If you haven't seen the May issue yet, now's the time to check it out!
BUZZ
The best of the city's food, film, and happenings this month, plus our sarin gas indicator, polluters of the Internet, elections with Mrs. Edo-san and jet black curry.



DEPARTMENTS

Memoirs
 Donald Richie
He rarely ventured outside his hotel, loved to complain and couldn't bear to be left alone. Truman Capote was one difficult customer.

The Big Pachinko
Mark Robinson

It's complex and arcane, but like reading crystal balls, there's power and intrigue in weather forecasting.

Dispatches
Sarah Rooney
Mad dogs and travelers under the moonbeams of Panghan, Thailand.

Style
Lucas Badtke-Berkow
On your face--cool shades for the coming heat wave.

Oyako
photograph by Bruce Osborn



FEATURES

The Conversation:
Akihiro Miwa
by Mayumi Nakazawa

From a hand-to-mouth childhood on the
postwar streets of Shinjuku to stardom as the
protégé of Yukio Mishima, Japan's most elegant
transvestite has toughed it out.



Roppongi: Dead or Alive?
by Andrew Marshall

The streets are meaner, the drugs
are harder and the bars are grungier
Has "High Touch Town"
reached new lows?



Days of Thunder
by Alec Dubro

The year was 1960 and Cold War
paranoia was at its peak. Tokyo exploded
with the biggest public demonstrations
in its history.
CITYSCOPE
 What's on in Tokyo this month. Full listings and commentary



Art
Joël Perron
A Bernard Leach exhibition reveals the man's spirit in clay.

Performing Arts
Gilles Kennedy
Sylvie Guillem storms Tokyo; the greatest superstar in the business of ballet?

Music
 Mark Robinson
Shizuru Otaka is a mainstream talent with an underground name. Why?

Film
James Bailey
Child abuse in the Japanese home? A new film based on a best-selling book.

Survival
Dan Papia
Don't pay for what you don't need. Doing-it yourself in Tokyo.

Area Spotlight
Colorful diversions in the business heart of the city . . . Tokyo Station, Kyobashi, Nihonbashi.

Food
John Kennerdell
Rewarding cuisine where you'd least expect it. Bargain Italian, panoramic Asian and hearty Japanese.

Night Life
 Helen Young
Heat-seaking Helen is back!

Festivals
A 20 meter snake, a simulated cockfight and a ritual bonfire in Namamugi.

For Kids
Gazing skyward at Tokyo's planetariums.

Events
Fireflies, Ampanman, laser shows and much more.

Books
Andrew Marshall
Woman at War in The Comfort Women and The Girl With the White Flag.



MISCELLANEOUS

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Copyright © Tokyo Journal, May 1995