Former TV Tokyo Producer Unveils True Side of Masahiro Nakai 35 Days After Shock Retirement Drama

Mr. Nakai is coming to TV TOKYO.

I still vividly remember Masahiro Nakai’s words.

“While looking at TV Tokyo through the car window as we got closer, I thought, ‘I wonder if Tabuchi-san is there.'”

On November 22, 2008, when Nakai appeared on Kira Kira Afro to promote the movie I Want to Be a Shell, he visited TV Tokyo. It was during this visit that I had the chance to reunite with him after a long time. Although Kira Kira Afro was a program from TV Osaka, at that time, the “Tokyo Business Trip Afro” was recorded at TV Tokyo.

This was something specially prepared for Nakai’s appearance.

At that time, TV Tokyo was in the middle of what could be called the “Johnny’s winter era,” as no talent from the former Johnny & Associates agency appeared on the network following the so-called “Junior Scandal” that occurred in January 1999.

The “Junior Scandal” was a major incident where the underage drinking and smoking of Johnny’s Jr. members were widely reported by the photo magazine FRIDAY, which triggered the wrath of Meri Kitagawa. TV Tokyo was made an example of within the industry, taking responsibility for the situation. The full details of this matter are covered in my book New Television Theory of the Chaotic Era, so I will leave it out here.

At the time, I was working on documentaries, and I had long wanted to collaborate with SMAP. I repeatedly made offers to their manager, Michi Iijima, but was continuously turned down with the reason being “Johnny won’t allow it.”

The “ban on appearances” was a thick wall. However, Kira Kira Afro was a show on TV Osaka, a different company within the same network, and since it was for a movie promotion, along with the relationships with hosts Tsurube Shofukutei and Naomi Matsushima, Nakai’s appearance miraculously came to fruition.

“When Nakai was coming to TV Tokyo.”

When I received this news from the senior producer in the production bureau, I rushed to the studio where the recording was happening. It was there that Nakai, waiting behind the set for his turn, said the words I quoted at the beginning.

I was happy. Why did Nakai say such a thing to me? Why did the senior producer from the production bureau contact me specifically about Nakai’s visit? And why did I rush to be there? It was because Nakai and I had shared a memorable and unforgettable precious time together.

I want to make it clear here. With Nakai’s sudden retirement, the issues regarding his alleged troubles with women have become a point of contention in the public eye. If there truly was anything suspicious about those allegations, it should not be forgiven. This article does not seek to defend Nakai nor to assert his righteousness, nor is it intended to speculate on the rumors.

I lived with them almost every day of my life.

Nakai, who joined the former Johnny & Associates in 1987, made his television debut as part of SMAP in the TV Tokyo drama Abunai Shonen III, which began airing in October 1988 (the group was formed in April of the same year, with their official debut in September 1991).

I was an assistant director for that program. The Abunai Shonen series had three parts, with the first two parts starring the wildly popular group Hikaru Genji. As the successor to them, it was a huge opportunity for SMAP, who had yet to debut. The pressure they faced was immense. Readers of my generation will remember that Johnny Kitagawa, inspired by the success of Hikaru Genji, who performed while roller skating, came up with the idea for SMAP to appear riding skateboards.