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BASEBALL / SPORTS SCOPE
Sep 16, 2009

Ichiro certain to be a first-ballot Hall of Famer

There were a number of doubters nine years ago when Ichiro Suzuki became the first Japanese position player in Major League Baseball.
Japan Times
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Sep 15, 2009

Community groups provide lifelines in many ways

If you spot a festival or sporting event taking place in your neighborhood, chances are it was organized by the local neighborhood association.
BUSINESS
Sep 15, 2009

'Recession proof' gaming industry now struggling

Despite its reputation for being recession-proof, the domestic video game industry is having a tough time and first-half sales are looking weak, industry experts said Monday.
SOCCER / J. League
Sep 14, 2009

Reds end seven-game losing streak

SAITAMA — Urawa Reds finally snapped their seven-game losing streak on Sunday with a 4-1 win over Montedio Yamagata that was not quite as convincing as the final score might suggest.
COMMENTARY / COUNTERPOINT
Sep 13, 2009

Tanikawa: A master of foreign ways and Japan's most accessible poet

"We must try to explain everything we think to children. . . . Words that are really rooted in the bones of the Japanese people: Those words are accessible."
COMMENTARY
Sep 13, 2009

Political fancies at the Venice Film Festival

VENICE — Often great films tell great political stories. Or, at least they unfold against the backdrop of tumultuous political events. "Gone with a Wind" would never let us forget the American Civil War. "Casablanca" was set against the exodus of hundreds of people fleeing Nazi tyranny to the New World....
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Sep 13, 2009

ANA looks to sky as JAL hangs head

In a TV commercial aired all last summer, airline passengers are shown relaxing when the pilot comes on the PA to make the usual announcement about travel times and weather. Nobody seems alarmed when they learn that the skipper is teen golf sensation Ryo Ishikawa, who isn't old enough to drive a car...
JAPAN
Sep 12, 2009

Nothing was lost in translation in Saitama mugging trial, peers believe

The lay judges in the four-day trial of a 20-year-old Filipino said Friday they felt their new court duty was a valuable experience and, although the defendant's case required translators, no question was left unanswered.
COMMUNITY
Sep 12, 2009

College head finds magic where he can

The Rev. Frank Howell, president of Sophia Junior College, Catholic priest, educator and debate team coach, finds serenity in an unexpected location amid the bustle of his busy life. He hops a train and heads to another land — Tokyo Disneyland.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Sep 11, 2009

Back from extinction

Few rock bands in Japan are as legendary as Unicorn. From their inception in 1986 at the height of Japan's "band boom," which saw the balance of chart power shift from idoru (idol) pop to real bands, through to their split in 1993 and subsequent reunion this year, the Hiroshima five-piece have left a...
CULTURE / Film
Sep 11, 2009

Keeping it plain, simple and brilliant

When one thinks of the grand old men of American cinema, directors who have spanned a few decades and continue to keep up the pace, there are but a handful of names to check.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Sep 11, 2009

The eyes have it in this light show

When you have a venue that provides such ample exhibition space as the National Art Center, Tokyo (NACT), it can be quite a challenge to find a single contemporary artist worthy to fill it. Earlier this year, Hitoshi Nomura, with a long, varied career and many large installations to his name, just about...
COMMENTARY
Sep 10, 2009

Politics and people colliding

The Japanese people have just voted decisively for change. For what kind of change should they now be asking?
COMMENTARY
Sep 10, 2009

Words of wisdom from Hatoyama

It was just this side of comical. The leader of the new ruling party of Japan barely finishes acknowledging his Democratic Party of Japan's landslide win and a public relations disaster strikes. The result: an ignominious international climb-down.
COMMENTARY
Sep 9, 2009

A Spanish medical doctor's African epiphany

I was visiting Rio Muni, the continental half of Equatorial Guinea with some medical colleagues. We were assessing the health situation in the country and we had arrived at Niefang, a small, sparsely populated, neglected town in the interior. The high humidity made the heat even more oppressive.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / WHO'S WHO
Sep 8, 2009

Parisian brings a touch of France to re-emerging Japanese traditions

Staff writer English-teaching? No. Military? No. Corporate transfer? No. None of the usual templates comes close to describing how Maia Maniglier ended up in Japan. Audacious bubble-era corporate recruiting experiment? That might do it.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Voices / VIEWS FROM THE STREET
Sep 8, 2009

How do you feel about Prime Minister Taro Aso being kicked out of power?

BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Sep 6, 2009

Japanese public housing: It's not just for poor people any more

Public housing in Japan might be associated with the boxy kodan apartments, but they've have come a long way. Question is, have they come far enough?
BASKETBALL / BJ-LEAGUE NOTEBOOK
Sep 6, 2009

Two-time MVP Washington re-signs with Evessa

Two-time bj-league MVP Lynn Washington will return to the Osaka Evessa this season, he confirmed on Friday.
COMMENTARY / COUNTERPOINT
Sep 6, 2009

Nosaka's 'Dugout' captures war trauma through a child's eyes

No postwar work of Japanese literature expresses the pity and misery of war for children quite like Akiyuki Nosaka's story of a brother and sister left orphaned and homeless, "Hotaru no Haka" ("Grave of the Fireflies"). Published first in 1967, this novella, which won the prestigious Naoki Prize, was...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / CLOSE-UP
Sep 6, 2009

Donald Keene: A life lived true to the words

Donald Keene is one of the greatest scholars of Japanese literature and has been highly influential in the establishment of Japanese studies in the West.
Japan Times
LIFE / Travel
Sep 6, 2009

Kawasaki's Nihon Minkaen: Traditional folklore in a natural setting

In an article last May 10 introducing the many attractions of Tokyo's neighbor Kawasaki, this writer made a brief reference to the Nihon Minkaen (The Japan Open-Air Folk House Museum) in Tama Ward.
LIFE / Travel
Sep 6, 2009

Kawasaki's Nihon Minkaen: Traditional folklore in a natural setting

In an article last May 10 introducing the many attractions of Tokyo's neighbor Kawasaki, this writer made a brief reference to the Nihon Minkaen (The Japan Open-Air Folk House Museum) in Tama Ward.
Japan Times
Reference / Special Presentations / WITNESS TO WAR
Sep 5, 2009

Ex-army cadet, 81, recalls war mind-set

25th in a series
BUSINESS
Sep 5, 2009

¥5 trillion in stimulus targeted as 'wasteful'

The Democratic Party of Japan may redeploy as much as ¥5 trillion in stimulus spending currently earmarked for "wasteful" programs, party lawmaker Hirohisa Fujii said.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Sep 4, 2009

First lady grabs spotlight with spiritual quirks

The next prime minister is known for being bland in his speeches. His wife, however, is anything but.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Sep 4, 2009

The ins and outs of competitive art shows

Michiyo Yamanaka probably devoted several weeks to creating the three abstract paintings she entered in this year's Nikaten, one of Japan's oldest and largest competitive art exhibitions. Heaven forbid she ever finds out how long it took the judges to condemn her efforts to oblivion: 18 seconds.

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