HEADLINES: 2010

JANUARY 23, 2010: In honor of (if you care to call it that) the recent cancellation ofJay Leno's 10 p.m. variety show which was a major league train wreck for floundering NBC, leading to the dust-up between the Peacock Network and Conan O'Brien and ending with his being given $30 million to go away while the network kept Leno, Entertainment Weekly put together a list of TV's 50 biggest bombs ever in their January 29th issue, detailing, as stated on the cover (featuringLeno looking like he just wandered through a minefield) flops, blunders and really bad decisions. And while Leno topped that list, including such monumental gaffes like ABC turning Geico's Cavemen commercials into a sitcom; The XFL; Joanie Loves Chachi; ABC passing on ratings juggernaut CSI and musical catastrophes like Cop Rock, guess what came in 24th? Yep, you guessed it, Pink Lady & Jeff! Here's what the article said about PL & J:

WHAT WERE THEY THINKING? No English? No problem! NBC president Fred Silverman was convinced that American audiences would love a variety show starring Japanese pop duo Pink Lady (Mitsuyo Nemoto and Keiko Masuda who spoke little English), with American comedian Jeff Altman serving as translator.

WHAT HAPPENED? For five excrutiating episodes, Altman did cheesy stand-up while Pink Lady attempted to lip-synch disco hits like "Boogie Wonderland" phonetically.

LESSON LEARNED: Variety shows are challenging enough when your hosts do speak the same language. (The onstage hot tub was a nice touch, though.)

While the entry wasn't entirely acurrate (Mie and Kei did speak English, just not very good, and there were six episodes, not five), the gist of it all is even after thirty years, PL & J remains the standard bearer for how NOT to put on a variety show. The real irony of it all is that NBC failed to learn from its own sad history when they decided that putting Leno in prime time was a good idea. In retrospect, I wonder if Jeff Altman agreed with this piece?

MAY 15, 2010: Just when you think you've learned all you could on a particular subject, life shocks you with a surprise. Little over a month ago while trolling the Japanese Yahoo auction pages, I came across a MOST interesting pciture for a most interesting item:

That's right, boys and girls, Kei-chan starred in another movie, and I didn't even know about it! Called (and I'm not making this up) "Code Name K: Lady Connection", this film came out in 1991, and here's a quick synopsis provided me by fellow PL fan Verne Innhel: "After Kei graduates from an American University, she's recruited by an intelligence organization to gather information on a war between a Chinese gang and the Yakuza." Now, if that sounds kinda hokey----you're right, it was! I managed to win a copy of the film in the aforementioned auction, and after viewing it, I arrived at the conclusion that it was a cheese-filled riot. Kei wasn't exactly Meryl Streep in front of the camera as she didn't emote all that much (perhaps her character was supposed to be a stone faced spy), but I didn't care as she elicited big laughs from me when she was karate kicking bad guys like Chuck Norris and making like Dirty Harry with a gun! I tried to take notes as I intend to do a review for September (Kei's birthday month) but lost track of the plot after just five minutes and spent the rest of the film in MST3K (Mystery Science Theater 3000) mode, making snarky comments left, right and center. My kingdom for English subtitles! So, if there's anyone out there who understands Japanese, wants to watch a copy of the film that I'll provide gratis and do a full review for the website which I'll credit you with, drop me a line and we'll talk!

SEPTEMBER 18, 2010: Imagine my surprise when just the day after I uploaded the September features on the website, emails started coming in to me about Pink Lady having reunited---AGAIN! After I read the first of those messages, I immediately checked my calendar to see if it was April instead of September, having confirmed that this wasn't an April Fool's joke, I read the links I had been provided and my jaw dropped to the floor like Wile E. Coyote in those old Road Runner cartoons. Yes, Virginia, Mie and Kei have gotten the band back together! And from what I've read, this time, it looks like the Ladies are back for good!

Whoa! Needless to say, this shocked the hell out of me, having never anticipated something like this happening, especially when I thought the Ladies were done with Pink Lady forever after the 2005 "Unforgettable Final Ovation" shows. I guess that forever just doesn't last as long as it used to. In any event, the Ladies are back in the PL saddle with plans to record new versions of their old standards, a special photobook called “Heibon Premium We are Pink Lady.” that will celebrate their career and a concert on March 31st to commemorate the 30th anniversary of their first break-up. For anyone who thinks I'm pulling their legs, here's the news items I've collected from fellow fans:

from Toshi Morikawa: the official press conference video

article on the reunion from Japan Today sent me by Chuck Harter

article on the reunion from Tokyo Hive sent me by Chuck Harter

from Bionic Bong, found by yours truly

Now, I'm guessing that what I've presented so far represents but the tip of the iceberg and that lots more news on Pink Lady's return will surface in the weeks to follow. Of course, I'll do everything I can to keep everyone appraised of the goings on as Mie and Kei have mobilized the Chameleon Army yet again, and I'm sure that their legions of fans can't wait to see what comes next!

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