Just audible under the cheers that greeted the birth of the new princess was the tip-tapping of bored fingers coming from the direction of the "wide shows," where smiling faces and mandatory keigo barely masked acute impatience. Nine months of being forced to keep quiet about the crown princess's pregnancy does not a happy media make.

So it was with uncommon glee that the tabloid press greeted the news that their old nemesis Sachiyo "Satchy" Nomura was wanted on charges of tax evasion. Most scandal reporters had been anticipating Satchy's downfall ever since last summer, when her son, Kenny, published a memoir, "Goodbye, Mammy" (which sounds like an Al Jolson tribute), describing his mother's fiscal and maternal sins in tear-stained detail. It was only a matter of time, but coming as it does right now the media surely must have seen her fall as a Christmas bonus.

Their relief at finally having a great story was offset somewhat by a sad, sobering truth: They won't have Satchy to kick around any more. Because whatever fate awaits her at the hands of the folks in the tax bureau, her career as Japan's most famous harridan is no longer tenable. Though she will always remain No. 1 in the hearts of scandalmongers nationwide, Satchy herself can no longer be allowed within the hallowed halls of medialand except as a metaphor.