Ichizo Kobayashi's 150 Anniversary!

Signage for Godzilla Minus One and the Ichizo Kobayashi exhibit. Photo by Brett Homenick.

Another exhibit I attended was the gallery called Ichizo Kobayashi's 150th anniversary. Kobayashi, who was born on January 3, 1873, was the founder of the Takarazuka Revue, as well as a certain movie studio you may have heard of called Toho. Of course, even those massive accomplishments don't begin to scratch the surface of the other things he did, but that's what's relevant to this blog. 

The exhibit will be held from October 7 through November 5 on the third floor of Hibiya Chanter, and it features two notable displays: a '54 Godzilla statue (standing next to a life-size cutout of Kobayashi), as well as a Takarazuka mini stage. Best of all, the gallery is free to enter! The Godzilla statue looks like the one I've seen a few times at other exhibits, so (for me, at least) it wasn't much of a big deal.

Actually, there isn't much else here related to the Godzilla series. But what it does have are reproductions of the final draft of the Godzilla (1954) shooting script and the screenplay for Godzilla Raids Again (1955). In fact, the exhibit states that, following the massive success of the original Godzilla, Kobayashi immediately approved the making of the sequel that eventually became Raids Again. Other than that, though, there isn't much of interest to most kaiju fans. 

And that's about all. Here's what I saw. Enjoy!

New Content on Vantage Point Interviews!

With Sadao Iizuka in December 2020.

The first of two interviews with legendary Toho optical effects wizard Sadao Iizuka has just been published on Vantage Point Interviews. Mr. Iizuka animated Godzilla's atomic ray and King Ghidorah's gravity beams in the 1960s, but he got his start in the tokusatsu art department with Godzilla (1954), which is where he would work through the production of Rodan (1956). This interview covers his early life and early years at Toho, prior to his career in optical effects. 

Check out the interview now on Vantage Point Interviews -- where content is king!

Godzilla Photo Exhibition 1954-2019 at Yurakucho Marui!

A rocket-gun used from Godzilla Raids Again (1955) through Godzilla vs. Gigan (1972). Photo by Brett Homenick. 

On Friday evening, November 2, Jacob and I attended the Godzilla Photo Exhibition 1954-2019 on the 8th floor of Yurakucho Marui, which ran from October 21 through November 4. There were many enlarged photos on display (which I'd seen before in books over the years), but what really caught my attention were the props used in various films over the years. Let's take a look at what was on hand.

A patrol car used in such films as Mothra (1961) and King Kong vs. Godzilla (1962).

The Tokaido Express train car from Godzilla (1954).

The high-powered laser-beam vehicle from Godzilla 1985 (1984), designed by Takashi Naganuma.

Naturally, I just had to pose with such cool props.

And that's a wrap!

Kurosawa Producer Yoichi Matsue Passes Away at 88

Yoichi Matsue (far left) with Akira Kurosawa (next to him) in the Soviet Union for Dersu Uzala.

Frequent Akira Kurosawa collaborator Yoichi Matsue passed away on March 9 of this year in Hachioji, Tokyo, of pneumonia, his family has announced. He was 88.

Mr. Matsue was born on October 26, 1930, in Ishikawa Prefecture. He joined Toho Studios in 1955 as an actor, appearing as one of the convicts in Godzilla Raids Again (1955).

It was behind the camera, however, that Mr. Matsue would achieve his greatest fame working with Akira Kurosawa -- first as an assistant director on such films as Sanjuro (1962), High and Low (1963), and Red Beard (1965), and later as a producer on Dodeskaden (1970) and Dersu Uzala (1975).

When Dersu Uzala won the Academy Award as Best Foreign Language Film in 1976, it was Mr. Matsue who gave the acceptance speech, making him the only actor from a Japanese Godzilla film who's delivered an acceptance speech at the Academy Awards. The video is below:

Through our mutual friend, I contacted Mr. Matsue last year about interviewing him, but unfortunately he declined my proposal. 

Rest in peace, Mr. Matsue.

Yoshio Tsuchiya: 1927-2017

Actor Yoshio Tsuchiya. Photo by Brett Homenick.

According to a reliable source in Japan, veteran Toho actor Yoshio Tsuchiya (Seven Samurai, The Human Vapor, Monster Zero) passed away at age 89. No other details are available at this time.

RIP, Tsuchiya-san.

UPDATE (9/7): Yoshio Tsuchiya passed away on February 8 of lung cancer, a few months shy of his 90th birthday. 

OSAKA CASTLE REDUX! Paying Another Visit to This Godzilla and Gamera Location!

Osaka Castle. Photo by Brett Homenick. 

A bit less than two years ago, I made my first visit to Osaka Castle. On May 31, while I had some time left over during my recent trip to Kansai, I decided to give Osaka Castle another look. Most Godzilla fans know it from the battle Godzilla and Angilas had in Godzilla Raids Again (1955), but lest we forget, Barugon also froze it in Gamera vs. Barugon (1966). Suffice it to say, the castle has seen its share of kaiju action over the years.

During this visit, I made an effort to find specific angles used in Godzilla Raids Again. I was pleased that I was able to find a few, but there are certainly more to find. Perhaps I'll find the rest in a future trip.

Osaka Castle's Sakuramon Gate. Photo by Brett Homenick. 

Sakuramon Gate is featured in Godzilla Raids Again, as the audience sees the fierce battle between Godzilla and Angilas rage behind the gate.

Osaka Castle's Sengan Turret. Photo By Brett Homenick.

Sengan Turret is also seen in Godzilla Raids Again, as we see the two massive kaiju battle in the background, while Sengan Turret sits in the foreground.

This angle of Sengan Turret is likewise seen in the film, and once again we see Godzilla and Angilas duking it out behind the wall.

And there you have it.

MOTOYOSHI ODA FACE REVEAL! The Camera-Shy Director Can Finally Be Seen in All His Glory!

Director Motoyoshi Oda (left) and SFX director Eiji Tsuburaya (center) on the set of Toho's The Invisible Man (1954). The Invisible Man © 1954, Toho Co., Ltd. 

In the wake of Yoshimitsu Banno's passing, I was having a discussion with some Godzilla fans in the U.S., and the subject of Motoyoshi Oda came up. It turns out that photographs of the Godzilla Raids Again (1955) and The Invisible Man (1954) director are pretty hard to come by. In fact, one fan-generated collage of Godzilla directors that was circulated a couple of years ago presented Oda as a literal shadow.

Motoyoshi Oda (far right) confers with his cast on the set of The Invisible Man. The Invisible Man © 1954, Toho Co., Ltd. 

After the discussion, I decided to dig around and try to find any photos I might have of Motoyoshi Oda. One source in my collection had two pictures (from the set of The Invisible Man), and in order to put a face with the name at long last, I'm sharing the photographs here.

OSAKA CASTLE STORY! Finally Seeing This Memorable Location in Person!

"Hey, I thought it was going to be a lot bigger!" A miniature replica of Osaka Castle. Photo by Brett Homenick.

One iconic image in the Godzilla series is Godzilla's battling Angilas near Osaka Castle in Godzilla Raids Again (a.k.a. Gigantis the Fire Monster, 1955). I remember seeing the same publicity still from that scene in just about every monster book that came out in the 1980s. Therefore Osaka Castle was location I had my eye on for quite some time, and on August 16, I was finally able to pay it a visit.

The pictures below are self-explanatory; they're of Osaka Castle and the surrounding area. They say a picture's worth a thousand words, and who am I to argue? Let's get to the good stuff.