Hired and Fake, Wedded Bliss for Japanese

February 16, 2008

Author: Danielle Demetriou

Source: The Telegraph

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2008/02/17/wjapan117.xml

As with any Westerner working in Japan, it helps to be smart and presentable and to have a grasp of the local language.

But for Kevin Charles, a suave and friendly American living in Tokyo, being "just the man for the job" has involved exactly that. The 32-year-old's regular job is as a translator - but every weekend, he also becomes best man to Japanese bridegrooms. 750,000 weddings performed in Japan last year were "Christian-style" Japanese couples like Western style

Mr Charles, from Missouri, is part of a bizarre and growing craze among Japanese couples for Western-style wedding ceremonies, widely seen as a fun alternative to their staid, traditional Shinto counterparts.

In the name of authenticity, foreigners stand in as fake reverends and best men, and while the vows over which they officiate are legally worthless, it is providing a lucrative source of income for growing numbers of Westerners.