Idol Aya Matsuura has been given the starring role in a musical titled "Honki de Only You," which will feature only songs by singer Mariya Takeuchi.

The musical is a love story based on the novel "Kiss Yori mo Setsunaku" by Kei Yuikawa. The production's song list includes "Kokuhaku" and "Eki."

Fuji TV's Hirofumi Matsuno is in charge of planning and producing the musical. Performances will be held at Shibuya's PARCO Theater from September 12 to October 5.

On June 4, the opening and ending themes of the original "Dragonball" anime series are being revived with a new CD single, featuring two self-covers by the songs' original artists, Ushio Hashimoto and Hiroki Takahashi.

The single is being released as "Romantic Ageru Yo (21st century ver.)," sung by Hashimoto. Similarly, the coupling song is "Makafushigi Adventure! (21st century ver.)," done by Takahashi.

The release is said to be a project commemorating the 30-year career of composer Takeshi Ike, who composed the original versions.

33-year-old NTV announcer Yoko Nobutomo has been married to a doctor for more than a month, it was learned on Tuesday. They apparently met through sports journalist Akemi Masuda and began dating just last November. There is no word of pregnancy, however, and Nobutomo intends to continue working.

Nobutomo has been with NTV since 1998 and has been a regular on many morning programs, including her current role as a reporter on "Sukkiri!!" In 2003, Nobutomo became part of the music unit BORA along with fellow NTV announcers Sachiko Furuichi and Noriko Baba.

This summer, NTV plans to broadcast a drama special tentatively titled "Cowra Horyoshuyojo Kara no Daidasso." The story centers on the town of Cowra in New South Wales, Australia, the site of one of the largest prison breakouts during World War II.

The Cowra breakout took place in 1944. Although living conditions in the prison were said to be decent, many of the Japanese POWs considered their capture to be a great disgrace. One night, hundreds of them attempted to escape the prison, though many were killed or committed suicide.

Kotaro Koizumi stars as one of the prisoners. His supporting cast includes Yo Oizumi, Sadao Abe, Ai Kato, and Tsutomu Yamazaki. The drama's script is written by Miho Nakazono ("Anego," "Haken no Hinkaku"), whose uncle is said to have experienced life in the Cowra prison.

"Cowra" is the second of three wartime drama specials that NTV is planning this year to commemorate its 55th anniversary. The first special was "Tokyo Daikushu," which aired on March 17-18.

Music producer Kazuyoshi Nakamura has died of acute heart failure caused by an apparent suicide. He was found hung in his Tokyo apartment on Friday afternoon. He was 60 years old.

Nakamura produced music for several popular artists, including Sayuri Ishikawa, Hibari Misora, and Harumi Miyako. In 1983, he was discovered to be in a relationship with Miyako, despite the fact he was married with children. They began living together, and since then they carried on both a professional and private relationship. In 1989, Nakamura became the president of Miyako's own management agency.

Miyako is said to be in complete shock, and has not yet made any public comment about Nakamura's sudden death. It is still not clear what his motivation was, as no suicide note has been found.

Kiwa Ishii, an announcer for TV Asahi, gave birth to her first daughter last Friday. Last July, she married Toru Shimada, the president of the Rakuten Eagles, and it was announced in November that she was pregnant.

Ishii is expected to return to work in the near future.

13-year-old Miho Kanazawa will make her acting debut in "Yougisha x no Kenshin," the upcoming film version of the popular mystery drama "Galileo." Like the television series, the film is based on a novel by Keigo Higashino.

Masaharu Fukuyama and Kou Shibasaki are reprising the lead roles of the brilliant physicist Manabu Yukawa and the detective Kaoru Utsumi. It has already been announced that Shinichi Tsutsumi will play their opponent, a mathematics teacher who is trying to protect a mother and daughter suspected of murder. Yasuko Matsuyuki is playing the mother, and now Kanazawa has been revealed to have the part of the daughter.

Kanazawa entered show business after winning an Avex audition in 2006. Last year, she had a small role in the TBS daytime series "Ai no Uta!," but this film will be her first true role as an actress.

The movie, directed by Hiroshi Nishitani, has been scheduled for theatrical release this fall.

On Tuesday, Asahi Kasei Fibers announced the models for its 2008 swimsuit campaign. This year, the company will be represented by 22-year-old Mariko Sano and 21-year-old Chinese model Zhao Siyu.

The Asahi Kasei campaign started in 1976 with Agnes Lum. The company started appointing two models each year in 2004.