Godzilla: 20 Mind-Blowing Facts You Didn't Know

3. How Was Godzilla's Roar Created?

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Legendary Entertainment

Godzilla may have the most iconic roar in movie history. At first, you would assume the sound is from an elephant or a wild animal.

However, since no creature on Earth resembled Godzilla, the sound effect designer wanted him to have a completely unique cry. If he sounded like an animal that an audience member could identify like a lion or a tiger, the filmmakers worried it would take the viewers out of the film.

Godzilla’s roar was created by dragging a resin-coated leather glove up and down a double bass and then playing the sound in slow motion. The roar’s echo was made from an empty toilet tank.

This idea was devised by the composer of the original film, Akira Ifukube. He also came up with the idea of beating a kettle drum with a knotted rope to make the sound for Godzilla's thunderous footsteps.

On top of that, he devised Godzilla's legendary theme song. Despite the fact that Ifukube worked on a staggering 274 movies, Godzilla is what he's best known for. If it wasn't for him, Godzilla could have become just another forgettable monster movie.

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James Egan has been with Whatculture for five years and prominently works on Horror, Film, and Video Games. He's written over 80 books including 1000 Facts about Horror Movies Vol. 1-3 1000 Facts about The Greatest Films Ever Made Vol. 1-3 1000 Facts about Video Games Vol. 1-3 1000 Facts About James Bond 1000 Facts About TV Shows