"KING KONG VS. GODZILLA" 4K REMASTER SHOTS Teaser Compares Old Master & New Restoration!

4Kリマスター完全版『キングコング対ゴジラ』の比較ショット！


Chirashi (handbill) heralding the premiere broadcast of the 4K Scan!

On October 1st of 2015, I reported on the then-upcoming Nihon Eiga Senmon Channel's satellite cable broadcast of a newly-completed and restored version of KING KONG VS. GODZILLA (read more here), which was followed up this past May 1st's breaking story on the 4k remaster of the film, which has been in sore need of a proper restoration for more than forty years (read more here).

Here are screenshots from a teaser trailer that just began running, comparing the 2015 restoration with the 2016 4k Remaster bowing on the satellite cable provider this coming July. The full teaser trailer was unavailable at press time but will be featured in a future update once it has been uploaded by NESC. For now, there are eight images for you to compare.




Stay tuned to this blog for more updates on this story as they break!

4K REMASTERING OF "KING KONG VS. GODZILLA" Premiering During Satellite Cable Retrospective

4Kデジタルリマスター完全版『キングコング対ゴジラ』！


Toho's original Japanese Theatrical Program Booklet from 1962.

STOP THE PRESSES: Yes, you heard that right! Just two years after a satellite cable broadcast of the 1962 monster mash, KING KONG VS. GODZILLA, boasting it as the "complete version" (read more here), it was announced to the media last night, that a 4k restoration scan of the film was recently completed in Japan. Toho's extensive 4k digital "remaster" will premiere this July — but wait, that's not all!


The on-screen announcement (photo courtesy Kazuki Kishimoto).

Between June and August, 2016, the satellite cable outfit, Nihon Eiga Senmon Channel (Japanese Movie Speciality Channel), will be running "Godzilla: First Impact"; a retrospective hosted by several celebrities, who introduce the first Godzilla movie they saw, and what that film means to them. The retrospective commemorates the July 29th bow of Anno Hideaki and Shin Higuchi's GODZILLA RESURGENCE.


Nihon Eiga Senmon will rebroadcast the 4k restoration of GODZILLA.

In June, the 4k digital remaster of Ishiro Honda's GODZILLA (1954) will be hosted by actor and musician Ryudo Uzaki, who starred in Shusuke Kaneko's GIANT MONSTERS ALL-OUT ATTACK (2001). Also that month, Kazuki Omori's GODZILLA VS MOTHRA (1992) will be hosted by gravure model-turned-actress, Manami Hashimoto (Onechanbara).


Pin-up model Hashimoto will host GODZILLA VS MOTHRA (1992).

Honda's 1954 original will repeat in July, this time hosted by Hiroki Hasegawa and Satomi Ishihara, the stars of the upcoming GODZILLA RESURGENCE. Film producer Toshimichi Otsuki (Evangelion: 3.0) will introduce Jun Fukuda's SON OF GODZILLA (1967), while actor Shiro Sano (Godzilla 2000) will host the premiere of the "complete digital restoration" of KING KONG VS. GODZILLA — very exciting news!


The kaiju family that stays together... SON OF GODZILLA (1967).

Judoka Silver Medalist, Shinichi Shinohara, will host Omori's GODZILLA VS KING GHIDORAH (1991). Nihon Eiga Senmon has stated that there will be a total of ten celebrities, meaning that more titles and hosts are to be revealed. In the meantime, they have also announced a 24-hour Marathon of Big G movies on the eve of GODZILLA RESURGENCE, including broadcasts of five features and shorts by Anno.

Those screening during the marathon are LOVE & POP (1998), RITUAL DAY (2000), METEOR MANAGER (2002), CUTIE HONEY (2004), and THE GIANT GOD WARRIOR APPEARS IN TOKYO (2012).


GODZILLA VS. KING GHIDORAH (1991) will get an Olympic treatment.

Additionally, the celebration of Godzilla movies will also be extended to broadcasts of both Emmerich and Edwards' 1998 and 2014 feature films on Nihon Eiga Senmon's "Sunday Movie Theater". While all of this Godzilla Goodness is going to be fantastic for those in Japan to enjoy — by far, I'm the most excited by this 4k restoration of KING KONG VS. GODZILLA, naturally. And so should we all.


VHS cover for the original Toho Video release from June 1985.

When I saw the first restoration (stitched together with a worn 16mm anamorphic print) on Toho Video's VHS/Beta release way back in '85, the film was only 23 years old — now, it's 54 years old! So, you could say that this 4k digital remaster of the "complete version" has been a very, very long time coming.

(Special thanks to master kaiju artist, Yuji Kaida, for the heads up!)

OFFICIAL: "GODZILLA VS. KONG" COMING 2020! Warner Bros & Legendary Release Statement

ワーナー・ブラザース 2020年『GODZILLA VS. KONG』を発表！


The gloves are off in Warner Bros/Legendary's Official Press Release!

While there has been much fan speculation since Legendary Pictures King Kong franchise has moved over  from Universal to Warner Bros, with the upcoming production of Jordan Vogt-Roberts' KONG: SKULL ISLAND, there surely would be a cross-over with their own GODZILLA franchise, which was launched with the 2014 Gareth Edwards film. And now, it has been officially announced in their upcoming schedule.

Here's comment on today's press release from Business Wire:

Following Legendary’s and Warner Bros. Pictures’ 2014 success with the global reinvention of the Godzilla franchise, the companies have come together to create an epic, new shared cinematic franchise. All-powerful monsters become towering heroes for a new generation, revealing a mythology that brings together Godzilla and Legendary’s King Kong in an ecosystem of other giant super-species, both classic and new. Monarch, the human organization that uncovered Godzilla in the 2014 film, will expand their mission across multiple releases.

The announcement that the reinvention of monsters continues was made today by Legendary CEO, Thomas Tull, and Kevin Tsujihara, Chairman and CEO, Warner Bros. The initial trio of films are 2017’s KONG: SKULL ISLAND; GODZILLA 2 in 2018; and then GODZILLA VS. KONG, arriving in theaters in 2020. While Legendary maintains its new home at Universal Pictures, the GODZILLA films remain in partnership with Warner Bros., who will now also distribute KONG as a part of this franchise. Production on KONG: SKULL ISLAND begins October 19th.

Warner Bros. and Legendary released Godzilla in May 2014 with an agreement to release Godzilla 2 on June 8, 2018. Both films feature the human Monarch organization. Shortly following Legendary's pact with NBC Universal, Legendary acquired rights to additional classic characters from Toho's Godzilla universe, including Rodan, Mothra, and King Ghidorah. This paved the way for developing a franchise centered around Monarch and anchored by Godzilla, King Kong, and other famous creatures.

When Legendary announced films centered on Godzilla and Kong, fans all over the world speculated these two characters might one day meet in the same film. Classic Toho monsters including King Ghidorah, Mothra, and Rodan, as announced at Comic-Con 2014, may also join the Legendary pantheon of giant monster mayhem going forward.

“Audiences really responded to Godzilla,” stated Tull. “Today, I’m excited to reveal that film was only the beginning of an epic new entertainment universe. As a lifelong fan of these characters, I’ve always wanted to see the ultimate showdown, and today we’re pleased to be announcing that and more.”

“Working with our partners at Legendary, we enjoyed tremendous creative and commercial success with `Godzilla,’” said Tsujihara. “It’s great to be able to revisit these characters and help create a franchise with so many creative possibilities for filmmakers. Fans love these big, globally iconic films and it doesn’t get any bigger than this.”

KONG: SKULL ISLAND stars Tom Hiddleston, Sam Jackson, Brie Larson, John Goodman, Tian Jing, Corey Hawkins, Jason Mitchell, John Ortiz, Shea Whigham, and Toby Kebbell. Directed by Jordan Vogt-Roberts and written by Max Borenstein, John Gatins, Dan Gilroy, and Derek Connolly, KONG: SKULL ISLAND will fully immerse audiences in the mysterious and dangerous home of the king of the apes as a team of explorers ventures deep inside the treacherous, primordial island.

Legendary’s Thomas Tull and Jon Jashni will produce with Mary Parent. Alex Garcia and Eric McLeod will executive produce. Warner Bros. will distribute the film in 3D and IMAX 3D on March 10, 2017.

GODZILLA 2 will be written by Max Borenstein and directed by Gareth Edwards. Legendary is producing with Mary Parent, and Alex Garcia will executive produce. The film is set to be released by Warner Bros. on June 8, 2018.

GODZILLA VS. KONG will be released in 2020.

Personally, I like the Japanese originals, because they are Japanese. To me, these American incarnations are sidebars, as Toho's vampire films are treated by those into that genre. I hope that the fallout from these only gives the Japanese films more scope in the US, in the form of better treatments in releases of the originals on home video, and beyond.

And, I also hope — at the very least — that these Hollywood-made incarnations are true to the spirit of the original characters, and will be fun, enjoyable escapism.

Stay tuned for more details as they develop!

"GODZILLA" ROARS AGAIN ON VINYL RECORDS! King Records' Limited Edition Soundtrack LPs

伊福部昭生誕100年、ゴジラ誕生60周年記念企画 ! 


The retro jacket for King Records' GODZILLA Original Soundtrack!

For those who were excited by Death Waltz’s limited-edition vinyl LP for the Akira Ifukube original soundtrack for GODZILLA (1954), but lost out on getting a copy, you can now rejoice: Japanese label, King Records is gearing up to issue an analog release of their very own, along with the same for Ifukube’s KING KONG VS. GODZILLA (1962), as the “first complete limited-edition pressings” in Japan, on 180g vinyl LPs, just in time to celebrate both Ifukube’s centennial and the Big G’s 60th anniversary.

1960s Japanese movie poster vibe for KING KONG VS. GODZILLA!

For their first release, GODZILLA (KIJS-90015; 22 tracks, 37 minutes), King Records has gone back to the original 6mm master tapes, and striving for the best-ever sound quality, have employed the latest in mastering technology to match the warmth of the original masters as closely as possible. As for KING KONG VS. GODZILLA (KIJS-90016; 33 tracks, 50 minutes), the originals have been mixed down from the unprecedented 4-channel stereophonic masters to 2-channel stereo for the first time. The unique depth of the heavy bass has now been fully and faithfully reproduced for the first time (using the original 35mm film magnetic tapes as a guide).

The 6mm master tapes for GODZILLA with the original track listings!

Past and present CD releases, though forms of processing, including equalizing, frequencies, and other digital restrictions, could not fully represent the information native in the master tapes — therefore, the main impetus of the project was to replicate the original sound as closely as possible, in the name of posterity and for the heritage of Japanese film music. As for the jackets, it was decided to go with a retro-vintage design; GODZILLA sports art that mimics the 1954 theatrical program book, while KING KONG VS. GODZILLA apes the color and feel of the early-to-mid 1960s movie posters. Both LPs will street on December 24, 2014 for ¥3,600 Yen ($32.00 USD).

Please click the above-embedded links to order from Amazon Japan. It's unknown at press time whether there will be further LPs in this series, but if sales are strong, we could see MOTHRA VS. GODZILLA and GHIDRAH, THE THREE-HEADED MONSTER. To quote Debbie Harry, dreamin' is free...

GIRLS, AND CEPHALOPODS, AND KONGS: OH MY!Behind-the-Scenes on KING KONG VS. GODZILLA

スナップ写真『キングコング対ゴジラ』より。


Candid publicity photo courtesy of Genju Ota. ©Toho Co, Ltd.

キングコング対ゴジラ KING KONG VS. GODZILLA (1962)

Eiji Tsuburaya (center, right) checks out Shoichi Hirose's suit-fitting.

KING KONG VS. GODZILLA
Kingu Kongu tai Gojira (Toho, 1962), 98 minutes
Director ISHIRO HONDA • Visual Effects Director EIJI TSUBURAYA

One of the most misunderstood and maligned films in the Godzilla series; KING KONG VS GODZILLA had a most bizarre and unfortunate genesis. But, that's Hollywood for you...

In the late 1950s, visual effects master Willis O'Brien (King Kong) found no luck in pitching his latest idea, "King Kong vs. Frankenstein", to studios, but it did catch the attention of former Universal producer John Beck. Beck took on the project, but also found it tough going until he came to Toho Studios, who were interested in a return vehicle for Godzilla (and another spectacle for their 30th Anniversary roster, which included Hiroshi Inagaki's Chushingura).

Beck was able to convince Toho to foot the entire licensing fees for King Kong, which amounted to 80 million yen (approximately $250,000 USD in 1962; adjusted to current inflation, approximately $1.8 million USD), which was three times the cost of the average Toho production at the time — this hefty price tag allowed Toho the rights to the character for five years.

Almost immediately, the studio execs began slashing the film’s budget, and one of the first things cut were Producer Tomoyuki Tanaka’s plans to shoot the Farou Island scenes on location in Sri Lanka (instead, they shot the scenes on Oshima Island, 62 miles offshore from Tokyo).

Keeping the budget restrictions in mind, director Ishiro Honda, visual effects director Eiji Tsuburaya, and scenarist Shinichi Sekizawa envisioned an entertainment picture along the lines of MOTHRA (1961), and screenwriting began in earnest. Cast in the lead was popular actor and comedian, Tadao Takashima (Emperor Meiji and the Russo-Japanese War, 1957), the father of actors Masanobu (Godzilla vs Biollante, 1989) and Masahiro (Godzilla vs Destroyah, 1995).

He was paired with Yu Fujiki (Samurai II: Duel at Ichijoji Temple, 1955), another comic genius, who was the unbilled "Eiko Maru" radio operator in the original GODZILLA — Honda would cast them together again in ATRAGON (1963). Actresses Mie Hama (The Merciless Trap, 1961) and Akiko Wakabayashi (Akiko, 1961) became superstars in their own right, and shared the distinction of becoming "Bond Girls" in YOU ONLY LIVE TWICE (1967). Wakabayashi gave up acting when she was married in 1968, while Hama pressed on, and is still active today.

RODAN's star, Kenji Sahara, plays Hama's inventor boyfriend in a supporting role. Mr. Tako, the greedy Advertising executive, was played by Ichiro Arishima (Young Blood is Burning, 1947), a physical comedian who was beloved by audiences as the "Japanese Chaplin", and was featured in over a hundred popular films and television shows.

The infamous Kong suit was not up to the par of what Toho's effects department could accomplish, especially in light of the rather effective Abominable Snowman in Honda’s HALF HUMAN (1955), due to the budget cutbacks imposed because of the high fees in securing the rights to the character. Even so, two suits were constructed, as well as several puppets — apparently, Tsuburaya wanted this incarnation of Kong to appear comical.

On the other hand, Godzilla appears more powerful than before, and established the "classic" look of the 1960s. While the miniature sets were as elaborate as ever, with mountains and rivers, Tsuburaya chose to shoot much the action at normal speed, which doesn't always allow these characters the illusion of mass and size.

Tsuburaya also permitted suit actors Haruo Nakajima and Shoichi Hirose to freely choreograph their fight scenes, and they chose Pro Wrestling, which was extremely popular in Japan at the time, and actually came up with some memorable — if outrageous — fight tactics.

Still, Honda's version is fast, furious, and entertaining as all get-out, and was never intended to be taken as seriously the original GODZILLA. Sekizawa wrote a satire on the rise of rampant commercialization in Japan, also reflected in Yazuo Masumura's GIANTS AND TOYS (1958), which is not apparent in Beck's version, and is neutered beyond reproach.

The unintentionally laughable scenes for the US version were amateurishly shot by the unremarkable actor-turned-director Thomas “Tom” Montgomery (The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis, 1961), and were cut haphazardly into Honda's, thus eliminating wonderful sequences from the original, to make room for Michael Keith (The Man and the Challenge, 1960) as the smug "UN Reporter Eric Carter", Harry Holcombe (Kisses for My President, 1964) as clueless "Dr. Arnold Johnson", and James Yagi (Bridge to the Sun, 1961) as the lost "UN Reporter Yutaka Omura".

All save for Akira Ifukube's Farou Island music, the maestro's thunderous stereo score was jettisoned whole by Beck — only to be replaced by jarring Universal library cues because they sounded less "Oriental" (culled from Creature From the Black Lagoon and Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man). Apparently, Beck (who produced this version for $15,000 and pre-sold it to Universal-International for $200,000) never understood the film, and didn’t seem to catch on that it was done as a satire.

This was somewhat typical of the mishandling of these films in the early years, and why they are so misunderstood outside of Japan. Ironically, KING KONG VS. GODZILLA became the highest ticket-selling film of the entire Godzilla series in Japan (11.2 million tickets), while the US version broke summer box office records for Universal-International the following year.

For stealing his idea, O'Brien filed a suit against Beck, but couldn't afford to keep a lawyer to follow through, and sadly passed away before the film was released in the States. In the final outcome, it seems that John Beck was perhaps the most terrible monster of all.


Executive Producer TOMOYUKI TANAKA Screenplay SHINICHI SEKIZAWA Production Design TERUAKI ABE and TAKEO KITA Cinematographer HAJIME KOIZUMI Film Editor REIKO KANEKO Music AKIRA IFUKUBE Special Effects Production Design AKIRA WATANABE Special Effects Photography SADAMASA ARIKAWA Special Effects Director EIJI TSUBURAYA [US Version] Producer JOHN BECK Screenplay BRUCE HOWARD and PAUL MASON Music and Film Editor PETER ZINNER Director THOMAS MONTGOMERY

TADAO TAKASHIMA (Osamu Sakurai) KENJI SAHARA (Kazuo Fujita) YU FUJIKI (Kinsaburo Furue) MIE HAMA (Fumiko Sakurai) AKIKO WAKABAYASHI (Tamiye) JUN TAZAKI (General Masami Shinzo) SENKICHI OMURA (Konno) AKEMI NEGISHI (Faruo Island Dancer) YOSHIO KOSUGI (Faruo Island Chief) and ICHIRO ARISHIMA (Mr. Tako)

FRANKENSTEIN VS. THE GIANT DEVILFISH Or "Pardon Me, Your Tentacles Are In My Soup!"

『フランケンシュタイン対大ダコ』の物語


Mystery! Colossal Frankenstein vs. Giant Devilfish! ©Toho Co., Ltd.

One of most oft-asked questions by fans of Japanese Fantasy Films fans on both sides of the Pacific is "What happened to that monster octopus that the giant Frankenstein was supposed to fight in FRANKENSTEIN CONQUERS THE WORLD?" For American fans, this question was originally raised due to and article (with accompanying photos) that appeared in "Famous Monsters of Filmland" #35 (later reprinted in #114 in 1975) as a sneak preview for the film's 1966 Stateside release by American International Pictures.

Readers of "Famous Monsters" discovered that the film was allegedly envisioned as "Frankenstein vs. the Giant Devilfish," according to Forry Ackerman's uncredited piece. Two stills accompanying the article featured this confrontation, but when we went to go see the film in theaters, no Giant Devilfish unspooled before our eyes. In fact, there were no fish of any kind in the picture at all (unless you count what was offered for lunch in the Toho's commissary).

So, while leaving the Grand Theater's triple feature in 1973 of ISLAND OF TERROR (1966), THE PROJECTED MAN (1967), and FRANKENSTEIN CONQUERS THE WORLD, I took a look at the display case again, and sure enough - as in "Famous Monsters" - there was a still of Frankenstein engaged in a water-struggle with a mammoth octopod! Did I miss something when I had to heed Nature's Call? Was I distracted by the other kids bouncing off the walls? Boy, was I a confused little monster kid, and was probably as confounded as Uncle Forry himself was.

Now the truth can be told! The "Devilfish" did indeed exist and it actually mixed it up with the hulking Frankenstein Giant. But first, let's take a step back to the evolution of the picture itself, known in Japan as FRANKENSTEIN VS. BARAGON (1965).

The Toho Motion Picture Company having met critical success with the hybrid "Irregular Fiction" (read: Science Crime Drama)/"Mutant Film," Ishiro Honda's THE HUMAN VAPOR (1960) - planned a sequel in which the Vapor Man brings the body of his beloved Fujichiyo to a practicing descendant of the original Dr. Frankenstein. The project was entitled, "Frankenstein vs. The Human Vapor", penned by Takeshi Kimura (MATANGO), never got past the screenplay stage. But, Frankenstein did not wait long, when producer John Beck presented Toho with Willis O'Brien's "King Kong vs. Frankenstein", although it was not meant to be. The concept was quickly eyed by Toho as a return vehicle for their own titan of terror, and responded with KING KONG VS. GODZILLA (but that's another story).

With the success of KING KONG VS. GODZILLA (1962), Toho opined that another western monster to pit against theirs should be their next film, but the tremendous cost of licensing King Kong from RKO (more than the cost to produce the picture itself), and had them looking for less expensive options. Eventually, they came back to "Frankenstein", since Mary Shelly's book was in the public domain. But, how would Toho come to pit the towering Godzilla against Frankenstein's human-sized Prometheus?

"Frankenstein vs. Godzilla," scripted by Shinichi Sekizawa (MOTHRA) contained elements that would be employed in FRANKENSTEIN VS. BARAGON, but ended with Godzilla being washed out to sea in a huge flood, while Frankenstein is consumed by the collapsing earth around him. With Sekizawa off to penning KING KONG VS. GODZILLA, the Frankenstein project ended up in the hands of Kimura. The president of United Productions of America, Henry G. Saperstein, after purchasing MOTHRA VS. GODZILLA (1964) and successfully licensing it to American International Pictures as GODZILLA VS. THE THING, became interested in the Giant Frankenstein scenario. Saperstein tapped Reuben Bercovitch (HELL IN THE PACIFIC) and Jerry Sohl (THE TWILIGHT ZONE) to flesh out a synopsis that could be turned into a screenplay.


The cover story that confused the world! (Art by Vic Prezio)

The final screenplay for FRANKENSTEIN VS. BARAGON concerned Nazi Germany handing over a trunk containing the immortal heart of the Frankenstein Monster to the Japanese in the last days of the war. Berlin was about to fall, and the Nazis didn't want such a precious scientific treasure to fall into Allied hands - perhaps wounded and dying soldiers could be cured by the secret of the Monster's Immortal Heart. But, sometime after the trunk arrived in Hiroshima, the city would meet the end of the war: The Atomic Bomb. The Immortal Heart, irradiated with all the horrific energy released by the destruction, began to mutate and grow a new body among the ruins of the vaporized city.

Soon, FRANKENSTEIN VS. BARAGON went into preproduction with Saperstein supplying a name American star to the proceedings. Toho wanted David Jansen, due to his high-profile status in Japan from his hit teleseries THE FUGITIVE (and were also courting COMBAT star Vic Morrow). Unfortunately, Jansen backed out at the 11th Hour, and next in line was Oscar-nominee Nick Adams, who had a hit series on the air in Japan, THE REBEL (1959-61). Adams also seemed more youthful and cheerful than Jansen on screen and he was given the role of Dr. Bowen. The script would somewhat follow Sekizawa's in basic structure, but drawing from ideas by Bercovitch and Sohl, and replacing Godzilla with a new antagonist: the subterranean monster, Baragon. But what about the Giant Devilfish?

According to an interview with director Ishiro Honda in "Toho Monster Graffiti" (Kindai Eigasha, 1991), FRANKENSTEIN VS. BARAGON "...was a co-production between Japan and America; if I remember correctly, it was with Benedict Productions [UPA's overseas production moniker]. You see, the money [budget] came from over there [laughter] ...so, there was an order from Benedict requesting us to add this octopus [to the last scene], and we complied - although we wondered about the logic that was involved, having this octopus popping out from the mountains [laughter]."

Kimura's screenplay: After defeating Baragon, with the raging fire swirling around him, Frankenstein begins to feel the ground beneath him heaving, as if it were alive. Suddenly Drs. Bowen, Togami and Kawaji notice than the giant is sinking into the ground, the massive battle having weakened the very earth itself. Slowly, Frankenstein disappears from sight; Dr. Bowen and party look on with subdued shock.

"Frankenstein is finally dead," sighs Togami.
Kawaji interjects, "He can't die. His heart will live forever."
Dr. Bowen adds, "He may be better off now; he couldn't live in this world."

The "Devilfish" was added to the script for the US version only (Honda would never allow such an outrageous occurrence in his cut): 

After defeating Baragon, and with the raging fire swirling around him, Frankenstein hauls the carcass to the end of a high precipice, and tosses the corpse into a ravine, where it is buried in an avalanche. Suddenly, from out of nowhere, a giant octopus from the craggy rocks, to which Dr. Bowen exclaims "A Devilfish!"

The mammoth octopus attacks the Frankenstein giant. Finally, worn from his exhausting battle with Baragon, the giant is pulled into a lake by the creature, and still fighting, sinks beneath the waters, apparently to his death. Dr. Bowen and party look on in subdued shock.

"Frankenstein is finally dead," sighs Togami.
Kawaji interjects, "He can't die. His heart will live forever."
Dr. Bowen adds, "He may be better off now; he couldn't live in this world."

Honda prepared the sequence for the Japanese version, having veteran voice actor Goro Naya dub Adams' line "A Devilfish!" with "Daidako-da!" (It's a giant octopus!), and scoring it with Akira Ifukube's cue for the colossal cephalopod in KING KONG VS. GODZILLA (1962). Ultimately and ironically, the footage did not end up in either the Japanese or US versions of the film - following Kimura's script to the letter. The only difference in the two versions are several sequences that were specifically shot for the US version that would make Frankenstein appear more aggressive than the Japanese version, which portrayed him as a complete victim of a world he did not make and becoming aggressive only to save people threatened by the hungry wrath of Baragon.

Then, so why did Saperstein want to add this damned octo-thing into an already action-crammed finale in the first place? According to Director Honda: "Well, abroad the octopus was apparently supposed to be something demonic [a devilfish]; besides, [Benedict Productions] said that the special effects shot by [Eiji] Tsuburaya - the aforementioned Giant Octopus scenes in KING KONG VS. GODZILLA - were so spectacular, that no matter what, please shoot a scene like that for our film." To paraphase United World News reporter Steven Martin, "Perhaps Saperstein had too much sake."


Both versions end with the defeat of Baragon. ©Toho Co., Ltd.

For many years both Japanese and American fans were under the impression that the other's version contained the "missing devilfish," and both were wrong. It was not until 1983 when this author was given a VHS copy of the sequence by renown kaiju artist, Yuji Kaida, who was attending the San Diego Comic-Con. Two years later, Toho Video restored the footage and incorporated it into the film for their VHS and Laserdisc releases. But now, the original ending was gone! Couldn't they have just added it to the end of the tape/disc as a supplemental? Well, eventually in 1993, Toho Video did just that on a disc which also contains Benedict's "aggressive" Frankenstein scenes (unfortunately in Pan & Scan), also as a supplemental. This footage is also available on the subsequent Toho Video and Media Blasters DVD releases.

Honda lamented, "We went all the way to America for discussions with the people at Benedict [UPA], and then back again at Toho. Eventually, we ended up doing that Giant Octopus for them twice." Yes, the Giant Devilfish finally made its appearance to the world during the opening scenes of THE WAR OF THE GARGANTUAS (the very same marionette was also featured in an episode of Tsuburaya Productions' ULTRA Q, also in 1966). Guess what? Since the octo-limbed beast is seen being wrestled by Gaira - the Green Gargantua - who was an offshoot of the remains of the Frankenstein Giant... - see it coming? - it finally took place: "Frankenstein vs. the Giant Devilfish"!

And you though you were going to get away easy, didn't you?

(Updated and revised from a 1996 piece first featured in 2004 on my former website, Henshin! Online.)

"Eiji and the King" From KING KONG VS. GODZILLA (1962)

『キングコング対ゴジラ』より


Tsuburaya inspects the suit before shooting a fight sequence.