Tezuka Osamu "God of Manga", one of the key figures in the history of Japanese culture of the 20th century, creator of the aesthetics and techniques of modern manga and anime Date of Birth: 03.11.1926 Country: Japan

Biography of Osamu Tezuka

Osamu Tezuka, born in 1928, was a key figure in the history of 20th-century Japanese culture. He was the creator of modern manga and anime aesthetics and techniques. Tezuka's real name is pronounced the same way as his pseudonym, but is written with a single kanji character. In 1937, he added the kanji character "mushi" (insect) to his name to create his pseudonym. This was inspired by his childhood fascination with entomology and the word "osamushi" (beetle) that he found in an encyclopedia.

Tezuka's childhood was spent in Takarazuka, in the Hyogo prefecture. He grew up in a family of Japanese intellectuals, where he was exposed to the best achievements not only of Japanese but also of world culture. In addition to European culture, Russian culture played an important role in his upbringing, including classical music, Silver Age painting, and the works of Dostoevsky. His father, a doctor by profession, was a passionate fan of cinema and even had a movie projector at home, which was quite rare in Japan. His mother, on the other hand, was a fan of the Takarazuka theater, a unique theatrical troupe that combined the aesthetics of traditional Japanese theater with the extravagance of Broadway shows. This theater was known for having all roles played by young women. Tezuka inherited both his parents' hobbies, adding entomology and a passion for drawing to them.

In 1945, Tezuka was deeply inspired by the full-length animated film "Momotaro: Umi no Shinpei" directed by Mitsuyo Seo. He had long been a passionate fan of the works of Disney and Max Fleischer. However, creating animation in a war-torn country was difficult and impractical.

During this time, the expensive Tokyo manga, which was published in color and on good quality paper during the war, was replaced by the "red cover" Osaka manga, which was published in black and white, in large quantities, on newspaper paper, and sold for a few pennies. The fees for manga artists were also small, but publishers provided them with unprecedented creative freedom. In 1946, Tezuka made his debut as a manga artist, publishing a four-panel manga called "Ma-chan no Nikki" in the "Mainichi" newspaper, which was quite traditional for its time.

However, just a year later, in 1947, Tezuka released a manga that instantly made him a celebrity in Osaka - "Shin Takarajima" (New Treasure Island). The plot of this manga was conceived by Shitima Sakai, but it gained fame not for its plot, but for its graphic techniques and innovations. Tezuka began to actively use cinematic angles, close-ups, "stretching" one scene into several drawings, sound effects, and emphasizing the phases of movement in his manga. The manga, which consisted of over 200 pages, told a coherent story filled with exciting adventures. Around 400,000 copies were sold - an unprecedented circulation for a devastated country where not everyone could afford a cup of rice. During these years, Tezuka studied at the Medical School of Osaka University. Despite his creative and financial success, he eventually completed his studies and obtained a doctorate, as insisted by his parents. However, this only happened in 1958.

After Tezuka became famous, he was offered jobs by major Tokyo children's magazines, which he accepted. In the magazine "Manga Shounen," he began publishing the manga "Jungle Taitei" (Jungle Emperor) (1950-1954). In the magazine "Shounen," he published the manga "Atom Taishi" (Ambassador Atom), later renamed "Tetsuwan Atom" (Mighty Atom) (1952-1958). In the magazine "Shoujo Club," he published the first shoujo manga in the history of Japan, "Ribbon no Kishi" (The Princess Knight) (1953-1956, 1958, 1963-1966), and the first manga with "sparkling eyes." At the same time, in 1952, Tezuka moved to Tokyo. The run-down Tokiwaso apartment building where he lived became a gathering place for young manga artists who came to learn from the young master. Notable future artists who lived in Tokiwaso alongside Tezuka included Shotaro Ishinomori, Motoo Abiko, Fujimoto Hirosi, Akatsuka Fujio, Tsunoda Jiro, Mizuno Hideko, and many others. Additionally, in the 1970s, Terada Buichi was one of Tezuka's students. The number of young artists influenced by his work is countless. Notable artists who directly cited Tezuka as their inspiration include Moto Hagio, Itoh Sei, Iwaki Hitoshi, Taniguchi Tomoko, Watanabe Masako, and many others.

In the late 1950s, Toei Animation Studio planned to create a full-length animated film, "Saiyuki" (Journey to the West) (1960), based on Tezuka's manga "Gokuu no Daibouken" (The Adventures of Goku) (1952-1959), which in turn was based on the classic Chinese novel "Journey to the West" by Wu Cheng'en. The film was directed by Taiji Yabushita, and Tezuka and Ishinomori were involved in the project. Through this project, Tezuka became more familiar with the world of animation, which he had long dreamed of. However, he was disappointed that anime did not enjoy the same popularity in Japan as American cartoons, especially in the rapidly developing TV market, which was completely dominated by American animation, particularly by the works of Hanna-Barbera.

To change this situation, Tezuka created the animation studio "Mushi Productions" in 1961. In the following year, he released an experimental full-length film, "Aru Machikadou no Monogatari" (The Story of a Street). Then, in 1963, Japan welcomed the first cult anime TV series, "Tetsuwan Atomu" (Astro Boy) (1963-1966). The series was produced in black and white.

The enormous success of "Astro Boy" sparked a boom in TV animation, which relied on the already established manga material. Long serialized comics were ideal for adaptation into long TV series.

In 1964, Tezuka created the first full-length anime film in history, which was a continuation of the TV series: "Tetsuwan Atomu - Uchuu no Yuusha" (Astro Boy: Hero of Space).

In 1965, "Mushi Productions" began airing its first color TV series, "Jungle Taitei" (Jungle Emperor) (1965-1966), directed by Rintaro.

Just as Tokiwaso was a gathering place for manga artists, "Mushi Productions" became a launching pad for a number of significant animators. Among them were Rintaro, Osamu Dezaki, Gisaburo Sugii, Yoshiaki Kawajiri, Masami Hata, Akio Sugino, Yuzo Nunokawa, and many others.

In 1966, Tezuka released another experimental full-length film, "Tenrankai no E" (Pictures at an Exhibition), featuring various human types depicted to the music of Mussorgsky.

In the late 1960s, most of Tezuka's serialized series were adapted for the screen. However, the commercial value of his further creative animation experiments was limited. For example, the TV series "Vampire" (1968-1969, manga - 1966-1967, 1968-1969), created using a combination of live actors and animated characters, failed miserably. Additionally, Tezuka's "Disneyesque" style at that time did not fit well with horror films.

After this failure, Tezuka released two full-length films: "Senya Ichiya Monogatari" (One Thousand and One Arabian Nights) (1969), based on Arabian erotic tales, and "Cleopatra" (1971), an audacious erotic parody of historical films set in Roman times, filled with deliberate anachronisms and absurdities. With these works, Tezuka established the tradition of "anime for adults."

However, in 1970, Tezuka stepped down from the leadership of "Mushi Productions," and two years later, the company went bankrupt and changed hands. Tezuka's disciples went their separate ways and formed various studios and companies, with the largest group forming "Madhouse" studio.

In the 1970s, Tezuka returned to manga (which he never really left). He always referred to manga as his "wife" and anime as his "mistress." Unable to separate himself from his childhood love, in 1975, he founded "Tezuka Productions."

For a while, "Tezuka Productions" was involved in publishing manga and producing TV series. However, over time, Tezuka's interest shifted towards non-commercial animation. The last commercial project by the studio was the full-length film "Hi no Tori 2772: Ai no Cosmo Zone" (Phoenix 2772: Space Firebird) (1980), directed by Taku Sugiyama. Tezuka wrote the screenplay for this film, which became the culmination of his life's work, his manga "Phoenix" (1967-1971, 1976-1981).

Following this major film, Tezuka produced non-commercial "trifles" such as "Jumping" (1984) and "Onboro Film" (1985), both of which received top prizes at prestigious international animation festivals in Zagreb and Hiroshima, respectively. His last unfinished anime work, "Mori no Densetsu" (Legend of the Forest) (1987), set to Tchaikovsky's music, also received similar honors.

In 1989, Tezuka passed away from stomach cancer. Although his death went almost unnoticed outside of Japan, it became a national tragedy within the country. Many did not believe or did not want to believe that Tezuka, who remained energetic and fantastically hardworking until the end, had been dying from a terrible disease for many years. In 1994, a museum dedicated to him was opened in Takarazuka, and "Tezuka Productions" continues to profit from his legacy. In 1997, stamps commemorating Tezuka were issued.

Throughout his life, Tezuka created around 500 manga works, totaling 150,000 pages. Here are just a few of his most significant works (excluding those mentioned above): "Metropolis" (1948-1951), "Eigoban Tsumi to Batsu" (Crime and Punishment Comics) (1953), "Shinsengumi" (1963), "Big X" (1963-1966), "W3" (The Wonderful Three) (1965-1966), "Magma Taishi" (Ambassador Magma) (1965-1967), "Dororo" (1967-1968), "Umi no Triton" (Triton of the Sea) (1969-1971), "Fushigi na Melmo" (Marvelous Melmo) (1970-1972), "Yakkepachi no Maria" (Maria the Doll) (1970), "Microid S" (1973), "Black Jack" (1973-1983), "Buddha" (1974-1984), "Mittsume ga Tooru" (Three-Eyed One) (1974-1978), "Unico" (1976-1979), "MW" (1978), "Adolf ni Tsugu" (Message to Adolf) (1983-1985), "Hidamari no Ki" (Tree Under the Sun) (1983-1987), "Neo Faust" (1987), "Ludwig B." (1987), and "Gringo" (1987-1989).

In the memories of those who knew him closely, Tezuka remains a great creator and humanist, but not without some "childish" weaknesses. Throughout his life, he envied his followers in a good way and often lamented that he could not occupy the top spots in all manga hit charts for all ages. And as he began to go bald, he started wearing a beret, which became his signature style. Only very close people were privileged to see his baldness. Tezuka became the first modern manga artist to earn a significant amount of money from his work. However, he was never a slave to money and always reinvested it in his new, often experimental projects, many of which turned out to be financially unprofitable.

Tezuka, a great manga artist, remains the greatest master of Japanese comics. However, his greatest contribution to Japanese and global culture lies not in his works themselves, but in the fact that his creative work and assistance inspired many followers who went beyond him. Tezuka's works were remarkable, but they always seemed like they could be done better, that the "topic was not closed" and could be further developed. As a pioneer and genius, Tezuka did not become a manga despot and was always open to new ideas. His contributions to the organization and creation of anime continue to serve the industry, as do many of the stories he created.