Dear Shaded Viewers,
As I mentioned in my previous post, today I was invited to appear on a talk show called "Sem Censura", which was broadcast live on TV Brasil, a national television channel. TV appearances are similar to a visit to the dentist. At the waiting room I could already feel the pain.
A little make up to prevent my head from glowing on screen and we were off.
Journalist and TV presenter Leda Nagle is a living legend here in
Brazil. We met during Fashion Rio and after a few minutes of small talk
she said I had to be in her show, as they needed someone for their
special on "Immigration Day". One of the stories she wanted me to share
with her audience is this: "My dad who is Japanese arrived in Brazil around 1970. He used to travel
a lot for work, and visited many remote areas not many Brazilian had been to. During one of those trips he went to a small town in the
North east, and noticed he was being followed by many kids. After a while, one of them built enough courage to stop and ask him:
"Excuse me Sir, but are you Kung-Fu?" They’d never seen an Asian outside
a martial arts film before."
As it often happens in my life, I was surrounded by people way beyond my calibre. Two chairs away there was Adriana Calcanhotto, one of Brazil’s most famous singers/composers and a favourite of mine. She asked me why the Japanese do the "V" sign when being photographed. Well, one of the reasons is this: "When children are about to be photographed we ask them: "One plus one is?" The smart ones reply "two", which in Japanese is "ni" – the equivalent of "cheese" in English. The hand sign is just in case you can’t lip read."
After such explanation who would have resisted. By the way, her lovely coat is by designer Gilda Midani.
During the show, since spelling "A Shaded View on Fashion" would had taken ages they decided to project it on screen. If Diane’s site crashes due to excessive traffic you know who to blame.
Later,
Daniel
