Tomoyuki Tanaka facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Tomoyuki Tanaka
田中 友幸
Tanaka in 1959
Born	(1910-04-26)April 26, 1910 Kashiwara, Osaka, Japan
Died	April 2, 1997(1997-04-02) (aged 86) Tokyo, Japan
Occupation	Film producer
Years active	1940–1997
Known for	Godzilla series
Spouse(s)	Chieko Nakakita (1926–1997 (his death))

Tomoyuki Tanaka (Japanese: 田中 友幸, Hepburn: Tanaka Tomoyuki) was a famous Japanese film producer. He is best known for helping to create the amazing Godzilla movie series.

Tanaka was born in Kashiwara, Osaka, Japan, on April 26, 1910. He passed away in Tokyo on April 2, 1997, at 86 years old. He was married to the actress Chieko Nakakita.

Making Movies

After finishing college in 1940, Tomoyuki Tanaka started working at Taisho Studios. This studio later joined with Toho Studios in 1941. After working there for four years, he began producing his own movies. His first film, Three Women of the North, came out in 1945.

During his 60-year career with Toho, Tanaka produced more than 200 films!

Creating Godzilla

Tanaka is most famous for creating Godzilla. He worked with a team that included storyteller Shigeru Kayama, director Ishirō Honda, writer Takeo Murata, and special-effects expert Eiji Tsuburaya.

Godzilla was created in 1954. Tanaka wanted to show the fear Japanese people felt after the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in World War II. Godzilla became a giant symbol of this fear.

In 1985, Tanaka explained what Godzilla meant:

In those days, Japanese had a real horror of radiation, and that horror is what made Godzilla so huge. From the beginning he has symbolized nature's revenge on mankind.

The first Godzilla movie came out in 1954. It was so popular that it led to many sequels. By 2021, there were 36 Godzilla films in total! Toho produced 32 of these movies. American studios like TriStar Pictures and Legendary Pictures made four.

Tanaka produced every Toho monster movie until he passed away in 1997. He often worked with his Godzilla team members: Honda, Tsuburaya, and composer Akira Ifukube. Together, they made other films like The Mysterians (1957) and Matango (1963).

Tanaka also produced six films directed by the famous Akira Kurosawa. Their movie Kagemusha (1980) was nominated for an Oscar for Best Foreign Film. It also won the Palme d'Or award at the Cannes Film Festival.

Famous Films Produced

Here are some of the well-known films Tomoyuki Tanaka produced:

See also

In Spanish: Tomoyuki Tanaka para niños