Chinese New Year is quickly approaching, and it's time to contemplate the auspiciousness of the year ahead. Pop Stop, however, is unashamedly more concerned with "wardrobe malfunctions" and the fate of booze-addled celebrities.
But first, One Million Star "talent" show celebrity Aska Yang (楊宗緯) was reportedly paid a total of NT$1 million for crooning at Foxconn Technology Group (鴻海科技集團) and Fubon Financial Holding Co's (富邦金控) year-end parties, or weiya (尾牙).
In other Yang news, ET Today reports that Gary Tsao (曹格) said his work over the past two years has been meaningless because Yang is getting all the attention for the songs Tsao has written. And we thought Yang was king of the crybabies. In response, Yang, in a burst of humility that is all too rare amongst Taiwan's celebrities, publicly admitted to respecting Tsao and went so far as to call the Singaporean crooner and tell him so.
PHOTO: TAIPEI TIMES
Meanwhile, Vivi Wang's (王婉霏) "black forest incident" and Liu Zhen's (劉真) costume malfunction seem to be paying off. The China Times reported that both models were hired for weiya gigs, with Wang reportedly receiving NT$80,000 for the evening. The NT$50,000 fee Wang reputedly charged for the car promotion that included the special viewing leaves Pop Stop wondering what you get for NT$80,000.
Taiwan's authorities are at it again. Earlier in the week, this paper reported that the Taichung County Bureau of Health is in negotiations with Akane Nagase, a Japanese porn star, to help promote condom use. After hearing the news, Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) legislator Yang Li-huan (楊麗環) angrily asked, "What is the message that the bureau is trying to spread?" Well, Pop Stop suspects the message the bureau is trying to spread is that businessmen who keep mistresses or visit prostitutes abroad, contract diseases and then return to Taiwan and share them with their wives should realize they have more than just themselves to protect.
Shu Qi (舒淇), the Taiwanese "ex-porn star" as the Mirror newspaper repeatedly reminded readers when it falsely reported that she was sexing it up in a trendy London sushi joint with British bad boy Hugh Grant and his friend John Duigan, has had her reputation restored. Though the gossip rag printed a retraction of the story and an apology, bloggers were miffed that Rupert Murdoch's "red top" kept the "ex-porn star" tag and failed to edify its readers of Shu's sterling acting career over the past 10 years.
PHOTO: TAIPEI TIMES
David Tao's (陶吉吉) drunken exploits last week might land him in jail. The Liberty Times (自由時報) (the Taipei Times' sister newspaper) reported that the sauced singer allegedly assaulted the younger sister of one of his many ex-girlfriends. Pop Stop suspects that the lawsuit, if it comes to pass, could be enough to sober Tao up. Not.
Finally, it looks as though Terri Kwan (關穎), daughter of Jih Sun Group (日盛集團) chairman Chen Kuo-he (陳國和) has dropped sexy models and rich businessmen for that old Taiwanese favorite: gangsters. At least the son of one. An intrepid Apple paparazzo caught Kwan and Chen Chu-he (陳楚河), son of the recently deceased Bamboo Union godfather Chen Chi-li (陳啟禮), together on film. Though the sometime actress vehemently denied that anything was going on, capturing the two together is the kind of tattle that will keep the rumor mill grinding far into the next year.
May 18 to May 24 Pastor Yang Hsu’s (楊煦) congregation was shocked upon seeing the land he chose to build his orphanage. It was surrounded by mountains on three sides, and the only way to access it was to cross a river by foot. The soil was poor due to runoff, and large rocks strewn across the plot prevented much from growing. In addition, there was no running water or electricity. But it was all Yang could afford. He and his Indigenous Atayal wife Lin Feng-ying (林鳳英) had already been caring for 24 orphans in their home, and they were in
On May 2, Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫), at a meeting in support of Taipei city councilors at party headquarters, compared President William Lai (賴清德) to Hitler. Chu claimed that unlike any other democracy worldwide in history, no other leader was rooting out opposing parties like Lai and the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP). That his statements are wildly inaccurate was not the point. It was a rallying cry, not a history lesson. This was intentional to provoke the international diplomatic community into a response, which was promptly provided. Both the German and Israeli offices issued statements on Facebook
Even by the standards of Ukraine’s International Legion, which comprises volunteers from over 55 countries, Han has an unusual backstory. Born in Taichung, he grew up in Costa Rica — then one of Taiwan’s diplomatic allies — where a relative worked for the embassy. After attending an American international high school in San Jose, Costa Rica’s capital, Han — who prefers to use only his given name for OPSEC (operations security) reasons — moved to the US in his teens. He attended Penn State University before returning to Taiwan to work in the semiconductor industry in Kaohsiung, where he
President William Lai (賴清德) yesterday delivered an address marking the first anniversary of his presidency. In the speech, Lai affirmed Taiwan’s global role in technology, trade and security. He announced economic and national security initiatives, and emphasized democratic values and cross-party cooperation. The following is the full text of his speech: Yesterday, outside of Beida Elementary School in New Taipei City’s Sanxia District (三峽), there was a major traffic accident that, sadly, claimed several lives and resulted in multiple injuries. The Executive Yuan immediately formed a task force, and last night I personally visited the victims in hospital. Central government agencies and the
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