainment.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Sep 3, 2008

Sony to launch new, upgraded PSP

Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. said Tuesday it will launch a new PlayStation Portable hand-held game console in Japan on Oct. 16.
JAPAN
Mar 30, 2008

Japan Times receives Genesis Bardot award

The Japan Times was among a select band of U.S. and international media outlets announced Friday as the winners of the 22nd Genesis Awards at a star-studded ceremony in Beverly Hills, Calif.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Stage
Mar 6, 2008

The mathematics of music

So forward-looking that it's hard to categorize him — Is he an artist? A musician? A conceptualist? — Ryoji Ikeda makes the music that we'll lull the robots to sleep with when they ultimately try to take over. Or that we'll use to convince ourselves that we are the robots.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY
Jan 26, 2008

Racy approach to English picks up speed

"Your questions were hard," mails Darian Wilson, chief executive officer of FAQ, the day after we meet. "But I appreciate them as they caused me to rethink the meaning behind this project."
Japan Times
CULTURE / Stage
Jan 24, 2008

From ordinary to spectacular

Go Aoki is one of Japan's most in-demand playwrights and directors. The small venues where his Gring theater company typically stages his works attract drama-world insiders — as a result, besides taking Gring on the road in early 2008, Aoki has already been enlisted for three high-profile collaborations....
Japan Times
LIFE / Digital / JAPAN TIMES BLOGROLL
Dec 12, 2007

Konbini Life

Konbini Life is a blog that describes limited-edition Kit-Kats as potential after-dinner treats for French restaurants and speculates that Mousse Pocky might be "as good as a garnish on a fancy dessert." Blogger Brent Warner has been writing witty, detailed posts on the never-ending parade of snack food...
LIFE / Digital
Nov 21, 2007

Product placement seeks online consumers' wallets

Product placement within the entertainment industry has become widely accepted as commonplace. You only have to watch "Casino Royale" — the most recent movie in the James Bond series — to see that in-film advertising is big business. From cars and laptop computers to entire airlines, if it can be...
Japan Times
JAPAN
Oct 30, 2007

Moriya lists Yamada freebies

Former Vice Defense Minister Takemasa Moriya testified in the Diet on Monday that politicians, including an ex-Defense Agency chief, were wined and dined by a former executive of defense equipment trader Yamada Corp.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jun 28, 2007

Study the school before studying English

OSAKA — Thinking about studying English at a private school chain? If so, proceed with caution and know what you're getting into, say university English professors, teachers union representatives and the English-language schools themselves.

Longform

The byzantine process for converting a foreign driver’s license into a Japanese one entails mountains of paperwork and significant stamina — unless you're a lucky license holder from a country or region where these requirements are waived.
Driving in Japan isn’t hard. Getting the license is.