Ending 2022 with Excellent Company!

Masanori Machida. Photo by Brett Homenick.

Earlier tonight (Sunday, December 11), I attended another dramatic reading with Masanori Machida, which was the last one of the year. Unfortunately, I missed Machida-san's performance, but that didn't hamper the evening at all. In fact, it was still a lot of fun!

Masanori Machida signs bromide cards. Photo by Brett Homenick.

Earlier in the day, I went to Nakano Broadway and bought some Gappa the Triphibian Monster (1967) bromide cards (among other kaiju-related bromides) for Machida-san to sign. He commented that it would be a bit of a waste for him to sign the cards, but, on the contrary, I think it makes them even more special. Besides, one of the cards had some kid's doodle on the back, so it's not like these things are in pristine condition.

After signing the cards, I gave Machida-san a Christmas card. It's a 3D card of a Christmas tree that you can fold out and use as a display, and, once he realized that, he seemed rather amazed by it. It was certainly not your average Christmas card!

Another performer named Kyoko joined our conversation. She had never seen Gappa but was fascinated to see Machida-san in the cards I brought as a child actor. She confessed that she really hasn't seen any of Machida-san's movies. Interestingly, though, she did see several Heisei-era Godzilla films in real time.

And that's all for this fun evening. I always enjoy seeing Machida-san, and I think you can see why. What a cool cat!