Celebrating Halloween in Tokyo with Mothra's Moll!

With Megumi Kobayashi.

Today, Sunday, October 25, I attended a special Halloween-themed event hosted by actress-singer Megumi Kobayashi. If you're familiar with Kobayashi-san, it's almost certainly from her starring role as Moll in all three of the Rebirth of Mothra movies from the late 1990s. She also appears as Miyuki Aizawa in Gamera the Brave (2006). 

As it was a Halloween party, Kobayashi-san appeared in an orange wig and wielded a magic wand during the afternoon's festivities. She was a very charismatic and engaging host, talking to everyone who attended and asking questions about each attendee. She asked me about my background and remembered the details well enough that, when another person arrived late and began asking me questions, Kobayashi-san took the initiative by answering his questions about me herself! At least now I know the person I want to write my biography.

I asked Kobayashi-san talked about working with directors Okihiro Yoneda and Kunio Miyoshi, to which she described how kind and supportive they both were. Despite how SFX-heavy many of her scenes were, I was surprised to hear that she had very little interaction with Koichi Kawakita and Kenji Suzuki during the making of the films. 

She also talked about visiting the U.S., in particular Hawaii and New York. She visited New York about 30 years ago as part of her work on a TV program, going many places there and trying out the food. (Man, sign me up for that kind of work!) She was very impressed with the culture of NYC.

When the time came to sign autographs, she asked how to spell my name, and, when she wrote it out on paper, she commented on how cool it was. Hey, she said it, not me, and I'll take her word for it! 

In total, I was there for four hours, and I had a really good time. Kobayashi-san was a great host, and she more than made it worthwhile for me. I hope to see her again very soon! 

Meeting a Daiei New Face!

Taeko Yoshino. Photo by Brett Homenick.

Tonight (Sunday, October 25), I attended another dramatic reading featuring the great Masanori Machida. I expected a pretty typical evening, but I was in for a surprise.

On hand was actress Taeko Yoshino, a Daiei New Face who made her debut for the studio in 1960. Yoshino-san appears in Ah Special Attack Corps (1960) as Yoshie (Lieutenant Hayashi's wife), Mudcat of Ginza (1960) as Masayo, Under the Tokyo Sky (1960) as Hiroko Mishima, Beware of This Young Man (1961) as Toshiko, The Five-Man Assault Team (1961) as Mitsuko Hashimoto, A Man Who Grows Stronger (1961) as Takaoka the factory worker, and A Certain Relationship (1962) as Natsuko.

With Taeko Yoshino.

In addition, she can be seen in Shigeo Tanaka's Moon of the Scorching Sands (a.k.a. Princess and I, 1962) as a maid, The Friendship Dance: It's the Best in Japan (1962) as a cafe girl, A World of Men and Women (1962) as Yoko Tanida, Three Minutes of Shiatsu for Love (screenplay by Niisan Takahashi, 1968) as Model A, and Delinquent Boss: A Game of Chance (1970) as Yukie. She often appeared in films starring Kojiro Hongo and Eiji Funakoshi. After her film career wrapped up, she could be seen in various TV shows, daytime soap operas, and commercials (including for Panasonic).

It's extremely rare to meet Showa-era actors and actresses these days, especially ones I haven't met already, so I was quite thrilled to have the opportunity. I spoke with her for a few minutes after the show and got her autograph on a couple of items.

For the longest time, I actually had a DVD of Ah Special Attack Corps that I bought years (and years ago) but never got around to watching it. It's probably in storage somewhere in the U.S., but I certainly do wish I had it now! I hope to meet Yoshino-san again the future.

Masanori Machida. Photo by Brett Homenick.

At Super Festival, I purchased some Gappa-related bromide cards for Machida-san to sign. This, of course, was my opportunity to get them signed. I thought that's all that would happen at this event, but man was I wrong about that! What a cool evening of unexpected surprises!

And that's all she wrote!

Elise Richter, the Young American Starlet in 'Battle in Outer Space,' Passes Away at Age 91

Elise Richter, seated on the left in the front row, prepares to depart for the Moon. Photo courtesy of Heinz Bodmer. Battle in Outer Space © 1959, Toho Co., Ltd.

Elise Richter, the young American actress who played Sylvia in Battle in Outer Space (1959), passed away on October 20 in San Francisco, following a long battle with cancer, according to her nephew Paul. She was 91.

Ms. Richter was born on April 27, 1935, and appeared in a string of Japanese films in the late 1950s and early '60s, most of which have remained obscure for decades. Battle in Outer Space, on the other hand, continues to stand the test of time and endures as an influential space opera of early sci-fi cinema.

Ms. Richter lived in Japan with her family, and even her parents, Ernest August Richter (managing editor of Pacific Stars and Stripes in Japan at the time) and Marjorie May Richter, dabbled in show business, appearing in the Toho musical You Can Succeed, Too (1964) in scenes alongside Tadao Takashima, Ichiro Arishima, and Izumi Yukimura. Ms. Richter's younger sister, Carla, was also an actress in Japan. After returning to the U.S., Ms. Richter got involved in the real-estate business in the Bay Area.

I was privileged to interview Elise Richter in 2014 and remained in contact with her (on and off) for years thereafter. As her health declined, we lost touch, and, when I returned to California in 2024, I couldn't reconnect despite my best efforts. I really had hoped to meet her in person, but it simply wasn't in the cards.

Ms. Richter has returned to the stars she briefly touched in 1959. I consider myself fortunate to have crossed paths with her during her earthly journey.

Rest in peace, Elise.

Vantage Point Interviews Returns to Hong Kong for Its Newest Q&A!

Photo © Adam Frank.

My interview with Hong Kong voice actor Adam Frank has just been published on Vantage Point Interviews. No Godzilla talk, but it offers a lot of valuable insight into the world of 1980s-era dubbing in Hong Kong. Don't miss it!

Cult Film Director Tom DeSimone Passes Away at 87

According to producer Tony Randel, Tom DeSimone, a director who helmed such notable cult classics as Chatterbox (1977), Hell Night (1981), The Concrete Jungle (1982), and Reform School Girls (1986), passed away on October 17. He was 87. (The tribute Tony Randel posted on social media lists Tom DeSimone's date of birth as July 1, 1939.)

While I never met Tom DeSimone in the flesh, I did interview him a few years ago regarding his work on Terror in the Jungle (1968), a pretty bad adventure flick but one with a fascinating production history. Terror in the Jungle came to my attention via its release on a Mill Creek 50-movie DVD set (namely "Pure Terror"), and, when I contacted Mr. DeSimone about sharing his memories of the shoot, he was happy to answer my questions.

Although we were connected via social media, we didn't correspond very much after the interview, and I never pursued meeting him in person when I was living in California. Naturally, I regret that now, but I'm grateful that I was able to interview him and record his memories of his first film (as dubious an experience as it was.)

Rest in peace, Tom.

Heyyyyyy, Svengoolie!

A familiar face, as seen on Svengoolie.

 

This is pretty fun. On October 10, Svengoolie hosted Munster, Go Home! (1966) as part of MeTV's Halloween BOO-Nanza. And, as you can see, yours truly made a surprise appearance on the broadcast.

Well, maybe it wasn't that surprising. Back in August, I visited the Godzilla slide in Kurihama Flower Park (located in Yokosuka), donning my Svengoolie polo shirt. I sent a few photos from my trip to Svengoolie's website, hoping they'd eventually get put on the show.

The actual photo that was sent to Sven. Photo by Brett Homenick.

It only took two months, but this photo made it on the air, along with some info I wrote in my email. Pretty cool stuff! I actually saw Munster, Go Home! on Svengoolie around 2024, so it was interesting to find my picture was broadcast in a segment during that movie. 

Maybe it would have been more appropriate to show it along with the Dan Curtis Dracula (1974), but that's an inside joke for another time.

Svengoolie in July 2012. Photo by Brett Homenick.

While I can't really say I "met" him, I photographed Svengoolie in July 2012 when he was making a personal appearance at a local convention I happened to attend. I certainly knew of him but hadn't seen his work at the time, so seeing the sheer length of his autograph line was quite amazing.

Truly a Halloween highlight! Well, let's wrap up this blog post with a tribute to our pal Sven with the late Freddy "Boom Boom" Cannon.

A Great Suggestion for This October!

 

Spotted in a shop in Mizonokuchi. I think it's a tremendous idea!