GODZILLA TOKUSATSU! Akira Takarada and Yuriko Hoshi Headline a Major Talk Show Event!

I bid you welcome! Godzilla Junior greets all who enter the 60th anniversary exhibit.

Today I visited the 60th anniversary Godzilla Tokusatsu event at Ikebukuro Sunshine City (the same venue hosting Ultraman Festival), which was quite impressive. Of course, most of the items, props, and memorabilia on display were off-limits to cameras, but some of the set-ups did allow photography.

Rather than type out a long essay about what was there, I'll let the following photos do the talking for me. I will say that the talk show with Akira Takarada and Yuriko Hoshi was a lot of fun. The two co-starred in The Last War (1961), and I brought a DVD sleeve of the film for them to sign. At one point, Takarada-san asked me to stand up, and he proceeded to introduce me to the audience. It was a huge surprise to me, but one I'll always remember. At the end, I gave Takarada-san a gift: a vintage movie poster in which he was one of the stars. Ultimately, we surprised each other. On with the photos.