Taking Photos With Famous People in Japan

I've written before somewhere how it's so easy to meet the rich and famous in Japan. It happens all the time here. It happened to me again twice in the last three days. Please refer to: Meeting the Rich and Famous in Japan? No Problem!

Since I've been in Japan, I've met many extremely famous people, multi-millionaires and world famous politicians... Just to name a few...

I've met Richard Branson, George H. W. Bush (Daddy Bush), Yoko Ono, Elvis Costello, Siouxsie Sioux (not well known by most, but I am a big fan), at least 7 Japanese Prime Ministers and a bunch of other countries prime ministers - so many - that I can't remember. Along with the some many others that I've met who I can't remember either.

If you want to see photographic proof of some of those, go to this link.

Remember Prime Minister Mori? He was the one who went to the US and met then US president Clinton. Mori messed up his English and tried to say, "How are you?" but, instead said, "Who are you?" To which Clinton said, "I'm Hilary's husband." Mori then replied, "Me too!"

Funnily enough, some friends who have lived here for years asked me how it is possible that I pull this off every time and get my photo with these famous people? So now, lucky you, "chaser of the stars"! I'm going to share my secrets! And it's all for free! Today's blog post is how you can meet the rich and famous in Japan and get your photo taken with them each and every time. 


It's all so simple.

First off, let me show you my latest trophy. This is a photo with me and Beat Takeshi taken on Friday night, September 30, 2011 at Tennozu. Beat Takeshi is arguably the most famous Japanese in the world.

Me with Beat Takeshi Friday, Sept 30, 2011

Wikipedia says:

Takeshi Kitano (北野 武 Kitano Takeshi, born January 18, 1947) is a Japanese filmmaker, comedian, singer, actor, tap dancer, film editor, presenter, screenwriter, author, poet, painter, and one-time video game designer who has received critical acclaim, both in his native Japan and abroad, for his highly idiosyncratic cinematic work. The famed Japanese film critic Nagaharu Yodogawa once dubbed him "the true successor" to influential filmmaker Akira Kurosawa. With the exception of his works as a film director, he is known almost exclusively by the name Beat Takeshi.

It's not the first time I've seen Beat Takeshi at Tennozu. The first time I saw him I didn't expect it so I didn't have my camera ready. I knew, if it happened again, I would make sure my iPhone camera was on and ready to go.

I've shown this photo with me and Beat Takeshi to many friends and they were all blown away. This photo was even shown to many who work in the same building where this photo was taken (TV Tokyo Tennozu Bldg.). I think Beat Takeshi shoots some sort of comedy show there sometimes. Even those who have seen him from a distance and even work there are so much in awe of the guy, they would never in a million years ask to take a photo together. Me? Nah! Not me. You only live once, gotta go for the gusto!


I say invite the guy over for a Happoshu! (cheap beer)

But back to the story: How to take photos with people like this? Well, actually, even though he is probably the most famous Japanese in the world, appearing in TV and movies over decades, a person like Beat Takeshi is one of the easier people to take photos with. Seriously.

Why? Well, bear with me for a minute here, it's a tad bit complicated....

Beat Takeshi, like most Japanese, cannot speak English as well as he should. 


I say, "as well as he should" because, I mean, after all, Beat Takeshi's photo is on every train in Japan advertising an English school for Japanese. Think about that! I guess that about 100 million people see his face everyday going to school, work, shopping or just riding the train to where ever it is they want to go.

BEAT TAKESHI SPEAKING ENGLISH 

IN TV COMMERCIAL - JUST WATCH A FEW

SECONDS AND YOU'LL KNOW WHAT I MEAN!

Before I go on, let me tell you that I am a big fan of Beat Takeshi. He is one of the funniest guys in the world, I think. He also directs great movies. He won the Best Director and Film Award at the Venice Film Festival in 2003 for Zatoichi... Beat Takeshi is no slouch.

Beat Kitano's (Takeshi) Zatoichi 2003

Also, dear reader, just because this is one of those "WTF!?" stories that I love to write, don't think I am making fun of Beat Takeshi. No way. I am making fun of the absurdity of life in general. 


Anyway, like I said, Beat Takeshi is everywhere in Japan. He is a hero. He is super-popular. The guy makes millions and millions of dollars doing what he wants. He lives the life we all only dream of... And, like I said, his face is on posters everywhere for an English school in Japan.

Train poster

OK... So, you see a guy like Beat Takeshi. You have your camera ready (always have your camera ready when walking around Tokyo!) You want to take your photo with him. What do you do?


Think about it! He has a public persona to keep up. He is raking in mega-bucks doing ad for an English school. He has to keep up appearances. You want to take your photo with him? THEN HELP HIM TO KEEP UP THOSE APPEARANCES!!!! Walk up to him and start speaking English to him just like you would to a native English speaker! While the rest of the Japanese are standing around thinking, "What did this guy just say?" It gives him the chance to hold a conversation with a REAL foreigner, in front of everyone, and impress upon them that he CAN actually speak English.


This allows him to feel good!


The conversation with Beat Takeshi the other day went like this:


Speaking very quickly in friendly and normal tones of voice (like you are meeting an old friend again after all these years), you exclaim, "Hey! Wow! I can't believe it! Beat Takeshi. Wow! I love your work! I can't believe I'm meeting you here like this (continue talking very quickly so that no one else can get a word in edgewise). May I take my photo with you?" (Hold up camera in front of his face so that he gets the drift of what you just rambled off. Remember to talk really fast like those exclusion clauses you hear at the end of car commercials on the FM radio in America).


He will be shell shocked and have no idea of what you just said. No problem! 


It's no problem because it is difficult English for a Japanese to reply, "Oh, I'm so sorry, I am very busy at the moment and must head off to my next appointment. So, please don't feel offended, but I must pass this time."


It is, though, so much easier for them to say, "OK!" "OK!" is probably the most widely known English word in the entire world. It is much easier, faster and less of a hassle for a Japanese to say "OK!" than to go into a long diatribe as to why you are a jerk and thy can't be bothered.

With actress Honami Suzuki 10/1/11 (don't even try to "dumb gaijin" stuff

with her. Not only is she beautiful she's smart and speaks 

perfect English!)

So, instead of refusing me, and thereby looking like he can't speak English, he said, "OK!" He immediately put his arm around my back and we posed for the photo.


I helped him to feel good about it because even after the photo was taken, I rambled on for a few moments about how I loved Zatoichi and used to watch his TV show and had even appeared on the show once about 24 years ago, on and on, blah, blah, blah...


He replied, "OK!" then we shook hands and he walked off. He walked off, I had my trophy. He showed all his people that he can hold a conversation with a foreigner and everyone was happy!

See? Once again, in conclusion..  It's simple to take photos with famous people. Just walk up to them and start blabbing in English. It's much easier for a Japanese to say, "OK!" than for them to say, "Er, I'm sorry. I'm a bit busy now and running late." The second they say, "OK!" You got your arm around them and are posing... 

It works every time... It works because you have the English advantage. They don't...

Wait a minute, come to think of it, this even worked with Arnie Schwarneggar and president Bush in Tokyo too... Oh, but wait, neither Bush nor Arnie can speak English well either!

Meeting the Rich and Famous in Japan? Sure. No Problem. Happens All the Time

There's not a foreigner in this country who won't tell you that Japan is a very weird place. When I say that, I mean it in a good way. The other foreigners you talk to may not.


Japan is just, well... Japan. That's the best explanation I can come up with. Things happen in Japan that just would never happen in a million years in another country. That's just the way it is.


Here's an example of something weird that happened to me. Just one of a very many.... 


But, first, some background; in the late 70's and early 80's, I was in a one-hit wonder punk bank and then ran one of the first punk underground "zines" back in those days. Underground free papers were quite the rarity at that time. But we made one. It was called, "Sixty Miles North." I won't embarrass myself by telling you the name of my band.

June 27, 1984 Sixty Miles North. Yours truly on the cover.

Sixty Miles North was pretty popular at that time and there's even a webpage for it with someone selling back issues fer chrissakes!


Anyway, we used to distribute these magazines at record stores, etc. back in those days. 


One particularly well-known record store chain was owned by a now multi-millionaire guy by the name of Jim Salzer. One day, when I went to his then tiny record store, I took magazines and asked him if he'd put them on the racks and give them away for me. He eagerly agreed and thought the magazine was extremely cool. I was happy. I think that one time was one of the few times I had ever met him in the USA and I had only ever met him when he was at his shop. Keep in mind that this was a suburban area and not a big city.


Fast forward several months. I moved out of the USA and left the magazine for my useless friends to run into bankruptcy, which they did. Soon. I was then living and working in Japan.


My very first job in Japan found me working in Shinjuku in Tokyo. One of the biggest cities and most crowded places in the world. On my very first day of work, my new friend Stephen asked me to go have dinner with him at a KFC near the station. Even though I generally hate KFC, I said "OK" as I didn't know any good places to eat; I had no friends (Stephen was my first) and I had only been in Japan for one week. I also didn't have a clue as to where I was (really) or where to go.


So we go to this KFC at the west exit of Shinjuku station and are standing on the street eating chicken. There's a million and a half people milling around us. A guy walks up to me and says,


"Mike! Mike! There you are!" At first, I didn't recognize him... It was Jim Salzer. Jim Salzer in Japan, no less, and he doesn't seem the least bit surprised to see me. My jaw drops. WTF!? I've never met him randomly on the street in my own hometown and I had lived there for over 15 years. Here I am in Japan for a week and he walks right up to me like it's no big deal. 


Jim realized the shock on my face and said, "Mike! Mike! Don't you recognize me? It's me, Jim!"


I snapped out of it. "Oh? Er, sure! Jim? Jim Salzer! Hi. How are you?"


Jim said, "I'd been wondering where you went to..." He then slapped my back and said, "Say, Mike, I'd love to talk, but I'm late. Where the heck is the train station?" I didn't know either but my friend pointed him in the right direction and off he went as if there wasn't anything the least bit unusual like this sort of chance encounter.


Here I am in one of the most crowded places in the world and, by pure coincidence, I meet an aquaintance from back home that I had never met by chance on the street there (and even at that I had only met him three or four times!)... There's 60 million people in this town and he walks right up to me! And he acts like it's no big deal... Just like meeting a co-worker at the water cooler at the office!


I am still amazed about it. I wish I had a picture to prove it.


Like I said, the weirdest sh*t happens in Japan. My friend George Williams agrees with me, "You can meet people in Japan that you'd never ever meet in a hundred lifetimes in the west. Hell, in the west, you couldn't get within 5000 meters (yards) of these people. But in Japan, you can meet them walking along on the street!" It's true. I've met Eric Clapton twice walking along a street in Harajuku. At first I thought he was some scraggly-looking dumpy foreigner just hanging around looking for a job.... That's probably what everyone else thought too! 


My friend George even has a cool photo of the time he met Jimmy Page when Jimmy came to Japan in the 1980's! George is standing there next to Jimmy looking like he's standing next to his mom or something. It's pretty cool... I mean, if you like Led Zeppelin... 


Now, let me drop some names.


Since I've been in Japan, I've met many extremely famous people, multi-millionaires and world famous politicians... Just to name a few...


I've met Richard Branson, George H. W. Bush (Daddy Bush), Yoko Ono, Elvis Costello, Siouxsie Sioux (not well known by most, but I am a big fan), at least 7 Japanese Prime Ministers and a bunch of other countries prime ministers - so many - that I can't remember. Along with the some many others that I've met who I can't remember either.


Of course my job makes a big difference, but meeting guys like Richard Branson or these prime ministers and George Bush had nothing to do with my radio & TV work.


In fact, meeting George H. W. Bush had nothing to do with radio but everything to do with... Amway. You can read that true story here.

With Yoko Ono

I'm not in this photo with Siouxsie Sioux (her former hubby, Budgie next to her) but I took the photo. You get to see

how hot my wife was just when we married (though why she married me is anyone's guess). At right, front, is George Williams.

Former prime minister Yoshiro Mori (I think I'm going to 

start a collection of prime ministers I've taken photos with).

George H. W. Bush at an Amway convention. Don't believe me?

Here's the proof. 

Read:  Japan, Amway, George H.W. Bush, and Diana Ross – Your Tax Dollars at Work! to read more bizarre adventures that could only happen in Japan!

White Stripes way before they were famous

Menudo in 1984. I'm wearing the white shirt. See the kid in blue in front second from left? That's 

Ricky Martin at about age 10. No kidding!

Some wankers in a crap band named Linkin Park.

Elvis Costello is a very nice guy.

   
Anyhow, I hope it doesn't seem like I am bragging (well, I am kind of... Now that I look at all these pictures)... The real point is that, in Japan, the weirdest things happen. I have hundreds more photos to prove it too! I have photos with lots of movie-types like Arnie Schwarneggar, but can't be bothered to find them...


Last night I met one of the most famous Korean singers in all of Asia and one of my other blogger friends wrote about his hospital stay and the doctor smoking cigarettes (Hey! Do we have the same doctor? Wow! Small world, eh?) So that inspired me.


Have a good day... Oh, and don't forget to always have a camera! You never know who is going to walk up to you and ask directions.


There's some more pictures here (but not nearly all of them): http://www.myspace.com/goodmorninggarage/photos