Recently I had a chance to interview J.D. Lees, one of the biggest voices in the fan community. Lees is best known for creating the massive G-Con/G-Fest–a yearly convention celebrating Godzilla and tokusatsu–as well as the longest running fanzine of all time, G-Fan (note that I have written a few small articles for that publication, too–including a column called Kaiju Comics Corner… shameless plug). Lees has a long history with the convention circuit, with bringing Japanese celebrities to the USA, with helping to organize theatrical showings of giant monster films, even with putting together tours for fans around Japan. In this interview, we cover all of these topics and more, including his work on The Official Godzilla Compendium book with author Mark Cerasini, his time living in Japan, and his upcoming plans. Please take a read, and I hope you enjoy what you see.
Nicholas Driscoll: I like to start these interviews with a few basic and very important questions! How did you get into giant monsters? What are your favorite giant monsters and why? Favorite Godzilla costume? Favorite Godzilla movie?

J.D. Lees: I don’t really know what draws any particular person to kaiju; sometimes I wonder if there is a kaiju gene that some people possess and others don’t. I would guess that it’s a result of several factors including personality type, culture, and exposure.

In my case, I discovered dinosaurs from a book called The Wonderful Egg in my Grade 1 classroom library. In those days dinosaurs were not a topic of much general interest and I was the only one of my friends that really cottoned to them. I don’t know why I became fascinated more so than others. In any case, the following year I saw Godzilla King of the Monsters on TV and was thrilled to see a gigantic dinosaur in the midst of a big city. I’ve enjoyed the character ever since. Again, I can’t explain why my young friends outgrew their interest in Godzilla and kaiju while I never did, but I suppose there are lots of things that catch people’s fancy but become a permanent interest for only a few.

My favorite kaiju are Godzilla (natch), Titanosaurus, Ghidorah, and Gorgo. In general, I’m more favorably disposed to the dinosaurian kaiju (including Baragon and Gorosaurus) while King Ghidorah is such a spectacular creation and still displays many reptilian characteristics.

My favorite G-suit is the 1964 MothGodzi, with 1962’s KinGodzi coming in a close second, and my favorite G-film is 1964’s Godzilla vs The Thing (a.k.a. Mothra vs Godzilla).

 

ND: I have lived in Japan for around eight years now, so I am really curious about your time living in Japan as well! When were you here? What were some of your fondest memories, both kaiju-related and teaching or just from day-to-day life?

J.D.: My wife and I lived in Tokyo teaching English for a year, from the summer of 1987 to 1988. It seems like an eternity ago, but the memories are still very clear and pleasant. I felt very at home in Japan, and enjoyed traveling by subway and walking to my school every day amongst all the other inhabitants of that great city. Although I was a gaijin (foreigner) it was fun to feel a part of Japanese society after admiring it from afar for so long.

I taught conversational English in downtown Tokyo so I had a lot of students from various companies and government departments. They were all very intelligent and most had at least a basic grasp of English, so I had the opportunity to talk to them about a wide variety of subjects and learn about how the Japanese people viewed then-current events. During the year we traveled as much as possible and saw many wonderful sights and locations around the country. It was at the climax of the Japanese economic “bubble” and there was a feeling of optimism and expansion in the air, and relations between President Reagan and Prime Minister Nakasone were excellent. So overall, it was “a happy moment” in time for both me and Japan.

There weren’t a lot of Godzilla goings-on at that time, but the Asakusa Toho Theater ran All-Night Toho marathons (five films) once a month and so I managed to see almost all their sci-fi output in the original Japanese versions at a time when they weren’t available elsewhere. I was also able to pick up a fair number of Godzilla books and video material, including a large collection of laserdiscs that are now gathering dust in my basement.

 

ND: How did you start publishing G-FAN and what were the beginnings of G-FEST?

J.D.: G-FAN came about after I met a couple of other G-fans at a Winnipeg comic convention in 1992 and realized that they didn’t know Godzilla’s career had restarted in Japan and that there were more movies after Godzilla 1985. Desktop publishing was in its infancy and as a school teacher, I wanted to use it to make worksheets and booklets for my students. I decided to make a Godzilla newsletter for my new friends as a way to become proficient with the desktop publishing program at school. On a whim, I took out a small classified advertisement in Starlog magazine offering my newsletter for a dollar to anyone interested. A few dozen people responded not only with requests for the newsletter, but also with submissions for publication. My photocopied newsletter began to quickly grow from four to eight to twenty four pages and more, and the subscription numbers grew as well. With issue #8 I decided to take it to a local printer in my town instead of photocopying, and I offered it to some large distributors. Both the magazine and its circulation continued to grow from there.

G-FEST began in the fall of 1994, the second year of G-FAN’s publication. About 25 contributors and friends wanted to meet face to face, so we chose Chicago as a central location. We had such a good time together that we decided to try and organize a larger event and invite all G-FAN readers to attend.

 

ND: What are some of your best memories meeting the actors, directors, and others who have visited G-FEST?

J.D.: A lot of my memories involve anxiety because I always wanted to make sure things went well for our guests and the language barrier and cultural differences made things all the more dicey. Overall, I think we did pretty well.

There were many highlights over the years. I’ve recently written about my experiences with Akira Takarada in G-FAN; I had the most encounters with him and he took the greatest interest in G-FEST and western G-fandom. He was a total class-act, and he let each fan he encountered know that they were the most important person to him at that time. His attitude showed in how he checked each photo to make sure it had come out okay before going on to the next, and the careful and personal way he signed shikishi during his autograph sessions. He wasn’t just going through the motions; he was focused on each fan as an individual.

Gamera director Noriaki Yuasa and his wife were incredibly kind and truly engaged with G-fans as well. I feel that if he hadn’t passed away the year following his receipt of the Mangled Skyscraper award at G-FEST in 2003, he would have become as good a friend of the convention as did Mr. Takarada. Mr. Yuasa seemed amazed and touched by the interest in his work shown by western fans. That was the year we had an entire Gamera display room set up, and he spent quite a bit of time inspecting each element of it. I remember that I had a large book about Gamera that I wanted to put on display, but I didn’t want to risk losing it so I placed its dust jacket over a same-sized Godzilla book of which I had a duplicate. To my horror, Mr. Yuasa picked up the book and opened it, so I had to try and explain why he found a Godzilla book inside. Awkward! Apparently my explanation didn’t fully get through the translation, because later on, Mr. Yuasa presented me with a copy of the Gamera book he had purchased in the dealer room! After they had returned to Japan, Mr. Yuasa’s wife sent my daughters two beautiful little coin purses and Mr. Yuasa sent me a box set of his Gamera movies. I was very sad when I heard of his passing; he was a very kind and generous and humble man.

Koichi Kawakita was also very kind and generous; I have the feeling that he stood up for G-FAN and G-FEST during his time on the board of Toho Co., Ltd. He put me to the test during his last G-FEST visit because I expected his interview to cover his work on Godzilla movies, but in our pre-interview meeting it became clear that he preferred to talk about his earlier work in spfx.  Luckily I had a basic knowledge of his early career doing miniature work in WWII epics and was able to wing it during our session together. I didn’t know that he was seriously ill during G-FEST; maybe he didn’t know it either as I’m told that often in Japan the families of people that have cancer are informed but the actual patient is not. In any case, he was visibly energized by his interactions with the fans, and took on activities considerably beyond what we had originally negotiated. He told me that he wanted to return the following year to discuss his Godzilla work, but unfortunately he passed on in that December. I’m very glad he had such a positive experience near the end.

It was a real thrill to meet both Haruo Nakajima and Ken Satsuma and especially to have them as a pair at the 1996 convention. They were our first overseas guests, and it was an unreal experience to be face to face with the two men that had played Godzilla throughout the Showa and Heisei Series.

I was also grateful to be able to meet (and give the Mangled Skyscraper Award to) Forry Ackerman. His Famous Monsters magazine had given me so much pleasure over the years that it was wonderful to be able to let him know in person how much his work was appreciated. He invited all the G-FESTers back to tour his Ackermansion the following day which was another memorable experience.

I was particularly pleased by the reaction of Rhodes Reason to his G-FEST appearance. I think he had been a little embarrassed by his role in King Kong Escapes, but by the end of the weekend, the G-FESTers had made him realize that a lot of people appreciated his work and that he was well remembered and loved by the fans. In fact, I think most G-FEST guests have been surprised and buoyed by the realization that their work has made a far bigger impact than they were aware of.

 

ND: One of the things I really love about G-FEST is the variety of activities, from the costume parade, to the art competition, G-Pardy! movie showings, the art tables, and so much more. What are some of your favorite events and activities at G-FEST?

J.D.: Relating to my previous answer, I get a lot of satisfaction from facilitating Japanese guests to meet their American fans. I also love that G-FEST attendees get a chance to actually participate in the making of kaiju eiga in our Dojo Studios; that’s really the big dream of most G-fans, isn’t it? Plus, seeing all the interaction in the video gaming room, the excitement at the Costume Parade, the young fans getting hands-on instruction in model making and painting, and so much more. I guess in a general sense I’m happy that all the people that help to stage the event every year have made it possible for G-fans to have their own little universe for one weekend per year. Being a serious fan of Godzilla can be a lonely hobby because we are widely scattered. G-FEST is a convention where everyone “gets it” and, as a result, fun conversations and new friendships germinate freely.

 

ND: Are there some G-FEST activities and events you would like to try that you haven’t gotten the chance to do yet?

J.D.: If you want me to dream in technicolor, I’ll say that I wish Toho and/or Legendary would sponsor a display of Japanese G-suits and artifacts of the type that is done around Japan from time to time. What with all the money that is tossed around in the making and marketing of the movies and then raked in at the box office, I wish they’d spend a tiny portion of it on service to their most loyal fans. In a more realistic vein, I’ve had an informal goal of participating in several areas of G-FEST before my association with it comes to an end: the model display, the amateur videos, the art contest, and the costume parade. So far I’m only half way through the list, but I might tick another of the boxes this summer.

 

ND: How did G-TOUR start, and what are some memories from the tour? How would you recommend it to those who haven’t gone along for the ride?

J.D.: G-TOUR seemed to me to be kind of a logical extension of the magazine and the convention. There are a lot of G-fans that would love to visit the places and landmarks they’ve seen in the movies, but as a go-it-alone project that’s very challenging. Having a G-TOUR allows fans to skip all the planning, booking and travel logistics and just enjoy the end result. The first one was more of a typical tour of Japan with added kaiju aspects. After that we hooked up with a niche travel agency that tailored the tours specifically to the interests of G-fans. That, plus Mr. Takarada’s help, really raised G-TOUR to another level. I should add that we also include plenty of Japanese cultural activity so that the tour is of interest to non-fan family members that may come along.

One of my favorite G-TOUR memories was attending a baseball game in the Fukuoka dome Stadium. The travel agency had arranged a wonderful buffet dinner for us, and looking down on the field was just like being in the movie Gamera: Guardian of the Universe. We also wandered the trails in the woods around Lake Biwa and sang the same song as the youngsters did in The War of the Gargantuas. Of course, visiting Toho Studios with Akira Takarada and having a Tokyo Bay dinner cruise with Toho stars were highlights as well. Actually, there are so many wonderful memories that I could go on and on.

 

ND: I am a big fan of The Official Godzilla Compendium, and I even had you sign my copy way back in 2008! Could you tell us a bit about what it was like writing that book and working with Toho and with Mark Cerasini?

J.D.: I had a lot of fun with the book and learned a lot about the editing process as well. For example, Random originally said they did not want to present the movies in chronological order as was typical, or have a catalog-style presentation of the monsters. I think they wanted to approach the topic in a novel way. As a result, I wrote lengthy texts about the movies and monsters grouping them into different themes and categories. In the end, of course, Random presented all the movies/monsters in typical chronological/alphabetical order, and they chopped up all my text to fit into the revised format. I wasn’t bothered; I figured that I had turned my material in and they were free to use it as they saw fit. I just felt very lucky to have had a hand in the very first official English-language G-book.

Writing it was actually a lot of fun. I’d be teaching at school and Alice Alfonsi the editor would e-mail me saying, “Can you do a quick write-up on Godzillasaurus” or some such. And I’d dash something off and send it in an hour later. There was a lot of rewriting and fine-tuning. I pushed hard to keep the book positive; when some of the less than stellar aspects of certain G-films came up, I reminded the editors that the Compendium was supposed to be a celebration of Godzilla, not a critique. One weird thing that came up was that Toho did not want Anguirus included with the monsters appearing in Godzilla vs Megalon. They had asked for other small changes that I didn’t necessarily agree with, but this was one where I really objected, because Anguirus definitely is in G vs Megalon, and in brand new footage to boot! Ultimately they relented.

I didn’t really work much directly with Mark. We both participated in the initial planning and we sort of split up the material and both wrote on our own. Marc is a great guy and a very talented writer; he was a guest at an early G-FEST but we haven’t kept in personal touch. I know that he wound up marrying Alice Alfonsi and together they’ve penned a successful series of mystery novels.

 

ND: Recently times have been tough for everyone with the covid situation, and G-FEST was cancelled both in 2020 and 2021. What do you see as the future for G-FEST and G-FAN?

J.D.: The magazine and the convention have been a central concern in my life for about thirty years, like a second occupation really. I am getting to the age where there are other things I’d like to do but I’m running out of time to do them. That means I’d like my involvement in both to wind down, but I am hopeful both can carry on without me. My daughter Payton stepped in for me “on the ground” at G-FEST in 2022 because I wasn’t allowed to enter the U.S. due to vaccination restrictions. The show was a success, and I saw it as an opportunity to move further aside. This year, Payton is basically organizing the whole show and I’m acting as her “coach” and reference manual. In future years, I may not be needed at all.

As for G-FAN, I am looking into how it can continue without me as well. There are so many people that really love and enjoy both G-FAN and G-FEST that I am trying my hardest to see that they both continue after I’ve bowed out.

 

ND: What keeps you going with the Godzilla and kaiju fandom over the years? How do you keep motivated to continue putting out G-FAN and putting together G-FEST year after year? I know it must be a colossal task!

J.D.: Well, it’s a task that I mostly enjoy. There’s a certain amount of creativity that I can exercise when putting together each issue. Now that I’ve retired from teaching, I’ve been able to spend more time having fun and fiddling with the more detailed aspects of G-FAN. I also think a person has to have a certain type of personality to keep plugging away and meeting deadlines year after year; I’m not saying it’s necessarily an admirable thing, but it’s something very helpful for publishing “the world’s longest-running fanzine.” I’m grateful to the many contributors of material that have filled up the issues; some of them have been doing so for many years. And I’m also inspired to keep going by the loyalty of the readership. There are many, many people that have been renewing their subscriptions for literally decades. Their support really helps keep me going.

 

ND: One of my favorite things at G-FEST is watching monster movies with everyone in the Pickwick Theater. I still remember the year when Godzilla vs. Biollante was shown, but due to technical difficulties, it had to be shut down halfway through! A couple of fans climbed on stage and played out the fight between Godzilla and Biollante live! Do you have any particularly awesome memories of watching movies there?

J.D.: That screening of G vs Biollante is surely not one of them! I still cringe when I think of that, especially knowing now that if we’d let the player keep running, it might have worked through the “layer shift” at that particular point and resumed playing the movie on its own.

I actually have missed most of the films at the Pickwick because I usually have set-up to accomplish on the Thursday before G-FEST. Often when a guest speaks before a film they don’t stay to watch the whole thing and I have to drive them back to the hotel. During the movie on Saturday night, the theater manager always comes and hauls me out to settle the accounts. I’m hoping to have more freedom to actually sit through the movies in future years.

It was quite thrilling to see the size of the crowd for Godzilla: Final Wars when we showed it. Any North American premiere is always great, too. One in particular was when we were scheduled to show Godzilla Against Mechagodzilla which had been released in Japan the previous year. At the last minute we were able to get the even more recent Godzilla: Tokyo S.O.S. so we didn’t tell anyone about the switch. The reaction of the crowd when they realized they were unexpectedly about to see Tokyo S.O.S. was tremendous.

 

ND: Thank you so much for agreeing to this interview! Is there anything else you would like to say to the readers out there?

J.D.: I would just like to reiterate my thanks to the supporters of G-FAN and G-FEST, both those that help produce them and those that happily consume them. Together we’ve created something that has made thousands of people very happy over many years, and that’s a significant achievement.