Talento and doctor Ayako Nishikawa will make her first movie appearance in the film version of the popular "Tokumei Kakarichou Tadano Hitoshi" drama franchise. Her role includes a bed scene with starring actor Katsunori Takahashi.

The movie, titled "Tokumei Kakarichou Tadano Hitoshi: Saigo no Gekijoban," opens in December. Idol Rina Akiyama is also a part of the cast.

Popular model Rica Imai will make her entry into theater with the stage version of "Hula Girls," which is being performed this summer.

The play is based on Sang-il Lee's award-winning movie from 2006, and features Saki Fukuda and Nana Katase in the lead roles (originally played by Yu Aoi and Yasuko Matsuyuki, respectively).

Imai has had minor parts in dramas before, but this will be her first true acting role. Though she is inexperienced with hula dance, she has started training in ballet.

Other cast members include Tsuyoshi Abe and idol Harumi Nemoto. The play will be performed in Tokyo from July 18 to August 3.

Ex-Morning Musume member Ai Kago excitedly revealed on her blog on Thursday that she has been given a part in a Hong Kong movie. She barely announced her return to show business earlier this month, and had revealed that she was planning to move into acting.

However, Kago did not reveal any further information about the movie, since she wrote that even she did not know the details of the film.

A comic by mangaka Fujio Akatsuka ("Tensai Bakabon") is being animated, and it will be distributed through the online video site YouTube.

The gag manga "Hennako-chan" was originally serialized in Shukan Josei over a three and a half year span, starting in 1991. Due to its dirty humor, broadcasting the anime on the mainstream television networks is said to be impossible.

Animation studio Gonzo is handling the conversion of the comic to digital form. It will be presented in "comic motion" format, which means that it will be mainly still images rather than being fluidly animated. A total of six 5-minute episodes are planned, with English and Chinese versions also in the works. Distribution starts on April 25.

59-year-old B-Saku Sato has been diagnosed with early-stage stomach cancer, it was learned on Wednesday. According to his agency, he was not experiencing any symptoms, but the cancer was discovered during a physical exam.

Sato will finish up a tour this month with his theater troupe, Tokyo Vaudeville Show, before being admitted to a hospital and undergoing surgery. He aims to be out of the hospital by mid-May, though he has already decided to back out of a show scheduled for June.

Comedian Akira Kawashima (of Kirin) has finally acknowledged in public that he and talento Kaori Manabe are dating. The two were first reported as a couple last June, but Manabe repeatedly denied it. However, this past Saturday was the first time she publicly indicated that she is in a relationship, prompting Kawashima to speak up on Wednesday.

Kawashima remarked that he and Manabe haven't been able to meet lately. When asked about marriage, he said it hasn't been considered.

Miho Nakayama will return to acting in a movie based on her husband's work. She married Akutagawa Prize-winning author Hitonari Tsuji in 2002 and last appeared in the drama series "Home & Away" before she and Tsuji permanently moved to Paris. This will be her first appearance in a movie since 1997.

Her comeback role is in "Sayonara Itsuka," based on Tsuji's 2001 novel of the same name. It was originally planned to become a movie in 2002 with Nakayama as the star, but their marriage that year and other circumstances resulted in the project getting shelved.

The movie has now been revived in the hands of Korean director Lee Jae-han, though the cast is said to be entirely Japanese. Filming starts in Bangkok next month, with additional locations in Korea and Japan scheduled later on. Theatrical release has been set for next spring.