was a Japanese

manga artist A manga artist, also known as a mangaka (), is a Cartoonist, comic artist who writes and/or illustrates manga. Most manga artists study at an art college or manga school or take on an apprenticeship with another artist before entering the indus ...

. Known as the Master of Gag Manga, he created many popular manga such as ''

Osomatsu-kun is a comedy manga series by Fujio Akatsuka which ran in Shogakukan's ''Weekly Shōnen Sunday'' magazine from 1962 to 1969. The series revolves around a group of sextuplet brothers who cause all sorts of mischief. It has been adapted in ...

'', '' Himitsu no Akko-chan'', and '' Tensai Bakabon''.

Biography

He was born in Rehe,

Manchuria Manchuria is a historical region in northeast Asia encompassing the entirety of present-day northeast China and parts of the modern-day Russian Far East south of the Uda (Khabarovsk Krai), Uda River and the Tukuringra-Dzhagdy Ranges. The exact ...

, the son of a Japanese military police officer. After

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, he grew up in

Niigata Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture in the Chūbu region of Honshu of Japan. Niigata Prefecture has a population of 2,131,009 (1 July 2023) and is the List of Japanese prefectures by area, fifth-largest prefecture of Japan by geographic area ...

and

Nara Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Kansai region of Honshu. Nara Prefecture has a population of 1,321,805 and has a geographic area of . Nara Prefecture borders Kyoto Prefecture to the north, Osaka Prefecture to the ...

. When he was 19, he moved to

Tokyo Tokyo, officially the Tokyo Metropolis, is the capital of Japan, capital and List of cities in Japan, most populous city in Japan. With a population of over 14 million in the city proper in 2023, it is List of largest cities, one of the most ...

. While working at a chemical factory, he drew many manga. After that, Tokiwa-so accepted him. He started his career as a shōjo artist, but in 1958, his ''Nama-chan'' (ナマちゃん) became a hit, so he became a specialist in comic manga. He won the

Shogakukan Manga Award The is one of Japan's major manga are comics or graphic novels originating from Japan. Most manga conform to a style developed in Japan in the late 19th century, and the form has a long history in earlier Japanese art. The term is ...

in 1964 for ''

'' and the Bungeishunjū Manga Award in 1971 for '' Tensai Bakabon''. He is said to have been influenced by

Buster Keaton Joseph Frank "Buster" Keaton (October 4, 1895 – February 1, 1966) was an American actor, comedian and filmmaker. He is best known for his silent films during the 1920s, in which he performed physical comedy and inventive stunts. He frequently ...

and ''MAD'' magazine. In 1965, Akatsuka established his own company "Fujio Productions Ltd.". In 2000, he drew manga in

braille Braille ( , ) is a Tactile alphabet, tactile writing system used by blindness, blind or visually impaired people. It can be read either on embossed paper or by using refreshable braille displays that connect to computers and smartphone device ...

for the blind. Many of his manga featured supporting characters who ended up becoming more popular and more associated with their series than the main character, such as Papa (''Tensai Bakabon''), Iyami, Chibita (''Osomatsu-kun''), and Nyarome ('' Mōretsu Atarō''). In April 2002 he was hospitalized for intra-axial hematoma and was said to frequently be in a

persistent vegetative state A vegetative state (VS) or post-coma unresponsiveness (PCU) is a disorder of consciousness in which patients with severe brain damage are in a state of partial arousal rather than true awareness. After four weeks in a vegetative state, the patie ...

from 2004 until his death. In July 2006, his second wife Machiko, who had been nursing him, suddenly died from a

subarachnoid hemorrhage Subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) is bleeding into the subarachnoid space—the area between the arachnoid (brain), arachnoid membrane and the pia mater surrounding the human brain, brain. Symptoms may include a thunderclap headache, severe heada ...

. On August 2, 2008, he died of

pneumonia Pneumonia is an Inflammation, inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as Pulmonary alveolus, alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of Cough#Classification, productive or dry cough, ches ...

at a hospital in Bunkyō, Tokyo.

Works

Among Akatsuka's extensive body of work, his series of ''Osomatsu-kun'', ''Himitsu no Akko-chan'', ''Tensai Bakabon'', and ''Mōretsu Atarō'' are often considered his top four major series by Fujio Pro, due to their success in garnering animated adaptations and their lengthy runs and revivals.

Serial Works

(In order of publication)http://www.koredeiinoda.net/profile/worklist.html Fujio Pro work list. 1950s * (October 1958-March 1959, Shojo Club)- Assisted Shotaro Ishinomori and Hideko Mizuno, published under the shared pseudonym U.MIA * (October 1958-April 1961, Hitomi) **July–December 1961, Ribon * (December 1958-March 1961, Manga King) 1960s * (January 1960-March 1962, Shojo Club) * (March 1960-June 1961, Ribon) * (April to September 1960, Fun 4th Grader) * (April 1960-March 1961, Fun 5th Grader) * (May–September 1961, Adventure King) **January 1964-April 1965, Shonen Book * (April 15, 1962- May 18, 1969, Weekly Shonen Sunday)- Serialization changed to monthly from August 13, 1967, to allow for less frequent but longer chapters **April 1964-March 1969, Separate Edition Shonen Sunday **April to December 1966, Boys' Life **April to October 1966, Elementary School 4th Grade **April to December 1966, Elementary School 2nd Grade **April 1966-March 1967, Kindergarten **May 1966-March 1967, Elementary School 1st Grade **July 1966-March 1967, Monthly Shogakukan Book **March 19, 1972 – December 24, 1973, Weekly Shonen King **November 1987-March 1990, Comic BomBom **February 1988-January 1990, TV Magazine * (April 1962-March 1963, Fun 5th Grader) * (April 1962-March 1963, Junior High 1st Year Course) * (June 1962-September 1965, Ribon) **November 1968-December 1969, Ribon **October 1988-September 1989, Nakayoshi * (April 1963-March 1964, Elementary School 4th Grade) * (August–December 1963, Adventure King) * (August–September 1963, Bokura) * (October 1963-September 1965, Shonen) * (January 1964-December 1965, Adventure King) **January–September 1967, Adventure King * (April 1964-March 1965, Elementary School 4th Grade) * (1964, Margaret) * (June 22, 1965- July 5, 1966, Shojo Friend) * (July 1965-August 1966, Heibon) * (August 1-August 29, 1965, Weekly Shonen Magazine) * (October 1965-August 1966, Ribon) * (January–March 1966, Boys' Life) * (April–September 1966, Shonen Book) * (January–May 1967, Shonen Book) * (January–July 1967, Ribon) * (June 1967-January 1969, Shonen Book) * (January–September 1967, Elementary School 2nd Grade) * (April 9, 1967 – February 23, 1969, Weekly Shonen Magazine) **August 1967-January 1969, Separate Edition Shonen Magazine **August 24, 1969 – April 5, 1970, Weekly Shonen Sunday **September 9, 1969-June 1970, Deluxe Shonen Sunday **May 10, 1971 – June 1, 1971, Weekly Bokura Magazine **June 27, 1971 – December 7, 1976, Weekly Shonen Magazine **August 1974-May 1975, Separate Edition Shonen Magazine **June 1976-December 1978, Monthly Shonen Magazine **October 1987-October 1991, Comic BomBom **November 1987-January 1991, TV Magazine **January 1988-February 1989, Monthly Shonen Magazine **October 1989-January 1991, Monthly Hero Magazine **November 1991-December 1992, Deluxe BomBom * (September 1967-August 1969, Ribon) * (September 1967-December 1969, Elementary School 1st Grade) * (1967-1968, Shojo Friend) * (November 28, 1967 – June 28, 1970, Weekly Shonen Sunday) **April 1969-October 1971, Kindergarten **October 1969-March 1971, Elementary School 4th Grade **January 1970-June 1971, Elementary School 3rd Grade **January 1970-November 1971, Elementary School 2nd Grade **April 1990-January 1991, Comic BomBom **May 1990-January 1991, TV Magazine * (1968, Weekly Shonen King) * (1968, Weekly Shonen King) * (May–September 1969, Deluxe Shonen Sunday) * * (1969, Shonen Jump) * (1969, Weekly Shonen Jump) 1970s * (1970, Weekly Shonen Jump) * (1970-1971, Weekly Shonen King) * (August 2, 1970 – March 14, 1971, Weekly Shonen Sunday) * (1970-1971, Bokura) * (1970-1971, Shonen Picture Report) * (January–September 1971, Separate Edition Shonen Magazine) * (January–December 1971, Red Flag Sunday) * (April 1971-March 1972, 4th Grade) * (September 5, 1971 – July 14, 1974, Weekly Shonen Sunday) * (January 9-December 24, 1972, Red Flag Sunday) * (November 1971-August 1972, Kindergatden) * (April 1972-March 1973, Shogakukan's Elementary School 4th Grade) * (June 1972-December 1974, Adventure King) * (October 1972-December 1982, Weekly Bunshun) * (November 1972-April 1973, Manga NO.1) * (1974, Weekly Shonen King #5-38) * (April–June 1974, High School 2nd Year Course) * (1974-1975, Weekly Shonen Sunday) * (1974-1976, Weekly Shonen King) * (1974-1975, Weekly Shonen Champion) * (January 1975-April 1976, Princess) * (January 1975-October 1976, Adventure King) * (1975, Weekly Shonen Magazine) * (1975-1976, Weekly Shonen Sunday) * (March 9-December 7, 1975, Yomiuri Shimbun Sunday) * (May 1976-May 1977, Princess) * (1976-1977, Weekly Shonen Sunday) * (1976-1977, Weekly Shonen King) * (1977, Manga-kun) * (1977, Weekly Shonen Magazine) * (April 1977-May 1978, Dokkan V) * (1977, Weekly Shonen Sunday) * (1978, Weekly Shonen King) * (April 1979-March 1982, Elementary School 1st Grade) * (July 27-August 17, 1978, Weekly Manga Action) * (August 1978-January 1979, Dokkan V) * (September 1, 1978 – September 1, 1979, New Art Newspaper) * (November 30, 1978 – March 23, 1979, Weekly Manga Action) * (February–December 1979, Shonen Challenge) * (April 1979-March 1981, Elementary School 5th Grade) 1980s * (January–June 1980, Shonen Challenge) * (February 1980-March 1981, Monthly CoroCoro Comic) * (April 1980-February 1981, Popcorn)- Magazine was published bimonthly until its closure in February 1981 * (April 6, 1980 – March 15, 1981, Shonen and Shojo Newspaper) * (September–November 1980, Shonen Challenge) * (1981, Weekly Shonen Jump) * (April 1981- March 1982, Monthly CoroCoro Comic) * ( April 1981-March 1983, 5th Grade) * (May–December 1981, Just Comic) * (April 1982-December 1984, Novel Shincho) * (April 4-October 3, 1983, Heibon Punch) * (November 1983-November 1985, 2001 magazine) * (1983-1984, Weekly Shonen Champion) * (1985, Weekly Shonen Champion) * (February 17-December 29, 1985, Sunday Daily) * (1986-1989, Big Comic Original) * (May 6-December 29, 1987, Weekly Masses) * (October 1987, June 1988, August 1988) 1990s * (October 1990-August 1991, Comic BomBom) * (September 1991-June 1992, Comic BomBom) * (March 1993-March 1994, Deluxe BomBom) * (January–April 1995, Manga Da No 1) * (January–February 1999, Big Comic)

Short stories

* (June 7, 1956, Akebono Publishing)- Mainstream debut work, written directly for a tankobon release * (August 25, 1956, Akebono Publishing) * (December 10, 1956, Akebono Publishing) * (January 1966, Shonen Book) * (1966, Ribbon) * (August 1st, 1968, Weekly Shonen Jump) * (July 10, 1970, Big Comic) * (December 1970, Separate Edition Shonen Sunday) * (1971, Weekly Shonen Sunday) * (January 1, 1973, Manga No. 1) * (1974, Weekly Shonen Jump) * (April 8-April 15, 1973, Weekly Shonen Magazine) * (1975, Weekly Shonen Sunday) * (1976, Weekly Shonen Jump) * (December 1978, 5th Grade) * (August 1979, Shonen Challenge) * (January 1996, Big Gold)

Adaptations

These series or one-shots are derivative works, created as adaptations of TV shows or novels by other authors. * (April to November 1959, Ribon)- Based on TV series by Kazuo Funahashi * (November 1961-April 1962, Ribon)- Based on the TV series by Aoi Takagaki * (Weekly Shonen Sunday: #17 for 1973)- Based on the original story by Hisashi Yamanaka * (Weekly Shonen Magazine: #50 to #52 for 1977)- Based on ''Eight Family Scenes'' by Yasutaka Tsutsui * (1978, Weekly Shonen Magazine)- Based on the original story by Shusaku Endo

Assistants

* Kunio Nagatani * Mitsutoshi Furuya * Kenichiro Takai * Takao Yokoyama * Ken'ichi Kitami * Kazuyoshi Torii * Yoshiko Tsuchida * Tsutomu Adachi * Don Sasaki * Shohei Kizaki * Keiji Terashi * Kawaguti Masashi * Koji Oikawa * Kiri Mitsunori * Kondo Yosuke * Shiiya Mitsunori * Yumi Nakano * Yuki Hiroyo * * Jinichi Tokisato

References

External links

* – official site
Fujio Productions
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Akatsuka, Fujio 1935 births 2008 deaths Deaths from pneumonia in Japan Japanese people from Manchukuo Manga artists Osamu Tezuka Recipients of the Medal with Purple Ribbon