The first time I performed with Mike was the early eighties in the Yonemoto Brother’s performance of Godzilla on the Beach. They asked me to play Godzilla and since it was the lead, I said yes. Beyond monster mumbling I didn’t have a lot of lines and my costume was brilliant; a black bikini, sunglasses, monster shoes and gloves, and a dinosaur tail, all made by Jim Iserman. He even made a paper city for me to destroy and the audience was given ping pong balls to throw at me. One would think I would be the hit of the show but I wasn’t—my nemesis, Dr. Serazawa, played by Mike Kelley in a simple white lab coat, was the attention getter.
Mike Kelley was a genius actor. Sadly there is no record of Godzilla. But you can see Mike in Yonemoto’s film Kappa. He is the only actor I know who wins your heart while dressed in a green paint body stocking, with a hair cut like Moe of the three stooges and a dish attached to his head. His sense of humor and timing were art.
Artillery Magazine Vol 6 Issue 4 April-May 2012