The 16th Golden Melody Awards made many happy faces last Saturday with glittering stars holding up their newly secured best-something titles, waving and laughing out of sheer excitement on the stage. However, there is always something bound to go wrong at every big party, and this year's biggest embarrassment award would unanimously go to musician Wang Lee-hom (王力宏), who mistakenly went up to the stage for the honor of Best Male Mandarin Singer, which was in fact given to Stanley Huang (黃立行).
When an award presenter Karen Mok (
Mok felt terrible about the mistake she made and was too embarrassed to go to the party afterwards. Though the Hong Kong beauty is guilty as charged, "Huang" and "Wang" do have the same pronunciation in Cantonese.
PHOTO: TAIPEI TIMES
Little S was the gossip rags' cover story again, this time with the news of her engagement to wed her 35-year-old boyfriend, Mike Hsu (
Her sister, Big S, on the contrary, has been going through a rocky time lately. Big S and her sweetheart of four years, Lan Zheng-long (
Shocking news on pop diva Faye Wang (王菲) broke out last Friday in Beijing, when her agent reportedly said that the superstar will take an indefinite leave from show biz. The Great Daily News (大成報) tried to confirm with her agent. The agent, however, promised that Wang would only take one-year vacation to enjoy her personal life for a while. And she won't completely disappear from the public view; fans will see her in a couple of upcoming TV commercials while she's gone, the agent said.
PHOTO: TAIPEI TIMES
PHOTO: TAIPEI TIMES
The government released figures for October showing that, year on year, exports increased 49 percent to a record US$61.8 billion for the month. The dramatic increases were partly due to fall being the high season, but largely due to the AI boom driving demand for exports, which many investors fear is rapidly turning into a massive bubble. An editorial in this newspaper last month warned that the government should be ready in case the boom turns to bust. In previous boom-bust cycles, from shoes and textiles, through computer parts and accessories, to tools, bicycles and sporting goods, Taiwan has survived in
Nov. 30 to Dec. 6 It is said that those who refused to vacate Kipatauw’s upper settlement were knocked unconscious by Japanese agents and dragged to fingerprint the deeds. The Japanese coveted the site’s valuable white clay for Beitou District’s (北投) growing ceramics industry, and they were determined to acquire it by any means. The Indigenous Ketagalan settlement of Kipatauw had withstood centuries of external pressures and cultural erosion. Despite gradually losing much of their territory to Han settlers, they remained distinct into the early 20th century. By 1895, three communities persisted: the upper settlement near
Spicy, scarlet red Sichuan food isn’t normally my suggestion for a first date. But hear me out, if you can both handle a three-chili rating, this spot could be the one. The vibe is intimate and in-the-know cool, the food is fantastic and will spur many a conversation, the cocktail list is wacky and fun — and they do offer free mouthwash in the restroom. Old Seat (老位) is tucked down an unassuming alleyway in the bustling Zhongxiao Dunhua (忠孝敦化) area, warm red lighting and fairy lights leading the way. It’s elegant, overtly hipster and even our table by the
This week, President William Lai (賴清德) and his administration launched a major publicity blitz to drum up support for a proposed NT$1.25 trillion (US$40 billion) special defense budget. This was well-planned and executed, and politically astute, but it is still far from becoming a reality: He needs to convince the opposition-controlled legislature to pass it. The chance that the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) legislative caucuses vote to approve everything that the administration wants is low, but Lai and his team have gone to great lengths to optimize the chances of getting some, or even most
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