Godzilla Roar

The Godzilla roar is the trademarked sound the film monster Godzilla makes in most of his movies. What typifies the roar is that it sounds very mechanical and does not resemble an animal’s sound as such.

The roar was present in the first Godzilla (1954) and was created by composer Akira Ifukube who produced the sound by rubbing a resin-covered leather glove along the loosened strings of a double bass and then slowed down the playback. Over the years the roar has become a trademark sound of the Godzilla films and is now instantly recognizable to a large audience. Its fame can be compared with the Tarzan yell from the Tarzan films. It is often used in comedy when monsters or dinosaurs are featured or when a character gets extremely angry. (See Godzilla's roar in other media beneath)

Godzilla usually lets his roar be heard when he makes his first appearance in a film. During destruction and fighting sequences he roars multiple times. Film directors always use the same sound recording, but in more recent years variations on the sound have been made to express Godzilla’s emotions.

In the 1970s animated series The Godzilla Power Hour by the American animation studio Hanna-Barbera Godzilla’s roar was recreated by Ted Cassidy. The American remake Godzilla could not use the trademarked Godzilla roar for legal reasons so they had to create a different, yet similar, sounding roar for their Godzilla monster.

There were several roars recorded by composer Akira Ifukube but one in particular was used in most of the movies from its 1955 sequel through to the 1975 Terror of Mechagodzilla. It was a rather higher pitched, squeakier variant to the ones heard over the opening few seconds of the 1954 film's credits. A remixed variant, slower and far deeper, was then used for 1984's The Return of Godzilla and in all the films until 1992's Godzilla vs. Mothra where the sound editor went back to using the squeakier variant from the 60's. Sound mixing being the complex art it is today, many different sounds are used to make Godzilla vocalise in the movies made in the 2000s, but they're mostly based on, or include, the squeaky roar of the 1960s.

Godzilla’s roar in other media

 * In the Japanese anime series Shinzo the monster Grandora has the same roar as Godzilla.
 * The end of Hercules (1958) has a monster guarding the golden fleece that emit's Godzilla's roar.
 * In the Japanese anime series "Mazinger Z" several of the villainous mechanical beasts use Godzilla's roar.
 * When Mongo the Gingerbread Man’s gumdrop button is shot off in the Shrek film series he makes the same sound as Godzilla’s roar.
 * In "Danny Phantom" Godzilla’s roar is frequently used for the more monstrous ghosts in the series.
 * "Secrets Revealed" Téa explaining the legend of the Black Star Dragon Balls, they summon the much more powerful Ultimate Shenron, who roars with Godzilla's roar.
 * In the Simpsons couch gag for the episode "Homerazzi" where Homer’s evolution is featured, Bart and Lisa are depicted as dinosaurs roaring with Godzilla roar.
 * In The Simpsons episode "30 Minutes Over Tokyo" (Season 10, Episode 23, #AABF20), the family's flight home is briefly interrupted by a monster attack on Tokyo, featuring Godzilla, Gamera,[Rodan], and [Mothra]. Godzilla roars as he attacks their plane and again when they fly away. His roar is heard even a few seconds after the episode has faded to black.
 * When in "Simpsons Tall Tales" Homer in his role as the giant Paul Bunyan fights Rodan Rodan roars like Godzilla.
 * In the The Simpsons Halloween episode "Treehouse of Horror VI" in the first segment "Attack of the 50 foot Eyesores", Homer steals the Lard Lad's giant doughnut. The Lard Lad gets struck by lightning and comes to life. Then, he pulls his feet off the ground and stomps into the middle of the street, and emits Godzilla's trademark roar.
 * In Camp Lazlo, Elebug metamorphoses into a monster in the episode "Creepy Crawly Campy" and makes Godzilla’s trademark roar.
 * In The Grim Adventures of Billy and Mandy, in "Giant Billy and Mandy All-Out Attack", which refers to"Godzilla, Mothra and King Ghidorah: Giant Monsters All-Out Attack". In the episode "The Incredible Shrinking Mandy" when Mandy becomes a giant after Billy puts a curse on her she goes to Sassy Cat Land she also does a Godzilla roar scaring everyone away from the amusement park.
 * The South Park episode "Mecha-Streisand" parodies the Godzilla series heavily and also features the Godzilla trademark roar.
 * In an episode of Catscratch ("The King of all Root Beer"), Waffle and Mr. Blik fight each other over the city. Godzilla's roar is also heard multiple times along with Rodan's.
 * Chappelle's Show features a skit in which Dave Chappelle appears as a giant version of himself and is labeled "Blackzilla" by a Japanese city he attacks. The skit comes complete with Dave making the signature Godzilla roar.
 * In the Star Trek: The Animated Series episode "Yesteryear", Godzilla's famous roar was used as part of the sound of a Vulcan creature called the Le-matya.
 * In an episode of Malcolm in the Middle Godzilla is referenced twice. First when Malcolm comments on the Godzilla suit looking fake and later when Lois trips on a lego city she bumps into buildings and her voice is slowed down to sound like Godzilla's roar.
 * The Japanese heavy-metal band Seikima-II used Godzilla's roar to begin their live shows. They've also used the roar in their song "Kemonotachi No Hakaba". Seikima-II vocalist and leader Demon Kogure, a big fan of Godzilla, won a Godzilla roar-alike contest in 1983 and later made a brief cameo in Godzilla vs. Biollante (1989).
 * Acid Mothers Temple 2006 album Starless and the Bible Black Sabbath features Godzilla's roar at the end of the final track.
 * On the soundtrack album to the Godzilla (1998 film), Green Day remixed their "Brain Stew" song with Godzilla's signature roar.
 * Sir Mix-A-Lot's song, "Posse on Broadway" samples Godzilla's roar repeatedly throughout the song.
 * The punk band Adrenalin O.D. included the Godzilla roar on "Return to Beneath the Planet of AOD vs Godzilla Strikes Again in 3D", the B-side B-side to their single "A Nice Song in the Key of 'D'".
 * In a Tom & Jerry episode, when Tom is pursuing Jerry and his nephew Nibbles, Tom locks Jerry in a bottle then surrounds Nibbles and hits him viciously in the butt. Jerry manages to break the bottle, and upon seeing where Tom hit Nibbles, he turns to Tom and looses a Godzilla-like roar, just before beating Tom.
 * In a few episodes of The Land Before Time TV series, the evil villainous T-Rex Red Claw sometimes uses the roar of the American Godzilla.
 * In the movie Dumb and Dumber, while riding the van, Lloyd imitates the Godzilla roar, proclaiming it "the most annoying sound in the world".