A Dramatic Performance in a Cool Costume!

Masanori Machida. Photo by Brett Homenick.

He looks familiar, doesn't he? Yes, it's Sunday, August 30, which means it was time to see Masanori Machida perform another dramatic reading, this time in a fun costume!

I'm always happy to come out to support Machida-san's shows, and it's even better to spend a few moments with him afterward.

It sure has helped me regain that old feeling before I left Tokyo two years ago. Many thanks to Machida-san!

Seems Like Old Times!

Masanori Machida poses with an American DVD that features one of his most famous movies (I promise!). Photo by Brett Homenick.

 

On Sunday, July 26, I attended an event with Masanori Machida, a former child actor who appears in a couple of my favorite movies. It's hard to believe that it'd been well over two years since I last saw him, but it was well worth the wait.

Machida-san and other actors performed dramatic readings (or monologues) that were Obon-themed, so they usually centered around ghosts or other such supernatural entities. Machida-san's monologue was a bit comedic and surprisingly short, but naturally his was the best.

A brought an old DVD that featured Monster from a Prehistoric Planet (1967) on the same disc as Gamera vs. Gaos (1967), which is a reminder of how good the year 1967 was for tokusatsu. Machida-san was a little confused when he saw Gamera on the cover, but, when I explained that Gappa was also included, it all made sense. 

Visiting Machida-san again was wonderful, and I guess sometimes you can go home again if you're lucky enough.

A Dramatic Reading Gets Much More Dramatic Afterward!

Masanori Machida. Photo by Brett Homenick.

Last night (Saturday, January 27), I made my way to another dramatic reading performed by Masanori Machida. This time, Machida-san's story was less a recital of a script and more like a miniature play, featuring several other actors who weren't reading from a script. The story centered around an old woman who wanted to look young and beautiful, so she sought out plastic surgery. It was quite interesting and was a nice change of pace.

Suffice it to say, I came to the venue prepared. After the performance, I brought quite a few DVDs and Blu-rays that feature Machida-san. Most were public-domain releases of Monster from a Prehistoric Planet (1967), which is one of my favorite kaiju movies. On one release, it's paired with Yongary, Monster from the Deep (1967), as well as the Roger Corman edit of the Soviet film Voyage to the Prehistoric Planet (1965), another favorite.

I thought it would be cool to have Machida-san pose with these various releases before signing them. The photos turned out great, as did the autographs. With that said, here are some of the shots I was able to get. Enjoy!

Another Fun Evening of Dramatic Readings!

Masanori Machida. Photo by Brett Homenick.

Earlier tonight (Sunday, October 22), I attended another dramatic reading with the great Masanori Machida. As always, it was great to see him again.

Masanori Machida. Photo by Brett Homenick.

Next month, there's an event centered on a movie in which he appears, so I asked him if he would join that event. He told me he wouldn't have a chance due to his stage acting. It's too bad, but at least I got my answer.

One of the performers didn't use a script when she spoke. But there was an assistant behind the curtain who would feed her her lines when she forgot them. You could hear the assistant whispering the lines more than a few times throughout her performance. It was pretty awkward to see, but also slightly amusing. 

Not much else to say, so that's a wrap. It's still only October, but it's gotten quite cold in Tokyo, so it looks like winter's starting early this year.

All the Drama You Can Take at a Dramatic Reading!

Masanori Machida. Photo by Brett Homenick.

Earlier tonight (Sunday, August 27), I went to another dramatic reading with Masanori Machida. It'd been a while since I last saw him at one of these readings, and as always it was a lot of fun. Not much else to say, really, so let's look at the highlights.

Attending a Live Performance That Was All the Way Live!

Masanori Machida. Photo by Brett Homenick.

Earlier tonight (Sunday, May 28), I attended another live performance by Masanori Machida. These events are always a fun way to spend a Sunday afternoon or evening. Machida-san is always a cool cat.

I actually wasn't sure whether I would attend just because I found myself a bit busy earlier in the day, but, when I finished with enough time to attend, I decided to do it. I couldn't attend last month's performance because it was held on a Thursday, and it interfered with my work schedule. 

Tonight more than made up for that, however. As always, it was great to spend some time with Machida-san. Can't wait to do it again!

Clark Kent Comes to Tokyo? No, It's Machida-san!

Masanori Machida. Photo by Brett Homenick.

Earlier tonight (Sunday, March 26), I attended another dramatic reading featuring the great Masanori Machida. Actually, I arrived late to the show, but I was quite surprised to find that the show was literally wrapping up as I entered! I was particularly surprised because last month's performance went on much longer than I expected. Perhaps the heavy rains kept a performer or two away -- in any case, it was interesting that the show ended so soon.

Masanori Machida. Photo by Brett Homenick.

I had a few screen grabs on my phone from The Green Slime (1968), in which Machida-san played one of the aliens. I wanted to confirm that he played the very first alien that we see in the film in its full form -- the one writhing on the floor next to the "Danger High Voltage" sign that Robert Horton wants to shoot with a laser gun before he's talked out of it. (A net is fired on in instead.) Machida-san looked at the grabs and confirmed that was him.

I told Machida-san that he looked cool in his costume and that he looked like a detective. He told me that, in today's story, he played a character who wants to become Superman, so he dressed like Clark Kent. I thought that sounded great, and it made me regret that I missed his performance. 

Despite the miserable weather, it was a fun evening. Many thanks to Machida-san!

A Windy Evening in the Company of a Great Performer!

Masanori Machida. Photo by Brett Homenick.

Earlier tonight (Sunday, February 26), I attended yet another dramatic reading featuring actor Masanori Machida. Actually, by the time I arrived, Machida-san had already given his performance, so I missed it, unfortunately. Interestingly, there were probably more people in attendance than I'd ever seen before, and there seemed to be mostly brand-new staff members there, too, as there were plenty of new faces and very few people I recognized.

I brought a flyer for the Laputa Asagaya's Science Fiction Film Festival for Machida-san to sign. Since The Green Slime (1968) was one of the featured films in the program, it was certainly a relevant item for him to sign. I was surprised to find out that Machida-san didn't know about the screenings. I figured he must have known about it, so I regret not giving him a heads-up about it.

After signing the flyer, Machida-san stepped away to greet other audience members and then came back to me and asked me if I wanted to take photos. Of course I did! As usual, it was quite fun. A big thanks to Machida-san for another fun evening!

A Dramatic Reading for a Cold Evening in Tokyo!

Masanori Machida. Photo by Brett Homenick.

Earlier tonight, Sunday, January 29, I met Masanori Machida again for the first time this year. I arrived to his performance later than usual, due to my having to squeeze it in between two film screenings. (The agony of having so many things to do at the same time!)

Masanori Machida. Photo by Brett Homenick.

I arrived after Machida-san gave his dramatic reading, and only got to see the last half or so of the performance of another actor. After he finished, the entire cast came out to thank the audience and to promote whatever they had to promote. One performer came out dressed as a telephone (!), so I probably missed something quite amusing in that performance.

When Machida-san wasn't busy chatting with other attendees, I asked him to sign a Gappa bromide card, which he graciously did. Gappa is a favorite kaiju flick of mine, and it still amazes me that Nikkatsu's sole kaiju outing turned out as entertaining as it did.

We posed for the obligatory photos afterward, and it was Machida-san's idea to do the pose in the above photo. Hey, it's the perfect time to get into the kaiju spirit!

Ending 2022 with Excellent Company!

Masanori Machida. Photo by Brett Homenick.

Earlier tonight (Sunday, December 11), I attended another dramatic reading with Masanori Machida, which was the last one of the year. Unfortunately, I missed Machida-san's performance, but that didn't hamper the evening at all. In fact, it was still a lot of fun!

Masanori Machida signs bromide cards. Photo by Brett Homenick.

Earlier in the day, I went to Nakano Broadway and bought some Gappa the Triphibian Monster (1967) bromide cards (among other kaiju-related bromides) for Machida-san to sign. He commented that it would be a bit of a waste for him to sign the cards, but, on the contrary, I think it makes them even more special. Besides, one of the cards had some kid's doodle on the back, so it's not like these things are in pristine condition.

After signing the cards, I gave Machida-san a Christmas card. It's a 3D card of a Christmas tree that you can fold out and use as a display, and, once he realized that, he seemed rather amazed by it. It was certainly not your average Christmas card!

Another performer named Kyoko joined our conversation. She had never seen Gappa but was fascinated to see Machida-san in the cards I brought as a child actor. She confessed that she really hasn't seen any of Machida-san's movies. Interestingly, though, she did see several Heisei-era Godzilla films in real time.

And that's all for this fun evening. I always enjoy seeing Machida-san, and I think you can see why. What a cool cat!

A Dramatically Good Dramatic Reading!

Masanori Machida. Photo by Brett Homenick.

On Sunday, October 30, I took in yet another dramatic reading by actor Masanori Machida, one of my favorite people to visit in Japan. Machida-san always gives it his all, and this time was no exception.

After the performance, I spent some time chatting with Machida-san, who again told me a bit about an upcoming tokusatsu project he appears in that will come out fairly soon. I look forward to seeing it! He also mentioned a Q&A event that he will be participating in during the month of November.

 

I also asked Machida-san to sign a couple of items, which he did with no hesitation -- a really cool guy! As you can see from these photos, he enjoys mugging for the camera. He's always a blast to see, and I look forward to the next time I can!

Bringing a Special Item to Machida-san's Event!

Masanori Machida. Photo by Brett Homenick.

Have I mentioned how busy the day was? Sunday, September 25, was capped off by my attendance at another one of Masanori Machida's dramatic readings. This time, I made sure to bring the LaserDisc of Monster from a Prehistoric Planet (a.k.a. Gappa the Triphibian Monster, 1967) that used to belong to the late Toho SFX director Teruyoshi Nakano for him to sign.

He was quite surprised to see it, although it took him a moment to realize what it was. I made sure to point out where he was on the cover (as the young native boy Saki). As you can see, he posed for photos with it pretty enthusiastically.

After posing with the LaserDisc for photos, I asked him to sign it, which he graciously did. At first, I asked him to sign the front cover, but he was reluctant to do that, as it might waste such a rare item. I didn't think it would, but I saw his point, so I asked him to sign the back instead, which he did.

Masanori Machida signs the back of the LaserDisc. Photo by Brett Homenick.

Afterward, we had a nice chat about an upcoming project of his that will be coming out. He shared a bit more information about it, which sounded rather exciting to me. I look forward to seeing it when it's ready! 

Boy, having to type all this out is just as tiring as the day itself was. But what a day it was!

Story Time with Machida-san!

Masanori Machida. Photo by Brett Homenick.

On Sunday, July 31, I took in another dramatic reading with Masanori Machida. In previous Julys, the stories told would have a spooky theme, so I was hoping for a repeat. Not this time, unfortunately. Oh, well. I still enjoyed myself.

After the show, I had a nice chat with Machida-san, who told me just a bit about an upcoming project. Nothing has been announced, though, so he was understandably tight-lipped. I look forward to hearing more about it when the news is announced.

Did I mention how unbelievably hot it was? I can't remember the last time a summer in Japan was this insufferable? The summer of 2013 was pretty bad, but I think this has been even worse. I remember looking forward to summer during the colder months, but now I'm already looking forward to fall!

A Dramatic Reading Has a Distinctly Tokusatsu Finish!

Masanori Machida with an Ultraman Tiga script. Photo by Brett Homenick.

On Sunday evening, June 26, I attended another dramatic reading performed by former child actor Masanori Machida. As always, it was a fun performance, with Machida-san giving it his all, even though he was reading from a script.

Masanori Machida with a Gappa card set. Photo by Brett Homenick.

After the performance, another tokusatsu fan approached Machida-san with some items to get signed, including a Gappa card set whose case was designed to look like the cover of the movie's fictional Playmate magazine. (Nice touch!) He also brought an Ultraman Tiga script to get signed.

The three of us had a nice tokusatsu-related chat together. I hadn't seen Machida-san in several months, so I was pleased to find out about this performance, despite the sweltering heat of Tokyo. (Yes, it's that bad already, unfortunately.)

Here's to next time!