Appearing in a suggestive advertisement for an online game in which your breasts are shown swaying as you ride an undulating exercise machine can put a wannabe on the fast track to superstardom. That, at least, has been the case for “big-breasted bodacious baby face” (童顏巨乳) Yaoyao (瑤瑤), real name Kuo Shu-yao (郭書瑤), who last week was spotted having a business dinner with representatives from Yoshimoto Kogyo, a major Japanese entertainment conglomerate.
Yaoyao’s record company Seed Music (種子音樂) — yes, her debut album is slated to hit record stores next month — said there is indeed a plan for the sex kitten to become a pop star in Japan in the manner of Vivian Hsu (徐若瑄).
Seed Music appears to be on to something. Given the warm reception Yaoyao has received among Taiwan’s zhainan (宅男) community, it is not a stretch to imagine the 19-year-old winning the hearts of Japanese otaku as well.
Meanwhile, former superstar Joey Wang (王祖賢) was in the news again this week after it was reported that the 42-year-old recluse has become a Buddhist nun.
Wang rose to fame after starring in 1987 blockbuster A Chinese Ghost Story (倩女幽魂) and enjoyed a notable career throughout the 1990s. She retired in 2002 and has led a low-profile life in Canada ever since, where she is said to have donned the habit last month.
Gossip observers think Wang’s sudden ability to “see through the vanity of the secular world” (看破紅塵) has something to do with her two failed relationships. One was a 16-year-long romance with musician Chi Chin (齊秦), the other an extramarital affair with Hong Kong entertainment mogul Peter Lam (林建岳).
One of the few openly gay celebrities in Taiwan has aggravated members of the TV-watching public by referring to homosexuals as niang (娘), the Chinese equivalent of “sissy,” on a popular television show, reports the Liberty Times (the Taipei Times’ sister paper).
Over the past month or so Kevin Tsai (蔡康永) of Here Comes Kang and Xi (康熙來了), which he co-hosts with Little S (小S), has been using the word niang to address gay celebrities such as Kuo Hsin (郭鑫), Ti Chih-chieh (狄志杰) and Hsu Chien-kuo (許建國) when they appear on his show.
Viewers angered by his use of the term, which when used by a stranger is considered demeaning, posted angry comments on the Internet like the following: “The sissy host should think of himself before calling other people sissies.”
In other gay-related news, pop diva A-mei (阿妹), real name Chang Hui-mei (張惠妹), will introduce her new persona A-mit (阿密特) to gay fans at a party on July 18 at Riverside Live House (西門紅樓展演館) in Taipei. Unlike A-mei, A-mit is said to have a zero tolerance policy when it comes to saccharine ballads and KTV-friendly tunes. Those who have seen A-mit perform say the black-clad rocker screams, hisses and howls, but never croons.
To catch A-mit at Riverside, partygoers have to be biologically male or identified as male on their ID cards, and wear something “rainbowy.”
Professing concern that the star’s female fans will feel left out, A-mit’s record company, Gold Typhoon (金牌大風), promises a women-only A-mit party if the gay pa (gay趴) goes well.
That US assistance was a model for Taiwan’s spectacular development success was early recognized by policymakers and analysts. In a report to the US Congress for the fiscal year 1962, former President John F. Kennedy noted Taiwan’s “rapid economic growth,” was “producing a substantial net gain in living.” Kennedy had a stake in Taiwan’s achievements and the US’ official development assistance (ODA) in general: In September 1961, his entreaty to make the 1960s a “decade of development,” and an accompanying proposal for dedicated legislation to this end, had been formalized by congressional passage of the Foreign Assistance Act. Two
Despite the intense sunshine, we were hardly breaking a sweat as we cruised along the flat, dedicated bike lane, well protected from the heat by a canopy of trees. The electric assist on the bikes likely made a difference, too. Far removed from the bustle and noise of the Taichung traffic, we admired the serene rural scenery, making our way over rivers, alongside rice paddies and through pear orchards. Our route for the day covered two bike paths that connect in Fengyuan District (豐原) and are best done together. The Hou-Feng Bike Path (后豐鐵馬道) runs southward from Houli District (后里) while the
On March 13 President William Lai (賴清德) gave a national security speech noting the 20th year since the passing of China’s Anti-Secession Law (反分裂國家法) in March 2005 that laid the legal groundwork for an invasion of Taiwan. That law, and other subsequent ones, are merely political theater created by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) to have something to point to so they can claim “we have to do it, it is the law.” The president’s speech was somber and said: “By its actions, China already satisfies the definition of a ‘foreign hostile force’ as provided in the Anti-Infiltration Act, which unlike
Mirror mirror on the wall, what’s the fairest Disney live-action remake of them all? Wait, mirror. Hold on a second. Maybe choosing from the likes of Alice in Wonderland (2010), Mulan (2020) and The Lion King (2019) isn’t such a good idea. Mirror, on second thought, what’s on Netflix? Even the most devoted fans would have to acknowledge that these have not been the most illustrious illustrations of Disney magic. At their best (Pete’s Dragon? Cinderella?) they breathe life into old classics that could use a little updating. At their worst, well, blue Will Smith. Given the rapacious rate of remakes in modern
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