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JAPAN / CHUBU CONNECTION
Jun 19, 2010

Aichi industry groups unsure which way to vote

Vote-gathering moves by industry groups are likely to draw much attention in the July House of Councilors election as it is widely said "gaining the organizational support is the key" to winning the vote.
Japan Times
LIFE / Travel / HOTELS & RESTAURANTS
Jun 18, 2010

Couples see stars at the Grand Hyatt

The Japanese Tanabata star festival is celebrated on the night of July 7. Based on a Chinese legend, the night is the only time of year when the star Vega, the weaver, and the star Altair, the herdsman (lovers separated by the Milky Way) can see each other.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Jun 17, 2010

New iPhone preorders cause long lines at stores

Japan is already wild for Apple Inc.'s latest iPhone.
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Jun 16, 2010

The value of seemingly empty Japanese phrases

Japanese is often considered an indirect and ambiguous language, and that's because it is. The national character, too, often appears passive and indirect to non-Japanese. As a result, it can be tempting for newcomers to take a lead from Frank Sinatra and do things "My Way," and generally this works...
JAPAN / CHUBU CONNECTION
Jun 12, 2010

Tour execs woo Ieyasu's China fans

The cities of Okazaki, Toyota and Anjo, in the Mikawa region of Aichi Prefecture, are known as the hometown of the Tokugawa clan, which ruled the country for nearly 300 years from 1603 and laid the foundations of modern Japan.
Japan Times
BASKETBALL / HOOP SCOOP
Jun 12, 2010

Okada top Japanese in bj-league

First in a two-part series
Japan Times
CULTURE / Japan Pulse
Jun 11, 2010

I want my Ustream TV

Don't have time to catch a particular gig? Thanks to new tech and sites like Ustream, you might be able to rock on from your cubicle.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Jun 11, 2010

Midori grow up, but kids still love 'em

Parents beware: Hardcore jazz-punk three-piece Midori are back, and this time they're after your children.
Japan Times
LIFE / Style & Design / STYLE WISE
Jun 10, 2010

Fashion that's global, customized, arty and everything

Rebecca Taylor's new look
EDITORIALS
Jun 8, 2010

Devolution plan still half-baked

The central government is expected to decide on a "strategic outline" this month for promoting devolution. The focus will be on relaxing rigid administrative rules imposed by the central government on local governments, changing subsidies from those with strings attached to grants that can be used freely,...
CULTURE / TV & Streaming / CHANNEL SURF
Jun 6, 2010

2010 World Cup preview; Ryuichi Sakamoto on drum-and-bass; CM of the week: DoCoMo

Nobody expects the Japanese national team to go very far at the upcoming FIFA World Cup in South Africa, but that isn't going to stop television stations from dreaming. TBS will get the ball rolling, so to speak, on Thursday night with a special two-hour preview, "2010 FIFA World Cup Kaimaku Zenyasai"...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY
Jun 5, 2010

Niseko's real estate boom: Bigger picture in sight for local development

For some it was a flash in the pan, at best an experiment destined to fail, at worst a mini-bubble hyper-inflated by greedy "outsiders" with little interest other than the type accumulating in the bank.
Japan Times
LIFE / Lifestyle
Jun 3, 2010

Who's subscribing to Tokyo's new creative Tabloid?

If you want to launch a new cross-discipline creative space, you could do worse than invite pop diva Lady Gaga and flamboyant New York-based artist Terence Koh.
Japan Times
LIFE / Digital / Japan Pulse
Jun 2, 2010

Mixi helps users socialize with new apps

Following in the footsteps of Facebook, Mixi brings fun and functional apps to its user community. Anybody need a pantsu calendar?
CULTURE / TV & Streaming / CHANNEL SURF
May 30, 2010

IKKO's professionalism; Hidehiko Ishizuka returns to `Doyo Wide Gekijo'; CM of the week: Kincho

The theme of the profile series "Kokoro no Idenshi" (Genes of the Heart; NHK-G, Mon., 10 p.m.) is the "development of professionalism." This week's subject is TV personality IKKO, whose main appeal is his flamboyant feminine behavior and appearance. This being NHK, the focus is on his career as a hair...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
May 28, 2010

Contemporary works created in loving memory of the 'now'

"Memory does not belong to the past; it is the continuous present and future." Artist Kimio Tsuchiya's words speak volumes about "Plastic Memories — to illuminate 'now,' " currently showing at the Museum of Contemporary Art, Tokyo. Her work "Fragments of the Moon" (2004) features old bits of chipped...
Japan Times
LIFE
May 23, 2010

Mito's marvels span time, TV and beauty

Last, but not least, on this Ibaraki travel itinerary is Mito, the prefectural capital.
Japan Times
LIFE / Travel
May 23, 2010

A radical in the stones

For many Japanese film buffs, the name Kishiwada is synonymous with Miike Takashi's 1997 movie "Young Thugs, Innocent Blood" — an example of a cinematic genre described by film auteur Donald Richie as "anarchic and set in the brutal and amoral present."
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
May 21, 2010

Globally minded director goes native

It's sad but true that Japanese directors with big reputations abroad are often odd men (or women) out back home.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
May 21, 2010

'Haru tono tabi (Travels with Haru)'

Masahiro Kobayashi is a unique figure in the Japanese film business. His knotty, idiosyncratic films, starting with the 1996 film "Closing Time," have never made much at the box office in Japan, though they have become favorites of foreign festival programmers. Four have screened at Cannes, including...
Japan Times
Events / Events Outside Tokyo
May 21, 2010

'Obsession' eyes values through the lens of dance

Saburo Teshigawara's first-ever duet dance program, titled "Obsession" — with his regular ensemble partner Rihoko Sato — is now being staged at Theatre Cocoon in Shibuya after an ecstatically received May 2009 premiere at the Art Rock Festival in St. Brieuc in Brittany, France.
Japan Times
MORE SPORTS / ICE TIME
May 19, 2010

Yokohama tapped to host next World Team Trophy

Two years after hosting the inaugural World Team Trophy, Japan has once again been selected to be the site of the six-nation, biennial event.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Japan Pulse
May 18, 2010

The merch of May

Read the comic? Saw the the movie? Ready to buy some one-of-a-kind merchandise to show your loyalty?
Japan Times
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
May 18, 2010

Yoshimoto Kogyo: Entertaining the nation

One would have to be a hermit, literally shut off from all media, to avoid exposure in Japan to the comedians and other entertainers managed by Yoshimoto Kogyo Co., the nation's oldest and arguably most powerful entertainment agency.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
May 14, 2010

Vamps bite into British rock roots

"L'Arc-en-Ciel is all about the musicianship. But Vamps are obsessed with rock music, and that's basically our watchword: 'rock.' "
Japan Times
Events / Events Outside Tokyo
May 14, 2010

Here comes 'Othello': 'the best play ever'

"The tragedy 'Othello' was written by Shakespeare at the height of his powers [around 1602], its poetry is finer than 'Hamlet,' its psychology deeper than 'Macbeth,' its love story more compelling than 'Romeo and Juliet,' its heartbreaking tragedy more moving than 'King Lear.' 'Othello' might be the...
EDITORIALS
May 11, 2010

Japan must deal with debt

Worries about the sovereign debt crisis in Greece have disrupted stock and foreign exchange markets worldwide, threatening to throw cold water on the global economic recovery. The crisis could affect not only European nations but also the United States and fast-growing emerging economies.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / TOKYO FOOD FILE
May 7, 2010

Maruni/Zaku: Here's the beef, in vintage style

Like so many casual eating/drinking spots opening in these cash-strapped times, Maruni keeps things simple and cheap. It's basically a standing bar serving yakiniku barbecue, with a brightly lit interior and retro wooden facade. What sets it apart from just about any other place of its kind is that the...

Longform

Juzo Itami’s “Tampopo” was released Nov. 23, 1985, and though it wasn’t a hit at the time, it has gained a cult following in the years since.
Eat, slurp, love: 'Tampopo' turns 40