In the spring of 1954, producer Tomoyuki Tanaka approached his boss, Toho executive Iwao Mori, with an idea to make a movie about "a monster that invades Tokyo the way King Kong attacked New York." While not the most original of concepts, it was certainly timely; a successful 1952 reissue of the original KING KONG had launched a wave of ‘giant monster on the loose’ pictures – most of which featured beasts awakened by atomic radiation. At that time, fear of the effects of radiation was at an all-time high in Japan. Two atomic bombs had been dropped on the country in WWII and, after a Japanese fishing boat had been covered in fallout from a recent American H-Bomb test, there had been a massive recall of contaminated fish.

While a film of this nature had never before been attempted in Japan, Mori saw the potential in the concept and gave his approval. Initially called G (for ‘Giant’) Project, the film and the monster were soon named Gojira – a combination of the words ‘gorilla’ and ‘kujira’ (Japanese for ‘whale’).

The two men then approached Eiji Tsuburaya, head of Toho’s special effects department. KING KONG had been a major inspiration to Tsuburaya, and he leapt at the chance to create his own monster movie. Time and budgetary constraints prevented him from extensively utilizing KONG’s stop-motion techniques to bring Gojira to cinematic life, so Tsuburaya relied on puppetry and (primarily) a large monster suit worn by actor Haruo Nakajima.

Ishiro Honda, who had previously collaborated with Tsuburaya on EAGLE OF THE PACIFIC and FAREWELL RABAUL, was chosen to direct the film. This was an inspired choice – Honda had a background in documentaries and was able to bring a sense of realism to an outlandish premise. The director had also been a prisoner of war in WWII and had visited the remains of Hiroshima in 1946. Honda decided that Gojira would not only be revived by the H-Bomb, but also twisted and mutated by it into an unstoppable force – in essence, the bomb made flesh. "It was a matter of the feeling I wanted," Honda said in an interview, "of an ‘invisible fear’ that, since science had advanced even farther beyond the atomic bomb, this technology has now even become an environmental problem. Ever since those days I felt the ‘atomic fear’ would hang around our necks for eternity."

GOJIRA premiered on November 3, 1954 and immediately struck a chord with the Japanese public. The film sold more than 9,691,000 tickets in its initial theatrical run and grossed nearly $2,250,000 – more than 8 times its production costs. The following year, Toho‘s International department began promoting the movie under the Anglicized name GODZILLA. It was quickly sold to a group of American investors who dubbed and re-edited the picture with new scenes starring actor Raymond Burr and released it in the US and abroad as GODZILLA, KING OF THE MONSTERS.

Success both in Japan and overseas prompted Toho to make more monster movies, starting with the first Godzilla sequel GODZILLA RAIDS AGAIN (a.k.a. GIGANTIS THE FIRE MONSTER) and including such hits as RODAN and MOTHRA. By the time KING KONG VS. GODZILLA was released in 1962, Toho began to use a lighter, family-friendly approach to their monster films – as Godzilla’s popularity with children grew, he became a more heroic, and occasionally comic, figure in films like INVASION OF THE ASTRO-MONSTERS and GODZILLA VS. HEDORAH before returning to his antagonistic roots in GODZILLA 1985.

Over the past two decades, Godzilla has generally been portrayed as either a force of nature, destructive but not evil, or as a malevolent beast attacking everything in his path (as in the recent films GMK and GODZILLA: TOKYO S.O.S.).

In celebration of Godzilla’s 50^th anniversary, we are proud to present the King of the Monsters in all his many guises – destroyer, hero, father figure, comedian and force of nature – with a cross-section of some of the most popular films in the series.

We are opening with U.S. premieres of the two latest Godzilla films, GODZILLA AGAINST MECHAGODZILLA and GODZILLA: TOKYO S.O.S., plus no less than 8 of the first 12 Godzilla movies, including such gems as KING KONG VS. GODZILLA, GHIDRAH: THE THREE-HEADED MONSTER, DESTROY ALL MONSTERS and the extremely rare second movie GIGANTIS THE FIRE MONSTER (unseen in the theaters for more than 40 years!). In addition, Toho’s classic monster movies RODAN and THE H-MAN, and Tsuburaya’s ULTRAMAN are also on hand.

Rounding out the celebration are Godzilla series director Masaaki Tezuka and F/X craftsmen Yasuyuki Inoue and Akinori Takagi, who will attend the event to discuss their work and sign autographs. This will be the first US appearance at a Godzilla event for all three men.

Thursday, June 24 – 8:00 PM

U.S. Premiere!!

Friday, June 25 – 7:00 PM

U.S. Premiere of the Newest Godzilla Film!!

GODZILLA TOKYO S.O.S., 2003, Toho, 91 min. Directed by Masaaki Tezuka. Starring Noboru Kaneko, Miho Yoshioka, Katsuya Inozuka and Hiroshi Koizumi. Special Effects by Eiichi Asada. Professor Shinichi Chujo is visited by some old friends: Mothra's twin priestesses, the Shobijin. The pair announce that Mechagodzilla is an affront to nature and the remains of the 1954 Godzilla must be returned to the sea. If this is done, Mothra will protect Japan from Godzilla; if not, she will become an enemy of mankind. The Japanese government is reluctant to put their trust in a creature that attacked them 40 years ago – but before a decision can be reached, Godzilla returns to take matters into his own hands. A direct sequel to both MOTHRA (1961) and GODZILLA AGAINST MECHAGODZILLA (2002), GODZILLA: TOKYO S.O.S. brings an action-packed conclusion to the "Kiryu Saga." Godzilla is animalistic and violent in this film as it attacks naval forces and battles Mechagodzilla, Mothra and twin Mothra larvae; the giant turtle Kamoebas (from the 1970 Toho film YOG: MONSTER FROM SPACE) also makes a brief appearance as an early victim of the monster. After more than four decades, actor Hiroshi Koizumi reprises his role of Professor Chujo from in the original MOTHRA, while Yumiko Shaku has a cameo as Akane from GODZILLA AGAINST MECHAGODZILLA. [In Japanese with English subtitles.] Discussion following with director Masaaki Tezuka.

[Note: Masaaki Tezuka, Yasuyuki Inoue and Akinori Takagi will be available prior to the screening from 5:30 – 6:30 PM in the Egyptian courtyard to sign autographs and take photos.]

Friday, June 25 – 9:30 PM

New 35mm Print! KING KONG VS. GODZILLA, 1962, Universal, 91 min. Directed by Ishiro Honda. Starring Tadao Takashima, Kenji Sahara, Ichiro Arashima, Mie Hama and Yu Fujiki. Special Effects by Eiji Tsuburaya. In 1960, legendary stop-motion artist Willis O'Brien approached producer John Beck about doing a sequel to the original KING KONG entitled "King Kong vs. Frankenstein." Beck promptly removed O'Brien from the project and pitched the idea to studios in the U.S. and Italy before approaching Toho Studios in Japan. Recognizing that a battle with the Eighth Wonder of the World would be the perfect comeback vehicle for Godzilla, Toho replaced Kong's opponent with their own King of the Monsters. Released as part of Toho's 30^th Anniversary Celebration, KING KONG VS. GODZILLA was a massive hit, selling more than 11 million tickets in Japan and establishing Godzilla as a franchise character. Director Honda and screenwriter Shinichi Sekizawa crafted a light-hearted satiric romp that poked fun at the commercialism running rampant in the wake of television. The cast includes an eclectic mix of genre stars, comedy actors and Toho starlets – including actress Mie Hama, who holds the unique honor of playing love interests for both King Kong and James Bond (she co-starred with Sean Connery in YOU ONLY LIVE TWICE). Before selling U.S. rights to Universal, Beck jettisoned most of the comedy and Akira Ifukube's incredible score in favor of newly-shot scenes featuring Michael Keith, James Yagi, and Harry Halcombe explaining the onscreen events, with music lifted from CREATURE FROM THE BLACK LAGOON. Despite constant rumors to the contrary, one thing not changed for the U.S. release was the film's ending – it is the same as in the Japanese version. [Note: We will be screening an English-dubbed print of the American version of the film.]

Super Rare Screening! GIGANTIS, THE FIRE MONSTER (a.k.a. GODZILLA RAIDS AGAIN), 1955, Toho, 78 min. Directed by Motoyoshi Oda. Starring Hiroshi Koizumi and Minoru Chiaki. Special Effects by Eiji Tsuburaya. Here, Japan must deal with both a new Godzilla and another beast – the spike-backed dinosaur Angilas. The second Godzilla film and the first in Toho's long line of "monster vs. monster" movies, GIGANTIS, THE FIRE MONSTER (a.k.a .GODZILLA RAIDS AGAIN) premiered barely 6 months after the release of the original GODZILLA. The U.S. rights were purchased by many of the same investors who had Americanized the first film. For GODZILLA RAIDS AGAIN, they hired voice actors Keye Luke ("Kung Fu"), Paul Frees ("Bullwinkle") and George Takei ("Star Trek") for a quickie dub job, renamed Godzilla "Gigantis" in an attempt to trick the public into thinking the movie starred a brand-new monster, then leased theatrical rights to Warner Bros. After Warners' rights lapsed in the early 1960’s, GIGANTIS THE FIRE MONSTER became known as the "lost" Godzilla movie, rarely shown on television and long out-of-print on home video. We will be hosting the first authorized theatrical screening of GIGANTIS THE FIRE MONSTER in more than four decades. [English dubbed version.] Introduction to screenings by art director Yasuyuki Inoue and model mechanic Akinori Takagi.

Saturday, June 26 – 5:00 PM

DESTROY ALL MONSTERS, 1968, Toho, 88 min. Directed by Ishiro Honda. Starring Akira Kubo, Yukiko Kobayashi, Jun Tazaki, Kyoko Ai, Yoshio Tsuchiya and Kenji Sahara. Special Effects by Eiji Tsuburaya and Sadamasa Arikawa. In the year 1999, all of earth's monsters have been imprisoned on Ogasawara Island until alien invaders from the planet Kilaak release them and send them on a rampage of destruction around the world. Going all-out for their 20^th kaiju eiga (monster movie), Toho combined 11 giant monsters – Godzilla, Rodan, Mothra, King Ghidorah, Angilas (from GIGANTIS: THE FIRE MONSTER), Varan (VARAN THE UNBELIEVABLE), Manda (ATRAGON), Baragon (FRANKENSTEIN CONQUERS THE WORLD and the recent GMK), Gorosaurus (KING KONG ESCAPES), Minya and Kumonga (both from SON OF GODZILLA) – in one motion picture. This final collaboration by the creative team behind the original GODZILLA features several wonderful sequences: quick shots of the destruction of New York, Paris, Moscow and Beijing; four monsters attacking Tokyo; an assault on the Kilaak's base at Mt Fuji and a battle between the earth monsters and King Ghidorah. [English dubbed version.]

Preceded by: "ULTRAMAN – Episode 10: The Mysterious Dinosaur Base," 1966, Tsuburaya Prod., 25 min. Directed by Kazuho Mitsuda. Starring Akiji Kobayashi, Susumu Kurobe, Masanari Nihei, Sandayu Dokumamushi and Hiroko Sakurai. Special Effects by Tohru Matoba. In 1963, Toho's renowned special effects director Eiji Tsuburaya established his own f/x shop, Tsuburaya Productions. Initially created to supply visual effects to Toho and other Japanese studios, within three years Tsuburaya was also making its own original productions. The most popular of these was the television series "ULTRAMAN" – a massive hit which launched a franchise still going strong to this day. The series followed the adventures of the Science Patrol, a team sworn to protect Earth from alien invaders and giant monsters. In times of great crisis they were aided by Ultraman, a 120-foot-tall alien superhero who had merged his life force with Patrol member Hayata. Many popular actors, crewmembers, props and monster costumes from Toho's monster films were used for "ULTRAMAN." Episode 10 of the series is particularly famous since it features Godzilla – or, more precisely, a thinly disguised Godzilla suit playing the role of the "Paleolithic lake monster" Jiras (renamed Keerah in the English dub and played by Godzilla suit actor Haruo Nakajima). We are pleased to present a rare screening of the battle between the two greatest icons of Japanese science fiction. [English dubbed version.] Discussion following with art director Yasuyuki Inoue and model mechanic Akinori Takagi.

Saturday, June 26 – 8:00 PM

Double Feature:

INVASION OF THE ASTRO MONSTER (a.k.a. MONSTER ZERO), 1965, Toho, 93 min. Directed by Ishiro Honda. Starring Nick Adams, Akira Takarada, Kumi Mizuno, Jun Tazaki, Yoshio Tsuchiya and Akira Kubo. Special Effects by Eiji Tsuburaya. Two astronauts are sent to discover the source of mysterious signals from Planet X, a planet hidden on the far side of Jupiter. There they encounter an alien race that asks if they can "borrow" Godzilla and Rodan in order to defend themselves from Monster Zero – better known as King Ghidorah! Introducing the "alien invasion" theme to the Godzilla series, INVASION OF THE ASTRO-MONSTERS features many of Toho's most popular genre actors, including Akira Takarada (GODZILLA, GODZILLA VS. THE THING), Akira Kubo (SON OF GODZILLA, DESTROY ALL MONSTERS), Yoshio Tsuchiya (GIGANTIS: THE FIRE MONSTER, SON OF GODZILLA, GODZILLA VS. KING GHIDORAH) and the stunning Kumi Mizuno (FRANKENSTEIN CONQUERS THE WORLD) – whose look in this film became one of the iconic images of Toho's fantasy films. Another first was the inclusion of an American actor, Nick Adams (REBEL WITHOUT A CAUSE, the 1950’s television series "The Rebel"), in a prominent role in a Godzilla film. Unlike Raymond Burr's performance in GODZILLA KING OF THE MONSTERS, which was later edited into the film for U.S. release, Adams was part of the original Japanese production. The English-language version is probably the most quotable Godzilla movie; Adams' voice was thankfully untouched and nearly every line of he speaks is a gem. [English dubbed version.]

New 35mm Print! EBIRAH, HORROR OF THE DEEP (a.k.a. GODZILLA VS. THE SEA MONSTER), 1966, Columbia, 83 min. Directed by Jun Fukuda. Starring Akira Takarada, Kumi Mizuno, Toru Watanabe and Akihiko Hirata. Special Effects by Eiji Tsuburaya. A bank robber and several young men wash ashore on tropical Letchi Island – where they find the secret base of a terrorist organization called "The Red Bamboo" that uses natives kidnapped from Mothra's island home as slave labor. With Mothra in hibernation on Infant Island and the giant crustacean Ebirah prowling the nearby ocean depths, escape seems impossible – until the castaways discover Godzilla asleep in one of Letchi's caves! Originally written as OPERATION ROBINSON CRUSOE: KING KONG VS. EBIRAH, a live-action adaptation of the 1966 Rankin-Bass "King Kong" cartoon show, the story was reworked and Godzilla became a last-minute substitute for the famous ape. As with INVASION OF THE ASTRO-MONSTERS, the human cast (led by INVASION co-stars Akira Takarada and Kumi Mizuno) carry the story, and once again deliver an entertaining adventure that would have been enjoyable even without the presence of giant monsters. EBIRAH: HORROR OF THE DEEP was released directly to television in the U.S. as the English dubbed GODZILLA VS. THE SEA MONSTER, so this is a rare opportunity to see the original Japanese version on the big screen. [In Japanese with English subtitles.] Introduction to screenings by art director Yasuyuki Inoue and model mechanic Akinori Takagi.

Sunday, June 27 – 2:00 PM

Triple Feature Toho Monster Marathon!!

GHIDORAH, THE THREE-HEADED MONSTER, 1964, Toho, 85 min. Directed by Ishiro Honda. Starring Yosuke Natsuki, Yuriko Hoshi, Hiroshi Koizumi, the Peanuts, Hisaya Ito and Akiko Wakabayashi. Special Effects by Eiji Tsuburaya. A mysterious prophetess makes horrifying predictions that soon prove true: Rodan and Godzilla both return to menace mankind (and each other) while the "Monster of Monsters" King Ghidorah emerges from a fallen meteor and proceeds to destroy all in its path. Can Mothra convince Godzilla and Rodan to join forces against this new and greater menace? A landmark film in the Godzilla series, GHIDORAH teamed the King of the Monsters with his two most popular monster co-stars; introduced the golden space dragon who would become his arch nemesis; and was the first step in Godzilla's gradual change from villain to hero. [English dubbed version with Spanish subtitles.]

BATTLE IN OUTER SPACE 1959, Columbia, 90 min. Dir. Ishiro Honda Nations of the world unite against a massive alien force, doing spaceship and raygun battle in space and on the Moon to thwart the invaders' onslaught. A pretty impressive special effects display for the time period. With Ryo Ikebe, Kyoko Anzai, Koreya Senda, Yoshio Tsuchiya

THE H-MAN, 1958, Columbia, 79 min. Directed by Ishiro Honda. Starring Yumi Shirakawa, Kenji Sahara and Akihiko Hirata. Special Effects by Eiji Tsuburaya. After her gangster boyfriend mysteriously disappears, a beautiful nightclub singer draws the attention of police, mobsters, a young scientist and the Liquid People – strange, radioactive creatures dwelling in Tokyo's sewer system!!

Director Ishiro Honda, working from a screenplay by Takeshi Kimura (RODAN, THE HUMAN VAPOR, DESTROY ALL MONSTERS), creates a more adult (by 1950’s standards) film than the usual Toho monster movie. A great combination of the popular sci-fi, horror and crime genres, THE H-MAN features a bit of everything sure to please moviegoers – monsters, cops, gangsters, the stars of RODAN, a haunted ship and musical numbers – topped off by an amazing score by composer Masaru Sato (Akira Kurosawa's HIGH AND LOW and YOJIMBO). [English dubbed version.] [There will be a 10-minute break between each feature.] Introduction to screenings by art director Yasuyuki Inoue and model mechanic Akinori Takagi.

Special Ticket Price: $12.00 General Public; $10.00 Students/Seniors; and $8.00 Cinematheque Members for this event only.

Tuesday, June 29 – 7:00 PM

GODZILLA VS. HEDORAH (a.k.a. GODZILLA VS. THE SMOG MONSTER), 1971, Toho, 87 min. Directed by Yoshimitsu Banno. Starring Akira Yamaguchi, Hiroyuki Kawase and Keiko Mari. Special Effects by Teruyoshi Nakano. Spawned from a fallen meteor, an alien creature feeds on Japan's industrial pollution, rapidly growing larger and stronger. Can Godzilla defeat Hedorah before it destroys the world? Released during a period of growing concern about pollution and the environment, GODZILLA VS. HEDORAH combines scenes of victims being eaten away by acid mist, surreal and psychedelic imagery and fuzz-stoked rock music into what is surely the oddest entry in the Godzilla series. Also, this is the only film where Godzilla flies. Hedorah, an inspired creation whose sludge body proves immune to Godzilla's physical assaults, was played by Kengo Nakayama, who (under the name Kenpachiro Satsuma) took over the role of Godzilla starting with GODZILLA 1985. Child actor Hiroyuki Kawase starred in Akira Kurosawa's DODES'KA-DEN and would return for the 1973 movie GODZILLA VS. MEGALON. [English dubbed version.] Discussion following with art director Yasuyuki Inoue and model mechanic Akinori Takagi.

Tuesday, June 29 – 9:15 PM

Double Feature:

GODZILLA VS. GIGAN, 1972, Toho, 89 min. Directed by Jun Fukuda. Starring Hiroshi Ishikawa, Tomoko Umeda and Yuriko Hishimi. Special Effects by Teruyoshi Nakano. From a secret base hidden inside a life-sized Godzilla-shaped office building in a children's amusement park, alien cockroaches (!!) launch an assault on earth using King Ghidorah and the cyborg monster Gigan. While a comic book artist and his friends attempt to foil the invaders' plans, Godzilla and Angilas battle the space monsters. Despite a remarkably low budget and lots of obviously recycled stock footage, this entry is a high-energy slug-fest that introduces one of Toho's most colorfully imaginative monsters: the sickle-armed evildoer Gigan. It is also your only chance to hear Godzilla speak! This was suit actor Haruo Nakajima's final performance as Godzilla. [English dubbed version]