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| Above, Distant Lands Travel Bookstore from a previous visit. Photo by Armand Vaquer. |
Tonight's presentation on Japanese monster movie locations and landmarks went great tonight. People took advantage of the 77-degree temperatures to come out.
We filled the Distant Lands Travel Bookstore & Outfitters in Pasadena (we had to add some folding chairs) with appreciative kaiju fans who want to "walk in Godzilla's footsteps." Some were from the World War II generation, which was a surprise.
I took some photos before the presentation began, but I'll have to post them tomorrow (I forgot the cable that attaches my camera to my computer for uploading).
It was a relaxed evening where people felt at ease to ask questions during the slideshow. Some were surprised at the craftsmanship employed in making the intricate miniatures to match (or come very close) to the actual structures. They hadn't given the workmanship much thought until tonight's presentation.
Besides the Japanese locations, landmarks and places of interest to monster fans, I also included two places of interest in the U.S. to Godzilla fans: the Walk of Fame star on Hollywood Blvd. and the Godzilla, King of the Monsters! plaque at Frank del Olmo Elementary School in Los Angeles.
When I showed the below photo of 84-year-old Haruo Nakajima, one of the older members of the audience remarked, "84?! He's just a youngster!"
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| Above, Haruo Nakajima at Godzilla's star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Photo courtesy of Sonoe Nakajima. |
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| Above, the "Godzilla, King of the Monsters!" plaque at Frank del Olmo Elementary School in Los Angeles. Photo courtesy of Richard Pusateri. |
I apparently scored a home-run as I received a great round of applause at the end.
A big thank-you to the staff of Distant Lands for making tonight's presentation a successful one!
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