“Godzilla” (ゴジラ), Framed Original Ultra Rare Japanese first‑release folded chirashi style flyer for Honda’s 1954 kaijū classic — Size: c. 25.7 × 36.4 cm open (folds to c. 25.7 × 18.2 cm, B5‑type)

Original Japanese double‑sided folded flyer / marketing material for the first 1954 Toho release of Ishirō Honda’s groundbreaking tokusatsu kaijū eiga Godzilla. When opened, the full B4 spread is devoted to Godzilla’s attack on Tokyo; the reverse promotes contemporary Toei and Shintōhō features. This has been professionally mounted and framed under UV‑protective acrylic.

Presented in a modern black frame with off‑white mount and UV‑protective acrylic glazing (lighter and safer than glass). Sold framed as shown—ready to hang and the perfect gift for a Godzilla or Japanese‑cinema fan.

Why this matters

Godzilla is the ground zero of the kaijū genre: a sober, irradiated nightmare born from post‑war nuclear anxiety. This is where the entire Godzilla cycle—and much of modern special‑effects cinema—begins, through Eiji Tsuburaya’s miniature work, Akira Ifukube’s thunderous score, and Honda’s stark, documentary‑like direction. First‑release Japanese paper is the most immediate way to connect with that original moment. This over‑size folded flyer, dominated by the famous “train in the jaws” image, captures Godzilla not yet as camp icon but as “the greatest terror in film history.”

About this piece

Format: one original double‑sided folded flyer (chirashi‑style) from the 1954 Toho release.

• Front / main side (open B4 spread): Entire surface devoted to Godzilla, with the monster straddling the central fold and the huge 「ゴジラ」 title locked across the lower half.

• Back side (open B4 spread): Split down the center: left panel promoting Toei’s period musical‑comedy Mangetsu Tanuki‑bayashi (満月狸ばやし), right panel showcasing Shintōhō’s post‑war drama Nihon Yaburezu (日本敗れず, “Japan Shall Not Be Defeated”).

Credits on the Godzilla side include director 本多猪四郎 (Honda Ishirō), original story writer 香山滋 (Kayama Shigeru), and script by 本多猪四郎 & 村田武雄 (Murata Takeo), with the Toho roundel and production line 「東宝株式会社製作・配給」.

Design & iconography

Godzilla side (primary display)
Printed in rich green‑tinted monochrome with heavy black for the title, the design reads like a newsreel nightmare.

• Central monster image: Godzilla towers across both halves of the folded sheet, a rough‑skinned colossus rising from the bay. The creature clamps an electric train in its teeth while another car dangles from its claw—one of the definitive images of the original film. The body runs straight down the fold, so the monster is only complete when the flyer is fully opened.

• Title treatment: The massive block letters 「ゴジラ」 are rendered like torn slabs of asphalt, outlined in white and staggered across the lower third of the spread, anchoring the chaos.

• Inset stills:

  • Upper left: Akira Takarada’s Ogata pauses on a stairwell, tense and watchful.

  • Below that: Godzilla looms over the National Diet Building, tying the horror directly to real Tokyo landmarks.

  • Bottom left: the creature waist‑deep in the harbor amid twisted girders.

  • Bottom right strip: three images—Godzilla blasting a building with its radioactive breath; the monster advancing through shattered pylons; and a human vignette of terrified civilians, including Momoko Kōchi’s Emiko, scrambling on a shaking staircase.

• Copy & credits:

  • A bold genre line reads 「水爆大怪獣空想映画」—literally “Hydrogen‑bomb giant monster fantasy film.”

  • Cast and technical credits stretch along the top, including special‑effects maestro 円谷英二 (Tsuburaya Eiji).

  • A dramatic vertical column on the right sells Godzilla as an unprecedented terror, stressing its enormous size, destructive power, and lethal radiation.

Reverse side (secondary, but historically interesting)
The back is also printed in green monochrome.

• Left panel – 満月狸ばやし (Mangetsu Tanuki‑bayashi): A lively collage of sword‑wielding hero, costumed performers, and supporting cast portraits. Taglines promise music, dreams, romance, and “a riotous scroll of tanuki pictures.”

• Right panel – 日本敗れず (Nihon Yaburezu): Dominated by the huge brush‑script title, with the SHINTOHO crest and dense copy invoking the memory of the August 15, 1945 surrender broadcast. A somber still at the bottom shows men and women kneeling around a low table in a shadowed room, underscoring the film’s serious post‑war tone.

Translations of the main captions

• Main title: 「ゴジラ」 — “Godzilla.”

• Genre line above title: 「水爆大怪獣空想映画」 — “Hydrogen‑bomb giant monster fantasy film.”

Right‑side vertical copy on Godzilla spread (key phrases):

• 「空前の特殊撮影が生んだ映画史上最大の恐怖！」
  — “An unprecedented special‑effects production brings forth the greatest terror in the history of cinema!”

• 「物凄い破壊力と死の放射能を発して全長百五十尺の大怪物」
  — “A colossal 150‑shaku monster unleashing incredible destructive force and deadly radiation.”

• 「ゴジラ突如大東京を暴襲！」
  — “Godzilla suddenly assaults greater Tokyo!”

• 「防衛成るか全人類の死斗！」
  — “Can our defenses hold, or will all humanity be drawn into a fight to the death?”

Production line beside central still:

• 「東宝株式会社製作・配給」 — “Produced and distributed by Toho Co., Ltd.”

Rarity & significance

Authentic first‑release Japanese flyers / promotional material for the original 1954 Godzilla are among the most sought‑after pieces of kaijū and tokusatsu paper. This example is especially attractive because it uses the full B4 spread for a single, uninterrupted Godzilla composition. The iconic train‑in‑the‑jaws image, coupled with the nuclear‑terror copy, captures the film at the moment it was introduced to audiences as a serious, fearsome spectacle. The reverse, pairing a Toei musical‑comedy with a Shintōhō war‑memory drama, also situates Godzilla within the broader ecosystem of mid‑1950s Japanese cinema.

Condition

Very good for age. Single folded sheet with a vertical center fold as issued; the flyer now stores flat. Overall warm toning and a few soft handling creases consistent with mid‑1950s newsprint‑weight paper. Corners lightly rounded, with the occasional tiny edge nick but no significant tears or losses intruding into the main image areas. Printing remains sharp—the green tint and deep black title blocks are strong, and both text and stills are clear on each side.

The piece has been professionally mounted in a modern black frame with an off‑white mat and UV‑protective acrylic glazing. Frame and mount are clean and ready to display. Please review the photos—this is the exact item offered.

Details

Country: Japan

Year of issue: 1954 (first Japanese release)

Size: approx. 25.7 × 36.4 cm open (about 10.12 × 14.33 in, B4‑type); folds to approx. 25.7 × 18.2 cm (about 10.12 × 7.17 in, B5‑type)

Printing: Original 1954 Japanese printing; not a reproduction

Verso: Split‑panel advertisement for Toei’s Mangetsu Tanuki‑bayashi (満月狸ばやし) and Shintōhō’s Nihon Yaburezu (日本敗れず), with story copy, cast credits, and scene stills

Authentication: COA included