Original ‘Godzilla’ star Akira Takarada dead at 87: ‘You changed the lives of millions’
nypost.comThursday tweet. “May his memory continue to inspire the lives of many Godzilla fans.”Toho didn’t disclose a cause of death, however, Takarada had been suffering debilitating lower back pain and had been in and out of the hospital in the past few years, the Anime News Network reported.
On March 10, Takarada had appeared in a wheelchair at a fan greeting event for his movie “Yononaka ni Taete Sakura no Nakariseba.”Born on April 29, 1934, Takarada is most famous for playing sailor Hideto Ogata in the original 1954 film “Godzilla.” His character liaised with the Japanese Coast Guard after the first ship that Godzilla destroyed issued a distress signal and witnessed the monster’s death from the Oxygen Destroyer at the end of the film.
The thespian also appeared in the American re-cut “Godzilla, King of the Monsters” (1956) starring Raymond Burr.From there, Takarada went on to star in a slew of flicks featuring the King of the Monsters, including “Mothra vs Godzilla” (1964), “Godzilla vs Mothra” (1992).
The actor’s last appearance in a Godzilla flick was in “Godzilla: Final Wars” (2004), although he filmed scenes for the 2014 US reboot “Godzilla,” which unfortunately didn’t make the final cut.
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