Source: Universal Studios Home Entertainment Special Thanks to Evan Fong and Gary Teetzel Taking advantage of the growing interest for Warner Bros and Legendary`s GODZILLA remake, Universal Studios Home Entertainment will release their two Toho King Kong films -- KING KONG VS GODZILLA and KING KONG ESCAPES -- on Blu-ray on April 1st, 2014. The Blu-rays will include the Americanized, English dubbed versions of both movies, remastered in High Definition.
The original Japanese versions of these films have never been released in North America, creating years of confusion and misinformation in fan circles regarding the film rights. Traditionally, Toho would produce and release their special effects movies in Japan then offer the international rights to foreign distributors. These distributors could license the rights for a set number of years, with options to renew those rights as needed. But KING KONG VS GODZILLA and KING KONG ESCAPES were produced and released under different conditions, which affected how the films have been handled ever since. Rather than being initiated by Toho, development of KING KONG VS GODZILLA began as "King Kong vs Frankenstein", a proposed sequel to the original KING KONG by that film`s FX director, Willis O`Brien. With the permission of RKO Pictures (the studio that made KONG), producer John Beck revised and shopped O`Brien`s concept to studios in the United States and abroad, including Toho. The Japanese studio was enthusiastic at the prospect of making a King Kong movie, and also saw the project as the perfect vehicle to bring their own Godzilla back to the big screen. Licensing the King Kong character rights from RKO, Toho made a deal with John Beck that split ownership of the film... Toho would own the rights in Japan, Asia and select other territories, while Beck would own the rights in North America and select other countries. The agreement was made in perpetuity, meaning that both parties would permanently own their shares of the film rights. Toho released KING KONG VS GODZILLA in Japan on August 11, 1962. Shortly thereafter, John Beck began offering the film to US studios. In April 1963, he sold his rights to the movie to Universal. With Toho controlling all rights in Asia, Universal had no use for a Japanese language film so they had Beck create an edited, English dubbed version of KING KONG VS GODZILLA before delivering the film to the studio. John Beck completed the assignment and Universal released the film June 26, 1963.
KING KONG ESCAPES was produced under similar circumstances. In 1966, Rankin/Bass -- the studio behind famous holiday specials such as RUDOLPH THE RED-NOSED REINDEER and SANTA CLAUS IS COMIN` TO TOWN -- licensed King Kong from RKO for an animated series and new film. Rankin/Bass` KING KONG cartoon premiered on September 6, 1966 and aired on network television and in syndication for several years. While the cartoon was in production, Rankin/Bass approached Toho about co-producing a feature film based on the show. The result was KING KONG ESCAPES, a live-action movie in which Kong battled two characters introduced in the cartoon series; the evil scientist Dr. Who and his robot creation, Mechani-Kong. As with the deal made with John Beck for KING KONG VS GODZILLA, the agreement for KING KONG ESCAPES permanently gave Toho all rights in Japan and Asia while Rankin/Bass would own the film in North America. Rankin/Bass dubbed the film in English and sold their rights to Universal, who released KING KONG ESCAPES on June 19, 1968. As part of the deals to make the King Kong films, Toho signed away any rights in the territories controlled by their American partners. Therefore, Toho cannot offer the Japanese versions of either film to distributors in North America, the United Kingdom, Australia, etc. When Universal bought the movies from their American producers they acquired permanent ownership -- including the rights to the Japanese versions -- in North America. But the studio received the Americanized versions from John Beck and Rankin/Bass and do not have Japanese materials for either film. With home video, satellite television and streaming there’s now a market for alternate versions of movies that didn’t exist when KING KONG VS GODZILLA and KING KONG ESCAPES were made. If Universal wanted to exercise their rights to the Japanese versions, they would need to purchase new interpositives or clones of the HD masters from Toho. To date, Universal has not pursued this option, believing the potential sales for the titles do not justify the additional expense.
KING KONG VS GODZILLA
US Theatrical Release: June 26, 1963 The two biggest monsters of all time battle in the thrilling adventure classic, KING KONG VS GODZILLA. When an underhanded pharmaceutical company goes to a remote tropical island to steal King Kong for advertising purposes, they get more than they bargained for when the gigantic ape attacks an unsuspecting village and an enormous octopus. Meanwhile, far below the sea, a submarine crew unleashes reptilian terror when they melt a block of ice and release the ferocious Godzilla from his icy lair. When both destructive monsters descend on Tokyo, it`s a fight that holds the future of mankind in the balance in this knock-out film that was the first theatrical release to bring its larger-than-life contenders to the big screen in glorious color. Street Date: April 1, 2014 Rating: Not Rated Product #: 61131623 UPC: 0-2519-22316-1-2 SRP: $19.98 Format: Blu-ray Disc Type: BD-50 (Single Sided) Layers: Single Unit Type: Standard Number of Media: 1 Packaging: Snap Case Run Time: 1 Hour 31 Minutes Picture: Widescreen Language: English Audio: English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Mono Subtitles: English SDH
KING KONG ESCAPES
US Theatrical Release: June 19, 1968 It`s King Kong to the rescue when a giant robot threatens to destroy Tokyo in the gripping KING KONG ESCAPES! The action begins when the conniving Dr. Who (Hideo Amamoto) builds a robot Kong in order to retrieve a highly radioactive element for his mysterious benefactor, Madame X (Mie Hama). When the robot proves less than reliable, the devious duo scheme to kidnap the real Kong from his remote island home of Mondo. But interfering with their plans are the heroic trio of U.S. Cmdr. Carl Nelson (Rhodes Reason), Lt. Jiro Nomura (Akira Takarada), and Kong`s current crush, Lt. Susan Watson (Linda Miller). It`s up to them to outwit the greedy ape-nappers in this sci-fi adventure that takes Kong to unprecedented heights of excitement. Street Date: April 1, 2014 Rating: G Product #: 61131624 UPC: 0-2519-22316-2-9 SRP: $19.98 Format: Blu-ray Disc Type: BD-50 (Single Sided) Layers: Single Unit Type: Standard Number of Media: 1 Packaging: Snap Case Run Time: 1 Hour 36 Minutes Picture: Widescreen Language: English Audio: English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Mono Subtitles: English SDH
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