Something I'd always wondered was why the Japanese would create a film monster whose name they couldn't properly pronounce.
Now I understand the problem isn't them, it's us:
1954 would see the birth of Japan's number one international movie sensation Gojira. (Pronounced godzeeda) American fans would come to know the monster as Godzilla. (Correct translation from Japanese to English)So now I have to ask, why don't we pronounce it 'Godzeeda?'
I'm just guessing, but: Because the "hollywood types" that heard the name in Japanese assumed that the second 'd' sound was a typical Japanese attempt to pronounce an 'l' sound, and spelled it accordingly?
I didn't say it made sense -- this is reality, not fiction.
Yep, that'd be my guess.