Scandal-hit male talent agency Johnny & Associates Inc. said Monday it will change its name while establishing a new firm to manage its performers in a bid to distance itself from late namesake founder Johnny Kitagawa, as it attempts to repair the reputational damage caused by decades of his sexual abuse.
Johnny's will be renamed "SMILE-UP." and will oversee the provision of redress to the victims of Kitagawa's sexual abuse, the agency's president Noriyuki Higashiyama said at a press conference. He also said the redress will begin in November.
The veteran TV personality, who will remain as president of the renamed firm, said a committee established to oversee the redress has so far received consultations from 478 people, with 325 of them seeking compensation.
