was a pioneer Japanese artist of comical manga known as the Gag Manga King. His name at birth is 赤塚藤雄, whose Japanese pronunciation is the same as 赤塚不二夫. He was born in Rehe,

Manchuria Manchuria is an exonym (derived from the endo demonym " Manchu") for a historical and geographic region in Northeast Asia encompassing the entirety of present-day Northeast China (Inner Manchuria) and parts of the Russian Far East (Outer Manc ...

, the son of a Japanese military police officer. After

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, 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 2,227,496 (1 July 2019) and is the List of Japanese prefectures by area, fifth-largest prefecture of Japan by geographic area ...

and

Nara Prefecture is a 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 northwest, Wakayama P ...

. When he was 19, he moved to

Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.468 ...

. 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 awards, and is sponsored by Shogakukan, Shogakukan Publishing. It has been awarded annually for serialized manga and features candidates from a number of publishers. It is the oldest manga award in Japan, being ...

in 1964 for ''

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 int ...

'' and the

Bungeishunjū Manga Award The was an annual award established in 1955 and given out by Bungeishunjū in Japan for gag, , one-panel, and satirical manga. The award was also given out for works considered the magnum opus of manga creators. Past winners of the award inclu ...

in 1971 for ''

Tensai Bakabon is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Fujio Akatsuka, which began publication on April 9, 1967, in ''Weekly Shōnen Magazine''. It is about the misadventures of a dim-witted boy (Bakabon) and his idiotic father, the lat ...

''. 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 film work, in which his trademark was physical comedy accompanied by a stoic, deadpan expression ...

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

braille Braille (Pronounced: ) is a tactile writing system used by people who are visually impaired, including people who are Blindness, blind, Deafblindness, deafblind or who have low vision. It can be read either on Paper embossing, embossed paper ...

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 is a Japanese comedy manga series written by Fujio Akatsuka. It was serialized from 1967 to 1970 in ''Weekly Shōnen Sunday''. Two anime television adaptations were produced by Toei Doga (now known as Toei Animation), and aired TV Asahi (t ...

''). In April 2002 he was hospitalized for

intra-axial hematoma Intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH), also known as cerebral bleed, intraparenchymal bleed, and hemorrhagic stroke, or haemorrhagic stroke, is a sudden bleeding into the tissues of the brain, into its ventricles, or into both. It is one kind of bleed ...

and was said to frequently be in a

persistent vegetative state A persistent vegetative state (PVS) 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 stat ...

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 membrane and the pia mater surrounding the brain. Symptoms may include a severe headache of rapid onset, vomiting, decreased level of consci ...

. On August 2, 2008, he died of

pneumonia Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of productive or dry cough, chest pain, fever, and difficulty breathing. The severity ...

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 was a Japanese manga artist who became an influential figure in manga, anime, and , creating several immensely popular long-running series such as ''Cyborg 009,'' the ''Super Sentai'' series (later adapted into the ''Power Rangers'' series), an ...

and

Hideko Mizuno is one of the first successful female Japanese shōjo manga artists. She was an assistant of Osamu Tezuka staying in Tokiwa-sō. She made her professional debut in 1955 with ''Akakke Kōma Pony'', a Western story with a tomboy heroine. She be ...

, 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) * (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 was a Japanese manga artist. He made his debut as a manga artist in 1955 with kashi-hon manga. He started as an assistant of Osamu Tezuka in 1958, but was primarily known for starting out as an assistant of Fujio Akatsuka five years later. He w ...

* 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 is the Japanese term for a bow. As used in English, refers more specifically to traditional Japanese asymmetrical bows, and includes the longer and the shorter used in the practice of and , or Japanese archery. The was an important wea ...

* 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