Akira Toriyama, Mangaka Known for ‘Dragon Ball’ ‘Dr. Slump,’ Dies at 68 (UPDATE 2)

The Yomiuri Shimbun

12:18 JST, March 8, 2024 (updated at 16:00 JST)

Akira Toriyama, the mangaka immensely popular for “Dragon Ball” and “Dr. Slump” especially among children and young people, died on March 1 of an acute subdural hematoma. He was 68.

His funeral service was held with his family and those close to him in attendance.

Toriyama was born in 1955 in Aichi Prefecture. He made his debut as a mangaka in 1978 and his work was featured in Weekly Shonen Jump manga magazine published by Shueisha Inc. and other publications. In “Dr. Slump,” he depicted the daily excitement of a genius scientist and the humanoid girl that he created, Arale Norimaki. It was made into a TV anime in 1981.

In 1984, Toriyama began magazine serialization of “Dragon Ball,” which is about Goku’s quest of collecting seven dragon balls that make one’s wish come true. He also designed the characters for the “Dragon Quest” video game series.

Akira Toriyama Created Beloved Characters Goku, Arale-chan; Death Mourned by Fellow Mangaka Eiichiro Oda, ‘Dragon Quest’ Game Designer