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Hi everyone,

I know that some of you are very interested in the history of Seiko's career,
especially how she gained her fame and broke away from the "Idol" system. When
you learn about the Idol system and how restrictive it is (and it was even 
worse before Seiko left it behind) you learn the magnitude of what she 
actually accomplished. While the Japanese music industry sells a lot of 
records and products featuring their "Idols," they also have driven many of 
the young stars to the point of exhaustion, depression, and worse. It made some
dreams come true, and shattered a few as well.

In the 70s, there was a popular (and somewhat odd) singing duo in Japan called
Pink Lady. As their career faded at the end of the decade, television
executives in America had the bright idea that if they teamed them with USA
comedian Jeff Altman, they'd have a huge hit show. Instead, "Pink Lady And
Jeff" remains in the history books as one of the worst television shows ever
aired. It was only on for six episodes. Rhino has recently released a DVD with
all six shows, and as a result Pink Lady is showing up all over the web.

The girls were very uncomfortable coming to America...they couldn't speak
English, for one. All of their songs and the "comedy" routines they did on the
show were memorized phonetically...they spoke them and sang them but didn't
understand a word that came out of their mouths. They got "jet lag" from
flying between Japan and Los Angeles, trying to balance their "Idol" career
with the production of the show. They didn't like or understand American food,
they couldn't find clothes that fit them in the stores, and they both missed
their boyfriends. The most important thing here is they "did what they were
told," and what their management told them was that they were "product." They
followed the rules, always appeared "happy," and experienced joy only when they
were on stage and heard fans screaming their names...but their lives offstage
were very sad.

When the television show failed they went back to Japan for a tear-filled 
"farewell" concert. They have reuinted over the years (as recently as 1996, for
a "comeback" single and video). 

The Grand Royal Records Web Site has an excellent article, including several
video clips:

http://www.grandroyal.com/mag/2001/jan/pinklady/

Also, the best site I found has many links and photos from the show. If you
follow the links you will also find the text of a 1999 interview with the 
girls (they are now both 43 years old):

http://www.pinkladyamerica.com/

Finally, I posted a message several years ago about the "Encyclopedia of
Japanese Pop Culture." This book features not only material on Pink Lady but a
very good chapter on Seiko's attempts to gain success in America. Shopgirl, if
you're reading this, you asked me for this info a while back and I couldn't 
find it, so here it is now:

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0834803801/grandroyal/002-4306941-6979228

I know this isn't strictly "Seiko Related," but if you realize that Pink Lady's
career ended in 1980, right at the time of Seiko's rise to fame, you will have
a better appreciation of what she went through and the strength that she had
when she walked away from the "system." I hope you enjoy it.

Best regards,

Mike