Original GODZILLA Costume Actor Haruo Nakajima Passes Away At 88
Haruo Nakajima, who worked as a stuntman on Seven Samurai and Eagle of the Pacific before donning the og Godzilla suit has died at the age of 88.
Haruo Nakajima was the first actor to don the Godzilla costume, appearing in 1954's Godzilla before going on to portray the kaiju king in eleven more films. In addition to Godzilla, he also played Rodan and King Kong in 1962's King Kong vs Godzilla. His final time in the costume was 1972's Godzila vs Gigan.
Portraying Godzilla back in the '50s was said to be a grueling task as the rubber costume weighed more than 200 pounds. Speaking to the Japanese press, his family stated that Nakajima died of pneumonia.