Geisha Kitten News Spot

American talento Dante Carver (33), best known for his ongoing role in the Softbank TV commercials, is getting a different kind of publicity since his romance with fashion model Matsumoto Akiko (23) was revealed at the weekend. Kobe native Matsumoto graduated from university last year and moved to Tokyo. A former reader-turned-model for the fashion magazines "ViVi" and "CanCam," she now runs her own online fashion store, HerraDura. The pair have been spotted...

Voice actor Minoru Shiraishi to race against anime staff, cast for publicity

Staffer Yōko Ihira also outlines publicity for 2010's Karigurashi no Arrietty film

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

Video from Korean pop group Wonder Girls’ official Youtube channel, a mash-up of their performances as opening act for the Jonas Brothers’ concert at the Nassau Coliseum in Uniondale, New York on July 19-21…

Seems like the Wonder Girls are performing Nobody, Nobody and Nobody besides “Nobody” throughout the tour so far. Seriously, aren’t they going to sing another song? An English version of “Tell Me” perhaps?

The girls are obviously getting noticed, for good or bad, among Jonas fans. But if they want to get bigger publicity in the US, they need something more than just singing the same old song with the same old look for two long months.

Wonder Girls live at Jonas Brothers’ New York concert from YeinJee's Asian Blog

X Japan do like to play publicity games, and I have to wonder if their hugely loyal fans treat it as a game or not. Yesterday, just two days before they are scheduled to play two nights at Tokyo Dome, the band finally announced that bassist Heath will take part. Any issues between Heath and the other members of the band - they are all with separate management - have been put aside for the moment. The official story was that he was having an "internal struggle about the direction of his musical career" and he cut himself off from everyone. One real casualty of this was a pair of scheduled shows in Korea on March 21-22, which were indefinitely postponed. With the show said to be costing ¥3 billion to stage and all 100,000 tickets selling out within minutes of their release in March, a cancellation would have sent fans into a frenzy. Meanwhile, the worst-kept secret in J-rock was put to rest as...

Another big showbiz wedding was announced yesterday. Following actress Miyazawa Rie's good news at the weekend, it was the turn of comedian Gekidan Hitori (32) and talento Ohsawa Akane (23). The couple have been quite public about the relationship for some time and the news that they tied the knot on February 16 came as no surprise. They are scheduled to make a formal announcement at a hotel press conference in Tokyo this afternoon. Ohsawa, the grand-daughter of charismatic former baseball player and manager Ohsawa Keiji (76), has been in the limelight since becoming a model at the age of three. A few years ago she switched to TV, helped mainly her by relationship with a popular comedian who got caught up in a rape scandal (story). She played the story for laughs and the wave of publicity helped her gain a foothold in the TV variety circuit. She hinted at the marriage earlier this month during a launch event for her autobiography, while her new husband is already an accomplished writer. Real name Kawashima Shougo, he is the son of a...