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Japan Times
LIFE / Lifestyle / CHILD'S PLAY
Dec 16, 2018

Programming: A code for fun and games

The world of programming not only has countless educational benefits for kids, but it can also be an impressive creative outlet.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Dec 11, 2018

After quake, Hokkaido tourist sites promote safety of winter events

Tourist sites in Hokkaido are coming up with creative solutions to bring foreign visitors back to their events this winter — the busiest season of the year — while also promoting safety.
Japan Times
JAPAN / FOCUS
Dec 11, 2018

Aging Japan: Neighboring suburbs face divergent futures as one grays, another grows

Katsuya Kodama's wife died two years ago, and the 77-year-old keeps her ashes on a Buddhist altar in their suburban home outside Tokyo.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Dec 10, 2018

Australian competition watchdog calls for a new regulatory body to tackle dominance of Google and Facebook

Australia's competition watchdog Monday recommended tougher scrutiny and a new regulatory body to check the dominance of tech giants Facebook Inc. and Alphabet Inc.'s Google in the country's online advertising and news markets.
COMMUNITY / Voices / OVERHEARD
Dec 8, 2018

A leg to stand on

'Where are you right now? Let's meet for a drink at Flamingos!'
Japan Times
WORLD
Dec 7, 2018

Enter the Bull: Fighters mix kung fu with bullfighting in China

Several times a week, kung fu teacher Ren Ruzhi enters a ring to spar with a bovine opponent around five times his weight and capable of killing him.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music / Sound Off
Dec 6, 2018

Bridges built by the power of K-pop and J-pop

This year hasn't been a particularly warm one for the relationship between Japan and South Korea. Ongoing tension stemming from Japan's colonization of its neighbor up to the end of World War II — and efforts to complicate what happened during this period — have bubbled up once again, affecting everything...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Stage
Dec 4, 2018

On the road to new experiences, post-SMAP, with Tsuyoshi Kusanagi

It has been almost two years since pop group SMAP split up, but its demise after over two decades at the forefront of entertainment in Japan is still fresh in everyone's memory.
CULTURE / Entertainment news
Dec 4, 2018

U.S. radio station freezes out holiday song 'Baby It's Cold Outside' over lyrics deemed inappropriate to women

A U.S. radio station is giving the cold shoulder to the classic "Baby It's Cold Outside," removing the song from its lineup of holiday music because its lyrics are inappropriate toward women, staff members say.
JAPAN / Media / Japan Pulse
Dec 1, 2018

Netflix hopes to attract new anime fans with old favorites

After launching in Japan in September 2015, Netflix has aggressively gone after the nation’s streaming market with an array of content. Original programming such as “Aggretsuko,” “Terrace House” and a reboot of “Ainori” have helped capture the attention of many cordcutters who want the...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Nov 27, 2018

Katherine Waterston discusses making magic in 'Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald'

From the get-go, "Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald" makes it clear that the new installment of J.K. Rowling's "Fantastic Beasts" franchise will be gloomier and heavier than the first film, a playful romp set in New York during the age of jazz.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books
Nov 24, 2018

'The Frolic of the Beasts': A Mishima classic, roused from its long hibernation

Andrew Clare has published an impressive array of translations of novels by Japanese authors, all while putting in long hours at the corporate coalface. Now, Clare is launching his translation — the first in English — of a classic, but little-known, Yukio Mishima novel, 'The Frolic of the Beasts.'
Japan Times
JAPAN
Nov 24, 2018

As Osaka basks in glow of successful 2025 Expo bid, economic concerns move to the forefront

After Osaka wins the right to hold the event, questions about costs and integrated casino resorts come to the fore.
Japan Times
LIFE / Lifestyle / CHILD'S PLAY
Nov 18, 2018

From Christmas markets to skating, 'tis the season to be jolly

For many in Japan, Christmas is about romantic dinners, frosted pastries and fried chicken, but in Tokyo, there are plenty of other ways to get into the Christmas spirit.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Nov 17, 2018

Mariya Takeuchi: The pop genius behind 2018's surprise online smash hit from Japan

On the 40th anniversary of singer-songwriter Mariya Takeuchi's debut, The Japan Times sits down with the musician responsible for such classics as 'Sutekina Holiday,' 'September' and the track that has taken the internet by storm, 'Plastic Love.'
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music / Sound Off
Nov 15, 2018

Don't worry too much over BTS

Throngs of fans packed Tokyo Dome on Tuesday and Wednesday to watch K-pop group BTS perform songs from across its five-year career. The crowd cheered, bought merchandise and the two days offered the seven-member group some respite from a week of scandal.
Japan Times
Nov 15, 2018

QBIT Robotics enters into a business and capital tie-up with UCC Holdings

Joint proposal for providing robot café service in Japan
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Nov 13, 2018

Deaf filmmaker Emilio Insolera flexes his superpowers with 'Sign Gene'

Emilio Insolera's "Sign Gene" gave the world its first deaf superheroes. But after writing, directing, producing and starring in the film himself, you might argue that Insolera is the one with the superpowers.
Japan Times
WORLD
Nov 10, 2018

Northern California fire, one of worst in state history, leaves at least nine dead

Wildfires burned out of control on Friday across California, killing at least nine people in a mountain town and forcing residents to flee the upscale beach community of Malibu in the face of a monster fire storm.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Nov 9, 2018

Department store Takashimaya joins new venture in Bangkok as it looks beyond traditional domestic sales model

Boxed in by a shrinking domestic market and consumer preferences shifting toward online shopping, the only way for Japanese department stores — as well as the broader retail sector — to survive is to get a slice of fast growing markets overseas, especially in neighboring countries.
Japan Times
WORLD
Nov 7, 2018

China gaming giant Tencent to verify all players' identities by 2019

Tencent Holdings Ltd. will expand its age-verification system to encompass its entire games lineup, the firm has announced, in an unprecedented response to growing criticism that it encourages addiction among youths.
Japan Times
MORE SPORTS
Nov 5, 2018

Boxer Floyd Mayweather joins RIZIN

Floyd Mayweather has won world titles in five different weight classes and is 50-0 in an unparalleled boxing career, but the American could be set for a stunning detour into the world of mixed martial arts after signing with Japanese promoters RIZIN Fighting Federation.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books
Nov 3, 2018

From vulnerability to violence, Yukiko Motoya enchants with ‘The Lonesome Bodybuilder’

Like a bouquet of exotic flowers, the stories in 'The Lonesome Bodybuilder' are varied and full of surprise, starting out with mundane situations and then turning strange in a way that feels uniquely Japanese.

Longform

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