Tag - downtown

 
 

DOWNTOWN

Hitoshi Matsumoto (left) and his Downtown comedy partner, Masatoshi Hamada, at an event in 2014
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Dec 27, 2023
Popular Japanese comedian denies sexual assault allegations
The talent agency of Hitoshi Matsumoto, one half of the duo Downtown, said it is considering legal action over the report.
Japan Times
CULTURE / TV & Streaming
Jun 6, 2019
Japan's king of comedy, Yoshimoto Kogyo's Hiroshi Osaki, expands his realm
It has been 10 years since Hiroshi Osaki took the reins at Yoshimoto Kogyo, and in that time Japan's oldest and arguably most influential entertainment agency has veered down several different paths. While comedy remains at the forefront of the company's activities, as it has for over a century, these days it's about much more than just promoting and showcasing owarai geinin (comedy performers).
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / 20 QUESTIONS
Nov 11, 2017
Hiroyuki Shimizu: Tasty tips from a mobile deep-fried chicken cook
Tokyo street vendor on flexibility, lines for food and missing underwear.
JAPAN
Feb 19, 2015
TBS apologizes again for show's seemingly disparaging content
TBS television has apologized again for airing seeimngly inappropriate content in a January program.
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Dec 22, 2014
The annual pain and pleasure of punished comedians
Japan is a country of traditions. You take off your shoes when you go indoors. You rinse your body before entering the bath. And you sit around the house with family on Ōmisoka (大晦日, New Year's Eve) and do nothing but watch television and eat food before going to the jinja (神社, shrine) at midnight.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / CLOSE-UP
Oct 5, 2013
Downtown comedian Hitoshi Matsumoto leans from TV to film
The Downtown comedy duo — comprising Hitoshi Matsumoto and Masatoshi Hamada — are sitting on a train speeding towards Narita Airport outside Tokyo. It's not like they're going anywhere, or doing anything, even — they're just sitting there and waiting for something to happen. "Something" in this case is a gag carefully engineered in advance by their team of comedian acolytes.

Longform

Later this month, author Shogo Imamura will open Honmaru, a bookstore that allows other businesses to rent its shelves. It's part of a wave of ideas Japanese booksellers are trying to compete with online spaces.
The story isn't over for Japan's bookstores