Kaori Manabe recommences blogging

Kaori Manabe

TOKYO — Kaori Manabe, Japan’s blog queen, on Tuesday started blogging again after an absence of over a year. Manabe stopped updating her popular blog in January of last year before closing the site down in October.

Sources close to the television personality and model say that when Manabe was updating her blog regularly, page views surpassed 100,000 per day. Even after she stopped updating her blog, Manabe’s homepage still received 70,000 hits every day.

The same sources say that the pressure on Manabe to resume blogging was great and that she wanted a way to reply to the fans who had supported her all along. She was also deluged with offers from sponsors and hosting companies encouraging her to maintain her
following and continue blogging.

Manabe’s exit from the world of blogging coincided with the expiration of her contract with talent management agency Avilla, with whom she was in a dispute over her contract conditions. Manabe’s return to blogging coincided with her 31st birthday on Tuesday. Her new blog is hosted by Livedoor.

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Marie broadcasts fashion show live on Twitter

Marie

TOKYO — TV personality and model Marie held Japan’s first Twitter fashion show in Tokyo, starting at the X-girl store in Jingumae, on this week. Marie, 23, appeared at the bustling store on Tuesday, as well as two other locations wearing a white t-shirt (9,240 yen), a denim skirt (13,440 yen) and seven other pieces.

Marie simultaneously shared photos of 14 outfits live on Twitter, including short messages to explain “fashion points.”

“It was great to be able to see feedback on the screen immediately,” she said. As for the brand, Marie added, “You can wear these garments a number of ways. They are feminine but they can be worn as part of a casual outfit too.

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Christel Takigawa launches new book on why she loves Paris

Christel Takigawa

TOKYO — French-Japanese newscaster Christel Takigawa, 33, held a talk show to launch her new book this week at the Marunouchi branch of Maruzen bookstore. The book is titled “Reasons to Love: The Lifestyles of My Favorite Parisiennes.”

The book describes Takigawa’s favorite aspects of life in Paris, where both she and her father were born. Takigawa told the audience how she gleaned so much information from simply visiting the city’s markets and restaurants, and from interviewing its female politicians. The book also attempts to convey a sense of Parisian approaches to work, elegance and decision-making.

Takigawa said she recently visited several of the areas worst hit by the earthquake and tsunami of March 11, including the town of Minamisanriku. Having seen the devastation with her own eyes, she said she has decided to donate part of the proceeds from her book to earthquake charities.

The book costs 1,600 yen

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Yukina Kinoshita announces end of blog

Yukina Kinoshita

TOKYO — TV personality Yukina Kinoshita, 23, announced on April 25 that she is to close her popular blog. Kinoshita had been blogging about everyday life since Jan 21 this year on a web page titled “Cinderella Story.”

It is believed that Kinoshita plans to continue to update a weblog that is accessible only to paying fan club members. In a blog post titled “To Everyone,” Kinoshita announced the end of her public blog and uploaded two pictures of herself alongside her comedian husband Toshifumi Fujimoto, 40, half of comedy duo Fujiwara, to whom she was married in February of this year.

In response to fan comments asking her to continue, she replied, “I always planned to blog for a limited period and I have written with that in mind, so I will be quitting.” When another commenter accused her of failing to satisfy her fans, she replied, “I’m sorry and I’m very grateful to my fans.”

She left her readers with the message, “Being nice is the most important thing. Take care not to hurt anyone, even if you think you are not doing so.

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Noriko Sakai in China for anti-drug campaign

Noriko Sakai

TOKYO — Actress Noriko Sakai, 40, who was sentenced to 18 months in prison, suspended for three years, in 2009 on charges of drug use and possession, has been in China for the past few days to promote an anti-drug campaign.

The Chinese government reportedly requested the actress specifically because of her personal run-in with the law, and Sakai apparently eagerly accepted. Sakai, who toured China many times when she was a singer, is still relatively popular there, and was greeted by smiling fans.

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