Sadao Iizuka, the Animator of Godzilla's Ray, Passes Away at 88

Sadao Iizuka in May 2019. Photo by Brett Homenick.

 

The Anime Tokusatsu Archive Centre (ATAC) has announced today that legendary tokusatsu animator Sadao Iizuka, who animated the beams of Godzilla, King Ghidorah, and Ultraman during the 1960s, passed away on March 24 at 9:10 a.m. due to aspiration pneumonia after being hospitalized in January. He was 88. The news was confirmed by Mr. Iizuka's friend and manager Tabata Kei.

Mr. Iizuka was born on December 26, 1934, and went on to join Toho as a part-time employee in 1954 and worked on Godzilla (1954) in the tokusatsu art department. He would also work on the productions of Godzilla Raids Again (1955), Half Human (1955), and Rodan (1956) in similar capacities until being recruited by Eiji Tsuburaya to work on optical effects for The Mysterians (1957).

Sadao Iizuka in February 2018. Photo by Brett Homenick.

Mr. Iizuka would work tirelessly throughout the 1960s on a variety of effects, including the stop-motion animation used in King Kong vs. Godzilla (1962) and the animation used to depict the fiery birth of King Ghidorah in Ghidrah the Three-Headed Monster (1964). 

Sadao Iizuka in December 2021. Photo by Brett Homenick.

Mr. Iizuka's beam effects for Godzilla, King Ghidorah, and Ultraman would help define Showa-era tokusatsu, but by the end of the '60s he would go leave Toho and eventually start his own company, Den Film Effect. (Mr. Iizuka's longtime nickname was Den-san.)

Sadao Iizuka with Toho SFX director Teruyoshi Nakano in March 2016. Photo by Brett Homenick.

I was privileged to interview Mr. Iizuka twice about his career in his home. It was only intended to be one session, but Mr. Iizuka had so much to say that we scheduled a second session for a couple of weeks later. Those interviews can be found here and here.

Sadao Iizuka draws Godzilla's beam in December 2021. Photo by Brett Homenick.

Mr. Iizuka was certainly outspoken about his true feelings and opinions, rarely holding back when you asked him what he thought about something. That quality made him one of the more endearing guests you would meet at such events.

Sadao Iizuka in between Tsuburaya Productions director Toshihiro Iijima (left) and kaiju suitmaker Keizo Murase in March 2016. Photo by Brett Homenick.

I first met him in August 2015, and he became one of my favorite folks to meet at events. Even then, he was one of the last remaining individuals who had worked on the original Godzilla and had many memories of working with Eiji Tsuburaya.

Sadao Iizuka poses with Toho SFX director Eiichi Asada in December 2022. Photo by Brett Homenick.

Pre-COVID, he always seemed in great health, especially for his age, and that seemed to be the case when I interviewed him in December 2020 and January 2021. However, when I met him again at an event on December 26, 2021, he seemed noticeably more frail. He seemed the same the last time I would ever see him, Christmas Day 2022. He was scheduled to attend another event in January, which was canceled due to his poor health. 

With Sadao Iizuka in December 2022.

Rest in peace, Iizuka-san.

UPDATE: I'd also like to mention that I was proud that this photo I took was used on Mr. Iizuka's official website for years.

It was truly an honor.