Gamera's Jim Morgan Returns to Japan!

Carl Craig with his film debut. Photo by Brett Homenick.

When I lived in Japan during my first go-round, one area of disappoint was the lack of visits to the country from folks I'd interviewed who'd been involved in Japanese movies in one capacity or another. Several people talked about making the trek and meeting up over here, but it ended up almost never happening. Well, I haven't been back all that long, and already my luck has improved.

 

On Saturday, March 28, I was privileged to spend the evening with Carl Craig, the former child actor who played Jim Morgan in Gamera vs. Viras (a.k.a. Destroy All Planets, 1968). I'd met Carl a number of times during the 2000s at conventions, but it's still hard for me to believe that I hadn't seen him in the flesh since 2007 when we recorded the commentary track for Retromedia's Destroy All Planets DVD. Where did all that time go?

We met up in Akihabara and walked around the area with his family. While Carl's daughters went shopping, he shared many stories from his days in Japan, the Air Force, and a host of other topics. 

It was surprisingly difficult for us to find a restaurant that could accommodate five guests. I suppose that's because it was Akihabara on a Saturday night, but I was taken aback by how many times we were turned away due to lack of available space. By this time, Carl's daughters wanted to eat at a nearby McDonald's which is what we did. (Even in Japan, you can't go wrong with a little Scottish cuisine.)

Of course, there were obligatory photos taken and autographs signed. All in all, it was a fun evening with a friend I hadn't seen in person in nearly -- gulp! -- 20 years. I hope our next visit doesn't take another 20.