With A-list actors and actresses applying, plus reporters from various magazines, radio and television stations, the casting interviews for "Tokyo Love Story" were very lively.
Then after a round of fair, impartial and open interviews, Yoshinaga Sayuri, Utsui Ken, Miura Tomokazu, Nakamori Akina, Nanjo Yutaka, Furukawa Yuko, Asano Atsuko, etc. were all successfully selected based on their strength.
Among them, the heroine Akina Rika is played by Akina Nakamori.
The male protagonist Nagao Kanji is played by Miura Tomokazu.
The second female lead, Satomi Sekiguchi, is played by Sayuri Yoshinaga.
The second male lead, Kenichi Mikami, is played by Yutaka Nanjo.
The third female lead, Naoko Nagasaki, is played by Yuko Furotekawa.
The third male lead, Natsuki He, is played by Ken Utsui.
In addition, Asano Atsuko plays Akana Rika's colleague and friend Etsuko Takasugi.
Ryoko Sakuma plays the minister's wife, Natsuki Waga's wife, Ryoko Waga.
Just looking at these names, it can be said that there are many big names gathered and all the stars are shining brightly.
Among them, Sayuri Yoshinaga, Ryoko Sakuma and Yuko Furukawa are the three who have the closest relationship. After all, the movie "Snow" they starred in was only released a few months ago.
It was this movie that made these three people popular again.
Because the movie "Snow" is not only a hit in Japan, but it has also just been nominated for the Golden Lion Award at the 1983 Venice Film Festival.
Although I didn't win an award, I was only nominated, but in this day and age, it's still an honor.
Of course, for Yoshinaga Sayuri, this kind of honor can only be regarded as the icing on the cake, after all, she does not lack these.
Not to mention people like Utsui Ken, Miura Tomokazu, and Nanjo Yutaka, they are the guarantee of ratings.
Relatively speaking, Nakamori Akina and Asano Atsuko are relatively less famous, but they are also rising stars at present.
The main reason is that "101 Proposals", which Akina Nakamori previously starred in, is currently on the air, and its ratings have exceeded 42% and are heading towards 43%.
Even though Asano Atsuko is young, she has already made many movies before. Although most of them were lukewarm, she is still relatively famous.
Moreover, in the previous hit drama "101 Proposals", Asano Atsuko also played a small supporting role in it, and she also gained some recognition with this drama. Moreover, this is the second collaboration with Akina Nakamori, and both parties cooperate. More understanding.
In fact, Cao Zhiqiang originally wanted to give the role of Atsuko Asano, a good colleague and good friend of Akana Rika, to Kyoko Koizumi, but Kyoko Koizumi is currently too busy.
She recently had to rehearse new songs, record a lot of variety shows, shoot a lot of TV commercials, and even have a lot of tours. The schedule was full, which conflicted with the schedule of filming TV series, so it was not given to her in the end.
Of course, the second- and third-tier actors who came to accompany him did not gain anything.
For example, many passerby characters in East Love were cast by these people, and their contact information was also left. If new dramas are filmed in the future, they will be given priority.
Although this is just a comfort, it is better to have comfort than no comfort.
No matter what, this casting event was considered a complete success, and I won all the honors.
The day after the casting was completed, the filming of "Tokyo Love Story" officially started, regardless of the fact that Christmas was coming soon.
It can be seen from this that the Japanese at this time are so involved in their work and how they race against time.
Currently, the only one that can surpass Japan in the entertainment industry is Xiangjiang.
However, after Cao Zhiqiang attended the opening ceremony with everyone, he hurriedly left and went straight to the airport because he had to pick up people at the airport.
That's right, the people Cao Zhiqiang is going to pick up this time are none other than Zhu Lin, the heroine of the movie "Love in the Ancient Pavilion", the Japanese name is "Love in the Rain", as well as director Xu Qingdong, and one of Cao Zhiqiang's special secretaries - Xu spring!
The reason why these three people came was naturally due to many factors.
According to the plan, "Love in the Rain", which has been in theaters for nearly two months, will be officially released after this week.
Although today, major cinemas in Japan have gradually reduced the number of films scheduled for this movie, and the number of moviegoers has also become smaller, but the box office performance of "Love in the Rain" in Japan at this time is quite terrifying.
As of yesterday, the total box office of this movie has officially exceeded 9 billion yen, which is not much left behind the 9.62 billion yen of "Alien".
As for whether it can break the box office record of "Alien" within a week, it's hard to say yet. I can only say that the possibility is high, but not necessarily.
But regardless of whether it can break the box office record of "Alien", this movie's results are remarkable.
Therefore, Cao Zhiqiang felt that since the film's performance was so good, it would not make sense not to hold a ceremony.
It doesn’t matter if the premiere ceremony isn’t great, but when it comes to the end, the leading actors and actresses and the director should all be together.
Especially the heroine Zhu Lin is very popular in Japan. Many people hope that the heroine can come to Japan.
In line with the principle of Sino-Japanese friendship, both governments wanted to use this event to promote a grand event, so they asked Zhu Lin, the heroine of "Love in the Rain", and director Xu Qingdong to come to Japan to attend the film screening ceremony.
As for Xu Chun, he served as their accompanying Japanese translator and as Cao Zhiqiang's secretary, traveling with Zhu Lin and Xu Qingdong.
Of course, Xu Chun's arrival was not only to provide translation services for Zhu Lin and Xu Qingdong, but more importantly, to help Cao Zhiqiang.
After all, others don't know, but Xu Chun knows the real details of Cao Zhiqiang and the real purpose of Cao Zhiqiang's stay in Japan.
In short, due to various reasons, the procedures for these three people to come to Japan were all green, and it was all convenient for both the Chinese and Japanese parties.
And today is the day when these three people arrive in Tokyo by plane.
In the past, Cao Zhiqiang could only take a taxi or take the subway, but now he doesn't have to because he has a special car.
This special car is the Crown car that Akina Nakamori bought before, and the driver is a 38-year-old middle-aged male driver.
Speaking of which, when Akina Nakamori originally bought this car, there was no dedicated driver, and Akina Nakamori's assistant was used as a part-time driver.
However, it was later discovered that Akina Nakamori’s two female assistants who knew how to drive were still not very good at driving.
After three minor accidents in a row, Nakamori Akina decisively followed Cao Zhiqiang's suggestion and hired a 38-year-old middle-aged male driver to be the driver for the office.
Needless to say, after having this male driver, the Crown car never had any accidents again.
However, after the male driver joined, out of various considerations, Nakamori Akina hired two more male employees who could drive to join Aiyin Office.
In this way, Aiyin Office is no longer a complete girl country, but an ordinary company with a relatively balanced gender.
Although hiring a few more people may seem like a little more expense, the company's efficiency has doubled as a result.
Therefore, Akina Nakamori had to lament afterwards that in terms of work efficiency and cost-effectiveness, male employees were more worry-free and more cost-effective.
For example, with the same salary, one male employee can do as much work as at least two or three female employees, and he has fewer things to do, is more loyal, and works harder.
The reason is that compared to young female employees, male employees hope to have a stable and high-paying job.
Because if female employees do not do well, they can still get married, but if male employees do not have a job, they will be looked down upon and will not be able to support their family.
Therefore, from the perspective of stability and exploitation, male employees are the most cost-effective.
When Akina Nakamori mentioned her experience to Cao Zhiqiang, Cao Zhiqiang also praised Akina Nakamori and said that she finally looked at the problem from the perspective of a capitalist, which was good and a sign of maturity.
In fact, Cao Zhiqiang knew early on that if we put aside emotional factors and simply talk about labor cost-effectiveness, male employees are indeed more cost-effective.
It's just that Akina Nakamori had to find a female employee, a very ugly female employee, for some unknown reason, and she didn't want a male employee. This made Cao Zhiqiang murmur in his heart, but he couldn't say anything.
Now that Akina Nakamori has realized it herself, Cao Zhiqiang can naturally educate her with peace of mind.
In other words, in reality, male employees are more reliable for various tasks such as running errands.
Now that the company's private car has a male driver, Cao Zhiqiang is much more worry-free. He is no longer as nervous as before when he got into a car.
In fact, if Cao Zhiqiang hadn't had a Japanese driver's license, he would have really wanted to drive by himself.
But there is no other way. No matter how good Cao Zhiqiang's driving skills are, it is useless without a driver's license in Japan. And getting a Japanese driver's license is a bit complicated and time-consuming given his current status.
If you have that kind of time, it’s better to spend money to hire a special driver.
After Cao Zhiqiang and the driver arrived at the airport, they waited for more than an hour before finally seeing Zhu Lin, Xu Qingdong and Xu Chun.
It can be seen that Zhu Lin has been carefully dressed up. She is wearing a khaki woolen coat, iron gray bell-bottom pants, brown leather shoes and brown sunglasses. She is very fashionable and does not look rustic at all.
However, Xu Qingdong's dress was a bit exaggerated, just wearing a windbreaker and sunglasses, a jazz hat, and a cigarette in his mouth.
Although in this era, Xu Qingdong's dress was passable, but it was a bit exaggerated after all. At least Cao Zhiqiang was speechless when he saw it.
Xu Chun's dress is much simpler, just a pair of blue jeans and a brown jacket. She also wears sunglasses. With her short hair and unsmiling smile, she looks quite heroic.
Obviously, the outfits of these three people are definitely not domestic style, nor are they the same as Japanese style. They are typical Hong Kong style.
Fortunately, Hong Kong-style outfits are not particularly conspicuous here in Tokyo, at least they are passable.
Soon, Cao Zhiqiang asked the driver to hold up a wooden sign with the three names "Zhu Lin, Xu Qingdong, and Xu Chun" written side by side in simplified Chinese.
Xu Chun was the first to spot the sign held by the driver Cao Zhiqiang, so he quickly led people over.
In this way, the two parties finally met at the airport.
After Cao Zhiqiang shook hands with the three of them, he smiled and said to Zhu Lin and the other three: "Welcome to Tokyo, I miss you so much!"
Zhu Lin smiled and said nothing, but Xu Qingdong took off his sunglasses and laughed, giving a thumbs up to Cao Zhiqiang and said: "You're the one who can do it! Don't accept it!"
Thanks to you, I have the opportunity to go abroad and visit Tokyo.
Oops, if I go back this time, I will be blown away, hahaha! "
Cao Zhiqiang smiled, then looked at the smiling Zhu Lin, and said with a normal smile: "Sister Zhu, welcome to Tokyo! You don't know, you are very popular here in Japan, everyone is looking forward to your coming. "
Zhu Lin also took off her sunglasses, smiled at Cao Zhiqiang, and said generously: "No, I have to thank Director Cao for giving me this opportunity. To be honest, this is my first time going abroad. If it weren't for you, I might not have I won’t be able to leave the country for the rest of my life.”
"Just kidding." Cao Zhiqiang smiled and shook his head. "With your strength, even without me, you will be able to go abroad sooner or later. It's just a matter of sooner or later."
After greeting Zhu Lin, Cao Zhiqiang looked at Xu Chun, who had already taken off his sunglasses, and nodded with a simple smile: "Thank you for your hard work, Comrade Xu Chun."
"It's not hard." Xu Chun immediately put on a professional smile and said, "It's all what I should do."
"Okay." Cao Zhiqiang, who had greeted everyone separately, clapped his hands and said, "Since we are all here, come with me."
Next, Cao Zhiqiang took the three of them in a special car from Aiyin Office and came to a house near Masashi Sada's house.
This two-story one-family building was rented by Cao Zhiqiang when he first came to Japan. Xu Chun and Anping also lived here.
Although Cao Zhiqiang later moved to another place for various reasons and became neighbors with Akina Nakamori, and later even lived together, this one-family building was not abandoned and instead became Cao Zhiqiang's office here.
Especially if Xu Chun and Anping come here, they will stay here.
Now that Xu Qingdong and Zhu Lin are here, they have made the best use of everything.
In fact, it is not that Cao Zhiqiang cannot afford to rent a hotel.
However, Cao Zhiqiang feels that compared to this type of private residence, Japanese hotels are still too restrictive.
If nothing else, let’s just talk about cooking. Japanese hotels generally don’t allow you to cook by yourself.
Xu Qingdong, Zhu Lin, and even Xu Chun are all used to cooking and eating by themselves, and in this kind of one-family building, they can cook at will.
In short, in terms of comfort and freedom, living in a one-family home here in Japan is much more comfortable than staying in a hotel.
And Xu Chun is no stranger to the neighborhood. She knows where there are markets, parks, restaurants, and supermarkets.
In addition, Cao Zhiqiang specially ordered some new electrical appliances and home appliances, especially several kerosene heating stoves, so living here is not uncomfortable at all.
What I want to point out here is that everything is good here in Tokyo, but in terms of heating in winter, it is really a stretch.
Except for large hotels in Tokyo, which have central heating, most houses do not have central heating, nor do they have floor heating.
To spend the winter in Japan, most people buy their own heating stoves, the most common of which is the "kotatsu".
The so-called "kotatsu" is a table with quilts around it. There is an electric heating device in the middle of the table. Everyone gathers around the table and puts their legs in, so it will be very warm.
However, this warmth is only temporary. Once you step out of the kotatsu, you will still be very cold.
If the conditions are slightly better, some kerosene heating stoves will be installed for heating.
This kind of kerosene heating stove is not placed indoors, but is placed in a window or a hole in the wall like a window air conditioner.
At that time, add kerosene to the kerosene heating stove, turn on the electricity, then heat the copper pipes inside with the kerosene, and then use an electric fan to blow hot air into the house, while the exhaust gas from the kerosene combustion will be discharged directly outside the house.
Well, to put it simply, the kerosene heating stove now popular in Japan is similar to a wall-mounted boiler, or a kerosene-burning air conditioner. It may seem a bit troublesome, but in terms of heating effect, it is better than ordinary electric heating air conditioners and is safer. The performance is also better than that of ordinary indoor kerosene stoves, and the price is naturally more expensive.
Cao Zhiqiang had previously obtained the consent of the owner of the household and installed a wall-mounted kerosene heating stove on the window. There were three in total, corresponding to the two bedrooms and the living room.
As for the place where Cao Zhiqiang currently lives, the original head of the household was not short of money and had already installed a kerosene wall-mounted heating stove, so there was no need to worry about this.
Speaking of which, the owner of this one-family house agreed to install a wall-mounted heating stove because Cao Zhiqiang said that if he stopped renting the house in the future, the heating stove would be left as a gift to the householder, so the householder agreed.
Of course, because of this, the rental contract for this one-family house was also changed to a two-year long-term rental contract.
In other words, the lease term of this house is two full years.
In short, with such a fully functional one-family house, everyone, whether Zhu Lin or Xu Qingdong, can get a good place to stay and no longer have to worry about housing problems.
(End of chapter)
