Akira Toriyama
STR/JIJI Press/AFP via Getty Images
Akira Toriyama, the Japanese manga artist who created the incredibly popular Dragon Ball and Dr. Slump series, has died. He was 68.
Toriyama died March 1 from an acute subdural hematoma, the official Dragon Ball website revealed on Friday and that his funeral was already held by close relatives. “He has left many manga titles and works of art to this world. Thanks to the support of so many people around the world, he has been able to continue his creative activities for over 45 years,” a statement on the website said.
The statement continued, “We hope that the world of Akira Toriyama’s unique works will continue to be loved by everyone for a long time to come.”
One of Japan’s best-known and most-loved manga creators, Toriyama is indelibly linked with Dragon Ball, a series he created, wrote and illustrated that was first serialized in 1984. The martial arts-heavy series, which gave the world characters like Goku, Piccolo, Bulma and Krillin, was subsequently adapted into equally popular anime series by Toei Animation (Dragon Ball and Dragon Ball Z) in the late 1980s and would then go on to spawn a whole multimedia franchise that is popular and highly influential around the world.
Born on April 5, 1955 in Nagoya, Japan, Toriyama’s career as a mangaka began in his early 20s, when he submitted work to the Weekly Shōnen Jump magazine. His first published work was Wonder Island in 1978, about a former World War II kamikaze pilot stuck on Wonder Island. The follow-up, Wonder Island 2 was published in 1979.
Toriyama made his name with the manga Dr. Slump, which was serialized by Weekly Shōnen Jump from 1980 to 1984. The series followed the adventures of a girl robot and her creator who live alongside the bizarre inhabitants of Penguin Village. Dr. Slump was known for its silly toilet humor and pop culture references and was a huge hit in Japan, selling over 35 million copies. It was later adapted into an anime series by Toei Animation that ran on Japanese TV from 1981 to 1986.
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