Geisha Kitten News Spot

Rumours are flying around that Chinese actress Zhang Ziyi and billionaire boyfriend Vivi Nevo are separated for around two months.

Rumours of their separation began in April when it was revealed that the couple has delayed their August wedding indefinitely, with Ziyi’s working schedule cited as the major reason.

The couple had kept a high profile relationship since seeing each other in 2007, but was not spotted together in public events for the past few months while Ziyi was busy filming her latest film Sophie Revenge.

In the past Vivi Nevo would pay Ziyi some visits even if she was working, but not the case here. It’s also said that he is not attending the movie premier (next week if not mistaken), which if true could be a huge indicator of their relationship.

Some netizens are speculating that the saga is a disguised promotion for the new movie, but I think Zhang Ziyi is famous enough to not need this stuff for publicity.

Rumours will remain as rumours until proven; but it’s rare that tabloids are pounding on the same old news for months without having decent sources to fuel their speculations… and quite often these rumours would turn factual in the end.

Zhang Ziyi and Vivi Nevo heading for splitsville? from YeinJee's Asian Blog

Rumours are flying around that Chinese actress Zhang Ziyi and billionaire boyfriend Vivi Nevo are separated for around two months.

Rumours of their separation began in April when it was revealed that the couple has delayed their August wedding indefinitely, with Ziyi’s working schedule cited as the major reason.

The couple had kept a high profile relationship since seeing each other in 2007, but was not spotted together in public events for the past few months while Ziyi was busy filming her latest film Sophie Revenge.

In the past Vivi Nevo would pay Ziyi some visits even if she was working, but not the case here. It’s also said that he is not attending the movie premier (next week if not mistaken), which if true could be a huge indicator of their relationship.

Some netizens are speculating that the saga is a disguised promotion for the new movie, but I think Zhang Ziyi is famous enough to not need this stuff for publicity.

Rumours will remain as rumours until proven; but it’s rare that tabloids are pounding on the same old news for months without having decent sources to fuel their speculations… and quite often these rumours would turn factual in the end.

[update] Zhang has denied the rumour on the press screening on July 9.

Zhang Ziyi and Vivi Nevo heading for splitsville? from YeinJee's Asian Blog

Magazine scan of Japanese voice actress Aya Hirano, about her photoshoot in Malaysia last December which created quite a buzz among Malaysian netizens.

The photos (or probably in videos) are included in Hirano’s “I Love You” DVD which was released in March 2009… [image via Sushipafu]

Read the rest of this post »

Aya Hirano’s special photo in Malaysia from YeinJee's Asian Blog

There are debates running on some Singapore forums lately about the revealing dress of actress Joanne Peh on a cooking show [more on Divaasia]

The actress was dressed in a low-cut halter-neck print dress on the TV show, which at first glance kinda looked like a bikini (because of the apron)…

While some netizens were criticising her outfit as distracting and too revealing, there are others who cheered it on, saying that Singaporeans are being too conservative.

Personally I think it’s not a matter of sexy or revealing, but appropriateness. I wonder if she would wear similar outfit if she’s cooking at home… and that’s probably the answer to whether the dress was appropriate for a cooking show or not.

I know there are lots of cooking shows where celebrity guests would don in revealing outfits on consistent basis, especially in some cheapskate Japanese and Taiwanese variety shows. But when it comes to a genuine culinary show, I would rather have the guests focusing on their cooking skills (or no-skills) instead.

Am I being too conservative? Hmmm…

Joanne Peh… too sexy to cook? by YeinJee

Khmer version of “Nobody” by Cambodian quartet RHM, originally sang by Korean pop group Wonder Girls. Not only did they copy (without permission) the song, but the choreography and outfits are almost identical too…

JYP Entertainment (WG’s agency) has confirmed that it’s plagiarism and is now seeking legal actions against the copycats. It’s said that there are other pirated versions in Chinese and Thai… but the Khmer version is the only one I found on Youtube.

Most netizens, presumably K-pop (and/or WG’s) fans are bashing the Cambodian act; blogger Brian shared some different thoughts though, that Koreans themselves are questionable for their copycat works over the years.

Set the legal issue aside, I actually giggled watching the video… not sure why.

Cambodian does WonderGirls’s Nobody… facing lawsuit by YeinJee

A Chinese TV station is set to produce “Meteor Shower”, a drama series suspiciously plagiarising on Japanese manga “Hana yori Dango” (花より男子).

The producers claimed that the drama is not based on the original manga; it’s true that they are changing the drama title, the names of the main leads, the name of the school, the time frame and probably some of the plots… but the whole setting (with the trademark four boys and a girl cast etc.) looks seriously dubious.

Besides, the TV station has been promoting the drama as the new “Meteor Garden” (title of the Taiwanese adaptation) for months… it’s a self confession that the drama is based on the manga in some sense. If the new drama is not related to the manga at all, the TV station is still at fault for exploiting the manga for promotion purpose.

There are a few (genuine) versions of drama adaptation of Yoko Kamio’s popular manga. Taiwanese first made Meteor Garden in 2001, followed by Japan’s “Hana yori Dango” in 2005, and Korea’s “Boys Before Flower” which is currently on air.

Both the Taiwanese (Mandarin) and Japanese dramas were critical success, while the Korean drama is red hot at the moment. The Chinese would have welcome their own edition of Hana yori Dango, but sadly they are getting some bizarre mixture which borders on plagiarism instead.

It’s not the first time Chinese TV stations are using similar tactics to ‘remake’ foreign drama series, but there are some positive signs from the public as some Chinese netizens are beginning to ditch these kind of practices.

Chinese TV station to plagiarise Hana yori Dango by YeinJee

It has been a frenzy week for Chinese actress Zhang Ziyi, as her topless and rather intimating sunbathing photos were exposed online… prompting wild debates among netizens, Chinese netizens in particular.

The paparazzi pics were taken while Ziyi was on the Caribbean island of St. Barts with her boyfriend Vivi Nevo. It’s said to be a private beach, but it doesn’t matter if it’s private or public… it’s a violation of privacy regardless.

Unfortunately the word privacy is no longer relevant in Hollywood… I think most of the western stars have got used to being hunt down by cameras where ever they go; and if they are getting naked on beaches… they should know what’s coming next.

What’s funny (or perhaps saddening on different perspective) is the responses from the Chinese public about the issue. While there were some folks who showed sympathy for Ziyi, lots of the online comments were rather harsh on the couple.

How is it supposed to be a national shame for topless sunbathing? How is it supposed to be a shame for canoodling with a man of different skin colour? How is it supposed to be a shame if she doesn’t have a 36D figure?

I guess there are too many jealous Chinese men around who are depressed that they couldn’t get a blonde girlfriend while seeing their top star taken by a white dude. I wonder what would be their responses if there’s a top Chinese male star caught sunbathing with a blonde on the beach… jumping in joy?

Zhang Ziyi’s topless sunbathing photos saga by YeinJee

Malaysian otakus had made an epic hunt on New Year Eve for Japanese star Aya Hirano when it was discovered that the popular seiyu (voice actress) was in Kuala Lumpur for some filming and photo-shooting.

The news was broke loose by a blogger and passed on to various forums, including the popular LYN which prompted the hectic ‘hunt’ for her where-about via the photos she posted on her online diary.

While most of the forum comments were made for the lulz; some of the folks seemed to take the manhunt a bit too seriously… regardless, the search ended hours later when it was found out that Hirano was already back to Japan when the search party was started… lol, an epic fail which provides the final bit of 2008 entertainment for Malaysian netizens.

On side note, that’s a really cute picture of Aya Hirano in a traditional Malay costume. Forget about bikinis… do more traditional stuff instead :)

The epic Malaysian hunt for Aya Hirano by YeinJee

Chinese actress Gong Li is officially a Singaporean after taking an oath and collected her Singapore identity card last Saturday (Nov 8).

The 43-year-old actress was supposed to collect her identity card on August 23, but failed to show up because she was filming a movie overseas. Her no show irked some Singaporeans who felt that she was disrespecting her new country… but it’s all history now.

Gong Li is married to a Singaporean businessman since 1996, so the switch of citizenship is not entirely surprising. Both China and Singapore do not recognise dual nationality, which literally means that she would have to renounce her Chinese citizenship.

Chinese netizens are generally unhappy about the news… lots of them are criticising Gong Li’s decision, while some are sharing concerns that this would become a trend among popular artists and younger generations.

Some netizens are showing support Gong Li though, stating that it’s her freedom to choose her own path; a few also stated that they would also like to migrate out of China if given the chances.

Gong Li officially a Singapore citizen by YeinJee

A Japanese man has recently started an online petition to urge the government to legalise marriage with a two-dimensional (i.e. anime and comics) character… more than 2400 netizens have signed the petition so far.

The fella states that he is no longer interested with real three dimensional world, but wants to become an inhabitant of a two-dimensional world. He reckons though, that it’s impossible to achieve his dream with present day technology… thus thinking of the possibility to legalise marriage with a two-dimensional character instead.

He also said that he would like to marry Asahina Mikuru (pic) from popular Japanese anime/manga “The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya” [via Gaijinheart]

Japanese man petitions to marry anime character by YeinJee