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TCM Schedule for Friday, October 4, 2019 -- TCM Spotlight: Monster of the Month: Godzilla
Today in the daylight hours, TCM is featuring films by director George Sidney, born on October 4, 1916, in Long Island City. He was an innovative director, pairing Gene Kelly and cartoon mouse Jerry in a dance number in Anchors Aweigh (1945). He was a co-founder of Hanna-Barbera Productions, and a former president of both the Screen Directors Guild and the Directors Guild of America.Then in prime time, TCM is beginning a month-long salute to that awesome Japanese lizard, Godzilla. Take it away, Roger!
In this Halloween month, TCM offers the third annual installment of our Monster of the Month series, in which we highlight a famous monster that has captured the public's fear and fascination over the decades. Following in the horrific footsteps of the Frankenstein monster, Dracula and the Mummy, this year's monster is that terrible lizard himself, Godzilla.
Since the original Japanese film Godzilla was released in 1954, the radioactive monster has become a cultural phenomenon, inspiring 35 sequels or follow-ups, plus numerous other appearances in video games, books, comics, toys and other media. The Godzilla films have been cited by Guinness World Records as the longest-running movie franchise in history. The most recent installment of the series, Godzilla, King of the Monsters (2019), was released in May of this year by Warner Bros.
The creature's influence as a multi-national icon casts an even wider net. Among the filmmakers acknowledging a debt to Godzilla is Steven Spielberg, director of 1993's Jurassic Park. There have been endless parodies, imitations and rip-offs of the Godzilla epics.
Sometimes viewed by more mainstream audiences as a campy caricature of a senseless monster from "drive-in cinema" who is hell-bent on destruction, Godzilla is actually a robust character with iconic status, political significance and many relatable qualities. To his devoted fans, the creature is both destroyer and protector, winner and loser, king and father, fearsome opponent and honorable ally, a symbol of humanity's horrors and its capacity for hope. He's also a lot of fun.
The original Godzilla, a.k.a. Gojira in Japan, was directed by Ishirō Honda, with special effects by Eiji Tsuburaya. These effects are credited with establishing the model for tokusatsu, a Japanese word for live-action filming that incorporates "suitmation." This inexpensive yet craftsman-like process features stunt performers wearing rubber suits and interacting with miniature sets. In the original film, Godzilla was played by Haruo Nakajima (who would recreate the role in 11 more films) and Katsumi Tezuka (who played the monster in a couple of subsequent movies).
The storyline of the original film begins with Japan becoming panic-stricken after the sinking of several ships is attributed to a legendary creature: an enormous prehistoric sea monster that has been awakened and empowered by nuclear radiation. Matters escalate until Godzilla, a gargantuan reptile with radioactive breath, is essentially at war with Tokyo. (Spoiler alert: Tokyo loses.)
The film became an enormous hit in its native Japan, where memories of the World War II atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, and the nuclear testing that followed, were still fresh in 1954. Critic J. Hoberman has described Godzilla as "the great movie monster of the post-World War II period, in part because Honda seems to have conceived this primordial force of nature as a living mushroom cloud."
Some academics have theorized that because of their experiences during the war, Japanese viewers felt an emotional connection to Godzilla's history as a victim. Some found his story to be a helpful coping method in moving on from wartime events and atrocities. Writing on the website for New York magazine, Mark Jacobson described the creature as "the symbol of a world gone wrong...a reptilian id that lives inside the deepest recesses of the collective unconscious..."
The original Godzilla established the Japanese film genre kaijū, in which giant monsters are featured, and formed the basis for the success of its producer, the Toho film and distribution company. In the U.S. at the time of the film's original release, it was screened only in theaters in Japanese communities. (It also was seen in Spain and Poland, but otherwise unknown at the time in Europe.)
An American film producer, Edmund Goldman, watched a subtitled version of the film and saw its potential for a wider audience. He bought the international rights for $25,000 and sold them to the production company Jewell Enterprises, Inc.
The result was an "Americanized" version that would be called Godzilla, King of the Monsters! (1956). This edition eliminates 16 minutes of footage from the film and replaces it with newly shot scenes featuring Raymond Burr as an American journalist who observes and interprets the action through voice-over narration and flashbacks. The added footage shows Burr interacting with the Japanese characters, with some scenes accomplished through editing and others with lookalikes of the original actors.
Godzilla, King of the Monsters! introduced the creature to worldwide audiences and was the only version available to American audiences until 2004, when the original Japanese film was finally screened here. The revised version was the first major feature film released by a U.S. company after World War II that presented the Japanese characters in leading roles and portrayed them in a sympathetic, sometimes heroic, light.
As the film series continued, Godzilla became more sympathetic, being portrayed as less of a threat and more of a defender of humankind (although on some occasions he could still prove destructive). The creature became child-friendly in a series of books, videos and other merchandise aimed at youngsters.
Along the way, Godzilla has attracted a variety of costars including Rodan, Anguirus, the Fantastic Four, the Avengers and even that venerable movie monster King Kong. American-Canadian filmmaker Marv Newland created a cartoon short called "Bambi Meets Godzilla" (1969). Some films in the Godzilla series included a son, Godzilla Junior, and other young monsters including an adopted son of sorts named Minilla.
Godzilla received a Lifetime Achievement Award from MTV and a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Blue Oyster Cult recorded a popular song called "Godzilla," and the Toho film company unveiled a bronze bust of the creature, proclaiming Godzilla "a character that is the pride of Japan."
Ten entries in the TCM tribute are TCM premieres of Japanese films released through Toho: Godzilla Raids Again (1955), Mothra vs. Godzilla (1964), Ebirah, Horror of the Deep (1966), Destroy All Monsters (1968), All Monsters Attack (1969), Godzilla vs. Hedorah (1971), Godzilla vs. Gigan (1972), Godzilla vs. Megalon (1973), Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla (1974) and Terror of Mechagodzilla (1975).
by Roger Fristoe
Since the original Japanese film Godzilla was released in 1954, the radioactive monster has become a cultural phenomenon, inspiring 35 sequels or follow-ups, plus numerous other appearances in video games, books, comics, toys and other media. The Godzilla films have been cited by Guinness World Records as the longest-running movie franchise in history. The most recent installment of the series, Godzilla, King of the Monsters (2019), was released in May of this year by Warner Bros.
The creature's influence as a multi-national icon casts an even wider net. Among the filmmakers acknowledging a debt to Godzilla is Steven Spielberg, director of 1993's Jurassic Park. There have been endless parodies, imitations and rip-offs of the Godzilla epics.
Sometimes viewed by more mainstream audiences as a campy caricature of a senseless monster from "drive-in cinema" who is hell-bent on destruction, Godzilla is actually a robust character with iconic status, political significance and many relatable qualities. To his devoted fans, the creature is both destroyer and protector, winner and loser, king and father, fearsome opponent and honorable ally, a symbol of humanity's horrors and its capacity for hope. He's also a lot of fun.
The original Godzilla, a.k.a. Gojira in Japan, was directed by Ishirō Honda, with special effects by Eiji Tsuburaya. These effects are credited with establishing the model for tokusatsu, a Japanese word for live-action filming that incorporates "suitmation." This inexpensive yet craftsman-like process features stunt performers wearing rubber suits and interacting with miniature sets. In the original film, Godzilla was played by Haruo Nakajima (who would recreate the role in 11 more films) and Katsumi Tezuka (who played the monster in a couple of subsequent movies).
The storyline of the original film begins with Japan becoming panic-stricken after the sinking of several ships is attributed to a legendary creature: an enormous prehistoric sea monster that has been awakened and empowered by nuclear radiation. Matters escalate until Godzilla, a gargantuan reptile with radioactive breath, is essentially at war with Tokyo. (Spoiler alert: Tokyo loses.)
The film became an enormous hit in its native Japan, where memories of the World War II atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, and the nuclear testing that followed, were still fresh in 1954. Critic J. Hoberman has described Godzilla as "the great movie monster of the post-World War II period, in part because Honda seems to have conceived this primordial force of nature as a living mushroom cloud."
Some academics have theorized that because of their experiences during the war, Japanese viewers felt an emotional connection to Godzilla's history as a victim. Some found his story to be a helpful coping method in moving on from wartime events and atrocities. Writing on the website for New York magazine, Mark Jacobson described the creature as "the symbol of a world gone wrong...a reptilian id that lives inside the deepest recesses of the collective unconscious..."
The original Godzilla established the Japanese film genre kaijū, in which giant monsters are featured, and formed the basis for the success of its producer, the Toho film and distribution company. In the U.S. at the time of the film's original release, it was screened only in theaters in Japanese communities. (It also was seen in Spain and Poland, but otherwise unknown at the time in Europe.)
An American film producer, Edmund Goldman, watched a subtitled version of the film and saw its potential for a wider audience. He bought the international rights for $25,000 and sold them to the production company Jewell Enterprises, Inc.
The result was an "Americanized" version that would be called Godzilla, King of the Monsters! (1956). This edition eliminates 16 minutes of footage from the film and replaces it with newly shot scenes featuring Raymond Burr as an American journalist who observes and interprets the action through voice-over narration and flashbacks. The added footage shows Burr interacting with the Japanese characters, with some scenes accomplished through editing and others with lookalikes of the original actors.
Godzilla, King of the Monsters! introduced the creature to worldwide audiences and was the only version available to American audiences until 2004, when the original Japanese film was finally screened here. The revised version was the first major feature film released by a U.S. company after World War II that presented the Japanese characters in leading roles and portrayed them in a sympathetic, sometimes heroic, light.
As the film series continued, Godzilla became more sympathetic, being portrayed as less of a threat and more of a defender of humankind (although on some occasions he could still prove destructive). The creature became child-friendly in a series of books, videos and other merchandise aimed at youngsters.
Along the way, Godzilla has attracted a variety of costars including Rodan, Anguirus, the Fantastic Four, the Avengers and even that venerable movie monster King Kong. American-Canadian filmmaker Marv Newland created a cartoon short called "Bambi Meets Godzilla" (1969). Some films in the Godzilla series included a son, Godzilla Junior, and other young monsters including an adopted son of sorts named Minilla.
Godzilla received a Lifetime Achievement Award from MTV and a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Blue Oyster Cult recorded a popular song called "Godzilla," and the Toho film company unveiled a bronze bust of the creature, proclaiming Godzilla "a character that is the pride of Japan."
Ten entries in the TCM tribute are TCM premieres of Japanese films released through Toho: Godzilla Raids Again (1955), Mothra vs. Godzilla (1964), Ebirah, Horror of the Deep (1966), Destroy All Monsters (1968), All Monsters Attack (1969), Godzilla vs. Hedorah (1971), Godzilla vs. Gigan (1972), Godzilla vs. Megalon (1973), Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla (1974) and Terror of Mechagodzilla (1975).
by Roger Fristoe
Enjoy!
6:30 AM -- CASS TIMBERLANE (1947)
An aging judge creates a scandal when he marries a younger woman from the wrong side of the tracks.
Dir: George Sidney
Cast: Spencer Tracy, Lana Turner, Zachary Scott
BW-119 mins, CC,
The poem that Cass Timberlane recites at the picnic with Virginia is "First Fig" by Edna St. Vincent Millay and goes "My candle burns at both ends / It will not last the night / But ah, my foes, and oh, my friends / It gives a lovely light!"
8:30 AM -- NOSTRADAMUS IV (1944)
In this short film, Nostradamus predicts the fate of dictators Mussolini and Hitler.
Dir: Paul Burnford
Cast: William Norton Bailey, James Warren,
BW-11 mins,
8:45 AM -- JUPITER'S DARLING (1955)
A beautiful Roman mounts a romantic campaign to halt Hannibal's invasion of the empire.
Dir: George Sidney
Cast: Esther Williams, Howard Keel, Marge Champion
C-96 mins, CC, Letterbox Format
Instead of using water-based paint to decorate the elephants they hired from the circus, MGM technicians used oil-based paint, which took months to wear off. The circus ended up suing the studio because audiences laughed at the "gay pachyderms", according to director George Sidney.
10:30 AM -- PACIFIC RENDEZVOUS (1942)
An expert at deciphering codes takes on an enemy spy ring.
Dir: George Sidney
Cast: Lee Bowman, Jean Rogers, Mona Maris
BW-76 mins,
Remake of Rendezvous (1935), starring William Powell and Rosalind Russell.
12:00 PM -- ANNIE GET YOUR GUN (1950)
Fanciful musical biography of wild West sharpshooter Annie Oakley.
Dir: George Sidney
Cast: Betty Hutton, Howard Keel, Louis Calhern
C-107 mins, CC,
Winner of an Oscar for Best Music, Scoring of a Musical Picture -- Adolph Deutsch and Roger Edens
Nominee for Oscars for Best Cinematography, Color -- Charles Rosher, Best Art Direction-Set Decoration, Color -- Cedric Gibbons, Paul Groesse, Edwin B. Willis and Richard Pefferle, and Best Film Editing -- James E. Newcom
Ginger Rogers wrote in her 1991 autobiography that she told her agent Leland Hayward to aggressively go after this film for her, and that money was no object. She wrote that she would have worked for one dollar, to make it legal. Hayward spoke with Louis B. Mayer, who said: "Tell Ginger to stay in her high-heel shoes and her silk stockings, she could never be as rambunctious as Annie Oakley has to be".
2:15 PM -- THE HARVEY GIRLS (1946)
Straitlaced waitresses battle saloon girls to win the West for domesticity.
Dir: George Sidney
Cast: Judy Garland, John Hodiak, Ray Bolger
C-101 mins, CC,
Winner of an Oscar for Best Music, Original Song -- Harry Warren (music) and Johnny Mercer (lyrics) for the song "On the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe"
Nominee for an Oscar for Best Music, Scoring of a Musical Picture -- Lennie Hayton
In the big production number "On the Atchison, Topeka and the Santa Fe", from Judy Garland's entrance until the tempo change is one take. Rumor has it they only shot it twice and she was dead-on both times.
3:59 PM -- THE RELAXED WIFE (1957)
A short industrial film that seeks to help working men and their wives deal with life's little problems.
C-13 mins,
4:15 PM -- A TICKLISH AFFAIR (1963)
A naval commander gets mixed up with a widow and her three children.
Dir: George Sidney
Cast: Shirley Jones, Gig Young, Red Buttons
C-88 mins, CC, Letterbox Format
Originally announced as a Jean Simmons vehicle titled "Moon Walk".
6:00 PM -- YOUNG BESS (1953)
The future Elizabeth I fights court intrigue in the turbulent years before her ascension to the throne.
Dir: George Sidney
Cast: Jean Simmons, Stewart Granger, Deborah Kerr
C-112 mins, CC,
Nominee for Oscars for Best Art Direction-Set Decoration, Color -- Cedric Gibbons, Urie McCleary, Edwin B. Willis and Jack D. Moore, and Best Costume Design, Color -- Walter Plunkett
Cast as on-screen lovers Young Bess (Queen Elizabeth I) and Sir Thomas Seymour, in real life Jean Simmons and Stewart Granger were married to each other when this movie was filmed. They also appeared together in Footsteps in the Fog (1955) and Adam and Evalyn (1949); additionally Simmons had an uncredited bit part in Granger's Caesar and Cleopatra (1945).
TCM PRIMETIME - WHAT'S ON TONIGHT: MONSTER OF THE MONTH: GODZILLA
8:00 PM -- GODZILLA (1954)
American nuclear weapons testing results in the creation of a seemingly unstoppable, dinosaur-like beast.
Dir: Ishiro Honda
Cast: Akira Takarada, Momoko Kochi, Akihiko Hirata
BW-96 mins,
There was a common misconception that the name "Godzilla" was Americanized by its US distributors from Gojira. The name Godzilla was actually the idea of Tôhô and its international sales division. "Godzilla" or "Go-dzi-la" is the proper pronunciation of "Gojira" in its native Japanese and Godzilla (1954) was described by Tôhô as "Godzilla" in their 1955 English language sales catalogue, a full year before finding an American distributor. The film even played briefly in Japanese-American owned theaters in Los Angeles and New York that year under the title of "Godzilla", before being picked up by Transworld and released in an Americanized version featuring Raymond Burr that following year as Godzilla, King of the Monsters! (1956). Tôhô has since been the sole owners of the name Godzilla.
9:45 PM -- GODZILLA, KING OF THE MONSTERS! (1956)
Nuclear tests awaken a prehistoric monster.
Dir: Ishiro Honda
Cast: Raymond Burr, Takashi Shimura, Momoko Kochi
BW-81 mins,
All the scenes with Raymond Burr were added after the Japanese version of Godzilla (1954) was finished and shown to Japanese audiences about two years earlier.
11:15 PM -- GODZILLA RAIDS AGAIN (1955)
Nuclear tests awaken two prehistoric monsters whose battles threaten to level Japan.
Dir: Motoyoshi Odo
Cast: Hiroshi Koizumi, Setsuko Wakayama, Mindru Chiaki
BW-82 mins,
This is the first film in which Godzilla fights another monster, and the only Godzilla movie where Godzilla's spines do not glow before he releases his radioactive flame.
12:45 AM -- MOTHRA VS. GODZILLA (1964)
An unscrupulous land developer drives both Mothra and Godzilla to attack Tokyo.
Dir: Inoshiro Honda
Cast: Akira Takarada, Yuriko Hoshi, Hiroshi Koizumi
C-89 mins, Letterbox Format
It's not generally known among non-Godzilla enthusiasts, but "Mothra" had her own movie in 1961. Mothra (1961) was one of the major monster films Toho made during Godzilla's rest from the silver screen from 1955-1962. Other Toho monsters that originally had their own separate movie would take the same path as Mothra. Rodan, Manda, Baragon, and Varan would appear in future Godzilla movies, but Rodan though would be the only monster out of these four that would take on any major roles.
2:30 AM -- MOTHRA (1962)
After Godzilla kills a legendary giant moth, its offspring set out for revenge.
Dir: Inoshiro Honda
Cast: Franky Sakai, Hiroshi Koizumi, Kyoko Kagawa
C-101 mins, Letterbox Format
This movie is thought to have popularized the notion of presenting giant monsters in Japanese movies as their own individual, identifiable characters, rather than menaces who are meant to be defeated. Tellingly, Mothra is presented as more of a hero than an evil or mindless beast. This change in characterization would carry over to other famous giant monster characters, most notably Godzilla, as they would become similar to the early Western monster movie characters made popular in the Universal horror films (Dracula, Frankenstein's monster, the Wolfman, etc.) rather than the bestial and often interchangeable, generic Western notion of giant monsters.
4:15 AM -- TOWN THAT DREADED SUNDOWN (1977)
A small Texas town is terrorized by a hooded serial killer.
Dir: Charles B Pierce
Cast: Ben Johnson, Andrew Prine, Dawn Wells
C-90 mins, CC, Letterbox Format
This movie is a semi-documentary based on the real-life string of mysterious killings that terrorized the people of Texarkana, Texas, in 1946. The murder spree became known as the "Texarkana Moonlight Murders" and ultimately would claim five lives and injure many others. The only description of the killer ever obtained was that of a "hooded man". To this day, no one has been convicted and these murders remain unsolved.