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(Even though the movie is based on King Kong, there isn't actually a monster in the movie, and the tokusatsu genre did not emerge until 1954.)
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{{mtab}}
{{Tab}}
{{Infopelicula
{{Infobox Film
|type1      =Rock
|type1      =Rock
|type2      =???
|type2      =???
|header      ={{Shochiku}} {{Kaijup}} {{Film}}
|image      =KINGU_kONGU.jpg
|image      =Wasei01.jpg
|caption    =Advertisement for Japanese King Kong
|caption    =Picture believed to be from Wasei Kingu Kongu
|name        =''Japanese King Kong''
|nameoffilm  =''Japanese King Kong''
|dt          =''Japanese King Kong'' (1933)
|director    =Torajiro Saito
|director    =Torajiro Saito
|producer    =?
|writer      =Akira Fushimi
|writer      =Akira Fushimi
|composer    =?
|distributor =[[Shochiku|Shochiku Kinema]]
|distributor =[[:Category:Shochiku|Shochiku Company Ltd.]]
|runtime    =3 reels (approximately 45 minutes)
|rating      =None
|aspectratio =1.33:1
|budget      =¥???,???,???
|gross      =¥???,???,???
|runtime    =?
|designs    =WaseiKongu
}}
}}
'''''Japanese King Kong''''' {{Nihongo|和製キングコング|Wasei Kingu Kongu}} is a lost [[1933]] [[Japan]]ese short film produced by [[:Category:Shochiku|Shochiku Company Ltd.]] It is based on the [[United States|American]] [[King Kong (1933 film)|film]] which was released the same year, or possibly on the 1932 novel that proceeded it. It was released to Japanese theaters on October 5, 1933.
{{Need sources}}
'''''Japanese King Kong''''' {{Nihongo|和製キング・コング|Wasei Kingu Kongu}} is a lost [[Japan]]ese short film produced by [[:Category:Shochiku|Shochiku Kinema]] as a parody of the [[King Kong (1933 film)|original ''King Kong'']]. It was released to select Japanese theaters on October 5, 1933.
{{TOC}}
{{TOC}}
==Plot==
==Plot==
Santa (Isamu Yamaguchi) and his friend Koichi (Nagamasa Yamada) are jobless vagabonds. They make their living by picking up coins on streets. Santa has a girlfriend named Omitsu (Yasuko Koizumi), but her father Seizo (Kotaro Sekiguchi) does not like having his daughter date a penniless man. He breaks the lovers up and tries to marry his daughter off to a rich man. Desperate, Santa seeks employment and wanders the streets. He can’t find a job at all but has an inspiration. RKO’s King Kong has been released and is a big hit in Tokyo. He decides to capitalize on its success by dressing up as an ape and playing King Kong on a vaudeville theater. He approaches one theater owner to tell him of the idea and the owner is pleased with Santa’s plan, thus giving him the job. Santa’s King Kong show becomes an instant success, with Santa interacting amongst props on the theater stage in his gorilla suit (small buildings, toy airplanes, a doll etc.). One day while performing on stage, Santa sees that Omitsu and her new rich boyfriend are in the audience. Blinded with rage, Santa jumps down from the stage and runs after them - with his gorilla suit on. Santa creates chaos in the town, as firemen and hunters chase him thinking him an escaped gorilla that is running wild in the streets. Eventually Santa confronts the rich boyfriend and knocks him unconscious. He puts the gorilla suit on him and leaves him lying out cold in the street. Just then Koichi comes and tells Santa that the theater owner will give him a lot of money for his performances. Now that he has wealth, Santa gets married to Omitsu
{{Note|''Japanese King Kong'' is unable to be viewed. The following is adapted from descriptions given in contemporary advertisements.}}
After becoming jobless and poor, a man named Koichi and his friend struggle to make ends meet. Koichi's friend is forcibly split from his girlfriend Omitsu by her father, who sets her up with a rich man instead. Inspired by the success of the film ''[[King Kong (1933 film)|King Kong]]'', the man decides to dress up as an ape and play [[King Kong]], securing a deal with a vaudeville theater. The show he makes out of this becomes an instant success, but during a performance, he notices Omitsu with her new boyfriend in the audience. Enraged, he jumps off the stage and begins chasing the boyfriend through the streets with his gorilla suit still on. Thinking him to be an escaped animal, he is chased down by firemen and hunters. Eventually, the man knocks the boyfriend unconscious and dresses him in the gorilla suit, leaving him to be found lying in the street. The owner of the theater pays the man handsomely for his performances, and he uses the money to marry Omitsu.
==History==
==History==
Detailed information about this silent, black & white project has been virtually non-existent, particularly outside of Japan, as the film is believed lost since the late 1940's. This has been attributed to events ranging from the [[Wikipedia:Great Kanto Earthquake|Great Kanto Earthquake]] of 1923 to the fire bombing campaign of Japan during [[Wikipedia:World War II|World War II]]. Film historians agree this is likely, as approximately only 1% of Japan's prewar films survived these events.
Like 90% of all Japanese films produced before 1945,<ref name="JT">{{cite web|url=https://www.japantimes.co.jp/culture/2003/09/14/books/uncovering-lost-worlds-of-japanese-film/|title=Uncovering lost worlds of Japanese film|author=Richie, Donald|date=14 September 2003|work=The Japan Times}}</ref> ''Japanese King Kong'' is considered a lost film.
 
Without physical evidence or accounts by any of the cast or crew, the existence of the film has been long debated. If proven to be real, it would be by far the earliest known [[daikaiju]] film, having preceded its equally-enigmatic followup ''[[King Kong Appears in Edo]]'' by five years, and the most well-known early kaiju film, ''[[Godzilla (1954 film)|Godzilla]]'', by 21 years.
==Staff==
==Staff==
{{Staffs
{{Staffs
Line 34: Line 29:
==Cast==
==Cast==
{{Cast
{{Cast
|Isamu Yamaguchi|[[King Kong]]
|Yasuko Koizumi|Omitsu
|Yasuko Koizumi|Omitsu
|Takeshi Sakamoto|Yokoshima
|Takeshi Sakamoto|Yokoshima
|Kotaro Sekiguchi|Seizo
|Kotaro Sekiguchi|Seizo
|Nagamasa Yamada|Koichi
|Nagamasa Yamada|Koichi
|Isamu Yamaguchi|[[King Kong]]
}}
}}
==Gallery==
==Gallery==
{{Main|Japanese King Kong/Gallery}}
{{Main|Japanese King Kong/Gallery}}
{{Kaiju Movies}}
==References==
{{Reflist}}
{{Kaiju Movies|tab=JP}}
{{Comments}}
{{Era|SCH|FIL|KK}}
{{Era|SCH|FIL|KK}}
[[Category:King Kong]]
[[Category:King Kong]]
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[[Category:1930's Films]]
[[Category:1930's Films]]
[[Category:Shochiku]]
[[Category:Shochiku]]
[[Category:Lost Films]]
[[Category:Lost media]]
[[Category:Comedy]]

Latest revision as of 10:49, 6 November 2023

Article.png
Image gallery for Japanese King Kong


Japanese King Kong
Advertisement for Japanese King Kong
Directed by Torajiro Saito
Written by Akira Fushimi
Distributor Shochiku Kinema
Running time 3 reels (approximately 45 minutes)
Aspect ratio 1.33:1
Godzilla.jp - Dead Kamoebas.jpg [citation(s) needed] — This article is missing references.
Please improve this article by including relevant citations.
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Japanese King Kong (和製キング・コング,   Wasei Kingu Kongu) is a lost Japanese short film produced by Shochiku Kinema as a parody of the original King Kong. It was released to select Japanese theaters on October 5, 1933.

Plot

Note: Japanese King Kong is unable to be viewed. The following is adapted from descriptions given in contemporary advertisements.

After becoming jobless and poor, a man named Koichi and his friend struggle to make ends meet. Koichi's friend is forcibly split from his girlfriend Omitsu by her father, who sets her up with a rich man instead. Inspired by the success of the film King Kong, the man decides to dress up as an ape and play King Kong, securing a deal with a vaudeville theater. The show he makes out of this becomes an instant success, but during a performance, he notices Omitsu with her new boyfriend in the audience. Enraged, he jumps off the stage and begins chasing the boyfriend through the streets with his gorilla suit still on. Thinking him to be an escaped animal, he is chased down by firemen and hunters. Eventually, the man knocks the boyfriend unconscious and dresses him in the gorilla suit, leaving him to be found lying in the street. The owner of the theater pays the man handsomely for his performances, and he uses the money to marry Omitsu.

History

Like 90% of all Japanese films produced before 1945,[1] Japanese King Kong is considered a lost film.

Staff

Staff role on the left, staff member's name on the right.

  • Directed by   Torajiro Saito
  • Written by   Akira Fushimi
  • Cinematography by   Yoshio Taketomi

Cast

Actor's name on the left, character played on the right.

  • Isamu Yamaguchi   as   King Kong
  • Yasuko Koizumi   as   Omitsu
  • Takeshi Sakamoto   as   Yokoshima
  • Kotaro Sekiguchi   as   Seizo
  • Nagamasa Yamada   as   Koichi

Gallery

Main article: Japanese King Kong/Gallery.

References

This is a list of references for Japanese King Kong. These citations are used to identify the reliable sources on which this article is based. These references appear inside articles in the form of superscript numbers, which look like this: [1]

  1. ↑ Richie, Donald (14 September 2003). "Uncovering lost worlds of Japanese film". The Japan Times.

Films
 
Godzilla films
Showa era
Heisei era
Millennium era
Reiwa era
American films
Short films
 
King Kong films
King Kong (1933) • Son of Kong (1933) • King Kong vs. Godzilla (1962) • King Kong Escapes (1967) • King Kong (1976) • King Kong Lives (1986) • The Mighty Kong (1998) • Kong: King of Atlantis (2005) • King Kong (2005) • Kong: Return to the Jungle (2006) • Kong: Skull Island (2017) • Godzilla vs. Kong (2021) • Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire (2024)
 
Other Toho films
Shōwa period
Ramayana (1940s) • Invisible Man (1954) • Half Human (1955) • Rodan (1956) • The Mysterians (1957) • The H-Man (1958) • Varan (1958) • The Three Treasures (1959) • Battle in Outer Space (1959) • The Secret of the Telegian (1960) • The Human Vapor (1960) • Mothra (1961) • The Last War (1961) • Gorath (1962) • Matango (1963) • Atragon (1963) • Dogora (1964) • Frankenstein vs. Baragon (1965) • The War of the Gargantuas (1966) • The Killing Bottle (1967) • Latitude Zero (1969) • Konto 55: The Great Outer Space Adventure (1969) • Space Amoeba (1970) • Daigoro vs. Goliath (1972) • Submersion of Japan (1973) • ESPY (1974) • Prophecies of Nostradamus (1974) • The War in Space (1977) • Magnitude 7.9 (1980) • Bye-Bye Jupiter (1984) • Princess from the Moon (1987)
Heisei period
Reiwa period
 
Other Japanese films
Shōwa period
Heisei period
Reiwa period
 
Miscellaneous
Films
The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms (1953) • The Giant Behemoth (1959) • Gorgo (1961) • Bulgasari (1962) • Gogola (1966) • Space Monster Wangmagwi (1967) • Yongary, Monster from the Deep (1967) • A*P*E (1976) • The Mighty Peking Man (1977) • Pulgasari (1985) • Reptilian (1999) • Cloverfield (2008) • 10 Cloverfield Lane (2016) • Colossal (2016) • The Cloverfield Paradox (2018) • Rampage (2018) • Notzilla (2019) • untitled Cloverfield sequel (TBA)
Documentaries
Fan films
Bambi Meets Godzilla (1969) • Gamera 4: Truth (2003) • Waiting for Gorgo (2009) • G vs. G (2019) • Godziban (2019) • Heritage (2020) • Coming Out (2020) • Wolfman vs. Godzilla (TBA)

 
 
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