Nuart's 2004 "Godzilla" Marquee

Above, the front of the Nuart Theater in West Los Angeles.  Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Next year will mark the 60th anniversary of Godzilla, the character and the release of the 1954 original movie.

Above, another view of the Nuart marquee.  Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Rather than making their own Godzilla movie to celebrate, Toho Co., Ltd. instead handed the reigns to Legendary Pictures and Warner Bros. to do the honor with the now-in-production Godzilla. The movie will be released on May 16, 2014 in 2D, 3D and Imax.

Next year will also mark ten years since the 50th anniversary of Godzilla was celebrated in the United States, most notably with the premiere of Godzilla Final Wars at Grauman's Chinese Theater in Hollywood, Godzilla's induction into the Hollywood Walk of Fame and the Godzilla Final Wars Float at the 2004 Hollywood Christmas Parade.

One item that gets somewhat obscured in the 50th anniversary celebration was the limited release by Rialto Pictures of the original Japanese version of Godzilla (1954) to theaters.

According to Wikipedia:

To coincide with Godzilla's 50th anniversary, art-house distributor Rialto Pictures gave the film a traveling tour style limited release coast to coast across the United States. Uncut and featuring English-language subtitles, the film's release began on May 7, 2004, and ran until December 19, 2004. Starting in just two theaters, the film would gross $38,030 USD ($19,015 per screen) in its opening weekend. It never played on more than six North American screens at any given point. By the end of its run, it grossed $412,520 USD. The film played in roughly 60 theaters and cities across the United States during its seven and a half month run.

I went through my archives and found some photos of the marquee of the Nuart Theater in West Los Angeles where several of us went to go see it on the big screen on May 27, 2004. I am posting a couple for your visual enjoyment.