Part 2

Two basic questions reveal much about any animal: What does it eat? Where does it live? Sung Kang’s a breed of his own in the film world, winning fans with roles that shatter Asian stereotypes. He lives in Los Angeles, and he eats, well, some interesting stuff. Since he owns a restaurant, I thought it would be fun to talk chow with Sung. And it was. You won’t believe what he does with ice cream.

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After being blacklisted by pretty much everyone in the Japanese music industry in 2000, Ami Suzuki keeps on keeping on. Her latest album, titled Supreme Show has been announced with a release date of November 11, 2008 to celebrate her 10th year in the music industry. Although she struggles to sell even a tiny fraction of what she was capable of back at the peak of her career ten years ago, she should not be ignored. With each album her sales and popularity seem to decrease significantly, but it seems as though her work keeps getting better, if her style of music is your cup of tea. Once again she works with super producer Nakata Yasutaka who has produced the entire album. Her songs, with their heavy beats, overflow with time, space, colors and various other characteristics. Am I talking nonsense? Probably. Try listening to the tracks from her latest few singles and you might understand. Just below I have included the promotional video to her tenth anniversary single, titled ONE. More »

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Stalking, harassment, breaking & entering, these are not alien situations in the lives of celebrities. Many times the guilty party is jailed because of this dangerous affinity with a popular entertainer. When does the love and admiration for talented people take a turn downward? Is there a fine line between fanaticism and dangerous obsession? The Fan-Girl phenomenon is something the US media only sees every decade or so. Usually these fan-ships are not negative, they’re maybe some casualties of concert crushing, but all in all for most it is a positive experience.

In the West, we can especially pinpoint times where popular musicians inspired a mass hysteria such as the 1950’s rise of Rock-n-roll, or The Beatles Invasion in the 1960’s. Even the clone Boy-Band wars of the late 80’s and early 90’s had their own obsessive fan groups. On a American daytime talk-show (Rachel Ray) a 33 year old female talked about her obsession with NKOTB. She stated very normally how she saved a half-drunken water bottle belonging to Jordan Knight for over 12 years. This bottle was stolen, by her, out of a hotel hallway that she snuck onto as a teenager. So loving a celebrity this way can become a way of life that lasts into adulthood. More »

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With Tokyo Game Show 2008 ending, it brought a couple of things that made me go absolutely “SQUEE” about some of the upcoming DS games.

I admit that I’m a nerd. I admit that I’m a gamer. It’s seen as a “bizarre” concept amongst my fellow Koreans, especially the older generations who sees this more for children who do poorly in schools, but do I care? No! Considering my decent GPA in high school and college, I deserve some fun! I like my games! I like my toys. Only problem is that gaming is one expensive hobby that hurts my wallet and bank account the most! Regardless of that, I am eagerly awaiting on a few games that are to come out for the DS — well couple that have yet to have a release date for the English speaking realm, but a girl can dream, right? More »

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Heroes is supposedly one of the best shows out there (or at least according to TV.com) but it’s taken a beating lately as ratings hit an all time low. While season two didn’t do so hot either, you would think the slump would end this season (kind of like how the Yankees) but so far it’s a lost cause and there are now talks of cancellation. Oh noes!

All of this is quite shocking as the teaser this season was bad ass but apparently that’s all the action we’re going to get for now until the writers step it up. Honestly I think they’re still pissed off from the Writer’s Strike.

The pattern for Heroes the past two seasons is that it starts slow and ends awesome which may be the case but if ratings continue to fall, NBC might not let them see the end of the season. It just started too!

While my heart shatters for the shows continuing failure, I can’t stand to watch crappy shows. More »

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Anna May Wong was the most famous Asian American actress of the 1930s. She was born in Los Angeles as a third generation American with her Chinese name, Wong Liu Tsong, meaning “frosted yellow willows.”

An Early Passion Anna was infatuated with the movies early on and would skip school and use her lunch money to go to movie theaters. Anna, at the age of 9, despite her parent’s opposition, would beg filmmakers for parts, earning herself the nickname “C.C.C.” or “Curious Chinese Child”.

By the age of 11, Anna May had come up with her stage name, Anna May Wong, paying tribute to both her English and family names. More »

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Brian Tee who has starred in the movie Fast and the Furious Tokyo Drift, is going to be a regular cast member in the series “Crash” on the television station Starz. “He plays EMT Eddie Choi, who is caught between the Korean gang world he left behind and the mainstream medical world where he wants to fit into in, “Crash.” http://www.starz.com/originals/CRASH/cast/EddieChoi/BrianTee/Pages/BrianTee.aspx

Crash is a series that is based on the movie Crash that came out in the year 2004 that followed the lives of everyday people in the city of Los Angeles that eventually intertwined together.

The first show airs on Starz October 17, this Friday Eastern Standard Time. I watched the first two episodes earlier tonight here: http://www.starz.com/originals/crash/screeningroom

The first few minutes of the show is sure to grab your attention. The characters have a lot of flavor and they also were able to make you place yourself in their shoes, feeling their pain. They also made me yell a few times at the screen at them either in fear or anger. More »

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The New York - Tokyo Film Grand Prix (NYTFGP) 2008, New York-Tokyo’s annual film festival, is now underway with one more week of audience favorited Japanese films left. The NYTFGP2008 Festival represents the wide diversity of Japan’s creativity in film. The festival lineup of ten films is determined by audience votes and the New York-Tokyo staff.

Screening Schedule: * Monday, 10/13, 7pm, 77BOADRUM, Anthology Archives, 32 Second Street, New York City * Monday, 10/13, 9:15pm, 77BOADRUM (Appearance by Director Kawaguchi), Anthology Archives, 32 Second Street, New York City * Tuesday, 10/14, 7pm, BLOODY SNAKE UNDER THE SUN (Appearance by Actor Shogen), Anthology Archives, 32 Second Street, New York City * Thursday, 10/16, 7pm, KAMACHOP (Appearance by Director Matsumoto), Tribeca Cinemas, 54 Varick Street, New York City

For more details and to buy tickets, visit newyork-tokyo.com

“BLOODY SNAKE UNDER THE SUN” still image courtesy of Three Arrows Entertainment.

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MBC’s “We Got Married” is the result of putting a couple celebrities together to play pretend marriage. So far the show has been really successful and quite funny. Note that they are changing the name to “Sunday Marriage Show”.

In the most recent episode, they introduced some new couples Hwanhee/Hwa Yo Bi and Marco/Son Dam Bi. Instead of just hanging out with each other, they go on an “Ant Tour” trip led by Crown J with his mate Seo In Young and SolBi/Andy. They stop by the beach and hang out with each other at the sauna/hotel, all of which is really cute. There’s some dancing and random spanking but you have to watch to understand.

Well while they do that, the Alshin couple (Alex/Shinae) play parents with 4 babies! Ah! As soon as the original parents leave, two of the babies start crying and Alshin look miserable already. However they manage to get all the babies to fall asleep. Good parents right?

You can watch the entire episode on Youtube, unfortunately without subtitles, by CJWTown. More »

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Mention Seo Taiji’s name to any one in Korea, and you will receive recognition for this guy. Even my father, a caucasian male over 60, who doesn’t listen to Korean music, knows of him. That’s how much influence this guy has on the Korean media, culture, and of course music. He was probably the one who really revolutionise the Korean music industry. Back then the ahjumma style music dominated the industry, but along came Seo Taiji, who brought with him rapping, the KPop dance style, and a new style of music to be included into the mainstream realm. More »

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Just like many teenage girls, I like to put posters of some of my idols on my wall. My dresser in particular has a few pictures of Gackt in some SMEXy poses. However, I constantly get asked the question “Jess, why do you have pictures of this girl by your mirror?” by any one who visits my room. Whether they know my love for Asian Media or not, I calmly correct them and say ” No… that’s a man” and a bit of my dignity dies inside. Most of my family and friends will argue that Gackt is indeed a women or just really gay, others just give me a funny look. This routine is nothing new to me now but, before when I first started to show an interest in music artist and drama stars besides the ones directly related to anime, it was indeed a bit confusing for me as well. More »

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Diablo is one of the best MMOs I’ve ever played; however, it was unfortunate when Diablo II lost it’s novelty after I played it more than I would like to admit. So when Diablo III was announced, you can only imagine how psyched I was especially after hearing about one of the new classes.

One of the new classes is an Asian, female wizard. Not only does she have a better looking body than any gravure idol but her powers vary from disintegration, electrocution, teleportation, magic missiles and slowing time – most of which the original magic user (sorcerer) could do. But that’s probably just a sample of what she can do. The character page goes into more detail about her background but all I needed to know was that she’s bad ass.

Out of all the new addition in the game, I’m really looking forward to playing her especially since she’s a magic based character, sexy and Asian. Honestly, what more could you ask for? If she was real, I would probably marry her. But anyways next time I go to a convention, I plan to cosplay as her but don’t expect me to shoot lightening out of my hands (although I really wish I could).

The date of release is still unknown unfortunately but BlizzCon is going on right now so hopefully they’ll surprise us. More »

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Hello everybody! I’m Erik, a new blogger here! Introductions have never been my thing, so I’ll make this short. I live in New England, in Connecticut. I’ve been into Asian media for quite a few years and I’ve come across only a few people who were familiar with Asian entertainment until just recently. I feel like it’s getting a bit more recognition in other parts of the world, and hopefully by being a part of this site I can take part in it, no matter how big or small! I started out with Japanese music, where I liked the typical popular artists such as Ayumi Hamasaki, Utada Hikaru, Namie Amuro, and Olivia Lufkin, etc, but that was it. I began to venture into other types of Asian media such as dramas and other forms of entertainment, my obsession as of late being K-pop, with groups and singers like The Wonder Girls, Brown Eyed Girls, Lee Hyori, SHINee, and others. More »

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Things are sort of back to normal (super freaking busy that is). Since last week, we’ve been working on a lot of new projects in addition to adding a new blogger! His name is Erik Taylor and he’s a Wonder Girls expert. I didn’t become a fan of the WG till after the Chuseok Festival so I’m really excited to see what he comes up with. We first discovered him on Youtube where he posted our WG interview which got a lot of exposure in a short amount of time.

But anyways I’m glad it’s the weekend but disappointed that it’s starting to get cold. I’m already wearing winter clothes when I go out. Again, it’s breast cancer awareness month so please don’t forget to donate/visit/etc!

Like always enjoy! More »

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Famed singer, songwriter, and producer Park Jin Young has organized the Korea Food Expo 2008. Along with him, he will bring his creations Wonder Girls, 2AM, and 2PM, along with several other popular Korean singers like Younha and Wheesung to the event in Seoul, Korea. The event held on Sunday, October 12, will be used to promote Korean food with celebrities. The special events at the event will be things such as “The Similarities Between Music and Food”, “Star’s Recipe”, “Star’s Dining Table”, and more.

Along with revealing a brand new song, written and composed by JYP specially for this event, titled “Food Song”, the Wonder Girls will also be holding interviews. Venue address and directions are here. More »

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aXL99 (Jessie Lam)

At NYAF 2008, I had the pleasure of meeting many artists in the artist alley. I myself am an artist so it was definitely exciting to see all the different works of art on sale and on display. I must say, I was very impressed. If I wasn’t so strapped for cash, I would’ve bought some prints (if the T.M.Revolution booth wasn’t there)! Some of these artists appear at more anime conventions than NYAF, of course. At AnimeNext 2008, I remember seeing quite a few of these artists in the artist alley. It’s amazing to see the talent in action as many artists tend to take commissions right on the spot and draw right in front of you. There were people who made pins, prints, hats, plushies and more. The amount of different mediums used (such as digital, colored pencils, markers) was amazing. Each artist put their own twist onto their favorite anime/manga characters and sold away!

Although each of these artists may be different, all of them gather at anime conventions yearly to draw for a common interest. I personally had the pleasure to briefly interview a few of the artists. As I interviewed these artists, I realized I can relate in so many ways! Even though the artists were asked such similar questions, their own personality shows. In a way, it clears who the person is “behind the mask” so to speak. More »

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Animal rights group listen up! This is your chance to hold another protest. Just get those placards and banners ready. Make sure you stick some adorable Monkey pictures on them.  There is this restaurant in Japan who uses two monkeys as their servers. Yes, actual monkeys! Not to be confused with those monkey-like servers who work at your neighborhood TGIF or Chili’s . Check out the clip here.

Perhaps I should start using monkeys to clean my apartment too. At least they don’t go through my stuff and ask me why I don’t like women like my meemaw cleaner from Hong Kong who wants to introduce her single daughter to me all the time!

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A few months ago, I was shocked by the US dollar to Korean won exchange rate when it was actually less than 900 KRW to $1. After having the exchange rate at a steady 1,000 KRW to $1 for the last decade, that low rate really hit me in the face. It’s kind of ironic that it did, though. I grew up in the mid-90s, where it was 800 KRW to $1. But then the 1997 Asian Financial Crisis aka IMF Crisis occurred, and I remember the won rate going up high as 1,800 KRW to $1. Of course I didn’t really understand the implication of such things. All I know is that it was good for us Americans to exchange USD to KRW. Sadly to say, I still do believe in that since my main source of income are in dollars. However, today proved to be an insane day in the monetary world. At least for me. More »

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No it’s not because the apocalypse is coming. It’s because the slut of all sluts Tila Tequila is single again and bitch will screw anyone she sees. The bisexual ho has ended her gayelle relationship with Courtenay Semel, daughter of Yahoo! mogul Terry Semel. After a few brief months of bumping clams with Courtenay, Tila’s cooch probably started screaming for more variety. I bet she is on the prowl now for anyone who breathes to share her crabs with. If I were you, I would head to the closest Home Depot to buy an extra strength shovel and start digging. I have a better idea. Why not solicit the help of the many lesbian shoppers there to help you fend off Tila? Just mention “That slut dumps one of your own for dicks” and I can guarantee you that they will drop everything to help you out. Gayelles unite!

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It’s the most wonderful time of the year….and no, I’m not talking about Christmas shopping. I’m talking Asian film festivals, baby. Truthfully, they pop up all around the calendar, but two biggies are this week.

Here in the East, check out the First Annual Philly Asian-American Film Festival, October 9-12. Yes, that’s right—you can be a part of the inaugural run. They got the ball rolling with much hard work and grass-roots marketing.

Phil Lam will be there, representing as a producer of Santa Mesa, a really cool story set in the Philippines. Here are a few others attending, who will be around for Q&A: More »

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