I love living in a University town.
KU’s Center for East Asian Studies is presenting a conference at the end of October:
In Godzilla’s Footsteps: Japanese Pop Culture Icons on the Global Stage
It’s free, although registration is required. Discussions of the Gojira phenomenon, and the appeal of Japanese Pop culture the world over (manga, Hello Kitty, anime, etc.) Capping the whole thing off are FREE showings at Liberty Hall of the original, unedited 1954 version of Gojira (minus the dubbing and Raymond Burr), Godzilla vs. the Smog Monster (with the dubbing, monster-wrestling and psychedelia intact) and one of the most recent films, Godzilla, Mothra, and King Ghidorah: Giant Monsters All-Out Attack.
Quirky little academic conferences and film festivals are one of the main things I miss about living in NYC. Thank god for Lawrence.
Wait…you live in Lawrence? Cool! I didn’t realize that.
Thank god for Lawrence.
Indeed.
When I started grad school, I was afforded the opportunity to take a course entitled “Japanese Ghosts and Demons.” The majority of the course consisted of the viewing of several Japanese films: Princess Mononoke, an anime rendering of the tanuki legends — replete with their testes of doom, excerpts from several Kirosawa films (did I spell his name right?), film versions of stories from the Kwaidan, culminating with Gojira.
It was one of the best courses I have ever taken.
Wait…you live in Lawrence?
Yup….I moved back here after 6 years in NYC, so that I could afford to write full-time.
Nice. I did see some of the “Kwaidan” stuff in one of my EALC courses, but damned if I can remember which course it was.
I have been hoping to send to that, as he is a huge fan of that genre of film.
D.
We should get a group together. I’d be up for it.
Somtime
We really must find a time when the world is less busy and there’s nothing big going on to hang out and just chat.
Woo hoo!
It sounds like a bundle of fun.
Re: Woo hoo!
you know I was talking to Ms. Freeburg yesterday and she was so pleased that you were doing so well. I am also pleased. It is good to hear. I am suprised that you are not actually giving the keynote at the Gojira conference though. We’ll miss you at Necro, another time I hope.