is a lost 1933 Japanese black-and-white silent film directed by
Torajiro Saito. A silent, three-reel comedy short, it uses the 1933 film ''
King Kong
King Kong is a fictional giant monster resembling a gorilla, who has appeared in various media since 1933. He has been dubbed The Eighth Wonder of the World, a phrase commonly used within the franchise. His first appearance was in the novelizat ...
'' as a backdrop to the story and was produced by
Shochiku
() is a Japanese film and kabuki production and distribution company. It also produces and distributes anime films, in particular those produced by Bandai Namco Filmworks (which has a long-time partnership—the company released most, if not ...
Studios (which released the original 1933 film in Japan on behalf of
RKO
RKO Radio Pictures Inc., commonly known as RKO Pictures or simply RKO, was an American film production and distribution company, one of the "Big Five" film studios of Hollywood's Golden Age. The business was formed after the Keith-Albee-Orpheu ...
). It is now considered a
lost film
A lost film is a feature
Feature may refer to:
Computing
* Feature (CAD), could be a hole, pocket, or notch
* Feature (computer vision), could be an edge, corner or blob
* Feature (software design) is an intentional distinguishing char ...
.
[
]
Plot
Santa (Isamu Yamaguchi) and his friend Koichi (Nagamasa Yamada) are jobless vagabond
Vagrancy is the condition of homelessness without regular employment or income. Vagrants (also known as bums, vagabonds, rogues, tramps or drifters) usually live in poverty and support themselves by begging, scavenging, petty theft, temporar ...
s. They make their living by picking up coins on the streets. Santa has a girlfriend named Omitsu (Yasuko Koizumi), but her father Seizo (Kotaro Sekiguchi) does not like having his daughter date a penniless man. He breaks the lovers up and tries to marry his daughter off to a rich man. Desperate, Santa seeks employment and wanders the streets. He cannot find a job at all, but has an inspiration. RKO’s ''King Kong
King Kong is a fictional giant monster resembling a gorilla, who has appeared in various media since 1933. He has been dubbed The Eighth Wonder of the World, a phrase commonly used within the franchise. His first appearance was in the novelizat ...
'' has been released and is a big hit in Tokyo. He decides to capitalize on its success by dressing up as an ape and playing King Kong
King Kong is a fictional giant monster resembling a gorilla, who has appeared in various media since 1933. He has been dubbed The Eighth Wonder of the World, a phrase commonly used within the franchise. His first appearance was in the novelizat ...
in a vaudeville
Vaudeville (; ) is a theatrical genre of variety entertainment born in France at the end of the 19th century. A vaudeville was originally a comedy without psychological or moral intentions, based on a comical situation: a dramatic composition ...
theater. He approaches one theater owner to tell him of the idea and the owner is pleased with Santa’s plan, thus giving him the job. Santa’s King Kong show becomes an instant success, with Santa interacting amongst props on the theater stage in his gorilla suit
Gorilla suits are a type of creature suit resembling a gorilla. The gorilla suit is a popular Halloween and costume party costume, and is also used as a source of humour, while more realistic suits have been used both to represent real gorillas i ...
(small buildings, toy airplanes, a doll, etc.). One day while performing on stage, Santa sees that Omitsu and her new rich boyfriend are in the audience. Blinded with rage, Santa jumps down from the stage and runs after them - with his gorilla suit still on! Santa creates chaos in the town as firemen and hunters chase him, thinking him an escaped gorilla that is running wild in the streets. Eventually Santa confronts the rich boyfriend and knocks him unconscious. He puts the gorilla suit on him and leaves him lying out cold in the street. Just then, Koichi comes and tells Santa that the theater owner will give him a lot of money for his performances. Now that he has wealth, Santa marries Omitsu.[December 1934 issue of ''Kagaku no Nihon''. Pg.85]
Production
Shochiku
() is a Japanese film and kabuki production and distribution company. It also produces and distributes anime films, in particular those produced by Bandai Namco Filmworks (which has a long-time partnership—the company released most, if not ...
Studios produced this Torajiro Saito comedy short. Shochiku released ''King Kong
King Kong is a fictional giant monster resembling a gorilla, who has appeared in various media since 1933. He has been dubbed The Eighth Wonder of the World, a phrase commonly used within the franchise. His first appearance was in the novelizat ...
'' in Japan on behalf of RKO and wanted to fund this film as a tie-in to the film's release, which is used as a backdrop in the story. Torajiro Saito was a very popular film producer/comedian at the time, known for his successful comedy shorts. Going by the information presented by magazines and newspapers covering the film's release, it is believed that there are no actual special effects in the film, as it focuses on a man trying to earn money to woo his girlfriend by playing the King Kong character on stage.[高槻真樹 (Maki Takatsuki). ''戦前日本SF映画創世記 ゴジラは何でできているか (Senzen Nihon SF Eiga Souseiki)''. 河出書房新社 (Kawadeshobo Shinsha publishing). 2014. Pgs.79-82.]
Cast
See also
*'' King Kong Appears in Edo''
* List of lost films
References
External links
Entry in ''The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction''
*
{{KingKong
1933 films
1933 comedy films
1933 lost films
1930s parody films
1933 short films
Japanese black-and-white films
Japanese silent short films
King Kong (franchise) films
Lost Japanese films
Films directed by Torajiro Saito
Films set in a theatre
Films set in Tokyo
Shochiku films
Silent adventure films
Silent horror films