G-Marathon last year by TCM..Happened Because of Suggestion?

[ゴジラ]

The Godzilla marathon last year. I was wondering why TCM just suddenly decided to air a mini marathon of it. Come to find out, (from members on TCM) that there were over 40 suggestions for each film that aired within the marathon. (Although both Ghidorah films had the highest suggestion numbers) All of this happened within May, later on, boom, mini marathon in early June.

So I'm thinking, what if we could suggest to TCM to show another Godzilla flick? I doubt a mini marathon could be possible again unless the numbers support that, but maybe at least one film?

Recently within the "Suggest What Film We Should Air" section of the site, my friend suggested that they should air Godzilla 1985/The Return of Godzilla. I'm gonna join in on that.

[GotengoXGodzilla]

I like to think that TCM had a mini-Godzilla marathon, because they believe that some of these films deserve to be noticed and recognized as not just some cheese-fest and ridicule that most Godzilla films often get....

...At least that's what I believe. Most likely the reason why is because they wanted to show some monster movies in June, and some of the first ones that sprang to mind were some Godzilla movies, since he is one of the most recognizable movie monsters.

If I could suggest TCM to show another Godzilla film, it would most certainly be Mothra vs. Godzilla. I really wish they had shown that during their mini-marathon instead of Rodan, because Mothra vs. Godzilla, Ghidrah, The Three-Headed Monster and Invasion Of The Astro-Monster do form a nice little trilogy of events that coincide with one another. On top of that, Mothra vs. Godzilla is one of the most well-made monster films ever made, and TCM is all about showing the greatest films ever made, so there ya go.

I hope that, if they ever do another Godzilla marathon, or just even show another Godzilla film, that it'll be Mothra vs. Godzilla. Although, if they show another Godzilla film, it'll probably Godzilla, King Of The Monsters...again.

[Blackout286]

Yeah, most movies that air on TCM are mostly from people who suggest the film. The more suggestions of said film, the higher the chance of it being aired and showing up on TV.
And that's how we had gotten our Godzilla marathon. It always works for Godzilla King of the Monsters (Surprisingly). And I will say this, like you GXG, I was surprised that Mothra vs. Godzilla did not make it to the showing of the mini marathon last year.

I think I'm gonna sign up and suggest the Return of Godzilla and support you guys, it would be awesome seeing the first Heisei film on TV again.

[Tamura]

I would love to see a mini-marathon of GODZILLA, KING OF THE MONSTERS!, KING KONG VS. GODZILLA, GODZILLA VS. THE THING and GHIDRAH THE THREE-HEADED MONSTER.

As for last year's marathon, my cable shorted out as soon as RODAN ended and didn't come back until a day or two later. I was so pissed.

[kpa]

Remember that last June's Godzilla airings on TCM were part of a month-long series of 50s-60s monster movies. Godzilla, Rodan etc naturally fit the theme of that series.

All the Toho films shown that night came were titles held by Classic Media. CM had signed a deal with a company called Westchester Films to make these movies available again for TV broadcasts, and that definitely had a part in TCM showing them.

It never hurts to let TCM (or a TV/video distributor) know what you want to see. There's plenty of Toho films available from Classic Media, Universal and Sony to choose from. RETURN OF GODZILLA/GODZILLA 1985 is much less likely for now because Toho has pulled that film from circulation until some rights issues are resolved. Until then there's nothing TCM can do no matter how many requests they receive.

[Blackout286]

Hey Kpa can you answer this question (If possible), why did TCM aired the ghastly yellow Rodan film? O.o Couldn't they have used a better print, or did they use the old print since it was a less of a mess to obtain? I'm not bashing them or anything, just found it somewhat odd.

[Cimmerian Dragon]

I tossed out a suggestion for Mothra Vs. Godzilla.

If TCM does broadcast one of theses films to a wide audience again, I think that's the best choice. Not too dark, but not too zany. Not to mention the idea of unscrupulous capitalists wreaking havoc is once again terribly relevant.

[CTHimes]

Hey Kpa can you answer this question (If possible), why did TCM aired the ghastly yellow Rodan film? O.o Couldn't they have used a better print, or did they use the old print since it was a less of a mess to obtain? I'm not bashing them or anything, just found it somewhat odd.

TCM doesn't own the films in any capacity, so to show them, they have to rely on other companies to supply them with video masters (not "prints"). Since all Classic Media apparently has for RODAN is the ugly Vestron video master, that's what TCM showed. TCM also caught some flack from fans for airing the re-constructed versions of GHIDRAH and MONSTER ZERO, but again, TCM can only show what Classic Media supplies them with.

Also, I don't think a suggestion in May led to the films being shown in June. For one thing, TCM usually has the schedule for three or four months up at a time, so by May, these movies had already been scheduled for months.

[Blackout286]

Fan flack for those two versions? Maybe for Ghidorah, (And of course Rodan) but for Monster Zero I didn't see any really. o.o

Strange, I saw suggestions happen in the ending months of 2010 mostly in October, but like most suggestions they were either one or two posts, then were buried by other suggestions. I always thought that it just wasn't going to happen (or be planned and scheduled).

[Destroyer]

Personally, I would like them to air the now out-of-print Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla, so I could just tape it and not have to buy it. Eh, I'll probably find myself buying it anyway, ha. They should definitely air Return.

[kpa]

Hey Kpa can you answer this question (If possible), why did TCM aired the ghastly yellow Rodan film? O.o Couldn't they have used a better print, or did they use the old print since it was a less of a mess to obtain? I'm not bashing them or anything, just found it somewhat odd.

TCM doesn't own the films in any capacity, so to show them, they have to rely on other companies to supply them with video masters (not "prints"). Since all Classic Media apparently has for RODAN is the ugly Vestron video master, that's what TCM showed. TCM also caught some flack from fans for airing the re-constructed versions of GHIDRAH and MONSTER ZERO, but again, TCM can only show what Classic Media supplies them with.

That's basically it, but it should be pointed out the Toho doesn't have prints or negatives for many of the US versions of their films. Most of the distributors that created the US edits/dubs (Transworld, AIP, Continental, etc) are no longer in business so the materials for those versions are long gone, so current licensees often have to work with whatever is at hand. All Toho has for the American RODAN is a video master created for TV broadcasts decades ago... it was the source for the Vestron videos, the various releases licensed from UPA, and Classic Media's two DVDs. It looks faded and yellow because its been in use for at 30 years.

As for GHIDRAH, all Toho has is a 35mm print with burned-in Spanish subtitles, and a decades-old pan & scan video master. Classic Media paid for the reconstruction (which was supervised by David Kalat) because that was the only way to show the film in its original aspect ratio. Toho wasn't interested in spending time or money to attempt to track down and do a restoration of an original print, negative or interpositive-- and that was beyond Classic Media's budget-- so the options were go with either the reconstruction or the old pan & scan version. Having grown up with GHIDRAH on TV and having purchased some of the VHS releases I can say the reconstruction is the best the US version has looked outside of a movie theater in decades. If any fans complained that TCM broadcast it, I think they were wrong to do so... it was certainly a better choice than the pan & scan.

[Cimmerian Dragon]

If any fans complained that TCM broadcast it, I think they were wrong to do so... it was certainly a better choice than the pan & scan.

I think any fans complaining about anything when a Godzilla film sees a television broadcast are probably wrong. It's wonderful to see ANY version of these pictures get a showing, since they've become so scarce in the last decade-and-a-half. With MonsterVision and the like things of the past, most potential new fans will probably never see a G-film unless they actively seek it out on video, and many won't ever bother.

[edgaguirus]

Godzilla will be shown on TCM this Thursday.

They mainly showed the Godzilla films as part the double drive in theme they had.

[ゴジラ]

Godzilla will be shown on TCM this Thursday.

They mainly showed the Godzilla films as part the double drive in theme they had.

Thanks for the heads up! I will be watching it for sure

[omgitsgodzilla]

Of all the channels not to get! :/

[Legion1979]

Of all the channels not to get! :/

You don't already have Godzilla on DVD or blu-ray somewhere?

[GotengoXGodzilla]

Of all the channels not to get! :/

You don't already have Godzilla on DVD or blu-ray somewhere?

Well, I watch the Godzilla movies on TCM to see what Robert Osbourne has to say about the movie. Maybe he wants to see the same?

Plus, it's just nice to see these movies on the same channel that praises other movies like Citizen Kane, Casablanca, Sunset Boulevard and Gone With The Wind.

[omgitsgodzilla]

^^This, and it's a lot like hearing your favorite song on the radio. Who skips over the station because they've got the CD? I've got all the films, yes, but this is a little different in my opinion. It's a little more than just watching the movie.

[Crazy Jim Films]

^^This, and it's a lot like hearing your favorite song on the radio. Who skips over the station because they've got the CD? I've got all the films, yes, but this is a little different in my opinion. It's a little more than just watching the movie.

I would echo that sentiment. Particularly in regards to Godzilla films. I just wish it were like the days of cable in the 80's and 90's where they would have hosts doing commentary between breaks and such. The world of cable is missing the likes of Joe Bob Briggs, Commander USA, and those type of characters.

[edgaguirus]

True. They showed some old films that you hardly see anymore on tv or dvd. At least we have the Godzilla films on dvd.