Special Effects Shooting!

Yoshihiro Mori. Photo by Brett Homenick.

Today I was pleased to attend a special event with a new special guest whom I'd never met before. The guest was cinematographer Yoshihiro Mori whose career in SFX productions spans several decades and covers some of Japan's most famous creations. 

Yoshihiro Mori began his career in the late 1950s at Toho, working on such tokusatsu classics as The Three Treasures (1959), Battle in Outer Space (1959), The Secret of the Telegian (1960), I Bombed Pearl Harbor (1960), and Mothra (1961). After working at the studio as an assistant cameraman, he quit Toho to join Toei and later worked at Tsuburaya Productions during the studio's heyday, lending his talents to Ultra Q (1966), Ultraman (1966-67), Kaiju Booska (1966-67) Ultra Seven (1967-68), Time of the Apes (1974-75), and Megaloman (1979), among many others. 

As if Mori-san's participation weren't enough, we were joined by a surprise guest: actor Shinya Ono. Ono-san was a regular on the TV series Wild 7 (1972-73) and Strada 5 (1974), both of which feature tokusatsu elements. Mori-san also worked on Wild 7 as a cameraman.

With Shinya Ono.

It was a wonderful event with friendly guests. It was also interesting to hear many firsthand stories about tokusatsu shooting.

A WILD DAY FOR WILD 7! Actors from Wild 7 and Strada 5 Join Forces in Tokyo!

Shinya Ono, Yusuke Koike, Anne Mari, and Tatsuhito Go share the stage at Nakano Sun Plaza. Photo by Brett Homenick. 

I enjoyed attending a special Showa Hero event on the 15th floor of Nakano Sun Plaza. The event reunited cast members from the action series Wild 7 (1972-73) and Strada 5 (1974).

Anne Mari poses for photos. Photo by Brett Homenick. 

Shinya Ono was a regular on both series. Tatsuhito Go was a regular on Strada 5 and appeared in episodes of the series Jekyll and Hyde (1973) and Zone Fighter (1973) and is credited with appearing in Godzilla vs. the Smog Monster (1971). Yusuke Koike regularly appeared on Wild 7, among many other movie and TV roles.

 Meeting Tatsuhito Go.

The guest I was most interested in meeting, however, was Anne Mari. Anne Mari inspired the naming of Yuriko Hishimi's character in Ultra Seven "Anne Yuri." She appears in the Toho caper The Killing Bottle (1967) with Nick Adams, Kumi Mizuno, and a bevy of other Toho stars. She acted in several notable Nikkatsu films, particularly the international cult flick Branded to Kill (1967).

With Shinya Ono. 

In Japan, Anne Mari is best remembered for her guest appearances in Ultraman (1966-67) and Ultra Seven (1967-68). She can also be spotted in Mighty Jack (1968), Kamen Rider (1971-73), and Unbalance (1973). In addition to all that, she was a regular on Wild 7.

Meeting Anne Mari, an actress familiar to Toho, Tsuburaya, and Nikkatsu fans. 

All the guests were wonderful and very friendly. Anne Mari signed a couple of Ultra-books I brought. I told her I enjoyed The Killing Bottle, which prompted her to shake my hand and talk a bit about her role.

With Yusuke Koike.

Ms. Kojima produced another great event, and I cannot wait for the next one. I always enjoy meeting movie actors and actresses whenever I have the chance. Many thanks to everyone involved!