Really Old Japanese VHS Copy Of Mothra Vs. Godzilla!

Through the magic of box-digging (and boy, I had to do some serious diggin’ to root this one out last night), look what I has been done founded: a really old Japanese VHS release of 1964’s Mothra Vs. Godzilla, aka Godzilla Vs. Mothra, aka Godzilla Vs. The Thing. I picked this up in the Summer of 2001 during a visit to the G-Fest Convention in Chicago. There was a Japanese mall nearby in which I also picked up some vintage Japanese Ultraman tapes, but this particular video I found at the convention itself. I (and by “I” I mean “parents”) paid $25 for it. Too much? Not enough? I have no idea, but I do know that after several intensive hours minutes of online searching, I couldn’t find pics of any identical tapes anywhere out there in internet land.

 

Unlike the Ultraman tapes, which I picked up more or less because they were something neat that I probably wouldn’t be coming across again anytime soon (traditionally, I’ve had pretty much zero interest in Ultraman, save for a period of time when I was verrrry young and some channel somewhere was playing one of the iterations of the franchise), I really, genuinely, instantly wanted this Godzilla tape. Let me explain: I still really like the original run of Godzilla movies from the 1950’s, 1960’s & 1970’s, but back then, I was a huge fan of all things ‘Zilla. I had to have been, since G-Fest, a convention dedicated to all things ‘Zilla, was in Chicago. That is, not exactly a 45 minute drive from Northeast Ohio. And man, G-Fest was like the end all, be all of everything that I liked at the time. I even got my VHS tapes of Godzilla Vs. King Ghidorah and Godzilla 2000 (which we actually picked up at a Blockbuster in Chicago because I had neglected to pick up a copy prior, which I know may tarnish my former-megafan credentials, but so be it) autographed by the respective people involved with said movies.

But, I digress. Anyway, that’s the tape’s spine in the pics above. The smart money is on the film’s title being written on it. At the bottom of the spine is what I presume the cost of the tape was in Japanese Yen. Is saying “Japanese Yen” redundant?

Since I neither speak nor read Japanese, I have no idea what any of this says or when this tape came out, but I’m guessing it was released at some point in the 1980’s. I get the impression this was a Japanese rental, and the somewhat degraded video quality seems to bear that out. Then again, most 100-year old VHS tapes don’t look that great anyway. At any rate, the tape is, as has been established, a Japanese copy of Mothra Vs. Godzilla, and it was put out by Toho Video, as one would/should expect. That being as it is, all of the dialog is, fittingly, in Japanese, and thus incomprehensible to me. No dubbing, no subtitles. Listen, I just barely passed French in high school, so don’t go asking me to learn a new language now. It’s a lost cause; an incapability I have learned to live with.

So, anyone read Japanese? Click on the pics for an enlarged version and tell me what this all says! I hope my pictures display the writing semi-legibly. Have the past 12 years been a succession of sleepless nights due to my inability to learn the Japanese language? That’s for me to know and you to find out (but seriously, if anyone can translate anything in this post, please give us the lowdown in the comments). I think it’s safe to say the back of the box contains a description and various copyright info. I mean, some things are universal, aren’t they? Watch that not be at all what the back of the box contains, just to spite me. Wouldn’t be the first time a tape played mind games with your Northeast Ohio Video Hunter.

There be the videa itself. I always dig the grey flip-doors of older cassettes, further evidence this is quite possibly from the 1980’s. Unless Japan did things differently, which is something I really have no idea about. The clamshell that houses the tape opens from the left, rather than the right as they do here in the states.

There’s the side-label of the tape. I assume it simply reiterates the film’s title and other pertinent information. The level of wear on this label further leads me to believe the tape was a former rental in its homeland, but that’s based strictly on a gut feeling; there’s no factual basis for that thought whatsoever.

Lookit this! Original inserts! Fronts and backs! They both look they could be mailed away. What for? I have no idea. The one on the left looks like some kind of warranty card, but the one on the right I haven’t a clue. Was it for the Toho Video catalog, perhaps? Or maybe it’s for some swanky item that couldn’t be had otherwise? Someone has to have the skinny. Considering this tape is probably fairly scarce nowadays, I’m guessing these cards are even rarer finds. To be honest, I had completely forgotten about them until I opened the clamshell for pictures. They were hidden under the tape, so good thing I had the desire to photograph the tape’s spine, or you may have never seen them.

Now for some actual video content…

This is the first thing seen on the tape (beyond the standard blank black screen that is commonly found upon the start-up of most commercial tapes, I mean). I’m guessing it’s copyright information; “Don’t go copyin’ this tape!” and so on.

The title, appropriately in Japanese. Perhaps the first screencap is a mention that the film is presented in widescreen, a fact that pleasantly surprised me. I was expecting a fullscreen edition, but widescreen is always welcome. I’m not sure how well my pictures show it, but as previously mentioned, there is some tape degradation, which, really, you have to expect. It’s an old tape, after all. Happily, it’s an NTSC VHS, meaning I can play it here in the U.S. with ease. No resorting to any funny business to get this fella running!

Another look at the widescreen process, condition of the print, etc. Seems like a pretty nice, colorful print to me.

For those not in the loop (as we hepcats say), Mothra Vs. Godzilla is a 1964 entry in the Godzilla series, the fourth overall. As you may assume from the title, ‘Zilla fights Mothra, who is, fittingly, a big ass moth. It’s not just a good Godzilla film, but also, I feel, a good film, period. I’ve always loved this movie, from the first time I saw (and taped) it on Joe Bob Briggs’ MonsterVision (remember when TNT played good stuff like that?). I’m pretty lenient towards any Godzilla film from that original 1950’s to 1970’s run anyway (with the exceptions of Son of Godzilla and Godzilla’s Revenge; I’ll take goofy Godzilla Vs. Megalon over either of those any day), but even so, Mothra Vs. Godzilla is just a real strong, entertaining movie on its own. If you haven’t seen it, you’d be well-advised to purchase your own copy, preferably one with dubbing or subtitles in the language most understandable to you. Me? I’ll hold onto this Japanese VHS for dear life, but if I want to actually watch the movie, I think I’ll go with Joe Bob’s airing (come to think of it, I should probably get around to converting that tape to DVD sometime). Oh, and I have an old Paramount VHS of the U.S. version, too. Just thought I should throw that in somewhere.

One final close-up of the front cover. Man, the more I look at it, the cooler it is. Nice and colorful, certainly eye-catching and appealing. I dig it, baby. Then again, I’m a sucker for stuff like this. This is a tape I’ve always been proud to own, but it was only upon digging it out last night that I remembered just how undoubtedly cool it really is. I got some neat things at that 2001 G-Fest (including a stylin’ original Godzilla Vs. The Smog Monster lobby card), but I think this tape was ‘the big find.’

(I just did another internet search, and still came up with nothing on this tape. So, seriously, if anyone has any info about it they’d like to share, post it in the comments! Please!)

Ghoulardifest 2013!

There are plenty of reasons to love this time of year, but one of the big ones, for me, is the annual Big Chuck & Lil’ John Ghoulardifest convention. Ghoulardifest, for those “not in the know,” is the yearly convention celebrating all things Ghoulardi, the legendary Cleveland horror movie host. This year held special meaning, as it commemorated the 50th anniversary of Ernie Anderson’s debut as Ghoulardi, on WJW TV-8 waaaaay back in 1963. Due to a shortage of money (and I tend to spend a lot at these things), initially I wasn’t sure if I was going to be able to make it this year. But, there’s only one 50th anniversary! I had to go! Luckily, my brother came through with the needed dinero, and so, earlier today, Sunday, November 3rd, we made our yearly trip to Ghoulardifest.

For the past several years, the convention has been held at the UAW Local 1005 Hall, a venue and transit I had become accustomed to. So, when it was announced earlier this year that the convention was moving to the La Villa Conference & Banquet Center, I was a bit concerned. Was this going to be farther away? Would the trip become longer and more difficult?! I’m not always adverse to change, but when it comes to the important things (like Ghoulardifest), I can become a bit apprehensive. In this case, however, whatever concerns I may have had were unfounded; since my Brother always does the driving to these sorts of things, I didn’t realize that the trip was nearly the same. La Villa is right by the UAW. Even the Big Boy Restaurant that we usually visit after leaving Ghoulardifest was close-by (we didn’t stop there this year, however; mah Bro was tired, we had eaten beforehand, and besides, we spent quite a bit of money at the ‘Fest. Sorry Big Boy, not this year).

The La Villa was/is beautiful. Definitely plush, and it’s design actually reminded me of a Frightvision I went to years ago (early-2000’s). That’s my Brother in the pic above, walking ahead of me, as he tends to do. You could be forgiven for perhaps mistaking him for a young Bruce Springsteen upon first glance (it’s the hair, y’see).

One thing I’ll admit I regret missing out on was held yesterday (November 2nd, for those keeping score at home): Tim Conway, Ernie Anderson’s comedy partner and longtime supporter of all this, made an appearance. I would have liked to have met him, or at least seen him, but it having been a Saturday and Tim Conway only appearing that one time only, you have to figure the place was jammed. Now, I am not a fan of big crowds, and that coupled with the fact that there was a family engagement that left my Brother unable to attend yesterday meant that it was just going to be easier all-around to go today. So, sorry Mr. Conway, but it couldn’t have been helped. (Sunday is when we usually go anyway, and despite my uncomfortable-ness around/in crowds, it’s still always pretty busy that day, and this year was no exception.)

As you may imagine, meeting the local celebrities is one of the big draws of the ‘Fest. So, it stands to reason that Big Chuck & Lil’ John were out in full force, layin’ down the law and takin’ names. Right before (or right after, I can’t remember) this super-exclusive candid photo was taken, Lil’ John was staring at me while I, like a dope, stood there with my big ol’ camera out. I became nervous at the fact that I may have been irritating one of my heroes, so in this moment of potential crisis, what did I do? Point at him and do an Arsenio-style “roo roo” gesture. Yes, really. If I had been irritating him, this was certainly not going to help matters, but luckily, nothing more came of it, besides me making a clown of myself in public (something I admittedly can be exceptionally good at). Lil’ John, if I bothered you, I’m sorry man! Please don’t hate me! Also, we *may* have accidentally cut in line when meeting Chuck & John (oops!), but there was a lull at their table, no one seemed to be making any immediate headway towards them, so what were we supposed to do? At any rate, they were kind enough to sign my American Scary book and take a picture with me (both of which I’ll spotlight in a little bit), so, all is well; I won’t suffer a sleepless night tonight (not due to this, at least).

I really wanted to meet Bob “Hoolihan” Wells, maybe get his autograph and/or a picture taken with him. But, for a record third year in a row, I missed out! When these super-exclusive candid photos were taken, he was on his way up to the stage for a presentation (as were the rest of the celebrities in attendance). For the record, in the right shot, he was leaning down to take a bite of food before heading to the stage. Your Northeast Ohio Video Hunter captures all of life’s special little moments, doesn’t he?

While the celebrities and special presentations are a big part of Ghoulardifest, of course there are always a ton of vendors selling cool stuff, and this year didn’t disappoint in that regard. Man, I could, can, and often do drop some serious dough at these things, but I had to temper the urge to buy everything even remotely interesting in sight a bit this year. I still walked out with a bagful of really cool stuff, but man, I had to pass up some pretty amazing things. Nothing I’ll lose sleep over tonight, but trust me, if you’ve never been to a Ghoulardifest, you’re missing out on a lot of neat items.

Notice in the right pic above Son of Ghoul selling some of his fine wares. SOG always has a lot of awesome stuff, and I bought a ridiculously cool Superhost DVD from him. He even had a vintage Frankenstein Laserdisc for sale, something that made my heart swell with joy.

The place really was (and always is) a feast for the eyes. Often, at least for us, it takes several walk-throughs to fully appreciate everything being sold. No joke, even after going around the room a few times, we were still finding neat things to buy. Near the end of our visit, my Brother got a very cool print of a vintage Beatles photo (from the original photographer) in which they’re in the back of a car, Paul is waving, and Ringo has what definitely appears to be a joint.

With his back to the camera, that’s Jungle Bob, busy being awesome, in the left pic above.

Someone was even selling the new action figures based on the 1966-1968 Batman series! I’m not that big of a toy collector, but this line is one that has definitely had me excited. Seriously, these things should be put on the list of mankind’s greatest achievements. I already have the Batman & Robin two-pack (the only way to get Robin at this time; exclusivity, yo!), and no joke, it’s a work of art on par with Michelangelo’s David, the Mona Lisa, or that portrait of dogs playing strip poker. While I didn’t buy any of these figs at Ghoulardifest, just seeing the Surf’s Up Batman figure in person was enough to cause me to fall to my knees and weep pure, unadulterated tears of joy, which resulted in the curious stares of passerby, not unlike Lil’ John earlier.

(Did I really fall to my knees and weep at the sight of the figure? Maybe I did, maybe I didn’t. You’ll just never know for sure, will you?)

Here’s two shots of that stage presentation that kept me from meeting Hoolihan I was talking about. This was at the very tail-end of our visit, and I’m not quite clear on what the purpose of everyone going up on stage was for, but it made for a few very cool pictures.

There’s a shot of everyone on stage for the presentation that I should’ve stayed to watch but didn’t.

The more I think about it, the more I think I should have bought that Surf’s Up Batman figure. Missed opportunities, people, missed opportunities.

What’s that? Pics with celebrities? Oh, your Northeast Ohio Video Hunter has pics with celebrities!

There I am with Jim Syzmanski. I know I may end up being redundant saying this, but all of our local guys are always so nice when you talk to them, and Jim was no exception. Years ago, when I first started watching Big Chuck & Lil’ John, I always liked Jim in their skits, and I talked to him a bit last year, but I’m very glad to have gotten a photo with him this year.

Me with Big Chuck & Lil’ John! I’ve had photos taken with them before, but you have no idea how much I love this shot with their classic King Kong backdrop. Always two of the nicest guys you could hope to meet. I’m dangerously close to making this picture the background on my cellphone.

Hangin’ with my hero, Son Of Ghoul! SOG is always great to talk to, and after our trend-setting, groundbreaking interview ( https://neovideohunter.wordpress.com/2013/08/12/an-interview-with-son-of-ghoul/ ), as well as all the crap I’ve sent him over the years, he kinda knows me now! Even if the rest of the day was a bust, this moment alone would have made it all worthwhile. SOG’s just about the coolest guy ever, and you’d be well-advised to give him due props. Don’t make me throw down over this.

Jungle Bob! I’ve been a Jungle Bob fan for years, and it’s always great talking with him. I first met him waaay back in 2000, and he’s always been just great with his fans. He even had a lizard of some sort with him today!

(Jungle Bob’s official site: http://www.junglebob.tv/ )

Bill Ward, the former voice of WJW TV-8! If you’ve lived in Northeast Ohio for any decent period of time, in all likelihood you’ve heard Bill Ward’s voice. Not only that, but he’s also done a ton of great skits with Big Chuck & Lil’ John. Mr. Ward was mindblowingly friendly. Seriously, he couldn’t have been a nicer guy. And, he even took an interest in this blog! That’s right, your Northeast Ohio Video Hunter talked to Bill Ward about, erm, The Northeast Ohio Video Hunter! Even gave him the address! The very idea of Bill Ward reading my silly little blog is just amazing to me!

But, that’s not all! As previously mentioned, I came home with some cool items! So, what was my booty, my loot, my acquisitions, you ask? I won’t go over everything I picked up, but here’s some of it:

A beer-scented candle in an official Ghoulardi mug! This thing smells very accurately and very strongly of beer. I’m concerned that passerby may walk past my house, smell the candle from the sidewalk, and assume I’m a microbrewer or something. I really wanted this more as a display piece (I’m not really a candle-lightin’ kinda guy), but I’m serious, the scent is really strong. I’m probably going to have to wrap this in a bag and put it somewhere away from things I don’t want to smell like brew, lest someone presume I partake in large amounts of alcoholic alcohol throughout the day (aside from one or two beers now and then, I don’t drink much at all, really).

Legendary Northeast Ohio weatherman Dick Goddard was there, and he signed this old promotional picture I bought about 2 years ago. I’m confident this will one day be worth the mighty dollars, but I ain’t ever sellin’ it, no way!

The official comic book adaption of Batman Forever, a movie only slightly less terrible than Batman & Robin! It doesn’t really take the sting out of passing up Surf’s Up Batman, but I’m a Batfan and the comic was only $1 so screw it.

Told ya I got my American Scary book signed! Uber-collectors of autographs may balk at the fact these signatures are personalized to me, but baby, this book is mines, and I want to let the world know it! I got Big Chuck & Lil’ John’s, Son Of Ghoul’s, and Jungle Bob’s signatures (Jungle Bob isn’t a horror host, but he does appear in the book, so it counts). I would have liked to add Hoolihan to it, but maybe next year. I actually almost brought this book last year to have signed, but I didn’t feel like lugging it around. While I’m glad I brought it today, I’ll admit it was a pain finagling between the book, my camera, and the increasingly full bags of purchased items. By the end, I have a feeling my Brother was pretty tired of hearing “hey, hold the book for a sec” from me.

I also got an official Big Chuck & Lil’ John hand stamp! Proof that I had a ticket and wasn’t trying to pull no funny business! Please ignore my somewhat chapped hand. I love this stamp, but it’s a bittersweet love, because I know that in the very near future, it will soon disappear. There are two possible solutions to this, however: 1) I can have it tattooed on, thus ensuring that my lil’ baby grandchilds will know I was once at a Ghoulardifest, or 2) I can just not wash this hand anymore, which may be a more sensible, or at least cheaper, option (he said having already washed his hands several times since coming home from Ghoulardifest earlier today). Well, nothing is forever, and I guess that includes my hand stamp. *sigh*

I also have my complimentary Ghoulardifest 50th anniversary ticket stub, a memento of today’s events!

And so, that’s it for another year of Ghoulardifest. Despite my having left only a few hours ago, I already can’t wait for next year. I always have a blast, and it’s great to be around people that generally like the same stuff as I do. You don’t always get that from your common everyday person on the street, but at Ghoulardifest, I could shout “I loves ya, ‘lardi!” at the top of my lungs and few, if any, would bat an eye. Probably.

If you haven’t been to a Ghoulardifest convention, I can’t recommend it highly enough. Even if you just go in to see the sights and sounds, I tink you’ll be satisfied. Of course, if you’re an out-of-towner, making the trek may prove a bit more difficult, but don’t fret! There’s an official website, where you can get much of the goodstuff sold at the convention! Check that out here: http://theghoulardifest.com/ . But, I’m confident in stating that there’s enough to see and do each year that, if at all possible, it would be worth taking the trip and seeing it all in person.

Until next year…

(That pic was actually taken as we were first arriving at the convention, but the sentiment it conveys is the same. Right? RIGHT?!)

I think I should have bought that Surf’s Up Batman figure.