Talento Kurara Chibana, best known as the first runner-up for the Miss Universe 2006 crown, will begin hosting her first television show next month.

TV Tokyo's "Chibana Kurara no Chikyu Reporter" will air on Friday nights starting on April 4, focusing on political and social issues around the world, especially foreign aid. Capable of speaking four languages, Chibana has had a strong image as an international personality since she rose to fame in the Miss Universe competition.

As one of her first projects for the show, Chibana visited Uganda earlier this month for about a week.

With the arrival of the cherry blossom season, Oricon surveyed a thousand people to find out which celebrity's beauty best matched that of the cherry blossoms.

Actress Nanako Matsushima was listed at #1, outranking her fellow actresses Yukie Nakama (#2) and Yuko Takeuchi (#3). Mika Nakashima came in at #4, ahead of a tie between Sayuri Yoshinaga and Koyuki.

Young actress Aoi Miyazaki ranked #7, followed by Takako Matsu, Emi Suzuki, and Masami Nagasawa.

Following up on a similar survey published last week, Oricon has revealed the results of its question: "Which male celebrity would you want to go on an adventure with?"

Comedian Masaru Hamaguchi (of Yoiko) tied for #1, apparently due to his image of having strong survival abilities. The other one at the top of the list was actor Hiroshi Tamaki, who simply was very popular among the female respondents.

Shingo Katori ranked #3, followed by actor Hiroshi Fujioka and martial arts actor Kane Kosugi.

Musician Mana, well known as the leader of visual-kei band Malice Mizer, has taken on the role of producer for his first female artist.

The artist is 19-year-old Kanon Wakeshima, who will make her major label debut on May 28 with a single titled "still doll." Wakeshima has studied cello since the age of 3, and her music features her as both a cellist and vocalist.

Mana has gained popularity in Europe both for his musical projects and his Gothic Lolita fashion label. Because of that, Wakeshima will make her live debut in Europe, starting with the 9th Japan Expo in Paris, France, which is being held on July 3-6.

Sang-il Lee's 2006 film "Hula Girls" is making its return as a stage play. The movie, which follows the plight of several women training to be hula dancers as part of a plan to revitalize a coal mining town, won several awards and was highly praised by critics.

The stage version stars Nana Katase as the dance instructor Madoka, originally played by Yasuko Matsuyuki, while Saki Fukuda co-stars as the young Kimiko, originally played by Yu Aoi. This is Fukuda's first time in a theater production.

Daisuke Habara, who had writing credits for the movie, will handle the script. Kazuya Yamada is directing, and choreography will be done by hula teacher Kaleinani Hayakawa, who was the model for Madoka's character.

Performances will run at the Akasaka ACT Theater in Tokyo from July 18 to August 3.

Actress Saeko and Nippon Ham Fighters pitcher Yu Darvish gave birth to their first child on Monday afternoon at a Sapporo hospital. The baby boy weighed in at 3,000 grams.

The young couple married on November 11.

Actor Shido Nakamura, who recently formalized his divorce with Yuko Takeuchi, continues his reputation as a ladies' man. The latest woman rumored to be involved with Nakamura is actress Sawa Suzuki, who worked together with him in the 2004 taiga drama "Shinsengumi!"

FLASH magazine spotted the two together late at night at an upscale yakiniku restaurant. They spent close to 3 hours there, though in the end they each went back to their separate homes.

Nakamura's agency acknowledged that they dined together, but said they had not heard anything about a relationship.

More cast details have been revealed for the Kankuro Kudo-directed comedy "Shonen Meriken Sakku." It was already known that Aoi Miyazaki is playing the lead as Kanna, a record company scout, and Ging Nang Boyz's Kazunobu Mineta will be playing the vocalist of one of the bands she recruits.

Koichi Sato, Yuichi Kimura, Tomorowo Taguchi, and Hiroki Miyake will play a punk band whose members are all over the age of 50. The band gets accidentally discovered by Kanna when she comes across 25-year-old footage of the band.

Also appearing in the film are Yusuke Santamaria as the gay president of Kanna's record company and Ryo Katsuji as Kanna's boyfriend.

"Shonen Meriken Sakku" is scheduled for release between late 2008 and early 2009.

The band Aqua Timez has been given the task of providing the theme song for the third "Gokusen" drama series, which starts on NTV on April 19. The song, called "Niji," will go on sale May 8.

Meanwhile, Mariya Takeuchi will sing the theme for TBS's "Around 40." Titled "Shiawase no Monosashi," the song will also feature starring actress Yuki Amami as part of the chorus. The single goes on sale May 21.

Music producer and Sharam Q vocalist Tsunku will soon be a father. Sources say that his wife Kanako, a former model, is already 8 months pregnant and is expected to give birth in mid-May.

Tsunku and Kanako have been married since June 2006.

It was made known on Monday that Puffy's new single, "All Because of You," was written by Avril Lavigne and singer/songwriter Butch Walker, who has produced for both Puffy and Lavigne in the past.

The song will be released on May 21, coupled with two other songs. One is their cover of Tamio Okuda's "Frontier no Pioneer," which is currently being used in Kagome's "Yasai Seikatsu" commercial. The other is a new version of "Closet Full of Love" (from their "honeycreeper" album released last September), remixed by famous twin DJ group RYUKYUDISKO.

It has also been announced that Puffy will perform in Tokyo, Osaka, and Nagoya to celebrate the single's release. Tickets for "PUFFY All Because Of Live 2008" will go on sale through a mobile phone site starting on Tuesday, March 25th at 9:00pm.