Clark Kent Comes to Tokyo? No, It's Machida-san!

Masanori Machida. Photo by Brett Homenick.

Earlier tonight (Sunday, March 26), I attended another dramatic reading featuring the great Masanori Machida. Actually, I arrived late to the show, but I was quite surprised to find that the show was literally wrapping up as I entered! I was particularly surprised because last month's performance went on much longer than I expected. Perhaps the heavy rains kept a performer or two away -- in any case, it was interesting that the show ended so soon.

Masanori Machida. Photo by Brett Homenick.

I had a few screen grabs on my phone from The Green Slime (1968), in which Machida-san played one of the aliens. I wanted to confirm that he played the very first alien that we see in the film in its full form -- the one writhing on the floor next to the "Danger High Voltage" sign that Robert Horton wants to shoot with a laser gun before he's talked out of it. (A net is fired on in instead.) Machida-san looked at the grabs and confirmed that was him.

I told Machida-san that he looked cool in his costume and that he looked like a detective. He told me that, in today's story, he played a character who wants to become Superman, so he dressed like Clark Kent. I thought that sounded great, and it made me regret that I missed his performance. 

Despite the miserable weather, it was a fun evening. Many thanks to Machida-san!