Masao Nakabori in September 2019. Photo © Brett Homenick. Born on February 12, 1943, in Nippori, Arakawa City, Tokyo, Masao Nakabori joined Tsuburaya Productions in the mid-1960s and became a cinematographer on some of Japanese television's best special effects series. Among his tokusatsu credits are Ultraman (1966-67), Ultra Seven (1967-68), Operation: Mystery! (1968-69), Silver Kamen … Continue reading THROUGH THE LENS OF TOKUSATSU! Cinematographer Masao Nakabori Goes Behind the Scenes of the Ultra-Series!
Ultra Q
TOHO’S FAN FAVORITE! Screen Legend Kenji Sahara on His Most Notable Film and Television Tokusatsu Roles!
Kenji Sahara in June 2012. Photo © Brett Homenick. Kenji Sahara (born May 14, 1932) has appeared in more Godzilla films than any other actor. Mr. Sahara appeared in the original Godzilla (1954) in two small roles and went on to star in such popular titles as: King Kong vs. Godzilla (1962), Mothra vs. Godzilla … Continue reading TOHO’S FAN FAVORITE! Screen Legend Kenji Sahara on His Most Notable Film and Television Tokusatsu Roles!
KEEPING TABS ON ULTRAMAN! Tsuburaya Pro Script Supervisor Atsuko Tanaka Looks Back on Her Tokusatsu Career!
Atsuko Tanaka (born on April 19, 1942) is a script supervisor (a.k.a. scripter) who worked on several of the most successful tokusatsu TV programs of the 1960s. Beginning with Ultra Q (1966) at Tsuburaya Productions, Ms. Tanaka would go on to work in the same capacity on Ultraman (1966-67), Ultra Seven (1967-68), Kaiju Booska (1966-67), and The Space Giants … Continue reading KEEPING TABS ON ULTRAMAN! Tsuburaya Pro Script Supervisor Atsuko Tanaka Looks Back on Her Tokusatsu Career!
TOKUSATSU’S MAN OF LETTERS! Hiroyasu Yamaura on Scripting Godzilla and the Ultra-Series!
Hiroyasu Yamaura is a prolific scriptwriter for both film and television, whose work has crossed many genres. His writing credits include such popular anime titles as Mazinger Z (1972-74), Lupin the Third: Part II (1977-80), and Galaxy Express 999 (1978-81). In the world of tokusatsu, Mr. Yamaura co-wrote the screenplays for Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla (1974) and Tokyo Blackout (1987), as … Continue reading TOKUSATSU’S MAN OF LETTERS! Hiroyasu Yamaura on Scripting Godzilla and the Ultra-Series!
TOHO’S MAN OF ACTION! Toru Ibuki Recalls His Adventurous Years On- and Off-screen!
Toru Ibuki was Toho’s action star of the 1960s, and some of the action scenes he performed proved to be more dangerous than mere stunts. Born on January 28, 1940, Mr. Ibuki’s acting career brought him to the attention of worldwide audiences via his roles in the Godzilla series. Most notably, Mr. Ibuki played the … Continue reading TOHO’S MAN OF ACTION! Toru Ibuki Recalls His Adventurous Years On- and Off-screen!
THE ROAD TO M78! Bin Furuya on His Early Toho and Suit-Acting Roles!
Bin Furuya achieved stardom as Ultraman's first suit actor in the groundbreaking series Ultraman (1966-67) from Tsuburaya Productions. However, years before finding success on television, Mr. Furuya got his acting start working as an extra in movies at Toho Studios. Born on July 5, 1943, in Tokyo, Mr. Furuya was a member of Toho's 15th … Continue reading THE ROAD TO M78! Bin Furuya on His Early Toho and Suit-Acting Roles!
HOSHINO ON ‘ULTRAMAN’! Akihide Tsuzawa Opens Up About His Career in Tokusatsu and More!
Tokusatsu is a genre that has seen its share of child actors over the years, but there is no doubt that Akihide Tsuzawa is one of its most famous. Mr. Tsuzawa was born on September 24, 1954, to Masako Tsuzawa, a famous haiku poet. Mr. Tsuzawa began working as a child actor and soon found … Continue reading HOSHINO ON ‘ULTRAMAN’! Akihide Tsuzawa Opens Up About His Career in Tokusatsu and More!
CELEBRATING THE ‘HAPPY’ DAYS! Actor Yasuhiko Saijo Opens Up About ‘Ultra Q’ and Toho!
Yasuhiko Saijo (born on February 20, 1939) is a Japanese actor who began his career at Toho Studios in 1957. A graduate of Seijo University, Mr. Saijo played a major role in changing Japanese television when he was cast as one of the three leads in the groundbreaking TV series Ultra Q (1966), which went … Continue reading CELEBRATING THE ‘HAPPY’ DAYS! Actor Yasuhiko Saijo Opens Up About ‘Ultra Q’ and Toho!
THE YOUNG GAL! Actress Machiko Naka Answers Questions About Her Toho Days!
Machiko Naka, born on October 12, 1936, is an accomplished actress who has appeared in many Toho films throughout the years. She was a regular actress in the popular Young Guy series and appeared in such movies as the Crazy Cats film Las Vegas Free-for-All and Battle of Okinawa (directed by Kihachi Okamoto). Godzilla fans know … Continue reading THE YOUNG GAL! Actress Machiko Naka Answers Questions About Her Toho Days!
MR. GODZILLA SPEAKS! Suit Actor Haruo Nakajima on Playing the King of the Monsters!
While most kaiju eiga fans know Haruo Nakajima as the actor who played Godzilla in the monster suit from 1954 to 1972, he also played such Toho kaiju as Rodan, Mogera, Varan, Gaira, and King Kong (in King Kong Escapes, 1967) in a variety of monster movies from Toho Studios. A longtime favorite among Western … Continue reading MR. GODZILLA SPEAKS! Suit Actor Haruo Nakajima on Playing the King of the Monsters!
Vantage Point Interviews 