Pop Japan

Osamu Tezuka is a Japanese manga artist, animator, and producer. He is called the godfather of manga because of his significant contribution to the industry.

Tezuka was born in 1928 at the town of Toyonaka in Osaka. His passion for art and animation came from his father who had a healthy collection of manga in their home. His biggest influences are Walt Disney and Max Fleischer. Tezuka reportedly saw the movie Bambi 80 times.

He began the manga revolution in Japan when he published New Treasure Island. He has drawn over 150, 000 manga pages in his lifetime. His most notable work is the 1952 to 1968 anime series, Astro Boy. He died of stomach cancer in 1989, but his influence in the Japanese animation industry remains today.

Tags: Anime, Osamu Tezuka, manga, godfather of manga, art, animation, Walt Disney, Max Fleischer, Bambi, manga revolution, New Treasure Island, Astro Boy