#sukagawa

[myjapan-me]

Midorigaoka Park, Sukagawa

[redsamuraiii]

Tsuburaya Eiji, the Father of Tokusatsu

Eiji Tsuburaya made it possible for Godzilla to stomp across the screen and later on, Ultraman. A director, cinematographer, and producer, Tsuburaya is best known for creating the special effects behind Japanese classics like Godzilla and other giant monsters called kaiju.

And his legacy extends beyond those monsters — he built a foundation for film culture in Japan and special effects worldwide.

Before World War II

Tsuburaya grew up in Sukagawa, Iwase, a son of a prominent family of grocery distributors. A prodigy from a young age, as a kid he was interviewed about his model airplanes and credited in local newspapers as a "child craftsman." Shortly thereafter, he was captivated by a new technology called motion pictures — and he combined his two passions by taking pictures of planes.

But it was 1933's King Kong that led to his greatest professional epiphany. King Kong's giant title character and phenomenal special effects opened up a new world of possibilities for Tsuburaya. By studying a copy of the film, Tsuburaya managed to reverse engineer how the effects were made. Then he was ready to begin creating his own legacy.

Being a film revolutionary wasn't easy with his early battles over budget and setup, but when a new company called Toho Motion Picture Company was founded in 1936, Tsuburaya jumped on board to lead the special effects department.

After World War II

After being drafted to work on propaganda films in World War II and experiencing the napalm bombing of Tokyo, he returned to work at Toho after the end of US occupation in 1952, keeping a low profile because the US believed he'd committed espionage.

It was in that climate that producer Tomoyuki Tanaka was artistically inspired by the fallout of a US hydrogen bomb test in the Marshall Islands. The real story of a radiation-poisoned fishing crew inspired him to pitch a monster movie to Tsuburaya and Toho. After some creative wrangling, Godzilla was born.

For Godzilla, Tsuburaya made the bold choice to use miniatures and visual effects instead of stop-motion animation, which was a more obvious alternative. The idea to put an actor in a monster costume was going to be executed as never before, and with it a legendary monster was born.

Though Godzilla was the product of a large team, it came alive because of Tsuburaya's use of models, special photography, and inimitable costumes.

Godzilla was a tough shoot. Actors were stuffed into a costume that was, at its lightest, 220 pounds. They breathed in kerosene from the fumes of a tiny "Tokyo" model burning beneath them, and actor Haruo Nakajima says he lost 20 pounds in the production because the costume was so physically strenuous.

The film was a financial risk, as well — it became the most expensive Japanese movie made up to that time. But Godzilla was a hit, and it kicked off "monster mania." Film by film, these movies created a kaiju iconography that shaped an entire film industry's sensibility — and built a legacy for Tsuburaya.

Tsuburaya's professional and creative successes continued through the 1960s, as he innovated with more intricate models and formed his own company, Tsuburaya Visual Effects Productions, in 1963 where he created what kaiju superfans consider his landmark work, like Ultra Q and Ultraman in 1966. 

Today

Though Tsuburaya died in 1970, his creations remain embedded in the culture today. Even to those who aren't fans of Tsuburaya's distinctive style, his aesthetic, effects, and ethos permeate movies today. 

There are obvious influences, like the many Godzilla remakes and the kaiju fan letter that is 2013's Pacific Rim. Without Godzilla, there is no Ultraman. And without Ultraman, there is no Super Sentai (Power Rangers) and so on.

Tsuburaya's influence can also be seen in every disaster movie's audacious carnage and ever-more-adventurous willingness to push boundaries using special effects.

That's probably why we still thrill to learn about the man who made all those monster suits really roar. Because even now, more than 50 years later, it's as exciting, outrageous, and thrilling as when Godzilla first hit the screen.

Thank You Tsuburaya Eiji for making our childhood a memorable one and our adulthood an awesome one!

Pics by Ultraman NFT & Vox Full Story : Eiji Tsuburaya made Godzilla and it changed film forever Follow Ultraman NFT & August Ragone if you’re a Tokusatsu fan!

[astoundingbeyondbelief]

Kaiju Week in Review (January 29-February 4, 2023)

This week was dense with news, but the biggest was Kadokawa's teaser for GAMERA -Rebirth-, now revealed as a six-episode animated series pitting Gamera against five kaiju opponents, including (of course) Gyaos. Also released was a poster of Gyaos in silhouette; in keeping with recent tradition, it's pretty much skin and bones. The next news drop will come at AnimeJapan 2023 on March 25, where they'll announce the voice cast and release a proper trailer.

Theater listings indicate that Fathom Events will be showing Godzilla: Tokyo SOS in U.S. theaters on March 22 (a Wednesday), paired with Godzilla vs. Gigan Rex. Their Godzilla Against Mechagodzilla program included a behind-the-scenes featurette about the Godzilla vs. Hedorah short that hasn't been released anywhere else, so that's something to look out for. The timing on this seems pretty random; maybe they're trying to get GXMG's sequel (celebrating its 20th this year) out of the way so they can show Godzilla vs. Megalon on Godzilla Day? Pretty nostalgic for me—GMM was the first Godzilla movie I saw for the first time in a theater (at the Pickwick during my first G-Fest).

This week's episode of Godziban introduced Girly Garlin (official English name TBD), Gigan's little sister—and with that, the whole family's been on the show. She's a yandere, methinks.

GMK Godzilla is the latest kaiju to join Godzilla Battle Line. Usually there isn't much advance notice for newcomers, but his model showed up in a metaverse collaboration in December, so it was just a matter of time. He's the debuff king, temporarily weakening nearby enemy units with a swirl of shadow when he appears on the field and is defeated. As a leader, his special move does the same to all enemy units on the field. Pair that with an atomic breath that can hit multiple targets at once and you've got a unit I think we'll be seeing a lot of.

Sukagawa, Eiji Tsuburaya's hometown, has funded a kaiju film about a dinosaur-like beast called Yoroiger. NHK World ran an all-too-brief story on it that mentions that children made it over the course of six months with the help of some tokusatsu pros. Not sure what kind of release it'll get, but I'm certainly curious.

Hiya Toys has teased its MonsterVerse Ghidorah figure. They've made quite a few MonsterVerse figures already, but given their penchant for low prices compared to SHMA, this might be the one that really puts them on the map.

Bandai's unstoppable Movie Monster Series has unveiled four more figures—the Heisei Mechagodzilla and the Final Wars versions of Godzilla, Manda, and Hedorah—to be released later this month. Listings for them turned up a few months ago without any images attached, so it's highly likely that the ones for Showa Baragon, Showa Ebirah, Heisei King Ghidorah, and Symbiotic Legion are real too. I think I'll spring for the Manda. Its proportions are definitely squashed, but I've always liked that design and there are barely any figures of it.

[pudknocker]

海外のスパイが同性婚を隠れ蓑に日本に侵入する、と主張する世界線がもはやナゾ過ぎて辛い。気の毒です。 いや、工作員は、既に異性と結婚しているのでは。

須賀川拓 TBS Television🇯🇵 中東特派員 Hiroshi SukagawaさんはTwitterを使っています

[valkyries-things]

ONAMIHIME // ONNA-MUSHA

“She was a late-Sengoku period Onna-musha. She was the ruler of Sukagawa castle in Mutsu Province. She was best known for being a potential enemy of her nephew, Masamune, participating in several campaigns against expansion of the Date clan in the region of Ōshū.”

[nyainjapan]

Snapshots of the journey

旅のスナップ

RICOH GR IIIx HDF

Sukagawa City, Fukushima, Japan

福島県須賀川市

[imassamayr]

(屈辱の道を通って――ガザ地区からトルコの兄の結婚式へ（ガザ地区現地レポート／前編） - Dialogue for People（ダイアローグフォーピープル）から)

ラファ検問所からエジプトには行けるのか。

今ガザに入ることは極めて困難なのです。エレツ検問所（唯一の玄関口）はハマスに占拠され、人の通行が完全にストップしているから。でも、ご指摘感謝します。 ガザの事を胸に刻みながらイスラエル側を取材し、ガザにいるときは、イスラエルのことも考えながら取材するんです。 https://t.co/7hwO5ZijTf

— 須賀川拓 TBS 🇯🇵 NEWS23専属記者 Hiroshi Sukagawa (@HiroshiSukagawa) October 9, 2023

今ガザに入ることは極めて困難なのです。エレツ検問所（唯一の玄関口）はハマスに占拠され、人の通行が完全にストップしているから。

[suganamin]

アニメージュとナウシカに夢中だった小学生の頃。 I went the nearest my city, Sukagawa with my mother. Our purpose was a anime magazine of exhibision. It brings back memories of when I was elementary school student. I was into "Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind". Now, It's been thirty-six years since this movie born, We can still get important messeges from this even now. Environmental destruction, War with nuclear weapons...Wearing mask in our life was already suggests at that time in this movie. Towns of Ultrara man, Sukagawa. My mother played with some character. We enjoyed a short deep autumn trip. #nausicaaofthevalleyofthewind #ultraman (須賀川市文化センター) https://www.instagram.com/p/ClFUyVov4YJ/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

[thingsdavidlikes]

松明あかし - Taimatsu Akashi by 小川 Ogawasan https://flic.kr/p/2iCKkok

[tatsumine]

トモダーチ #ピグモン #須賀川 #円谷英二ミュージアム #ウルトラマン #ウルトラQ #ultraman #ultraq #トクサツガガガ #sony #sonyrx100m3 #ソニー #fukushima #福島 #sukagawa (須賀川市市民交流センター tette) https://www.instagram.com/p/Bw025BnAsxl/?igshid=1ef55la6ljjig

[myjapan-me]

Midorigaoka Park, Sukagawa

[funada-studio]

【レンタル】2013.08.24　釈迦堂川花火大会

●観光地情報→コチラ

[oniwastagram]

＼おにわさん更新情報📸／ ‪[ 福島県須賀川市 ] 大桑原つつじ園 ⇨ @okanbara_tutuzien Okanbara Azalea Garden, Sukagawa, Fukushima の写真・記事を更新しました。 ――江戸時代からの歴史を持つ、当地の庄屋屋敷に作られた福島の #ツツジの名所 🌸約一万株の圧巻なツツジ！ ・・・・・・・・ 今から300年程前の江戸時代の中頃に、当地の庄屋・渡辺宗一郎が自らの屋敷に鑑賞用の躑躅を植え��のが始まりとされる『大桑原つつじ園』。 現在では約1万株というツツジが園内にはあるとか。 例年ツツジが見頃となる4月下旬〜6月上旬に有料公開されます。このGWに初めて訪れたので、見頃が過ぎないうちに紹介！ そして訪れた時はまだ満開には早かったけど、まさに今見頃💐💐を迎えているようです。 実は訪れる前日まで存在を知りませんでした。 福島県の庭園の中で元々の目的だった浄楽園などにスムーズに足を運べたので、「明日は須賀川牡丹園🌺にも行けそうだな」と思ったのが5月2日。 そして須賀川について調べていた――というよりは福島県の観光案内パンフレット（JRの駅にあるやつ）を見ていたらこのつつじ園が紹介されていまして。 その他の庭園を巡っている感じからすると福島県のツツジは見頃はまだこれからかもな…【見頃：4月下旬〜6月上旬】ってなってるし…多分見頃は5月中下旬ぐらいだろう…と思いながらも、 やっぱり見たい！！ってことで須賀川牡丹園へ行った後そのまま自転車でこのつつじ園へ行きました。東北本線を挟んで逆側になる牡丹園からは約9km。朝7〜9時台に小型自転車で20km…🚲健康的なGWだわ…朝一の早い時間でしたが、もうそ��そこ歩いている方がいらっしゃった。 小高い2つの丘一面に植わっているツツジは圧巻――予想していた通りカラフルな時期の一歩手前という感じではあったけど（赤く染まっているキリシマツツジもまだ一部）、ミツバツツジやシャクナゲの花の美しい姿が楽しめました！ 早めのツツジと一緒に見頃を迎えるのがシャクナゲ、そして遅咲きのツツジと一緒に見頃を迎えるのが芍薬。 また無料休憩所は築150年の民家が用いられているとか。 須賀川牡丹園ほどじゃないとしても歴史ある庭園だとは知らなかった。 次回は一番の見頃の時期に訪れたい！そしてお近くの方は今週末は見頃っぽいよ〜〜💐💐オススメ。 〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜 ‪🔗おにわさん記事URL：‬ https://oniwa.garden/okanbara-azalea-garden-%E5%A4%A7%E6%A1%91%E5%8E%9F%E3%81%A4%E3%81%A4%E3%81%98%E5%9C%92/ ーーーーーーーー ‪#庭園 #日本庭園 #garden #japanesegarden #japanesegardens #botanicalgardens #福島 #福島県 #fukushima #須賀川 #須賀川市 #sukagawa #東北 #tohoku #つつじ #ツツジ #躑躅 #azalea #azaleas #おにわさん‬ (大桑原つつじ園) https://www.instagram.com/p/BxewQpcgKnF/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=bucgqmxb6bdc

[portinaio]

Sukagawa - Prefettura di Fukushima

[astoundingbeyondbelief]

Dream Battle: Godzilla Appears in Sukagawa (2019) trailer, extracted from the Eiji Tsuburaya Museum website.

[nyainjapan]

#オブジェ #object #xh2 #fujifilm #Walk #モノクロ #monochrome #侘び寂び #wabisabi #福島県 #hukushima #須賀川市 #sukagawa

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