Kim Jong-Il's favourite magician seriously injured

Japanese magician Princess Tenko, seen here in 2002, who has charmed North Korean leader Kim Jong-Il, was seriously injured when metal swords trapped her in a box during a performance.(AFP/File/Yoshikazu Tsuno)


Kim Jong-Il's favourite magician seriously injured

Tue Jul 24, 4:13 PM ET

TOKYO (AFP) - Japanese magician Princess Tenko, who has charmed North Korean leader Kim Jong-Il, was seriously injured when metal swords trapped her in a box during a performance, her office said Tuesday.
Tenko, who has performed in North Korea at the invitation of the reclusive leader, broke her right cheek and ribs on stage in the central Japanese city of Sabae on Sunday.
"It will take a month to heal the wounds," her manager Noboru Ochiai told AFP by telephone.
A fake metal sword "would have been stuck in her right eye if it were one centimetre (half an inch) higher," Ochiai said.
"She is suffering tremendous pain but is more shocked that she had to call off performances," he said.
The doll-looking magician, who never confirms her real name or age, has won a fan base in Asia and North America with her extravagant shows in which she dresses in elaborate costumes and make-up.
She was injured as she failed at what was billed as "the spike illusion in the face of death."
Tenko was supposed to escape from a box on the moment it was spiked with 10 fake swords, but instead they trapped her inside.
She continued the performance for 30 minutes before the show was called off.
Tenko visited North Korea in 1998 and 2000 and met with Kim Jong-Il, who was reported to have gifted her a rare dog.
In an interview earlier this year with The Japan Times, Tenko said she spoke about entertainment with Kim, whose regime has tense relations with Japan.
"He seemed to have thought I was American and he praised me for my success in the US despite being Japanese," Tenko said.