Sports Nippon led its front page on the 27th with the marriage of Japan national rugby prop Keita Inagaki, known as “the man who doesn’t smile,” pairing a two-shot of him smiling with the headline “Inagaki smiled.” His partner is Kiko Arai, a former Miss Nippon Grand Prix winner—who, four years ago, actually came to the Palaceside Building as a model.
The October 2018 issue of the monthly Casa BRUTUS (Magazine House), a 20th-anniversary special, ran a 22-page feature in which Kishin Shinoyama, one of Japan’s leading photographers, shot male and female models in the latest fashion on location at this building. The woman striking poses in Louis Vuitton, Gucci, and other luxury houses at the Mainichi Shrine on the roof, the observation deck, the Stairs of Dreams, the west entrance, the restrooms, and more was “Kiko Arai”—Ms. Arai. A bursting smile, the strength of eyes locked on the lens.... The lively expressions with which she answered Shinoyama’s direction left a strong impression.
In the Sports Nippon photo, Ms. Arai’s left hand rests on Inagaki’s cheek, but the man who doesn’t smile added, with a mischievous touch, “She’s just kneading my face.” In a gloomy pandemic, it was a rare bright story; many people must have sent a round of applause.