King Kong (1962)

King Kong; Kingu Kongu; Great Strong Monster; Demon of the South Seas; God of Faro Island; America's King of the Monsters

45 meters (148 feet)

Unknown

20,500 metric tons (22,597 short tons)

• Intelligence comparable to that of a caveman or Cro-Magnon; capable of coming up with combat strategies and able to make use of primitive tools or weapons such as rocks or trees
• Extreme physical strength and durability; totally immune and impervious to damage from conventional weapons
• Electrical affinity; not only is Kong immune to electricity, but he also derives power from it
• Capable swimmer

• Kong struggled in combat against Godzilla until he received an electric chargeup from a thunderstorm during their brawl on Mount Fuji

While still incredibly destructive and aggressive, Kong is portrayed as being somewhat more sympathetic than Godzilla. Kong seems to be mostly content living on Faro Island, staying behind the huge wall constructed by the islanders in exchange for the Farolacton juice and worship that they provide him. Kong acts as an unintentional defender of the native populace as well, fending off the Giant Octopus when it comes ashore in the village. Kong takes an interest in the human woman Fumiko Sakurai, abducting her from a train while wandering through Tokyo and climbing with her to the top of the National Diet Building. Kong seems to be less aggressive than Godzilla, retreating promptly from their first battle and hiding from Godzilla for a large portion of their second battle.

King Kong was discovered by an expedition to Faro Island, which was sent there by Mr. Tako, marketing executive for Pacific Pharmaceutical, in order to find a legendary monster worshiped by the natives. The expedition only heard Kong's roar from the mountains, but saw the beast himself when he battled a Giant Octopus that attacked a village on the island. After chasing the octopus off, Kong began to drink jars of the Farolacton berry juice that the natives had prepared, and fell asleep. The expedition members had Kong tied to a raft and taken back to Japan to be used as publicity for the company, but their ship was stopped by the Japanese Coast Guard, who informed Tako that he would be liable for any damage caused by King Kong in Japan. Suddenly, Kong began to stir and try to break free of the raft. The crew members opened fire on the dynamite attached to the raft, causing it to explode. Kong emerged from the water unharmed, and swam to the Japanese mainland. Kong rampaged along the coastline until he encountered Godzilla in the wilderness. Kong tossed a boulder at Godzilla, who responded with a blast of his atomic breath, which singed Kong's fur and set much of the forest ablaze. Kong scratched his head and walked away in defeat.

Later, Kong arrived in Tokyo and easily passed the electrical barrier that had been used to repel Godzilla earlier, actually drawing strength from the electrical current. Kong smashed several buildings in his path and grabbed a train, and while looking inside was smitten with Fumiko Sakurai. Kong grabbed Fumiko and dropped the train, then climbed to the top of the National Diet Building. The J.S.D.F. surrounded the building and loaded rockets with a gas made from the Farolacton berry juice while playing a recording of the Faro Islanders' chant, hoping to lull Kong back to sleep. After a few minutes, Kong fell unconscious and slid off the building, allowing the J.S.D.F. to rescue Fumiko.

The J.S.D.F. then formed a desperate plan: bring Kong to Mount Fuji so he can fight Godzilla and the two monsters will destroy each other. Kong was tied to several large balloons with indestructible metal wire and towed by helicopters to Mt. Fuji. Kong was dropped onto Godzilla, and the two titans resumed their battle. Godzilla again claimed the upper hand, eventually battering Kong into unconsciousness and razing him with his atomic breath. Luckily for Kong, a lightning storm passed overhead and Kong was struck by lightning, re-energizing him and surging an electrical current through his body. Kong grabbed Godzilla's tail, electrocuting him with his touch, and the battle raged on, this time with both combatants on equal footing. The monsters fought across the Fuji wilderness until they reached Atami Castle, which they destroyed before tackling each other into the ocean below, causing an earthquake. After the tremors settled, Kong emerged from Sagami Bay with Godzilla nowhere in sight, and began swimming back to Faro Island.

King Kong appears as a gigantic gorilla-like ape with an upright posture. The majority of Kong's body is covered in dark brown fur, with gray skin exposed on his face, pectoral muscles, and extremities. Kong's head and face adhere to the stereotypical depiction of a non-human ape; he possesses a large mouth lined with almost rounded teeth inside his lips, a short nose, relatively small eyes, and a sagittal crest above his scalp. Kong's arms are longer than his legs, and he tends to hold them at his sides or suspend them above his head while walking, as opposed to knuckle-walking like most non-human apes do.