A Special Evening with the Actor Behind 'Megalon's' Goro Ibuki!

Katsuhiko Sasaki. Photo by Brett Homenick.

 

On Saturday, March 16, I was lucky enough to have dinner with Toho actor Katsuhiko Sasaki, the star of several 1970s-era tokusatsu productions at the studio. Sasaki-san is best known for headlining Godzilla vs. Megalon (1973) and Terror of Mechagodzilla (1975).

We met at Futako-tamagawa Station and headed to a restaurant that Sasaki-san is quite fond of. We spent at least two hours there, and the conversation covered a wide range of topics. I was especially interested in Sasaki-san's memories of filming Evil of Drcaula (1974) and how unexpectedly difficult and dangerous it was. The fight scene with Toshio Kurosawa was already tough, but having to film the scene in which Sasaki-san's character drowns was much more dangerous. 

Katsuhiko Sasaki signs autographs. Photo by Brett Homenick.

Sasaki-san also reminisced about his father, actor Minoru Chiaki, and how director Akira Kurosawa scouted him while watching him perform onstage as part of the Bara-za theater company. Sasaki-san enjoys Ikiru (1952) among his father's Kurosawa's films.

I must say that Sasaki-san was quite generous when it came to signing things. I brought a bevy of Megalon-related items to sign, and Sasaki-san graciously signed everything I wanted. Definitely a one-of-a-kind gentleman!

In particular, I was extremely glad to add his signature to my Blu-ray sleeve of Megalon that already featured that autographs of Yutaka Hayashi and Hiroyuki Kawase. With Sasaki-san's signature, I now have the autographs of all three leads of the film on that Blu-ray cover. Suffice it to say, it's one of my favorite pieces.

I should also point out that Sasaki-san paid for our dinner, which, again, was very kind of him. It's this level of generosity that I will miss after I leave Japan. 

As we were walking back to the station, I reminded Sasaki-san that Megalon was my first Godzilla movie, to which he patted me on the back. It was a small gesture, but, when considered through the prism of my personal history with the genre, it means a lot. This was truly an evening I'll always remember. Many thanks to Sasaki-san for making it possible!