In case it turns out to be of future use to someone else...

The gardener ended up getting a oneworld rtw ticket. BOS <-> KIX return in Club is significantly more expensive than rtw in Club, and only slightly less expensive than rtw in First. Given the length of the trip and the relatively short time he'll be in Kyoto it wasn't a difficult choice. Not wishing to fly American for the long legs, he will do a short BOS - JFK jaunt followed by CX F for JFK - YVR (stopover) - HKG, followed by more CX for HKG <-> KIX. After a brief stop in HKG he'll return in BA F through LHR - BOS.

Choosing to fly American through one of their west coast hubs may have simplified the connections, but it's hard for AA to compete with CX.