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JAPAN
Apr 16, 2001

Noted movie director Teshigahara dies at 74

Hiroshi Teshigahara, film director and "Iemoto" grand master of the Sogetsu school of flower arrangement, died Saturday of acute lymphocytic leukemia at a Tokyo hospital, his family said Sunday. He was 74.
COMMUNITY
Apr 15, 2001

A yen for thrift

There was a time when Japan prided itself on its thriftiness. Hard times after World War II produced the need to save money and cut every corner. Children were taught that each grain of rice was sacred and not to be wasted. Sardines and mackerel were standard fare, beef reserved only for special occasions....
COMMUNITY
Apr 15, 2001

Where the reading's free and easy

As England was once called a nation of shopkeepers, Japan could be called a nation of readers.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Apr 14, 2001

No more excuses for not knowing your fish

Confused by all the different kinds of fish in Japan? I have learned to recognize fish by studying their facial expressions as they lay on my plate. It also helps to know which fish are served in which seasons.
JAPAN
Apr 13, 2001

Ex-politician convicted in loan scam, avoids bars

Former Tokyo Metropolitan Assemblyman Tai Yamazaki was given a suspended 30-month prison term and fined 2.5 million yen Thursday for conspiring with a broker who overcharged for mediating low-interest loans for small businesses.
JAPAN
Apr 13, 2001

Four candidates file for LDP presidency

The Liberal Democratic Party's presidential race kicked into gear Thursday as four big names officially filed their candidacies, supported by their policies to lift the economy out of its rut.
ENVIRONMENT / ANIMAL TRACKER
Apr 13, 2001

Paper wasp

*Japanese name: Futamon ashinagabachi *Scientific name: Polistes chinensis * Description: Paper wasps are social insects, meaning that they live together in a colony. A queen lays eggs, and worker insects feed the larvae. They have yellow and black stripes like regular wasps, but paper wasps are easy...
BUSINESS
Apr 12, 2001

Bank lending falls 3.6%, declining for 39th straight month

The balance of outstanding loans at Japanese banks dropped 3.6 percent in March from a year earlier for the 39th consecutive month of decline, the Bank of Japan said Wednesday.
EDITORIALS
Apr 11, 2001

Peru returns to normalcy

Peru held its first round of presidential elections last weekend as the country begins to emerge from the shambles bequeathed by former President Alberto Fujimori. With left-of-center front-runner Alejandro Toledo unable to claim outright victory, a second round will be held in either May or June.
CULTURE / Film / SHORT TAKES
Apr 11, 2001

Nostalgic views of youth and rebellion

Almost Famous Rating: * * * * Japanese title: 'Ano Kono Penny Lane To' Director:Cameron Crowe Running time: 122 minutes Language: English This spring's pure pop treat is a largely autobiographical tale by Cameron Crowe, a superior piece of '70s nostalgia that deals with his own memories of working...
CULTURE / Film
Apr 11, 2001

Wong for mature audiences

It's quite a feat when an art-house director like Wong Kar-wai can fill a room at the Park Hyatt with more media than, say, Anthony Hopkins for "Hannibal." But that's exactly what he did, accompanied by his two stars, Tony Leung and Maggie Cheung, and it's testament to the director's successful mix of...
CULTURE / Art / CERAMIC SCENE
Apr 11, 2001

Abe's enchanted villa inspires sublime pottery

In peaceful hamlets throughout Japan, local potters work at their own pace while garnering a loyal local following. There are literally thousands of such ceramists, and the serene environment in which they work nurtures and supports their artistic endeavors in subtle ways.
CULTURE / Music / HIGH NOTES
Apr 11, 2001

Goldie

Goldie is a dark angel of drum 'n' bass. His sonic tricks swoop into the listener's consciousness, twisting time and space before rumbling onto the dance floor in a crescendo of breakbeats.
CULTURE / Music / J-POPSICLE
Apr 11, 2001

Trans-Pacific partnership serves up universal sound

A few years back, the big news on the J-pop scene was the "independent producers boom." Following the lead of the then-ubiquitous Tetsuya Komuro, freelance producers such as Takeshi Kobayashi (Mr. Children, My Little Lover), and Hiromasa Ijichi (Speed) were supposed to usher in an era in which a new...
JAPAN
Apr 8, 2001

Big tobacco stamps out antismoking campaigns

A number of prefectural governments have bowed to pressure from the tobacco industry and abandoned or downsized their antismoking campaigns, a Kyodo News poll showed Saturday.
LIFE / Travel
Apr 8, 2001

Float like a mayfly, sting like a bee

With Golden Week only a few weeks off, serious fly-fishing enthusiasts throughout Japan are staying up late tying new flies in preparation. Now is the best time of year for fly-fishing because this is when mayflies, caddisflies and stoneflies start hatching at many rivers across the country, making trout...
COMMUNITY
Apr 8, 2001

Keeping your eyes on the skies

In November 1999, the Leonid meteor storm returned, brighter in the night skies than it had been for 33 years, prompting many to turn out to watch the spectacular celestial show.
LIFE / Food & Drink / VINELAND
Apr 8, 2001

A toast to wine's new world

As recently as the early '90s, consumers in Japan needed perseverance to track down good, affordable wines. Wine was still perceived as a special-occasion beverage, requiring the intervention of an expert in formal attire. Top Tokyo restaurant wine lists revealed an obsession with French trophy wines,...
LIFE / Food & Drink / THE WAY OF WASHOKU
Apr 8, 2001

Rice grains of wisdom

I spent five years cooking in fine dining restaurants in the U.S., and yet I was not quite prepared for life as an apprentice in a Japanese kitchen.
BUSINESS
Apr 8, 2001

Mizuho Financial Group unveils business plans

The Mizuho Financial Group, one of four megabanks created through recent bank mergers, has unveiled business outlines for the two banks it plans to launch in April 2002 after reorganizing its three constituent banks.
JAPAN
Apr 8, 2001

Digital legend aims to fill technology gap with $100 computer

Digital technology is evolving at stunning speed, slashing the prices of all sorts of digital gadgets and linking numerous countries through the ever-growing World Wide Web. But these developments fail to satisfy Kazuhiko Nishi, who wants tools created to tear down the technological and language barriers...
BUSINESS
Apr 7, 2001

Doubts linger over loan disposal

The emergency economic measures unveiled Friday, which focus on reducing banks' sour loans, leave unanswered the key questions that will determine their success.
BUSINESS
Apr 7, 2001

Foreign reserves fall $2.22 billion

Japan's foreign exchange reserves totaled $361.47 billion at the end of March, down $2.22 billion from a month earlier and logging the second straight monthly fall, the Finance Ministry said Friday.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / PERSONALITY PROFILE
Apr 7, 2001

Rebeka Majid

At the beginning of this year, the Asian Ladies Friendship Society was formally renamed the Asia-Pacific Ladies Friendship Society. "This name better reflects the society's present composition," said Mrs. Rebeka Majid, wife of the ambassador of Bangladesh.
COMMENTARY
Apr 6, 2001

Few worthy leaders in LDP

Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori is expected to step down sometime this month, a year after he took office. Widely criticized for his alleged incompetence and lack of qualification for national leadership, Mori is sometimes called Japan's worst postwar prime minister. Even though Mori expressed his apparent...
JAPAN
Apr 6, 2001

Japan Inc. moves toward true accounting of books

The true standing of Japanese firms in relation to their foreign rivals is slowly becoming clear.
SOCCER / J. League
Apr 6, 2001

Super League seen as boost to Asian soccer

Asian Football Confederation general secretary Peter Velappan said in an interview with The Japan Times that the AFC is aiming to boost the sport in the region with the launch of a new Asian Super League and also hopes to bring next year's World Cup cohosts closer together with the establishment of a...
ENVIRONMENT / ANIMAL TRACKER
Apr 6, 2001

Bee-fly

* Japanese name: Birodo tsuriabu

Longform

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