Gravure Idols Studio Hopes to Relieve Japanese Stress with Proceeds from Thai Relax and Other Racy Titles
In Japan, Studio Happy Chicken Pink and its gravure idols have a legion of fans, so to honor that loyalty, the owner is donating 100 percent of proceeds from March sales to the Red Cross for earthquake and tsunami disaster relief.
That's bound to be a sizable chunk because the studio's hottest seller--Thai Relax starring Ayaka Uchiyama--will be released on Blu-ray March 22.
Based on the 70-minute DVD's product description, Thai Relax features Uchiyama stripping down for an oil massage, cleaning up in a soapy shower and bath, riding a vibrating massage chair, and leading a "super sexy yoga session."
Yoga? Super-sexy? Who knew?
The DVD, which debuted at No. 1 on Amazon.com's Top 100 Asian Films list, is also billed as an "instrument of relaxation and peace." The "interactive content" will make this "a DVD you'll watch again and again!"
Fine. But I'm not picking up your washcloth afterward.
Releasing the same day as Thai Relax are Chaku Ero 3 and Samurai Boys from 2-year-old Studio Happy Chicken Pink.
Charlie Maib says he's happy to part with the proceeds.
"From a pop-cultural perspective, Japan has given so much to the world," says the studio owner in a company release. "Be it the films of Ozu and Kurosawa to the music of Nobuo Umatsu and games of Shigeru Miyamoto or even the modern-day anime and manga that have become part of America's cultural lexicon. The time has come for us to pay back this great debt."
No one from his Japanese production company was injured in the tragedy.
Sorry, guys, the release does not indicate if that staff includes "talent."




























