Issues | THE FOREIGN ELEMENT Dec 23, 2013
Secrets, lies, gaffes, glory: 2013 in quotes
A mix of scandals, achievements, political missteps and commemorations highlighted 2013. Here's a rundown of the quotations that shaped the Year of the Snake.
National / Media Aug 12, 2012
Fading shades of pink
At its peak of popularity roughly four decades ago, the form of soft-core pornography known as pinku eiga (pink films) utilized more than 1,000 theaters to screen short, low-budget, erotic films churned out mainly by independent studios. "Around each station of private rail lines there ...
Life | WEEK 3 May 20, 2012
The sky's the limit
After the Great East Japan Earthquake on March 11 last year, the performance of the spectacularly tall Tokyo Sky Tree going up in the capital's downtown Sumida Ward became a subject of heightened interest to experts, residents and the general public alike. Tobu Tower Sky ...
National / Media Feb 26, 2012
AV stars out to play despite hard times
Since her steamy debut in late 2008, adult-video (AV) actress Kokomi Naruse has starred in hundreds of features, many of which find her playing a young girl desired by older men. But after taking the Best Actress title at this year's Sky PerfecTV! Adult Broadcasting ...
Issues | THE ZEIT GIST Mar 22, 2011
A dispatch from the disaster zone
I cannot recall ever attempting to take gasoline from a car by sucking through a rubber hose. But on Monday last week there I was, standing in a dirt parking lot while contemplating proper tube diameter to access the tank of our Toyota Belta ...
Music Oct 8, 2010
Fantastic plastic: Last vinyl presser hosts exam on the record
There are still those for whom the world spins at exactly 33 revolutions per minute. Digital MP3 downloads and YouTube videos may now be the formats of choice in the home and clubs, but the sound of a cartridge needle riding over the groove ...
National / Media Sep 26, 2010
Yakuza groups shoveled aside by Japan's frustrated contractors
News organizations have consistently celebrated the steady rise of the Tokyo Sky Tree in Tokyo's Sumida Ward. Yet the most interesting aspect to the building project, set to reach a height of 634 meters, might be taking place at ground level. At the base of ...
National / Media Aug 1, 2010
Historic 'pink' theater hopes to put ladies on seats, not just screens
The Kabuki-za theater in Ginza is not the only notable Tokyo structure dating back to the 1950s that has shut its doors this year. With large illuminated lettering affixed to its pasty white facade proclaiming "Adult movies," the all-night Ueno Okura Theater, located in Taito ...
Music / Concert Previews May 7, 2010
Tortoise
Tortoise's blending of dub, electronica and jazz over its two decades in existence has established the instrumental five-piece as the band that brought progressive rock into the present. Yet 2009's "Beacons of Ancestorship" sees the Chicago-based band, which will appear in Japan for two ...
Culture Aug 28, 2009
Cheeky for charity
It is no surprise that an adult entertainment broadcaster would be concerned about the spread of the HIV virus and AIDS. But for one satellite channel in Japan known for silly parodies and wacky porn programming, that concern goes beyond immediate commercial interests — ...