Wednesday, July 26, 2000
The University Daily Kansan
Section A • Page 3
Diego Herrero,
Paraguay sophomore,
looks at the
Godzilla Exhibit in
Watson Library.
The exhibit
includes pictures,
books and other
memorabilia.
Photo by Melissa
Thornton/KANSAN
Godzilla demolishes Lawrence
By Joshua Richards
Special to the Kansan
Though last week's showing of the original Godzilla brought out chuckles in the crowd of Liberty Hall movie-goers, Godzilla was no laughing matter to the Japanese audience in the 1950s.
The 1954 movie's special effects may seem comical now, but they tell a serious story. Godzilla symbolizes the atomic bombing of Nagasaki and hydrogen bomb tests at Bikini Atoll, said William Tsutsui, organizer of "Godzilla Takes Kansai!" and director of the Center for East Asian Studies at the University of Kansas.
In addition to bringing the old black and white reel to Lawrence, Tsutsui brought together a panel of Godzilla experts for a discussion following the film. There also is an exhibit of Godzilla figurines, toys, books and posters at the third floor lobby in Watson Library. The exhibit runs through Aug.15.
The movie's anti-American element may come as a surprise to
movie-goers familiar with Hollywood versions of Godzilla
The first film is explicit about Godzilla's origin; the monster is an ancient sea creature, disturbed by American bomb tests. The radiation-exposed beast then goes on a rampage through Japan.
That serious tone wasn't lost on all members of the KU audience.
Luke Jordan, photography instructor, considered the audience laughter to be misplaced. "The film wasn't meant to be campy," he said.
Roberta Woods, graduate student in art history, said that today's audiences were different than those of the past.
"It's hard not to laugh," said Woods, who wore a Godzilla T-shirt to the screening. "We have a different sense of special effects."
By today's standard of sophisticated computer graphics, Godzilla's special effects are primitive: men in rubber suits batting at string-mounted airplanes from the top of matchbox skyscrapers.
It may be hard for today's audiences to appreciate, but the origi-
inal *Godzilla* was a high-quality film, Tsutsu said.
Toho Studios used popular actors of the day, and the special effects were cutting-edge. The music was composed by Japan's most famous composer. Translated into year 2000 dollars, the budget of the original Godzilla topped $70 million, twice what was spent on Akira Kurosawa's epic, Seven Samurai, which came out in the same year.
Nearly 50 years old, Godzilla is one of the most successful movie franchises in film history — there are at least 25 Godzilla films, not to mention the other spin-off films of Godzilla sidekicks, like Mothra or Gamera, a giant armored-flying turtle.
In 1998, Hollywood took a stab at an updated computerized Godzilla but met with critical and commercial disdain.
"If you call that a Godzilla film, then that's the worst," Tsutsui said. "Godzilla was meant to be a guy in a rubber suit."
- Edited by Ben Embry
Sorority rush participants to wear T-shirts on first day
Prospective sorority members will wear Hawk Week T-shirts on the first day of recruitment this fall rather than their own outfits.
By Keeley Thurston Special to the Kansar
The Panhellenic Association, the coordinating body of the 13 sororities at the University of Kansas, says it wants sororites to judge women by their character, not by their clothes.
"It is not about what accessories a woman has," said Kelly JO Karnes, assistant director of Student Organizations and Leadership Development Center and Greek Programs.
The recruitment period — or rush — begins Aug. 20 and lasts five days. The University of Kansas is joining other universities who are making the change to wearing T-shirts the first day, including the University of Missouri.
About 1,000 women are expected to take part in recruitment this fall.
On the first day of recruitment, the women visit all 13 sororities. The sororites invite fewer women back each day. At the end of the week, the women
visit three sororities and receive a bid from one
Panhellenic says it wants to move to a no-frills recruitment, show the women a united Greek system and make the potential recruits feel at ease on the first day.
The National Panhellenic Conference, the coordinating body of all college Panhellenic Associations, is encouraging other changes at the University, including adding a philanthropy day in which participants perform a community service during recruitment.
Many sorority members are in favor of the changes. "It is a positive thing and wearing the same thing brings the pressure down a notch," said Julie Hall, assistant recruitment chair for Kappa Kappa Gamma and Topeka junior.
Women participating in recruitment are given a pamphlet that includes the type of outfit they should wear each day. Outfits for recruitment begin with a simple sundress and get more formal each day, usually ending in a black cocktail dress.
The art of belly dancing
- Edited by Chris Fickett
Jo Anne Zingo-Hargis demonstrates belly-dancing techniques during her class at the Lawrence Community Building, 115 W. 11th St. Zingo-Hargis, who has been teaching belly dancing for more than 20 years, taught one of her classes Monday. Photo by Aaron Lindberg/KANSAN
Cyclists make pit stop on their way to D.C. to fight for others' rights
By Ging Kohake
Special to the Kansan
A group of sweat-drenched, politically minded cyclists pedaled into Lawrence Monday after hundreds of miles of headwinds, mountains and 18-wheelers passing a little too close for comfort.
Seventeen members of Bike Aid 2000 stopped in Lawrence on their way from San Francisco to Washington, D.C.
The group - 12 men and five women, ages 19 to 30, from around the world - spent the night at Ecumenical Christian Ministries, 1204 Oread St.
Once in Washington, D.C. the group will lobby state representatives about
issues they discovered while interacting with people in the communities they rode through.
"It is education for ourselves about some of the insights the community has to offer," said Ryan Kovac, a recent graduate of Syracuse University. "At the same time, we are learning from each other because of our diverse backgrounds."
After the nine-week journey, each member will have logged 3,600 miles on his or her bicycle. They average 60 to 100 miles a day through terrains that have included the Sierra Nevada, the Rockies and will include the Annapalchians.
Most cyclists earn about a dollar per
mile, so the group will accumulate about $60,000 by the end of the cross-country trek. The money will be donated to a non-profit organization.
Jesse Heckman — Lawrence resident who joined Bike Aid 2000 in Salina when they passed through the last Sunday — said each biker asks for donations from family, friends and local businesses.
"Basically, as members of the community, we should be involved in them, not just letting things happen," Heckman said. "People should take part in places they live."
Riders are expected to cover their own personal costs. Kovac worked three jobs to raise money to afford his trip. They
also must pay their own airfare to California to start the trip and from Washington, D.C. to fly to their homes. They also have to buy their own food.
"It is an experience unto itself." Kovac said. "You actually have the opportunity to smell and to hear what is going on around you. You get to experience stuff you can't experience in a car. It is a time to get up inside your own head and think about experiences you have had. Overall, I would say it is pretty meditative."
For Kovac, the trip is worth all the effort and money.
The San Francisco group will meet with other riders who started in Seattle
and Montreal once they reach Washington, D.C.
"It is amazing how empowered you feel having the cycling community behind you," Kovac said. "One day someone is down while someone else is great—everybody fills in the gaps. It makes the ride a lot easier to do it with the community."
Brooke Rapple, student at the Pratt Institute in New York, said all of the Bike Aid riders, who have stayed in city parks and on cement floors, appreciated the indoor facilities at the ECM.
—Edited by BriAnne Hess