Overview
Osamu Tezuka (手塚 治虫, born as 手塚 治, Tezuka Osamu) is a beloved Japanese manga writer, artist and animator. He was born November 3, 1928 in Takarazuka, Osaka Prefecture and died on February 9, 1989 at age 60.
He continued to work until just before his death from stomach cancer, and even at the time of his death, he made a motion to grab a pen, truly a "manga lover to the point of death". He was a man who continued to draw manga, risking his life, not figuratively speaking.
He is known as such titles as The God of Manga (マンガの神様, Manga no Kami-sama), The Father of Manga (マンガの父, Manga no Chichi), and The Godfather of Manga (マンガの教父, Manga no Kyōfu). He is known as the pioneer of Japanese manga.
He has written more than 1,000 research books on him, more than any other Japanese artists. His influence is so strong that almost 100% of books on the history of manga mentions his name. He introduced the concept of direction for manga, which introduced the essence of narrative with tragedy and the cut-and-paste style of movies, to conventional manga, which until then had been directed from the perspective of stage plays and had mainly consisted of comedic elements such as laughter and ridiculousness, and had a decisive impact on postwar Japanese manga.
His trademark look is a beret, black-rimmed glasses, and a dumpling nose. The name Osamu (治虫) is a reference to the ground beetle carabinae, known as Osamushi in Japanese. The first reading of the name was Osamushi (オサムシ) but when the katakana shi (シ) was added after the pen name, it became Osamshishi (オサムシシ), so it was changed to Osamu (オサム) in katakana. His real name is Osamu (治) written in kanji.
He is especially well known for his humanistic dramas such as Astro Boy (Mighty Atom), Black Jack, Phoenix (Hi no Tori), Buddha, Princess Knight (Ribon no Kishi), Kimba the White Lion (Jungle Emperor), etc.
On the other hand, he is also known for his depictions of human ugliness and karma such as MW and his grotesque works full of evil and mysterious charm such as Alabaster and Vampire. Many of his works, such as Ode to Kirihito, Birdman Anthology, and The Book of Human Insects, depict the darkness of the human heart, and are dark beyond redemption.
Although some of Tezuka's works, such as Phoenix have a tendency to be considered "stiff" or "lofty" by those who are not familiar with his work, many of his works are actually entertainment-oriented.
He has also made great efforts to establish the commercial status of TV animation, and has left his mark not only on manga but also on anime.
