Latest G-FAN

Above, G-FAN #144. 

Ben Johnson and Scott Glenn in My Heroes Have Always Been Cowboys (1991):

Johnson: "You know the worst thing about gettin' old?" 

Glenn: "No Sir."

Johnson: "Gettin' old!"

Yup! That's about the way it is. If one is lucky to be in good health in their "advanced years", aging isn't so bad. It sure beats the alternative.

It has been a week today that G-FEST XXIX ended and I was waiting to catch my plane back to New Mexico (with a three-hour delay). I had a good time attending. 

But I did notice one thing, I didn't have the stamina like I did during past years. I had to pace myself more and sit down more often. My cardiologist wants me to do a lot of walking. There was certainly a lot of that, so much so that I had leg cramps the first night (Thursday) I was there. They were the first ones in years for me. 

Aside from the two coronary artery stents I have (since 2018), I feel pretty good. 

At G-FEST, J. D. Lees and I were talking about slowing down and taking things easier. He's a year younger than I (I'm 70) and has already handed the reins of G-FEST to his daughter Payton. From what I saw at G-FEST, she's doing a great job. The convention is in good hands.

The latest issue of G-FAN arrived in the mail Friday. In his "Dear G-Friends" column, he stated, "I intend to reluctantly end my editorship" with issue #150. Whether the magazine will end then or taken over by someone else is not known. A lot of work goes into publishing a magazine and it is remarkable that it has lasted over 30 years. He stated he doesn't want it to end and will be looking for ways to keep it going. As he said, he is entering "old age". I can certainly empathize with that. Even William F. Buckley Jr. took a similar path (stepping down from National Review and Firing Line) as he entered old age. J. D. also indicated that he might change his mind. 

Whatever happens, I, for one, am grateful for the years of work J. D. put into fandom and wish to take this opportunity to say "Thank You". He deserves some more relaxing quality time to enjoy his golden years and do some traveling. He earned it. He has an open invitation to come down here to "Indian Country".

G-FEST XXIX Write-Up

Above, inside the G-FEST Dealers Room. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

An email came my way this morning with some news articles pertaining to Godzilla. One of them was about G-FEST that took place last week.

This came from Journal & Topics.

The article starts out with:

Since G-FEST XVIII last year, it’s been the biggest year for Godzilla since his 50th anniversary in 2004.

“Godzilla Minus One” from the original Japanese film studio was released in late 2023 and won Best Visual Effects at the 96th Academy Awards. Hollywood’s “Godzilla X Kong The New Empire” came out this year as one of the highest-grossing films, making Legendary Pictures’ “Monsterverse” a billion-dollar film series.

On top of all that, this year marks the 70th anniversary since the first Godzilla movie was released in 1954.

G-FEST XXIX was held this past weekend from July 12-14 at the Hyatt Regency O’Hare to mark these milestones, as well as continue what is now a tradition in Rosemont and the foremost  out.meeting of Godzilla, Gamera, King Kong, Ultraman, and other monsters’ fans in North America. G-FEST continues to be independently held by Daikaiju Enterprises Ltd. — the Lees family from Manitoba.

Previous G-FEST attendance was reported to be more than 3,500. This year, around 5,000 made it out.

It was my guess that 7,000 attended. But since the reporter spoke with J. D. Lees, I would say he would be the one with more accurate data.

To read the full article, go here. 

Flight Delays, Etc.

Above, Saturday at G-FEST.

It is strange that during the past few years whenever I have flown to a destination for a vacation trip, those flights have been without any problems. But when returning home, my flights have either been canceled or delayed. Usually, they have been weather-related. I had to stay overnight twice due to flight cancelations. It happened at G-FEST in 2019 and Salt Lake City in 2020.

The trip going to G-FEST in Chicago has been the same. The flight there was on-time and without any problems. But coming back, my flight was delayed for three hours. I don't actually know the reason for this, but it would be safe guess it was also weather-related. I had a 10:00 flight on Sunday. 

We did have a thunderstorm come through Chicago Saturday night and it rained Sunday morning.

It looks like others who attended G-FEST had travel problems as I did. Yesterday, one was diverted to another Florida airport due to weather. Another had a flight delay going to North Carolina.  

Next month, I am going on a cruise to the Bahamas. Hopefully, the flight from Albuquerque to Miami (and back) will go without incident. I'm not counting on it.

Home Again

Above, yours truly and friend.

I finally made it home to New Mexico yesterday.

My flight was supposed to take off around 10:00 yesterday morning, but it was delayed for three hours. It seems that getting to a place from home has been effortless, but getting back home has been a different story. This happened several times in recent years.

After landing in Albuquerque, I drove the motorhome from there to Jamestown. I made two stops: one for fuel and the other for food. 

After unpacking, I decided to go to bed. I was worn out and ended up sleeping for 10 hours.  

As for G-FEST, I had a good time. It looked like it already outgrew the Hyatt Regency O'Hare. My guess is that we had around 7,000 attending.

G-FEST Day 2

Above, Jessica Tseang, Toshio Miike and interpreter Mariko Horikawa. Photo by Armand Vaquer. 

Right now, I am taking a breather from walking around G-FEST and attending this morning's sessions on the 60th anniversary Mothra vs. Godzilla (also known as Godzilla vs, The Thing), an interview with production designer Toshio Miike and an interview with Rie Ota, who played Baragon in Godzilla, Mothra & King Ghidorah: Giant Monsters All-Out Attack. 

While attending the Toshio Miike interview session, J. D. Lees and I caught up on the latest happenings in the world of kaiju and other stuff.

Naturally, I took some photos of the various proceedings, most of which are for G-FAN.

Above, the Mothra vs. Godzilla session attendees. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Above, Jessica Tseang and Rie Ota. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Friday Night At Red Bar

Above, last night at the Red Bar.

Since last night was Friday night, I decided to head down to the Hyatt Regency's bar called the Red Bar for a little nightcap.

I ordered a Margarita and chatted for a while with a lady bartender.

Then, I succumbed to temptation and ordered another Margarita and an order of quesadillas. I have to say that the drink and snack were quite good. The buzz from the drinks would guarantee that I would not have to wait very long to fall asleep after I got back to my room.

Above, the quesadillas and the second Margarita. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

As I was heading out, the hostess was talking to some people waiting to get into the bar. I said to them, "I wouldn't argue with her. She's hot!" (Well, she was.) She gave me a nice big grin.

Significance of Women Characters In Kaiju Movies

Above, Jessica Tseang and I had a reunion before the panel discussion started.

Before getting myself some dinner (necessary to take my meds with), I attended a panel discussion on the significance of female characters in kaiju movies. 

The panel was led by a friend, Jessica Tseang. She was the person instrumental in having me on some of her panels at Stan Lee's Comikaze Expo in Los Angeles. It is now known as the L. A. Comic Con. Before it started, she and I had a little reunion. I saw her last in 2019 at G-FEST.

Above, the panel discussion on women characters in progress. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

The discussion was interesting, particularly when it focused on a female character in Godzilla x  Megaguirus (2000). I vaguely remember the character in the beginning of the movie. She was avenging a soldier comrade's death by Godzilla. It has been years since I last viewed the movie, most likely way before I moved to New Mexico.

It looks like I'll have to rewatch the movie.

Made It Into The G-FEST Dealers Room, Etc.

Above, yours truly with Roger Wyatt.

The line into the G-FEST Dealers Room finally died down, so I was able to make it in and browse around.

It is hard to believe that I was at the "ripe old age" of 45 when I attended my first G-FEST in 1999 in Burbank, California.

Although I am in relatively good health at age 70, the old stamina is not there anymore. I have to sit and rest periodically (especially my feet). 

The new convention hotel, the Hyatt Regency O'Hare, is much bigger than the Crowne Plaza, but it appears that the convention is getting too big for even it. I am only guessing, but it looks like 7,000 (or more) attended today. What's next? A football stadium? 

I would also guess that the attendance was helped by two Godzilla movies, Godzilla Minus One and Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire, in generating more interest and more fans. 

One thing I also noticed, in looking over the toys the dealers had on display, there are a lot of of them on the tables I already have. 

The photos herein are what I shot today. It is a good thing that my phone takes good photos as I found that Canon Powershot S3 camera is not working. I just get a black screen. It is known as the "Black Screen of Death". Maybe I can find a repairer. I decided to use it instead of my Canon Rebel as I have some downloading issues with my computer. 

Above, a fan-made Mecha-Godzilla.

Above, Boris Karloff as the Monster in the Dealers Room.

Above, yours truly and a friend.

Above, lots of toys at the Radioactive Toys tables.

Above, Lon Chaney Jr. as the Wolf Man in the Dealers Room.

Above, Dojo Studios Godzilla suit. 

G-FEST XXIX Flights Booked

Above, yours truly with J. D. Lees at G-FEST XXVI in 2019.

Although I have already booked my room for G-FEST XXIX months ago, my trip to the convention is now official as I have booked my flights.

It is a good thing that I did as the total fare is under $400, which is surprising during these times of high inflation. 

Additionally, the flights are non-stop from Albuquerque to Chicago. It seems that non-stop flights are a bit more rare than in the past. At least I won't be sent to some nightmarish airports like Denver or Dallas-Fort Worth.  

The last G-FEST I attended was G-FEST XXVI in 2019. It will be nice to see everybody again this year.