Search - murakami

 
 
JAPAN
Oct 31, 2001

Australophile to receive award

KOBE -- When Mineko Furusawa visited Brisbane in 1965, she never thought she would end up devoting the rest of her life to fostering better Japan-Australia relations.
JAPAN / STAGING A COMEBACK
Oct 18, 2001

Japan moves to compete on greener side of the street

Gone are the days when Japanese businesses felt a healthy environment was a concept that could only be achieved at the expense of economic growth.
CULTURE / Books
Oct 14, 2001

Kenzaburo Oe: Bridging the generation gap

In the wake of the terrorist attacks in America, large bookstores have put together special displays on Islam and terrorism, while the cult idolization of the prime minister continues with the publication of a coffee-table book of Koizumi photos (Jun-chan lounging in a robe!). However, as always in recent...
CULTURE / Art
Oct 3, 2001

Can-do creators fill in city 'gaps'

One of the biggest problems with Tokyo's avant-garde art scene is finding it.
Events
Oct 2, 2001

Cancer patient promotes artistic expression's force

NARA -- When she was diagnosed with breast cancer in 1999, Yuko Kozono, 40, found people's reactions somewhat familiar.
BUSINESS
Sep 27, 2001

Vodafone denies rumor of selloff

The chief of Vodafone Group PLC strongly denied Tuesday a recent British media report that the company is planning to sell off Japan Telecom Co.'s fixed-line business.
BUSINESS
Sep 21, 2001

Vodafone unit to launch Japan Telecom takeover

British cellular operator Vodafone Group PLC will today launch an agreed takeover bid over Japan Telecom Co. through a wholly owned subsidiary and take full control of the nation's third-largest operator with up to a 66.7 percent stake, Vodafone announced Thursday in Tokyo.
Events
Sep 18, 2001

Kobe airport foes marshall forces

KOBE -- Although construction began on controversial Kobe airport two years ago, citizens opposed to the facility continue pursuing all avenues to try to stop it, including new public disclosure laws and the upcoming mayoral election.
BASEBALL / MLB
Sep 18, 2001

Buffs' Mizuguchi puts on a show for salarymen

OSAKA -- Eiji Mizuguchi stole the show from the big names at the Osaka Dome on Monday night, going 3-for-4, reaching base four times and driving in the decisive run for the Kintetsu Buffaloes in a 2-1 victory over the Seibu Lions.
JAPAN
Sep 14, 2001

37 lawmakers, including members of Cabinet, tied to illegal donations

Thirty-seven lawmakers received illegal political donations last year before punishments for corporate donations to individual politicians were enacted in April 2000, according to a government report released Thursday.
JAPAN / WEEKEND WISDOM
Aug 12, 2001

Copying Kyoto is way to revitalize Japan, fashion critic says

KYOTO -- If Japan wants to revitalize the sluggish economy and turn its prospects around, there are plenty of indications that Kyoto's way of life as well as its way of doing business are the answer, according to Hiromi Ichida, a fashion critic who has lived in the ancient capital for more than half...
JAPAN
Aug 11, 2001

KSD gets 100 million yen from LDP

The Liberal Democratic Party has provided 100 million yen on "moral grounds" to support scandal-hit KSD, a mutual-aid foundation for small firms, LDP Secretary General Taku Yamasaki said Friday.
JAPAN
Aug 4, 2001

A-bomb survivor spreads peace message

HIGASHI-HIROSHIMA, Hiroshima Pref. -- When a doctor told Hitoshi Takayama in 1962 that a lump removed from his abdomen was malignant, the then 32-year-old thought he would share the fate of the 200,000 whose lives were lost in the atomic bombing of Hiroshima.
CULTURE / Film
Aug 1, 2001

A samurai flick for the MTV generation

Red Shadow Aka Kage Rating: * * 1/2 Director: Hiroyuki Nakano Running time: 108 minutes Language: JapaneseOpens Aug. 11 at Marunouchi Toei and other theaters Silent-era samurai movies fulfilled the same function as the westerns of W.S. Hart and Tom Mix: They entertained the common herd, particularly...
CULTURE / Music / HIGH NOTES
Jul 18, 2001

Kei Akagi

Kei Akagi's newly released CD, "Palette," on the Videoarts Music label, uses the often overdone piano trio format for powerful explorations. While many pianists range across styles because they have no sound of their own, Akagi plays with a consistent voice that is strong enough to express itself in...
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Jul 15, 2001

A spoonful of Koizumi helps the medicine go down

The continuance of Junichiro Koizumi's administration beyond the summer seems like a sure bet: Support for his Cabinet is over 80 percent, his e-mail magazine is being read by hundreds of thousands of subscribers, and every time the opposition questions one of his pronouncements, they are deluged with...
COMMUNITY
Jul 1, 2001

Hotfoot it to a temple of cool

KYOTO -- Summer here is especially hot. But a half-hour train ride from the city center takes you to the cool, mountainous town of Kibune. Centered around the Kibune Shrine along a 5-km stretch of the Kibune River (which flows into the Kamo River), restaurants, inns and shops set out their wares.
BASEBALL / MLB
Jun 23, 2001

Buffs rip Hawks in 18-9 slugfest

Yuji Yoshioka went 5-for-5 and drove in eight runs in a nine-homer slug fest as the Kintetsu Buffaloes romped over the Daiei Hawks 18-9 on Friday night at the Osaka Dome.
BUSINESS
Jun 22, 2001

KVH Telecom to launch Osaka service

OSAKA -- KVH Telecom Co., a Tokyo-based provider of broadband communications services, announced Thursday the launch of its services here, and President and CEO Rakesh Bhasin said he is confident about his firm's first operation outside Tokyo.
JAPAN
Jun 21, 2001

Death penalty upheld for killer of four women

OSAKA — The Osaka High Court on Wednesday upheld the death penalty for a man convicted of murdering four female bar managers in western Japan in less than a month in late 1991.
JAPAN
Jun 19, 2001

Counselors struggle with Ikeda trauma

OSAKA — The June 8 slaying of eight children at Osaka Kyoiku University Ikeda Elementary School shocked the nation.
Events
Jun 12, 2001

Kobe friendship center to help local Brazilians learn Japanese

KOBE — Kobe Foreigners Friendship Center, a nonprofit organization assisting foreign residents, has compiled textbooks and CDs for Brazilians wanting to learn conversational Japanese.
COMMUNITY
Jun 10, 2001

Eco-reformists tackle 'sick-house syndrome'

KYOTO -- From the outside, Junko Shimomura's condominium looks much like the hundreds of other apartments in the highrises that line the Kamo River in Kyoto's Ukyo Ward. But the interior -- with the living room's mukunoki wooden floor sealed with natural paulownia-tree oil and the terra-cotta tiles on...
CULTURE / Books
Jun 10, 2001

Publishing still in a slump; DaVinci stays popular with young

Last month, the National Tax agency made its annual announcement of those paying more than 10 million yen in income tax and, as always, the list reflected major trends of the times.
CULTURE / Art
Jun 6, 2001

Diva serves up rare delights

A one-time teen model turned cyberdiva cum wannabe guru, she is no less than Japan's most celebrated artistic export, represented by the finest galleries in New York and Paris.
JAPAN
Jun 3, 2001

'Miyadaiku' carpenter laments loss of traditional knowledge

HOFU, Yamaguchi Pref. — Shoji Matsuura communicates with the dead.
COMMUNITY
May 20, 2001

Osaka's great, but hold on to your purse

OSAKA -- Osaka produces some of Japan's best comedians, tastiest food and most enterprising businesspeople. But who should really be taking the credit for keeping the prefecture at No. 1 over the past 25 years are its purse-snatchers.
COMMUNITY
May 20, 2001

Kansai dialect survives on CD

OSAKA -- The distinctions are clear, a Kansai native might tell you. To express, for example, "she's not coming" ("kanojo konai" in standard Japanese), Osaka people would say "kanojo kehen," Kyoto people "kanojo kihen" and Kobe people "kanojo kohen."
Events
May 15, 2001

Citizens' group keeps an eye on local politicians

AMAGASAKI, Hyogo Pref. -- The members of local assemblies may play a major role in formulating policies affecting the citizens they represent, but few people have a chance to follow their day-to-day activities.

Longform

Ichiro Suzuki, one of the most iconic players in NPB and MLB history, was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame with 99.7% of the vote.
With Hall of Fame induction, Ichiro makes himself heard loud and clear