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Japan Times
CULTURE / Stage
Aug 21, 2002

Universal comedy without errors

Hold on to your seats: We're going back to the essence of theater -- entertainment. "The Kyogen of Errors," directed by and starring 36-year-old Mansai Nomura, is a fitting way to celebrate his five-year appointment as artistic director of the Setagaya Public Theater (SEPT), which was announced two weeks...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Aug 21, 2002

Light My Fire festival to heat things up

Relaxing in a conference room crowded with shelves of CDs and a couple dozen bottles of Belgian beer, Shohachiro Haga recently explained how he chose the four acts for the Light My Fire world music festival. A middle-aged man wearing an enviably broken-in polo shirt, Haga says, "We can find the roots...
JAPAN
Aug 21, 2002

NTT disconnects 'wangiri' caller

OSAKA -- NTT West Corp. on Tuesday suspended connection services to a company in Fukuoka that allegedly made "wangiri" phone calls in such massive numbers that it threatened to paralyze NTT's telephone networks, NTT West officials said.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Stage
Aug 21, 2002

Revenge is a dish served to chill at Kabukiza

In the heat of summer, Japanese people turn to noryo (activities to enjoy the evening cool) -- and kabuki is among the enjoyments on offer. Noryo programs were started at the Kabukiza Theater in August 1990, and have been in the charge of Nakamura Kankuro, 47, ever since. For this year's program he has...
CULTURE / Film
Aug 21, 2002

The busiest bad guy around

Show Aikawa is the hardest-working man in Japanese movies, but one that Japanese cinemagoers have rarely, if ever, seen. Unless, that is, they happen to be fans of straight-to-video films. They would know Aikawa as the gangster glaring down from the boxes of dozens of action films with titles like "Shuraba...
EDITORIALS
Aug 20, 2002

Clearing up the haze

Since it first commanded world attention in 1997, "haze" -- an ugly smog created by fires -- has become a regular feature of the Southeast Asian environment. A new United Nations report identifies the grimy acid cocktail as a major health hazard for that region and the world. It is killing millions and...
JAPAN
Aug 20, 2002

DNA scholars hope to stock Siberia 'park' with mammoths

"Jurassic Park" was a work of fiction. Pleistocene Park is in the process of becoming fact.
JAPAN
Aug 20, 2002

More flexible school holidays to be considered

The government will consider introducing flexible school holidays so families with children can take more relaxed and less-crowded summer and other vacations, government officials said Monday.
COMMENTARY
Aug 20, 2002

Forum breaks new ground

The recent meeting of the ASEAN Regional Forum, or ARF, the Asia Pacific's premier track for security dialogue, has been applauded as a watershed for the institution -- and rightly so. The group's pledge to fight international terrorism breathed new life into the forum. But the real significance of this...
JAPAN
Aug 20, 2002

East Timor leader requests aid in talks with Nakatani

DILI -- East Timor President Xanana Gusmao asked Japan on Monday to help with his country's efforts to deal with unemployment and build a judicial infrastructure.
JAPAN
Aug 20, 2002

Researcher urges water consciousness

A common saying in Japanese is "mizu to anzen wa tada" ("water and safety are free"), meaning they can be taken for granted.
JAPAN
Aug 20, 2002

Japan, North Korea claim progress at two-day talks

PYONGYANG -- The North Korean Red Cross confirmed Monday the whereabouts of six Japanese among the 49 Tokyo has demanded Pyongyang search for, but the six are not among the 11 Tokyo says were abducted.
JAPAN
Aug 20, 2002

Residents to seek redress over Tokai nuclear accident

Three residents of the village of Tokai, Ibaraki Prefecture, home to Japan's worst nuclear accident, said Monday they will seek compensation for health hazards from the operator of the uranium processing plant and its parent company.
BUSINESS
Aug 20, 2002

Yokohama to host psychiatry confab

Around 7,000 experts from around the world are expected to attend an international psychiatry conference in Yokohama later this month, according to organizers.
JAPAN
Aug 20, 2002

Cyclists continue Silk Road trek

A Japanese citizens' group will cycle to Turkmenistan in Central Asia at the end of this month on another leg in their 15,000-km journey along the Silk Road.
JAPAN
Aug 20, 2002

Two dead in suspected murder-arson

The charred corpses of two men, both with knife wounds, were found Monday morning after a fire broke out in a building in Minato Ward, Tokyo, leading police to investigate the case as a possible murder-arson.
BUSINESS
Aug 20, 2002

Nasdaq withdrawal blamed on prolonged economic slump

The head of Nasdaq's international operations reiterated Monday that the prolonged domestic slump was behind Nasdaq Stock Market Inc.'s decision to pull out of Japan.
JAPAN
Aug 19, 2002

Memorial pitch expected by yearend

A government advisory panel is expected to propose the creation of a new memorial facility for Japan's war dead by year's end.
MORE SPORTS
Aug 19, 2002

Yasuda returns to cheer on 49ers

No Japanese has ever played in the NFL.
JAPAN
Aug 19, 2002

Bon returnees weigh down transport

The return rush from the Bon midsummer holidays continued Sunday as vacationers jammed roads, railway stations and airports while returning to Tokyo from hometowns and tourist resorts throughout Japan.
COMMENTARY / JAPAN IN THE GLOBAL ERA
Aug 19, 2002

Raze the barriers to inward investment

LAUSANNE, Switzerland -- The 21st century has not gotten off to a particularly brilliant start. Greed, corruption and dishonesty are pervasive. Scandals are rocking the world of business and politics in America and Europe. The chances of the Bush/Cheney administration becoming paralyzed by investigations...
Japan Times
JAPAN
Aug 19, 2002

Puppet show spotlights victims

OSAKA -- The sudden news that a couple's teenage daughter had been murdered in the street by a stranger was the beginning of the destruction of a family's happy life.
COMMENTARY
Aug 19, 2002

Pakistan must modernize as a nation state

ISLAMABAD -- Gen. Pervez Musharraf, Pakistan's military ruler, is eager to lament the breakdown of past Pakistani governments in justifying his own assumption of wide-ranging political authority ahead of elections in October.
COMMENTARY / THE VIEW FROM MOSCOW
Aug 18, 2002

Putin faces oil slick on Iraq

MOSCOW -- To strike or not to strike seems to be the question in Washington these days. A part of the "axis of evil," terrorist-lair Iraq, an old foe, is currently under the scrutiny of U.S. President George W. Bush's administration. While military planners weigh various strategic options for crushing...
EDITORIALS
Aug 18, 2002

Books in the wild

''Goe, little booke," wrote the English poet Edmund Spenser when he sent his "Shepheard's Calender" out into the world back in 1579 and inspired a flurry of contemporary authors to adopt the metaphor of books as children sent to seek their fortune. In a modern twist on an old idea, some enthusiastic...
COMMENTARY
Aug 18, 2002

Unprovoked U.S. attack could be costly

WASHINGTON -- President George W. Bush says he hasn't made up his mind about "any of our policies in regard to Iraq." But to not attack after spending months talking about regime change is inconceivable. Unfortunately, war is not likely to be as simple and certain as he and many others seem to think....
JAPAN
Aug 18, 2002

Typhoon may brush Tokyo Monday

Powerful Typhoon Phanfone, approaching Tokyo from the south Saturday, may come close to the capital on Monday afternoon, the Japan Meteorological Agency said.

Longform

An illustration features the Japanese signs for "ganbare" (good luck) and the Deaflympics, which will be held between Nov. 15 and 26.
A century of Deaf sport finds its moment in Tokyo