Saaya Irie - Japanese Teen Idol

Pokemon, whether it be TV cartoons, movies, trading cards or one of the more than 1,000 associated products, has generated billions of dollars for its parent company, Nintendo, since its launch as a video game in early 1996. And the phenomenon is not confined to Japan. Led by the hero Satoshi and point man (monster) Pikachu, it swept across the world in just three years.

Introduced to the US as a TV cartoon in September 1998, Pokemon generated an estimated 700 million dollars in retail sales in the following year. The weekly cartoon became the top-rated kid's TV show and the video 'Pokemon: Seaside Pikachu' topped the bestsellers list. Sociologists engage in serious debate about the educational value of kids' obsession with Pokemon cards. The logistics, tactics and pure arithmetic involved in pitting the various monsters, each with their own strengths and weaknesses, against each other certainly make kids use their brains. And the fact that the monsters don't die as a result of their battles - they just faint - is a welcome change from the usual cartoon carnage. But stories of schoolyard fights over cards and the kind of money changing hands - some cards are traded at over 100 dollars apiece - also cause concern.

Kimiko Date Krumm

Kimiko Date won seven singles titles back in the 1990s, then got married, started a family (becoming Kimiko Date Krumm) and left tournament tennis. For 12 years.

Now, a day before her 39th birthday, Date is a winner again on the WTA. She won the Korea Open on Sunday. She's the oldest player to win a WTA title since Billie Jean King, who won in 1983 at age 39.

Ai Shinozaki - Japanese Hot Idol

Although the first home-grown movies appeared before the end of the last century, it wasn't until after World War I that they became something more than adaptations of stage plays and kabuki. The Nikkatsu and Shochiku film companies started at this time. From about 1920, Japanese film was divided into two main categories: Jidai-geki, or period films and Gendai-geki, or films with modern settings. The jidai-geki usually centered around a lone swordsman, who struggled to reconcile the conflict between his obligations (giri), and his true feelings (ninjo). This theme later became central to the gangster, or yakuza genre, originated by the Toei comapny in the 1960's. Gendai-geki reflected social changes of the day and individual director's views on life and society.

Censorship by the increasingly militaristic government continued through the 1930's and World War II, although its guidelines were largely ignored. The US occupation temporarily banned pre-1945 films and clamped down on the sword-wielding jidai-geki. But after control of the movie industry was handed over to the independent Motion Picture Code Committee in 1949, they soon came back in force.

[New Clips]: New concept archive

Update about this blog and about a well known archive...

It has been a while but maybe I´ve got a good reason for a small update.

CA hat released clips in a new format. I´ve already an opinion about it, but take look by yourself.

PS: I had to deactivate the latest comments, due to the high amount of spam and bs.

>> Download <<

(1 big clip devided into 3 files; pass: bustycandids)

Justine Henin Comeback

Hey, it worked for Kim Clijsters, so why shouldn't another Belgian give it a try? Former world No. 1 Justine Henin, the dominant players in women's tennis when she retired at age 25 two years ago, will return to tournament tennis, media reports in Belgium are saying.

Yanina Wickmayer

Yanina Wickmayer advanced into the 2009 U.S. Open semifinals by beating Kateryna Bondarenko, 7-5, 6-4, in the quarters. Wickmayer, from Belgium, entered the tournament ranked No. 50 in WTA singles. She has one win previously in 2009, at the Estoril Open.

Caroline Wozniacki

Caroline Wozniacki is into her first-ever grand slam quarterfinals. Wozniacki, the No. 9 seed, knocked off sixth-seeded Svetlana Kuznetsova in the 2009 U.S. Open round of 16.

More Caroline Wozniacki pics

Nadia Petrova

Nadia Petrova was the 13th seed in the 2009 U.S. Open. We say "was" because teen sensation Melanie Oudin knocked Petrova out on Monday in the fourth round, 1-6, 7-6 (7-2), 6-3.

Kim Clijsters

Kim Clijsters, who retired several years ago, is in the midst of a comeback following marriage and motherhood. And the former world No. 1 took a big step in the right direction in the fourth round of the 2009 U.S. Open, knocking off Venus Williams.

Daniela Hantuchova

Who was the fourth-round victim of Serena Williams at the 2009 U.S. Open? It was 22nd-seeded Daniela Hantuchova.

More Daniela Hantuchova pictures

Dinara Safina

Just as happened at Wimbledon 2009, top-seeded Dinara Safina is out early at the 2009 U.S. Open. This time she lost to little-known Czech teenager Petra Kvitova in three sets.

More Dinara Safina pics

Vania King

Vania King went down to defeat in the third round of the 2009 U.S. Open, losing to Daniela Hantuchova, 2-6, 2-6. King, an American of Chinese descent, has been ranked as high as No. 50 in WTA singles.

Elena Dementieva Out at US Open

An early exit from the 2009 U.S. Open for fourth-seeded Elena Dementieva: She lost to teenager Melanie Oudin in the second round.

More Elena Dementieva pics

Melanie Oudin

At Wimbledon '09, 17-year-old American Melanie Oudin pulled off the upset of No. 6 seed Jelena Jankovic. At the 2009 U.S. Open, she has beaten No. 4 seed Elena Dementieva in the second round, 5-7, 6-4, 6-3.

Bethanie Mattek-Sands

Bethanie Mattek-Sands was the second-round victim of Venus Williams at the 2009 U.S. Open.

Vera Dushevina

Vera Dushevina put a scare into Venus Williams in the first round of the 2009 U.S. Open, winning the opening set tiebreaker. But Venus came back in the end for a 6-7, 7-5, 6-3 victory.

As for why Dushevina has a bird of prey on her arm, well ...