Godzilla in Context: 70 Years of Monster History

The original Godzilla film was first released on Nov 3, 1954, and this date is now remembered each year as “Godzilla Day,” paying tribute to the birth of Japan’s most famous monster. In honor of this year’s Godzilla Day, Japan Society will host Steve Ryfle, coauthor of Godzilla: The First 70 Years: The Official Illustrated History of the Japanese Productions, for a special 70th anniversary talk.

Why does Godzilla attack Japan? How did the King of the Monsters evolve from a symbol of the horror of Hiroshima into Japan’s hero and protector? Over the course of 70 years, Godzilla has adapted to an ever-shifting postwar landscape, remaining relevant by responding to geopolitical, economic, and environmental changes and challenges. This lecture discusses themes of nuclear protest, ecology, the Cold War, east-west tensions, and the legacy of WWII as they have surfaced throughout the Godzilla film series.

About Steve Ryfle

Steve Ryfle is coauthor, with Ed Godziszewski, of Godzilla: The First 70 Years: The Official Illustrated History of the Japanese Productions (Abrams, 2025) and Ishiro Honda: A Life in Film, From Godzilla to Kurosawa (Wesleyan, 2017). A former Los Angeles Times reporter, Ryfle’s journalism, criticism and writing have also been published in Cineaste, Virginia Quarterly Review, Criterion Current, San Francisco Chronicle, Chicago Tribune and other publications. He co-wrote, with Joal Ryan, the NY Emmy-winning feature documentary Miracle on 42nd Street (2018).

Godzilla: The First 70 Years: The Official Illustrated History of the Japanese Productions is a hardcover tome almost as big as Godzilla himself. An epic celebration of Godzilla’s 70th anniversary, the book explores every aspect of the kaiju’s creation, design and evolution in Toho Studios’ films and TV series from 1954 to the present. A narrative and visual history of the King of the Monsters, it chronicling the triumphs, challenges and meaning of seven decades of city-trashing, kaiju-smashing mayhem. It’s further a tribute to Godzilla’s creators and costars—the filmmakers, special-effects wizards, cast members and even the stuntmen inside the monster suit—and an appreciation of the behind-the-scenes artistry involved in bringing Godzilla to cinematic life, then and now. The book contains extensive visuals that detail the trends of kaiju design, as well as profile the creative contribution and SFX developments across 70 years of filmmaking and innovation. This hardcover book is over 400 pages in length and has exclusive behind-the-scenes photography, production materials, and scans of vintage posters and more.

Autographs and Book Sales
Attendees will be able to purchase copies of Godzilla: The First 70 Years at the event or bring books from home for a signing session following the author’s talk.

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Image Credits
Photos courtesy of Abrams. TM & ©TOHO CO., LTD.

The NYC Japanese Literature Series is supported by a grant from the Toshiba International Foundation, and All Nippon Airways Co., Ltd., the official airline partner of the series.

Support for cultural programs is provided by Anime NYC; the Sandy Heck Lecture Fund; Faith L. Taylor; and Jean Fan Colson and Daniel Colson.

Japan Society programs are supported by the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature.

Japan Society’s 120th anniversary initiatives and related programs are generously supported by Champion Sponsor, MUFG Bank, Ltd.; Advocate Sponsor, Mizuho Americas; and Friend Sponsor, Mitsubishi Corporation (Americas).