King Kong vs. Godzilla opens in Japan in 1962. Directed by kaiju master Ishiro Honda, the film is the first Toho production featuring King Kong and becomes the most successful Toho Godzilla film. A heavily edited American version is recut with Hollywood film music and to give more a feel of a TV newscast, leading to a long-standing myth that the film has a different ending.
This Day in Halloween: Kaiju master Ishiro Honda's "King Kong vs. Godzilla" -- the Japanese cut -- opens in Japan in 1962. / Illustration by Lee Ernest