Downtown DX” had just ended.
Most of the employees were not informed of the termination and were quite surprised,” said a director of Yomiuri Television’s production department. ( Photo: The “true face” of the beautiful esthetician with whom Masanori Hamada had an “affair with a French cruller” ) ‛The variety show that “Downtown” Masanori Hamada (62) served as MC for 17 years, which had been broadcast since October 2008, “Hamachan! (NTV, produced by Yomiuri TV), which aired for 17 years since October 2008, has come to an end. On September 24, Yomiuri TV held a press conference at the station in Chuo Ward, Osaka, and announced that the program would end with the midnight broadcast on the same day. It is unusual for the termination to be announced on the same day as the final broadcast. The reason for not announcing the end of “Hamachan! was not announced until the day of the broadcast, the head of the station’s contents center, Masahiro Tanaka, explained that “there was no good timing.” …… The station also just ended “Downtown DX” in June, which means that it has “severed ties” with Downtown. The show ended with a lot of discomfort. Behind this was the feud between Matsumoto Hitoshi (62) and Yomiuri TV. When reporting on Matsumoto’s alleged sexual assault, the station’s “Miyaneya” (NTV affiliate, produced by Yomiuri TV) asked “Ms. A,” who complained of victimization, to “negotiate” with Matsumoto’s side officials to prevent her from appearing in court as a witness. The report included a reproduction of a VTR showing “Ms. A,” who had complained about the damage. The commentators in the studio also made comments based on the assumption that this was “true,” and Matsumoto’s lawyer responded by claiming that it was “biased reporting. Matsumoto also posted a statement on X, making a “silent protest. The president of Yomiuri TV was of the opinion that Miyaneya was not at fault, and the two sides ran into a parallel path. Then there was the nasty end of DX, and the station wondered what would happen to “Hama-chan! was rumored within the station as to what would happen to “Hama-chan! Shortly before the announcement of the discontinuation, there was a reorganization briefing for employees, at which “Hamachan! was replaced by a different program.” (Another Yomiuri TV insider). Behind the scenes, it seems that there was a fierce “game-playing” between the station and the Downtown side. Apparently, Yomiuri was trying to find a way to keep the show alive, but the Downtown side was adamant about ending the program. This seems to be the reason for the sudden announcement of the termination. On the other hand, although it was a long-running program, the side-by-side ratings were the lowest in the Kinki region almost every time. From Yomiuri TV’s point of view, it will not hurt them too much, except for the loss of the “connection” with Downtown. …… The final episode of the program was a simple “Gourmet Food Collection” with no appearance by Hamada himself. Furthermore, the program’s website lists “Card Game Bob Jiten Compilation” as scheduled to air on October 1, but of course it will not be aired. The “Hamachan! will start on October 1, featuring Takashi Yoshida of Black Mayonnaise and Myoboshi Shimobori’s “Yoshida to Sakarina to” (Yoshida, Sakarina, and Yoshida). This is truly a slapstick exit drama, but it appears that they will continue to work with Yoshimoto Kogyo. Yomiuri TV has been insulated from Downtown, to Matsumoto’s dismay. Will this prove to be a good thing or a bad thing?
FRIDAY Digital