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Japan Times
LIFE
Nov 12, 2006

Serious toys for serious fans

Ultraman is often cited as an example of just how different the Japanese outlook is from that of Westerners. While the bug-like eyes and clingy bodysuit of the hero himself may strike the uninitiated as ridiculous, it is the outlandish aspect of the monsters from whose wrath Ultraman is perpetually saving...
Japan Times
LIFE
Nov 12, 2006

Alien star flies off the shelves

Children's books typically feature anything from frogs or cats or pigs to dinosaurs and sometimes even people. Those authored by Tatsuya Miyanishi have all those -- but he's also written several books featuring Ultraman.
Japan Times
LIFE / Style & Design / COUNTER CULTURE
Nov 10, 2006

Gucci hits Ginza

Gucci's new home in Tokyo is the first store built specifically to house the Italian superbrand. Last week, Gucci opened the doors of an eight-story glass-and-steel flagship store in Ginza.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Nov 10, 2006

Zoobombs redefine borderline pop

There's a story behind every song -- but like all tales, some are more compelling than others.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Nov 9, 2006

The art of the machine

The phenomenal success of MTV's "Pimp my Ride," a show in which everyday folk have their unglamorous vehicles jazzed up with chrome wheels, fancy paint jobs and state-of-the-art sound systems, has sparked huge interest in the art and practice of motor-vehicle customization. So it wasn't long before a...
Japan Times
ENVIRONMENT / ANIMAL TRACKER
Nov 8, 2006

Chiton

* Japanese name: Hizara-gai * Scientific name: Acanthopleura japonica * Description: Chitons are mollusks, not bivalves like mussels, but single-shelled animals like limpets. To the casual observer, though, these creatures, which grow to about 4-cm long, might not be noticed, as they blend in extremely...
CULTURE / TV & Streaming / CHANNEL SURF
Nov 5, 2006

NHK's "Tsurube no Kazoku ni Kanpai," "Chikyu Dramatic" and more

This week, NHK's travel show "Tsurube no Kazoku ni Kanpai" (Tsurube Toasts Families; NHK-G, Monday, 8 p.m.) begins a two-part series on a trip to Ishikawa prefecture.
Japan Times
LIFE / Travel / WALKING THE WARDS
Nov 3, 2006

A wave to Setagaya

Home to approximately one tenth of the total citizenry of all of Tokyo's 23 wards, Setagaya houses 800,000 people, the same figure as the population for the entire island of Oahu, Hawaii. At both places, people seem to have come in waves.
CULTURE / Music
Nov 3, 2006

DJ Shadow "The Outsider"

Whereas DJ Shadow's two previous full-lengths, "Endtroducing" (1996) and 2002's "Private Press," were largely instrumental affairs, mishmashing an array of obscure samples into electronic and hip-hop minisymphonies, "The Outsider" is his first stab at making a more conventional rap and pop album.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Nov 2, 2006

Make the most of this year's celebration of practical art

Once again, Tokyo welcomes the design world with open arms into its streets, shops, cafes and galleries -- all under the umbrella of Tokyo Design Week, which encompasses four different yet complementary events: Tokyo Designer's Week, 100% Design Tokyo, Design Tide and Swedish Style.
BUSINESS
Nov 1, 2006

Toshiba doubles net profit on chip, LCD demand

Toshiba Corp. on Tuesday reported 38.8 billion yen in group net profit for the first half of fiscal 2006, more than double from last year, thanks to robust earnings in semiconductor and liquid crystal display businesses and a one-time gain on sales of fixed assets.
Japan Times
LIFE / Lifestyle
Oct 31, 2006

Slow food, an attitude as much as a meal

In the 1960s, Japan's first instant ramen changed people's eating habits significantly by making it possible to get dinner in as little as three minutes. Even putting fast food and microwave dinners aside, eating has become easier and more functional since those days, due either to higher living standards...
CULTURE / TV & Streaming / CHANNEL SURF
Oct 29, 2006

TV Asahi's "Quiz Presentation Variety Q-sama," Fuji's "Kinyo Prestige" and more

SLack of imagination has not stopped TV producers from coming up with new outlets for all the comedians looking for work. Every week TV Asahi's variety show "Quiz Presentation Variety Q-sama" (Mon., 8 p.m.) offers about a dozen comedians and other tarento the opportunity to present their own quizzes,...
BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball
Oct 28, 2006

Morimoto caught up in moment

SAPPORO -- Hichori Morimoto is no Doug Mientkiewicz.
CULTURE / Music / THE SECOND ROOM
Oct 27, 2006

Psychedelic radar 10.27

Saturday, Oct. 28
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Oct 27, 2006

Mobile locks up, allows tracking if it strays

A new mobile phone in Japan locks automatically when its owner moves too far away and can be found via satellite navigation if it is missing.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art / NEW ART SEEN
Oct 26, 2006

Slow-motion revelations

A group of people who do not know one another, but are united in a common purpose -- possibly waiting for a bus -- stand together in a tightly cropped long shot. One is reading a book, another is listening to music through headphones. There are the young and old; whites, blacks, Hispanics and Asians;...
Japan Times
ENVIRONMENT / ANIMAL TRACKER
Oct 25, 2006

Wide-abdomen mantid

* Japanese name: Harabiro-kamakiri * Scientific name: Hierodula patellifera * Description: There are several species of praying mantids in Japan, and this is one of the smaller-sized ones. Males grow to between 45-65 mm long, with the females a bit bigger at 52-70 mm. Interestingly, it comes in two...
Japan Times
LIFE / Style & Design
Oct 24, 2006

Sony's Aquos line, Kaichiro Yamada's Tatami chair, Tokujin Yoshioka's PANE chair, MSG's Kakehouki broom

Slim and sleek
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Oct 20, 2006

An intro to Tokyo's film fest

The Tokyo International Film Festival, Japan's biggest, glitziest film fest, opens Saturday, Oct. 21, and runs for nine days at Toho Cinemas Roppongi Hills in Roppongi, Bunkamura in Shibuya and other venues around the city. The selection is huge, beginning with the four main sections: the Competition,...
Japan Times
LIFE / Lifestyle
Oct 17, 2006

Visiting a theme park sure beats working, unless . . .

Japan has lots of young people who are out of work or not even in the hunt for a job. The government estimates that 850,000 people, from teens through to their 30s, fall into the category of NEET (Not in Education, Employment or Training). Then there are the "freeters," youths who only work odd jobs...
Japan Times
LIFE / WEEK 3
Oct 15, 2006

Last rites for the memories as beloved dolls pass away

An opulent pair of Hime daruma prince and princess dolls from Ehime Prefecture in Shikoku has graced the living room of Tamiko Okamoto's home in Funabashi, Chiba Prefecture, since 1964. A wedding gift from a close friend, the dolls, side by side in a glass case, had been part of the family for all those...
Japan Times
LIFE / WEEK 3
Oct 15, 2006

Top trimmer styles two leaders in a row

Japan's new prime minister, Shinzo Abe, has declared he will continue his predecessor's reform policies. That's hardly a surprise, as Abe was Chief Cabinet Secretary under former leader Junichiro Koizumi, and before that was secretary general of the Liberal Democratic Party when Koizumi was its president....
Japan Times
LIFE / WEEK 3
Oct 15, 2006

Intimacy crusader strives to rekindle Japan's fires of marital passion

At first glance, 46-year-old Mayumi Futamatsu looks like a regular housewife. But as someone who's "seen both heaven and hell" in her two marriages, she's a woman with a mission to help all women to be happy -- through having better sex lives.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / PERSONALITY PROFILE
Oct 14, 2006

Tetsuya Noda

The College Women's Association of Japan is holding its 51st Annual Print Show Oct. 20 to 22 at the Tokyo American Club. As well as exhibiting 211 new prints, the show features demonstrations, activities and lectures, and an associate show focusing on two young prize-winning women.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Oct 13, 2006

G. Love and Special Sauce

Comprising guitarist Garret Dutton (Mr. G. Love himself), upright bassist Jimmie Prescott (Jimi Jazz) and drummer Jeffrey Clemens (Houseman), Philadelphia's G. Love & Special Sauce first began turning heads with the release of their nearly gold-certified, 1994 self-titled debut. Incorporating a mish-mash...
Events / Events Outside Tokyo
Oct 13, 2006

Ensemble puts a new spin on the traditional

The Roppongi-based International House of Japan will hold a concert on Oct. 20 to mark the completion of the renovation of its new hall. The music ensemble Ora-J will perform as part of the IHJ Concert Series, "The Traditional & Contemporary in the Present," that features Japanese music performed by...

Longform

Construction takes place on the Takanawa Gateway Convention Center in Tokyo, slated to open in 2025.
A boom for business tourism in Japan?