BAROM-1'S NEW OPPONENT! Hiroyuki Takano Takes on Black Lizard!

With actor Hiroyuki Takano.

On Friday, July 6, I attended a stage play in Shinjuku that co-starred Hiroyuki Takano. The stage play was Kurotokage (Black Lizard), and while there were some similarities with the Kinji Fukasaku film version, it was mostly different. (For one thing, the Black Lizard was played by an actual woman in this version!) 

I had a quick chat with Takano-san after the show. He did a great job, as did the entire cast. There was quite a bit of fight choreography in the play, and given the amount of fighting happening on the stage at any given time, I'm a bit surprised there weren't a few close calls. Who knows -- maybe there were!

Anyway, it was an enjoyable show. 

Interviewing Chumei Watanabe

Composer Chumei Watanabe during our July 4 interview. Photo by Brett Homenick.

I'm pleased to announce that on Wednesday, July 4, I had the privilege of interviewing legendary composer Chumei Watanabe at his home in Tokyo. Watananbe-san began his film-composing career at Shintoho in the late 1950s, working on several Nobuo Nakagawa films, most notably Ghost of Yotsuya (1959) and Hell (1960). Watanabe-san returned to tokusatsu in the late 1960s with his scores to 100 Monsters (1968) and Along with Ghosts (1969). Watanabe-san would later achieve international fame with his scores to various anime and live-action tokusatsu TV programs. The 92-year-old composer stays busy to this day.

The interview lasted several hours and focused a great deal on his early years. I certainly learned a lot, and once it's published, so will you! Stay tuned.

VAMPIRE DIARIES! Meeting Actress Mio Ota!

Mio Ota. Photo by Brett Homenick.

One of my favorite horror movies has long been Evil of Dracula (1974), and I think a good case can be made for it as the best of director Michio Yamamoto's Bloodthirsty trilogy. She played student Yukiko Mitamura in Evil of Dracula, as well as Blue Jaguar on the TV series Giant Iron Man 17 (1977) from episode 22 through 35. She also appears in Shohei Imamura's Why Not? (1981).

Ota-san had some of her art on display at the Tokyo Metropolitan Art Museum in Ueno, and I decided to pay her a visit. We had a nice chat about her acting career and other topics. She was surprised to learn that I'm an American from California, saying that I looked like a British gentleman.

It was a great afternoon and well worth braving the sweltering heat and humidity. I certainly hope to have a chance to meet Ota-san again.

Opera, Wine, and Destoroyah!

Takuro Tatsumi (left) onstage at Blue Mood with his daughter, Marie. Photo by Brett Homenick.

Tonight, I had the privilege of meeting actor (and wine connoisseur) Takuro Tatsumi. Tatsumi-san starred in Godzilla vs. Destoroyah (1995), which was the main reason I attended the event. Tatsumi-san was the emcee, and his daughter, Marie, did most of the performing.

She is a soprano singer and actress, and her performances were the first time I'd heard operatic singing in Japanese. A lot of her singing was in English, and after the show, she asked me for my advice on pronunciation. I was happy to help.

It was a great evening, and the event itself was much different from the types I usually attend. Marie's soprano singing was terrific, but there were times I was fully expecting all the wine glasses in the room to break. What a powerful voice! Tatsumi-san was also great to meet. Let's do it again!

An Evening with '70s-Era Tokusatsu Experts

 Takashi Naganuma. Photo by Brett Homenick.

On Saturday, June 23, I attended a special dinner event with a couple of veterans of '70s tokusatsu. The two guests of honor were Takashi Naganuma and Kazuaki Sekiyama.

If you read this blog with any regularity and are not familiar with Naganuma-san, for shame. He is truly a man who needs no introduction.

 Kazuaki Sekiyama. Photo by Brett Homenick.

The other guest was one I hadn't seen in a couple of years. It was Kazuaki Sekiyama, an SFX crew member whose career dates all the way back to Ultraman Ace (1972-73) and Godzilla vs. Megalon (1973). To look at him, you wouldn't know that his tokusatsu career dates back 45 years!

Suffice it to say, it was another excellent evening in great company. Can't wait to do it all over again!

Hey, Isn't That Barom-1 Crossing the Street?!

Hiroyuki Takano. Photo by Brett Homenick.

Now here's a coincidence. While crossing the street to attend Yukimura-san's concert in Shinjuku, I ran into actor Hiroyuki Takano. Actually, he stopped me as we were passing each other in the crosswalk, which made the experience that much more fun. 

Takano-san's extensive tokusatsu credits include: Ultra Seven (1967-68), Fight! Mighty Jack (1968), Operation: Mystery (1968-69), Spectreman (1971-72), Return of Ultraman (1971-72), Kamen Rider (1971-73), Silver Mask (1971-72), and Submersion of Japan (1974-75). Of course, his most notable role was co-starring in the Toei superhero series Barom-1 (1972) as Kentaro Shiratori.

Only in Tokyo!

CONCERT TIME! Attending a Live Performance by One of Japan's Living Legends!

Izumi Yukimura. Photo by Brett Homenick.

On Friday, June 22, I had the distinct privilege of attending another live performance by Izumi Yukimura. Yukimura-san sang many of her old favorites, and by now I've become quite familiar with them. Of course, I mainly know Yukimura-san for her acting roles at Toho, which include Kihachi Okamoto's Desperado Outpost (1959) and the all-star musical You Can Succeed, Too (1964).

Yukimura-san has been one of my favorite folks to visit in Japan. But I have to confess: Before I came to Japan, I had no idea who she was! Thankfully, that was quickly corrected, and I've been her fan ever since.