"Narutomo!" loses its Tomo

[Tokyograph News]

The variety show "Narutomo!" (aired on NTV in the Kanto area) will be losing one of its hosts at the end of September. Comedian Tomonori Jinnai, whose name is responsible for the "tomo" half of the show's title, said that he will be moving on to bigger things. So far, no replacement has been announced.

Jinnai said he consulted the move with his agency, Yoshimoto Kogyo. There were initially some concerns, but he explained that he views this as an opportunity for a "step up," and the agency came to an agreement with him.

"Narutomo!" has been on the air since May 2004 with Tomonori Jinnai and talento Narumi as the hosts, resulting in the show's name. Jinnai has been considering leaving the show for a while, and at the start of this year he began making definite plans. He finalized the decision during the spring and informed his co-host in April.

Jinnai has been married to actress Norika Fujiwara since early 2007. He commented that Fujiwara was not the reason for his decision to leave the show.

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