Hiroshi Sagae Passes Away at 52

Hiroshi Sagae at Super Festival in January 2016 with one of his creations. Photo by Brett Homenick.

Noted figure sculptor and miniature maker Hiroshi Sagae passed away at 7:15 a.m. on October 26 after a long battle with colon cancer, his widow Yumiko announced on social media. He was 52.

Hiroshi Sagae with his Gotouchi Kaiju collaborator Sojiro Uchino in September 2014. Photo by Brett Homenick.

I had the privilege of meeting Sagae-san at several events and gatherings in Tokyo, beginning in 2011. He was always a joy to be around, and I'll always appreciate his introducing me to his friend and former child actor Sojiro Uchino in 2014. 

Rest in peace, Sagae-san.

SUPER FESTIVAL 70! A King Kong Escapes Reunion and More!

Akira Takarada and Linda Miller share a hug for the first time since 1967! Photo by Brett Homenick.

Japanese monster movies have always been bigger and better than American monster movies. That's what I've always liked about them. It's no exception with their special events, which are always bigger and better than their American counterparts.

Haruo Nakajima, Akira Takarada, and Linda Miller discuss the making of King Kong Escapes (1967). Photo by Brett Homenick.

Super Festival 70, taking place on January 10, proved to be the same way. The organizers of Super Festival brought together three of the stars of Toho's celebrated King Kong Escapes (1967) for the first time ever. Akira Takarada, Haruo Nakajima, and Linda Miller shared the stage to discuss the production of this kaiju classic.

Of course, there was a lot of joking around, too, which made the panel discussion so special. Others will try to imitate it, I'm sure, but there's nothing quite like the first time.

Hiroshi Sagae shows off one of his latest sculpts. Photo by Brett Homenick. 

After the King Kong Escapes interview, I walked around the convention center and ran into many familiar faces. One of whom was Hiroshi Sagae, a sculptor who has worked on numerous projects from the Heisei era. We had a nice chat, and he showed me some of his latest works.

Kamen Rider takes the stage at Super Festival! Photo by Brett Homenick.

Yuuta Mochizuki was interviewed onstage about his starring role in Keita Amemiya's Kamen Rider J (1994). Mochizuki-san is well known to fans of Super Sentai and Mighty Morphin Power Rangers, as he starred in the series Zyuranger (1992-93), which was Americanized as the Power Rangers.

Yuuta Mochizuki addresses the audience at Super Festival. Photo by Brett Homenick.

The interviewer read a special message from director Keita Amemiya, which he then gave to Mochizuki-san. He certainly seemed impressed by it!

While walking the floor, I met Sojiro Uchino, whom I've blogged about several times. Uchino-san was a child actor who appeared in episodes of Ultra Q and Ultraman, among other series and movies. Uchino-san usually makes appearances at Super Festival.

Nobuyuki Ishida reunites with his heroic alter ego, Mirrorman! Photo by Brett Homenick.

I also caught part of the interview with Mirrorman (1971-72) star Nobuyuki Ishida. His onstage reunion with Mirrorman was particularly amusing!

Nobuyuki Ishida answers the questions posed to him about his famous TV program. Photo by Brett Homenick.

While wandering around, I bumped in to another Japanese celebrity who was not there as a guest but as a fan. Interestingly, he was one of the featured guests as the last Super Festival!

Striking a pose with Eiichi Kikuchi, a veteran Tsuburaya Productions suit actor. 

Eiichi Kikuchi was at the show, checking out the merchandise for sale and listening to the guest interviews. Kikuchi-san was the (Ultra-)man in the suit for Return of Ultraman (1971-72) and even played Ultra Seven for the King Joe episodes of the 1967-68 series.

After all that, it was time to meet the guests. It was great to see Akira Takarada again...

... as well as Linda Miller...

... and Haruo Nakajima! Whew, so much to say. A lot happened at Super Festival, so I must commend the organizers and Ms. Kojima for a job well done. It was a blast!

GET YOUR KICKS AT SUPER FESTIVAL 66! The Long-Running Tokusatsu Convention Has Toys and Models Galore!

Model maker extraordinare Hiroshi Sagae does some promotional work at Super Festival 66 in Tokyo. Photo by Brett Homenick.

Super Festival 66 took place in its usual location in Tokyo's Science Museum near Kudanshita Station. As usual, there were toys and models aplenty, and while there were a few special guests on hand (including Kikaider actor Daisuke Ban), tickets for autograph signings typically sell out quickly at this event, so I decided just to do a bit of window-shopping this time.

That said, I did run into G-FEST XXI guest Hiroshi Sagae, and we took some photos and exchanged greetings. It's always a treat to see Sagae-san at these events. He's been a ubiquitous presence in recent months!

Models and toys were just as ubiquitous, and while I have not been a toy or model collector since my teenage years, it can be interesting to see what's new (or, in some cases, old). I couldn't tell you the first thing about who made these models or when, but hey, they're cool to look at!

Admittedly, a show like Super Festival offers me very little. I'm more into meeting celebrity guests and hanging out with my friends, and the culture of buying overpriced toys or models is not my bag. (Your mileage may vary, of course.) Some of these items can be fun to photograph, but only occasionally. After all, if I don't collect the models themselves, why would I want to collect a bunch of pictures of them?!

Overall, it was fun to stop in at Super Festival for a moment, but the more I attend, the more I realize the show is just not for me. Much like Wonder Festival, it caters to a different crowd with a different hobby. It can be fun to step inside that world every now and again, but I think there's a reason I spend less and less time at Super Festival every time I go.

MISSION: ATTACK CHOFU! A Godzilla vs. Gigan Reunion Takes Place in Tokyo!

The restauarant Asian Taipei, located in Chofu, Tokyo, hosted an impressive Godzilla vs. Gigan (1972) reunion that attracted several notable tokusatsu figures as attendees. The guests at the reunion were Yuriko Hishimi (who plays the karate-kicking Tomoko Tomoe), Hiroshi Ishikawa (who stars as cartoonist Gengo Kotaka), legendary suit actor Haruo Nakajima (who plays Godzilla), and SFX director Teruyoshi Nakano.

The event brought a few notable names who would otherwise be featured guests at such a signing, but they simply came as fans themselves. Millennium series director Masaaki Tezuka (Godzilla vs. Megaguirus, Godzilla against Mechagodzilla, and Godzilla: Tokyo S.O.S.) was among the attendees.

Also on hand were expert model maker Hiroshi Sagae (the Heisei Gamera series) and former child actor Sojiro Uchino (Ultra Q, Ultraman, Kaiju Booska, and Gamera vs. Viras).

Haruo Nakajima was revered by the audience and spoke about his many kaiju memories. Speaking of Nakajima-san, many prizes were given away to attendees. The last such prize was a signed paperback copy of Nakajima-san's autobiography. As it turned out, I was the lucky winner! Interestingly, I had held off on buying a copy of Nakajima-san's book, feeling I'd eventually be able to get a signed copy in such a situation. Luckily, my waiting paid off in the end.

It was quite a treat to see actors Hishimi-san and Ishikawa-san reunited and interacting with each other. They seemed to get along very well, and I have to wonder if this pairing will be featured at future events in Tokyo. I guess we'll have to wait and see.

Teruyoshi Nakano lent his SFX expertise to the proceedings, and he discussed the more technical side of the film. He and Nakajima-san had great chemistry together and spoke about the old days very fondly.

I just had to get a photo of this: Gengo helping Godzilla speak to the crowd!

As you can see, it was a night of fun and friends. Not only did I leave with a signed copy of Nakajima-san's autobiography, but I also got a Blu-ray of Godzilla vs. Gigan signed by all four guests, as well as a shikishi board signed by all four. Not a bad haul!

On to the next events!

G-FEST XXI: Your Humble Blogmeister Shares His Memories!

My G-FEST experience began at Narita Airport where I met special guests Katsuhiko Sasaki and Tomoko Ai (along with her entourage). I met Sasaki-san first and later caught up with Ai-san. As Sasaki-san and I were checking our luggage, Ai-san greeted us. So, technically speaking, the Terror of Mechagodzilla reunion happened at the ticket counter of United Airlines!

We all ate a small lunch together and took some photos. While we were about to board the plane, I spotted Shinpei Hayashiya and his producer-wife Atsuko Tsunakawa who were also waiting to board the plane.

The plane ride to Chicago was quite memorable. I sat right next to Sasaki-san, and Ai-san was seated next to Sasaki-san. During the flight, Ai-san gave me a small Mechagodzilla toy as a gift. As cool as that was, it was really amazing to be a fly on the wall while Ai-san and Sasaski-san spoke about the old days at Toho. At one point, Ai-san mentioned Espy (1974), which was fascinating to me. I later found out that she was talking about how that film and Terror of Mechagodzilla were being filmed at basically the same time.

After landing, we took Sasaki-san to dinner. Joining us were Yasushi from Tokyo and my brother Erik, who runs the official English-language Akira Ifukube Web site. We went to Giordano's and sampled some of its renowned deep-dish pizza. Sasaki-san was floored by its size, but he enjoyed a few slices. Say, isn't that Sasaki-san's former co-star Biollante lurking in the background?

The next day we took Sasaki-san and modeling guest Hiroshi Sagae to the Art Institute of Chicago. Ms. Hiroko Saito provided the guests with a Japanese-language tour of the gallery. Many thanks to Ms. Saito for arranging and hosting the tour.

After lunch, Yasushi and I took Sasaki-san to Willis Tower (formerly Sears Tower), which was also my first time in the tower. It was great to see Sasaki-san take photos of Chicago from one of the tallest buildings in the world.

Opening ceremonies was Friday night, and the guests were very well received. I don't think an opening ceremonies at G-FEST has ever seen a bigger audience. Following the guests' introductory remarks, I played video greetings provided by Toru Ibuki, Wataru Mimura, and Shigeo Kato.

The next morning, I interviewed Tomoko Ai about her acting career. It was fascinating to hear her stories about Ultraman Leo, Terror of Mechagodzilla, and her acting roles beyond.

After that, I interviewed Sasaki-san about his career. This was actually the second time I interviewed him, but even then this interview still managed to cover new ground.

The band got back together for another meal together at Gibsons Steakhouse. Sasaki-san enjoyed his steak immensely, and Yasushi provided us with very special gifts from Japan. Good times were had by all!

Jay Johnson interviewed the great Don Frye about Godzilla: Final Wars as well as other subjects. Don had the audience in stitches with his witty and sometimes self-deprecating sense of humor. Despite being a famous fighter, actor, and you-name-it, Don Frye is about as ego-free as they come.

Next came the autograph sessions, which like everything else were bigger than ever. Although some hiccups did occur, the G-FEST staff made sure everything ran smoothly.

After the autographs were finished, it was time to head to Chicago! Sasaki-san, Ai-san, and all of us went to Buddy Guy's Legend for dinner and live music. The food and entertainment were quite good, and afterward we were all feeling quite tired, so we started to make our way back.

The ride back to the hotel was one for the history books, as a panhandler came onto the train and decided to liven things up for us. Thankfully, he was escorted out of our train car before too long!

Sunday morning saw a panel discussion on Godzilla: Final Wars, with Don Frye, Martin Arlt, and yours truly. Many topics were covered during the session, including the WWF, Michael Mann movies, and bar fighting.

During the Sunday autograph session, I was showing Ai-san's manager photos of the Don Frye session I was just on, and her eyes widened. She asked me to show Ai-san the photos. She got really excited and said she was a big fan of Don Frye and wanted to meet him. I knew Don was just about to leave for the airport, but I found him in the lobby just in the nick of time. As you saw in the photo above, meeting him really made her day.

Hanging out with Yasushi, Shinpei Hayashiya, and Hiroshi Sagae was another highlight!

I almost missed getting a photo with Koichi Kawakita, but I finally got one Sunday night. That said, Kawakita-san is a fixture of various events in Japan, and I've met him several times. But it was nice to get one at G-FEST.

Photo by Loren Portillo.

And that's a wrap! There were many highlights throughout the weekend, but this blog post covers most of the events of the weekend that I was a part of. Of course, there were a lot of other great sessions and events at G-FEST, but I didn't even get to see most of them! But there's always next year.

See you at G-FEST XXII!