Kazuo Umezu, Japanese Mangaka, Dies at 88 (UPDATE 1)

Jiji Press

12:05 JST, November 5, 2024

Tokyo (Jiji Press)—Japanese manga artist Kazuo Umezu, known for works including “Makoto-chan” and “Hyoryu Kyoshitsu,” died on Oct. 28. He was 88.

Born in Wakayama Prefecture, western Japan, in 1936, he grew up in neighboring Nara Prefecture.

Umezu started drawing comics from his childhood and made his debut as a manga artist in 1955, when he was a high school student.

In the 1960s, he became famous as a horror manga artist with such works as “Hebi Shojo,” in which a girl is avenged by a giant snake, and “Nekome Kozo,” which features a cat monster as a dark hero.

In 1972, he started the “Hyoryu Kyoshitsu” series, which depicts a struggle for survival by children who are flown with their elementary school building to a devastated world. It was also made into novels and movies. Umezu received the Shogakukan Manga Award for this work and others.

In 1976, he started “Makoto-chan,” a joke-filled series in which a kindergartener is the main character. “Guwashi,” which the character shouts along with a hand sign, became popular.

He stopped drawing comics in 1995 and became popular on television with his red and white striped clothes.

Umezu won the heritage award at the Angouleme International Comics Festival in France in 2018 for “Watashi wa Shingo.” In 2022, he released new paintings, a sequel to the work, at personal exhibitions in Tokyo and Osaka, western Japan.

Kazuo Umezu, Japan’s Mangaka, Had New Work in Mind, Even During His Final Days