Godzilla: Monster, Hero, Entertainer
Godzilla
Everyone's Favorite Monster - Godzilla
Everybody knows Godzilla and if you know him, you love him. How can you not? He's either stomping and destroying a city or he's saving it from some other mythical monster. Always, he's entertaining.
When I embarked on this hub, I wasn't sure what I would find for research. Turns out that our favorite monster has had quite a busy life.
Godzilla Products
Humble, Prehistoric Beginnings for the Gojira Family
Godzilla's Japanese name is Gojira. The Gojiras are an old family who's history goes back seventy million years. There is speculation that they came from a dinosaur species called, Gojirasaurus (some use the term, Godzillasaurus). Think T-Rex come amphibian with a dose of built-in high heat and radiation protection. This mutation was very handy for Godzilla's prehistoric relatives to swim between islands in the South Pacific to hunt for food, even in volcanic regions.
So time goes on, the Gojirasauruses live pretty peacefully while the earth evolves. Then trouble strikes! Humans are on the scene and they're up to no good. There is conflict and fighting.
During the second world war, all but one of the Gojiras were killed in an allied attack. You guessed it - Godzilla was the survivor. Luckily, the Gojirasaurus had the ability to lay dormant for extended periods of time. So, although injured, Godzilla was able to cling to life and rest as long as he needed in order to recouperate on a remote island, probably Lagos.
It was a sad and lonely time for our Godzilla who, now on his own, had to live a solitary life. To add insult to injury, he was the victim of a heavy-duty dose of radiation from post-war nuclear testing. Already having a physiology that was steeped in radiation, he began to change and grow very quickly until he mutated into the monster we all know and love today. And while he had no way of knowing it at the time, all of Godzilla's early challenges equipped him with what he'd need to become an international film star.
Baby Zilla's Birth Stats - Post WWII
Godzilla 1954 - Man About Town
Godzilla Trivia
Gojira (ゴジラ, Gojira) is a combination of two Japanese words: gorira (ゴリラ, lit. "gorilla") and kujira (鯨 (くじら), lit. "whale"). At one planning stage, Godzilla was described as "a cross between a gorilla and a whale," alluding to his size, power and aquatic origin. A popular story is that "Gojira" was actually the nickname of a hulking stagehand at Toho Studios. The story has not been verified, however, because in the more than 50 years since the film's original release, no one claiming to be the employee has ever stepped forward, and no photographs of him have ever surfaced.
Answers.com - Who2 Biography: Godzilla, Movie Monster
A Monster Star is Born!
Civilzation had completely changed Godzilla's existence. No more peaceful hunts, as his natural habitat was pretty much gone. He had to eat and so engaged in a string of menial jobs to support himself. They never lasted long, though. As soon as co-workers started dieing from exposure to Godzilla's radioactive presence, he would get fired and sent packing without a reference. The monster was very unhappy but times were tough and he was bored and lonely with just lying dormant all the time. Godzilla longed for more. He dreamed of an acting career.
Godzilla's Big Break
It was 1954 when Toho movie studios in Japan were casting for the film, Gojira. Writer/director Ishirô Honda was looking for someone to play the leading role - a huge, unstoppable, dinosaur type capable of gobbling up fishing vessels and stomping cities. Godzilla was perfect for the part.
Being the film's antagonist put Godzilla in a position to act out his anger and frustration while getting paid for it. True, it was a low budget picture but he didn't need that much money. After all, he lived in the ocean for free and ate quite a bit of fish while he was there. Really, he needed enough for a few extras and when the fish weren't that plentiful.
Once released, the movie and it's star anti-hero were a big hit with the Japanese public, then in the U.S. Typically, Japanese made Godzilla flicks hit North America one to five years after they are released at home.
Godzilla's Career Takes Off
After three more movies where he was the sole lead bad guy, the studio decided to shake things up a bit and started adding characters to the Godzilla scripts. This put a new spin on the big G's reputation. Monsters like King Kong, Destoroyah and Mothra started appearing on screen as Godzilla's nemisis. Yes, Godzilla had become the good guy. Oh, he still stomped the odd building while making his way clumsily into the city to do battle, but basically, he had started wearing the white hat. He was now the hero.
GODZILLA - GOJIRA (1954)
Godzilla - Hero, Entertainer
Over the years, Godzilla has starred in twenty eight movies and battled one hundred and seventy five bad monster dudes. His appearance has undergone eight changes including a substantial increase in size, yet his basic image remains unchanged.
His flaming spit is something that has remained constant throughout his career. The irradiation and mutation that he suffered during the war left Godzilla with atomic breath. Not halitosis, exactly, rather an ability to blast his enemy with super hot, fiery radiation just by exhaling. You knew when he was going to blow by watching his dorsal plates, which would start glowing just before it was about to happen. It didn't make him popular with the ladies but it helped his screen image and got him plenty of work.
If Big G got injured on the job, there was nothing to worry about, he was a super-fast healer. Injury was unlikely anyway, as his hide was tough and he was dextrous and fit. Godzilla had a natural knowledge of the martial arts, which he used when necessary while battling a foe, so he managed to stay in shape, despite his hectic schedule.
Godzilla Father & Son Video Commercial
Godzilla Family Life
While doing the research for this article, I came across one site that suggested there may have been another surviving Gojira. I did not find evidence of this elsewhere, yet Godzilla did have a son who was introduced in the 1967 movie, Son of Godzilla. The mother's whereabouts remain unknown. Since a female Godzilla living incognito for that long is unlikely, I think that there's a possibility that the union may have been a cross-species affair.
Zilla (my name for Godzilla) was filming on Sollgell Island, just going through the motions, doing the usual stuff - stomping a weather station, killing a couple of giant preying mantises - when all of a sudden, the scientists unearthed an egg. Well, wouldn't you know it, the egg hatches right then and there to reveal...a baby Godzilla. Zilla spotted the baby and immediately took him under his wing to raise as his own. The baby, for which I found about three different names, grew very quickly and was soon half as big as his dad.
The proud pappa was thrilled and very responsible. He rushed in to protect and take care of his baby, eagerly teaching him everything a young Godzilla needs to know if he's going to make his way in the world.
Roaring lessons went well but baby was challenged when it came to using his atomic breath. The wise father discovered that he could help his little one overcome the problem by stomping on the baby's tail. That had little G breathing fire easily, which is good because he needed it to help his dad spit fire at a giant spider.
Time went by, as it does and Little G followed his father's footsteps of film star, although he only made a few movies before I lost track of what happened to him. I have no doubt there are Godzilla buffs out there that know. If they happen to honour my little hub with a visit, I'd love for them to leave the details in a comment.
Godzilla went on to 'adopt' two more sons, both of which played roles in his movies.
*** If you watch the father and son video, you will see just how cute! baby Godzilla was. The scene of him blowing smoke rings and needing his dad to step on his tail is included.
The Future of Godzilla
It is being rumoured that there will be another movie in 2013 or 2014. While I'm curious about the plotline, I also wonder what the new, modernized Godzilla will look like, what changes they may make to this iconic monster.
Regardless of how they treat the story or his overall appearance, he will always be Godzilla: Monster, Hero, Entertainer.
Godzilla Movies
© 2009 Shirley Anderson
Comments
do you guys think Toho will begin godzilla jr in 2013 or 2014 Godzilla 59 or 60 anniversary
I dont remember gamera in destroy all monsters. Getting those two in the same movie will take an act of god because there are two different studios. Ill have to watch it again which wouldnt be a problem. There has been a kind of question going about that they make a movie godzilla vs gamera or just the both of them in the same movie. no luck yet it would be cool to see it
This was a very entertaining read. Not sure why I hadn't come across it earlier.
Funny stuff. A couple of backwards or unverified 'facts' but it's obvious you're more interested in writing a good hub and telling a story.
I liked this!
Thanks Shirley, I'm glad to see there are other g-fans out there. Your hub seems to really be speading the good news of Godzilla and getting new converts. Well done. I hope mine will be as great someday.
Oh, so simple. I didn't know we could do that. Cool!
Hey, I've just had a novel, Dinosaur Haunt, published. It's about t-rexes and a pterodactyl bird. You've got a great hub here and I see that you stay busy on it, awesome.
Shirley - I'm not sure if you remember the scene in Austin Power's Goldmember when their Mini Cooper crashes into, and starts pulling a large Godzilla-like statue. Everyone is screaming ... one Japanese business man say "Run! It's Go-zillah!", the businessman next to him says "No, it's not! Due to international copyright laws...but it looks like Goh-zeelllahh..Runnnnnnn!" Tee hee hee...Danny
One? No ma'am.
Being as I come from the realm of odd and mythical beings, I can tell you that I have known some pretty creepy fairies. Take my word for it, you don't want to be on their bad side. Especially if they are the keepers of a giant angry moth!
And, as an added bonus, Mothra comes with a box full of really cute twins! Or maybe I'm confusing cute with creepy again. I do that a lot.
If you're loading up, don't forget Ghidra and Mothra! Those are some classic Godzilla beasties!
Oh Shirley! You have to see the Godzilla movie with Mathew Broderick that CW mentioned. It's so good! I could see it once a year too.
What I remember most about the old Godzilla movies is that one or two people always turn, look, scream, point up to Godzilla and say, "Aaaaaah! Gode-zee-laaah! Run!" As if it really takes someone pointing to the beast and screaming 'run' for people to understand there's a monster spitting fire, lumbering straight for you, and you should run. ROFL! :D Fun times. :)
You did such a masterful job on this Shirley! Huge thumbs up!
Shirley - You are woman "after my own heart". My friends and I have been talking for years about getting together at my house to have a "Godzilla Festival"...We could also play the original, Rodan, Mothra.
I still believe that the original is classic and remains my favorite. I thank you for the wonderful, rich history you provided and wanted to check to see if any of these lines is familiar: "This is a fossil of a 'treeeeloh byte' a rare 'fannonnowmun'"... and my favorite, "Emiko, I dieeeee, and my terrribbbbllle secret dieeessss with me". (Followed by Dr. Serizawa cutting his air hose).
It is obvious you had Zilla's Koseki (family tree), but do you also have the family Kamon (Family Crest). I wonder if it is in the shape of a terapod foot print...or maybe a dorsal plate???????? Dan
Great hub, Shirley! One of my favorite movies is the Godzilla remake with Matthew Broderick. It's one of those flicks I can watch about once a year and not get sick of.
You gotta tell me, please; How'd you do the "Godzilla Trivia" capsule?
i had no idea that there was soooo much information on Godzilla! I always loved to watch the Japanese old Godzilla films, laughing at the english version where the mouths still speak Japanese. All in all, awesome site!
I already told Daisy about it. She will look for it (once she finishes her lists...she is making many lists right now LOL) Batman I've watched. Yup! Yeah, it's kinda weird to be missing a lot of stuff. Oh well...one fine day, I just decided not to watch many movies. So I just pick one every so often. This one went beyond me. Hahaha :-)
Shirley, where was I hiding? Probably in bat caves? LOL I haven't seen much of Godzilla at all. If I did, I guess all the stomping scared me, I totally forgot all about it? Hahaha I had fun reading this hub as I got acquainted with your monster hero and entertainer! Maybe I can ask dayzeebee to look for Godzilla the movie and we can watch it together. I am sure I will no longer be scared but be entertained now. Tee hee
duplicated
Ah Shirley, so much depth and investigation went into this one - it shows! In a good way! I too have not been a Big G fan but you may very well have changed that, darn it. I was really keen to see where dragons fit in, especially with the Japanese lineage. A different species altogether? I really wish they had a dragon celeb. Now he I would follow!
I always loved these movies. Especially Son Of Godzilla. I must say though, judging by the picture at the top, Godzilla must be very fond of dairy. Check out the size of those thighs!
The japanese godzillas are classics and are best when they are the dubbed over versions so you can laugh at the silly voices.
The u.s version of Godzilla was nothing more than a lizard/t-rex,dinosaur retard that was laughably killed off by a few missiles after getting trapped in the suspension wires of Brooklyn Bridge...pathetic, that was not Godzilla that was the man in the rubber suit in that film.
Puffy has 10x more wrinkles then me and he's 10.5 month younger then me... Ha! thats what all that good living and smoking will do to you in Lagos or Mauii or whereever he may be loafing about. You know I bet he will get a facelift, tummy tuck and so much more like all the other celebs before he gets back onto the screen in 2013-4. With today's technology the new movie should be absolutely fantastic. I can hardly wait. I love all those corney-oldies.
Great hub and video regards Zsuzsy
Hmmm...good question as to what ever became of Godzilla Jr. I'm sure like all smokers though, he's been exiled to some remote location where he can puff smoke rings to his heart's content and not worry about offending anybody. :)
Hadn't thought about godzilla in years! Or King Kong for that matter! Yes they were very hokey......but lovable creatures. Thanks for dredging up these memories.
Duplicate comment.
Shirley- I guess I grew up a little after you then as we had color TV but still it was a treat to watch TV. Giant/Flying Robot was also made by the Japanese. Here is the link to watch those videos(although there is some small advertisement in these free videos): http://www.johnnysokko.com/free.1.html
Oh shush! You know I'd always come by to check out if you've totally lost it! LOL
Yes, the Clash of the Titans and the likes! There were many others but the titles escape me as of the moment but I was a big fan! I love my Edith Hamilton - I even memorized the Gods and Goddesses' names and what they were divinities of! And i did that for both the Roman and the Greek myths! LOL
Shirley- Maybe I should have kept my ignorance to myself as now my parents are going to get a class about their upbringing without following the ritual of us kids watching Godzilla...LOL. I will have to get this clarified with my bro whether he has seen it or not as he is a big movie buff. It sounds like a really funny movie to watch. I would surely now check it out. I did like King Kong so hopefully I would love this too. Once again thanks for sharing those wonderful childhood days with us. I remember a serial called "Giant Robot" which I don't know if many people are familiar here. WOW!! Those were the days where watching TV was like the biggest treat and now I see kids more into video games (Now I am already sounding like grandma)..hehe. Great hub and lots of memories have come back with this discussion.
I can tell you had fun writing this one! As I child, I was fascinated with monster movies - though not the scary type but the Godzilla movie types. action slash adventure slash lots of dead people! LOL I remember one Godzilla movie where she fought Mothra, of course a giant moth!
Anyway, thanks for this trip down memory lane...the Godzilla of old still outrocks the more recent cinematic incarnations! :D
Shirley- I came following Spryte but then she follows the best hubs hence I have to admit this is good introduction for someone like me. Since I have not seen Godzilla but I have seen King Kong. I would say that I found the theme of Beauty and the Beast resonating in King Kong where the poor thing is trying to protect the girl in spite of being attacked by "heartless" people. I found it so touching and I did like that protective behavior. I will have to watch Godzilla although I did hear of it earlier but never thought of checking it out until now. Good hub and thanks for letting me on some insider information about this movie..hehe
I am a big fan of Godzilla and spent many hours watching Creepy Creature Double Feature on television when I was a kid. My sister and I would fill in dialog for the epic battles between the monsters. She would be King Kong and I would be Godzilla (because I'm sorry...Godzilla was just far cooler than King Kong).
My favorite of course was "Destroy All Monsters" and I remember saving up my allowance to see it when it opened as a matinee at the base theater. All my favorites were in it...Godzilla, Gamara, Rodan....*sigh*...and they were the GOOD guys for a change!
Thanks for doing so much research on one of my favorite childhood memories! It wsa nice piece of nostalgia. :)
I'd say awwwwww... isn't Little G just the cutest thing... but dang he's ugly... hehe... GREAT hub though!!! I never knew there was so much to Godzilla... I thought he just roared and held the little lady in his hand while he dangled from a skyscraper... who'd've thunk? :)
THUMBS UP!!!
ProCW
Ok now that I have stopped laughing. I have to admit I have never been a Godzilla fan but my husband is and drives me a bit batty watching the movies over and over again. I think you have helped me to understand more about this Entertainer so that I will not be so harsh next time my hubby wants to be entertained. Thanks!
Ha, ha! Lagos? Are you sure about your facts here??? I would hate to repeat it as fact and find out it wasn't so. I had always heard it was Maui, soaking up the sun and sipping drinks with umbrellas in them on the beach, occasionally surfing and having an appetizer of a hula girl now and then. But...that was probably after he was a big star. Anyway, otherwise it is an insightful and piercing look at the role of japanese movie monsters and their impact on molecular astronomy and catastrophic climate change.
This is so funny! What ever made you think of it? That father/son video is priceless. Looks just like me when I was a kid.
I can't wait to see the new one and what they do with...you know...what they can do nowadays. It should be the best one ever made (which won't be hard.)
Thanks for this. I haven't thought about Godzilla for a long time. Now I'll have bad dreams. Time to get out the fire-retardant bed sheets (haven't needed THOSE for a long time either--if you catch my drift!)
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