Takao Saito, creator of “Golgo 13”, died at 84 – Multiversity Comics

The AFP reports that Japanese cartoonist Takao Saito, the creator of the world’s oldest manga, “Golgo 13”, has died at the age of 84. According to his editor Shogakukan, Saito died of pancreatic cancer on Friday, September 24. “Golgo 13″, which follows the adventures of professional assassin Duke Togo, aka Golgo 13, was created by Saito in 1968, and continued to be supervised by him until his death; Shogakukan plans to continue the series ” in cooperation with its staff, in accordance with its wishes “.

Saito was born in Wakayama Prefecture, western Japan, on November 3, 1936 and raised in Osaka. He made his manga debut with “Baron Air” in 1955. In 1960, he moved to Tokyo and founded his own company, Saito Production. From 1964 to 1967, he drew a James Bond manga for Shogakukanthe magazine Boy’s life, who adapted four of Ian Fleming’s original novels. The following year, he launched “Golgo 13” in Big comic magazine, where a total of 608 chapters have been published to date.

Described by Anime News Network as a “dark, meticulously constructed [and] Painstakingly realistic spy comic, “Golgo 13” helped popularize the gekiga (lit. “dramatic images”) in Japanese comics, which tried to make more realistic stories. (Saito himself preferred to be called a gekiga creator than a manga artist.) The series spawned two live-action films in the ’70s, an animated film in 1983, an OVA in 1998, a animated series in 2008 and six video games. He won a Shogakukan Manga Award in the general category in 1975; the Grand Prix of the Japan Cartoonists Association in 2002; and the Special Judges Award at the 50th Shogakukan Manga Awards in 2005.

Saito was honored during his lifetime by the Japanese government with a Medal of Honor for his contributions to the arts in 2003, and the Order of the Rising Sun, 4th class, Golden rays with rosette for the promotion of Japanese culture in 2010. In 2019, he was honored by the Tokyo Metropolitan Assembly for his contributions to the arts and received the Tezuka Osamu Cultural Prize. It is the namesake of the Saito Takao Gekiga Cultural Foundation, which established the annual Saito Takao awards in 2017, including the “Golgo 13” trophy.

Our condolences to Saito’s family, friends, colleagues and fans at this difficult time.