Basquiat owned by Japan's Maezawa sells for $85 million
france24.com -- May 19
Jean-Michel Basquiat's "Untitled" 1982 sold for $85 million at auction in New York Wednesday, well above its pre-sale estimate and netting Japanese billionaire space tourist Yusaku Maezawa a tidy profit.
Phillips auction house sold the 16-foot-wide painting on behalf of Maezawa, who purchased it in 2016 for $57.3 million.
Ahead of its sale, the massive artwork went on an international tour, being displayed in London, Los Angeles and Taipei.
Maezawa, who in 2017 set a new auction record for Basquiat works when he paid $110.5 million for another painting by the 20th century giant, has said he plans to create a new museum to exhibit his collection.
27-year-old woman indicted over murder of 3 daughters
Japan Today - Jul 06
Nagoya prosecutors on Tuesday indicted a 27-year-old woman for killing her three daughters aged 5, 3 and nine months, in February.
Doctor arrested for voyeurism after filming 40 students with pen-type camera
Japan Today - Jul 06
Police in Kyoto have arrested a 47-year-old dentist on suspicion of violating the prefecture’s public nuisance ordinance after he allegedly took voyeuristic images of a junior high school girl during a medical examination in Okayama last year.
Passenger arrested for breaking connecting door glass while fighting on train
Japan Today - Jul 05
Police in Tokyo have arrested a man in his 50s on suspicion of causing property damage after he broke the glass on a connecting door during an altercation with another man on a train operating on the Tokyu Den-en-toshi line.
Tokyo man arrested for putting brother’s skull out for recycling collection
soranews24.com - Jul 05
On 21 June workers at a recycling plant in Adachi, Tokyo were given a shock when, mixed in among the refuse that had arrived, they found a human skull and jaw bone.
Paintings found in Paris may be early works by Okamoto Taro
NHK - Jul 05
NHK has learned that three abstract paintings have been found that are thought to be unknown early works of the late Japanese artist Okamoto Taro. He is known for numerous works, including the "Tower of the Sun" monument and the "Myth of Tomorrow" mural.
Japanese couple goes to court after dual surname marriage rejected
NHK - Jul 04
A Japanese couple has asked a family court to let them register their marriage under separate surnames in Japan as they did in the United States.
2 sisters stabbed in taxi outside their home in Okinawa
Japan Today - Jul 04
Police in Ginowan, Okinawa Prefecture, have arrested a 29-year-old man on suspicion of attempted murder after he allegedly stabbed two sisters in a taxi early Sunday morning.
Man, woman found dead in Yokohama apartment in apparent murder-suicide
Japan Today - Jul 03
A man and a woman were found dead in an apartment in Yokohama on Friday, in what police believe was a murder-suicide.
Randy Bachman reunited with his stolen guitar 45 years later — in Japan
CBC - Jul 02
Randy Bachman has performed many times on Canada Day, but the event he played this year is like no other.
Dumped in forest without clothes: Missing Japanese porn actress found dead
asiaone.com - Jul 01
Japanese porn actress Rina Arano was reported missing on June 8 this year.
Ex-KAT-TUN singer Tanaka arrested again for drug possession, 9 days after getting suspended sentence
Japan Today - Jul 01
Police in Kashiwa, Chiba Prefecture, on Thursday arrested a former member of KAT-TUN, an all-male idol group, on suspicion of violating the Stimulants Control Law, just nine days after he was convicted and given a suspended sentence for a similar crime earlier this year.
Why Japan keeps handing out certificates to gay couples but won’t let them get married
VICE - Jul 01
In Japan, gay marriage is not legal. The national government has maintained that only a man and a woman can be wedded, a position backed as recently as last month by a court in Osaka.
Charges dropped against elderly Japanese man for nailing Putin voodoo doll to sacred shrine tree
soranews24.com - Jul 01
Two weeks ago, investigators arrested Mitsunobu Hino, a 72-year-old resident of Matsudo, on charges of property damage after Hino was seen on security camera footage carrying a wara ningyo at a shrine shortly before one of the dolls was found nailed to the ground’s sacred tree.
92-year-old man found dead at home in Sendai; son stabbed
Japan Today - Jun 29
Police in Sendai, Miyagi Prefecture, said a 92-year-old man was found dead at his home and his son was lying nearby, bleeding from a knife wound.
Man arrested for stabbing doctor multiple times at Fukuoka hospital
Japan Today - Jun 28
Police in Fukuoka have arrested a 59-year-old unemployed man on suspicion of attempted murder after he stabbed a 49-year-old doctor multiple times at a hospital.
Relaxed new mask usage guidelines barely spread among Japan public
inform.kz - Jun 28
More than a month has passed since the Japanese government relaxed its guidance on mask usage to reflect subsiding fears of the coronavirus, yet its call for removing masks whenever possible has not caught on widely among the public, Kyodo reports.
