Many celebrities think they can do anything and with the constant ass-kissing they get from "friends" and fans who can blame them for believing this. Jay Chou (
Like his acting skills in Initial D his performance as a director is has been panned by the critics. Needless to say his fans have been supportive so our big- headed hot shot is saying he's good but is still not satisfied with his success and his "small bank account."
To make up for his "small bank account" Chou and his business partner MV director Kuang Sheng (鄺盛) have invested over NT$1 million to transform their old antique store in Taipei, into a new shop selling footwear and clothing and Chou's personal belongings.
PHOTO: TAIPEI TIMES
The actress/singer Vicki Zhao (趙薇) is stuck in a downward spiral of trouble these days. Zhao showed her inability to handle alcohol after reportedly getting so drunk at a pub in Beijing that she irritated gangsters from Taiwan's Bamboo Union Gang (竹聯幫). Luckily for Zhao the gangsters weren't believers in hitting women so they smacked Zhao's unlucky boyfriend/escort around like a rag doll instead, according to Next Magazine (壹週刊). Zhao refused to respond to press enquiries about the alleged events.
Hong Kong director Wong Kar-wai (
Considered by many to be the successor to Tony Leung (梁朝偉), one would have expected Wing Fan (范植偉) was too famous for a TV production, and he thought so too. The crew complained that the arrogant actor often didn't prepare for the shootings, forgot his lines and rarely acted (pun intended) like a professional. Momoko Tao (陶子), on the other hand, was late for work because her new album and TV shows took priority. Both stars naturally denied the rumors and said they "learned" a lot from the valuable experience.
PHOTO: TAIPEI TIMES
Leon Lai (
Things haven't been going smoothly for director Tsui Hark. He recently announced his next film would be an adaptation of Brigitte Lin's (
PHOTO: TAIPEI TIMES
A vaccine to fight dementia? It turns out there may already be one — shots that prevent painful shingles also appear to protect aging brains. A new study found shingles vaccination cut older adults’ risk of developing dementia over the next seven years by 20 percent. The research, published Wednesday in the journal Nature, is part of growing understanding about how many factors influence brain health as we age — and what we can do about it. “It’s a very robust finding,” said lead researcher Pascal Geldsetzer of Stanford University. And “women seem to benefit more,” important as they’re at higher risk of
Last week the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) said that the budget cuts voted for by the China-aligned parties in the legislature, are intended to force the DPP to hike electricity rates. The public would then blame it for the rate hike. It’s fairly clear that the first part of that is correct. Slashing the budget of state-run Taiwan Power Co (Taipower, 台電) is a move intended to cause discontent with the DPP when electricity rates go up. Taipower’s debt, NT$422.9 billion (US$12.78 billion), is one of the numerous permanent crises created by the nation’s construction-industrial state and the developmentalist mentality it
Experts say that the devastating earthquake in Myanmar on Friday was likely the strongest to hit the country in decades, with disaster modeling suggesting thousands could be dead. Automatic assessments from the US Geological Survey (USGS) said the shallow 7.7-magnitude quake northwest of the central Myanmar city of Sagaing triggered a red alert for shaking-related fatalities and economic losses. “High casualties and extensive damage are probable and the disaster is likely widespread,” it said, locating the epicentre near the central Myanmar city of Mandalay, home to more than a million people. Myanmar’s ruling junta said on Saturday morning that the number killed had
Mother Nature gives and Mother Nature takes away. When it comes to scenic beauty, Hualien was dealt a winning hand. But one year ago today, a 7.2-magnitude earthquake wrecked the county’s number-one tourist attraction, Taroko Gorge in Taroko National Park. Then, in the second half of last year, two typhoons inflicted further damage and disruption. Not surprisingly, for Hualien’s tourist-focused businesses, the twelve months since the earthquake have been more than dismal. Among those who experienced a precipitous drop in customer count are Sofia Chiu (邱心怡) and Monica Lin (林宸伶), co-founders of Karenko Kitchen, which they describe as a space where they
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