Fujiko Fujio facts for kids

Fujiko Fujio was the special name used by two Japanese manga artists who worked together. Their real names were Hiroshi Fujimoto (who lived from 1933 to 1996) and Motoo Abiko (who lived from 1934 to 2022). They started working together in 1951 and used the name Fujiko Fujio from 1954 until 1987.

They worked together on both the stories and the drawings for their manga. Later, they started creating their own works under different names. Abiko used the name Fujiko Fujio Ⓐ (藤子不二雄Ⓐ), and Fujimoto used Fujiko F. Fujio (藤子・F・不二雄).

They won many awards together and separately. They are most famous for creating the popular series Doraemon. The main character, Doraemon, is a robot cat who is a cultural icon in Japan. Their work was inspired by famous manga artist Osamu Tezuka and many American cartoons and comic books.

The Story of Fujiko Fujio

Hiroshi Fujimoto and Motoo Abiko both grew up in Toyama Prefecture, Japan. Fujimoto was born on December 1, 1933, and Abiko on March 10, 1934. They met in elementary school when Abiko moved to Fujimoto's school in Takaoka City.

They quickly became lifelong friends. At first, they kept their drawings a secret from friends and classmates. They were big fans of manga artist Osamu Tezuka and his series Shin Takarajima.

Starting Their Manga Journey

Fujimoto even built a special projector to help them create their first story together, called Tenküma. They started sending their work to magazines like Manga Shōnen. They also opened a joint savings account to buy art supplies. They always split all their earnings and costs equally.

In high school, they published their first work, Tenshi no Tama-chan, in 1951. That same year, they visited Osamu Tezuka at his home. They showed him their drawings for a story called Ben Hur. Tezuka praised their work, saying he knew they would become important manga artists.

Fujimoto and Abiko valued this meeting with Tezuka very much. They kept the Ben Hur drawings their whole lives. After this, they decided to make their partnership permanent. They first used the name Tezuka Fujio, but later changed it to Azhizuka Fujio.

Moving to Tokyo

After high school in 1952, both Fujimoto and Abiko took regular jobs. Fujimoto worked at a candy company, and Abiko at a newspaper. But Fujimoto had an accident at work and quit soon after. He then focused on submitting manga, with Abiko helping on weekends.

Their first series as Ashizuka Fujio ended quickly. However, they found success with a science fiction series called Utopia: The Last World War (UTOPIA—最後の世界大戦).

In 1954, Fujimoto convinced Abiko to move to Tokyo to become professional manga artists. Abiko was not sure at first because he had a steady job. They first lived in a small room above a watch shop. Later, they moved to the Tokiwa-sō apartment complex. Osamu Tezuka had just moved out of a room there and offered it to them.

Working with Other Artists

At Tokiwa-sō, they joined a group called "New Manga Party" (新漫画党). This group included other manga artists like Hiroo Terada and Shotaro Ishinomori. They were very busy during this time, sometimes working on six different series a month. Abiko also helped Tezuka with his drawings, for example, by drawing a snowstorm in Jungle Emperor.

The workload was too much. In 1955, they missed all their deadlines after returning to Toyama for New Year's. This made publishers lose trust in them for over a year. During this time, they worked on their own projects. They even bought a TV and made short films with an 8mm camera.

In 1959, they left Tokiwa-sō and moved to Kawasaki, Kanagawa. In the 1960s, Fujimoto and Abiko started their own manga production company, Fujiko Studio Co., Ltd.. Fujimoto got married in 1962.

Studio Zero and New Creations

In 1963, Fujimoto and Abiko started Studio Zero with other artists. At its busiest, the studio had about 80 people. They produced animated films like Astro Boy. These were very productive years for Fujimoto and Abiko. They created series like Obake no Q-Tarō, which later became TV anime shows.

Around this time, Abiko started making manga for older audiences, with titles like Teresa Tang. Fujimoto focused on stories for children, especially science fiction. Abiko got married in 1966.

The Success of Doraemon

Doraemon was created in 1969 and quickly became very popular with children in Japan. In 1977, CoroCoro Comic magazine launched its first issue to feature Fujiko Fujio's works. When Doraemon started airing on TV Asahi in 1979, its popularity exploded. Many of their other works were also published and shown on TV throughout the 1980s.

Doraemon is the only work by the duo to be officially released in English-speaking countries, like the United States. However, English versions of shows like Perman and Ninja Hattori-kun were shown in other parts of Asia.

Ending the Partnership

In 1987, Fujimoto and Abiko decided to end their long partnership. They wanted to focus on their own projects because they had different creative ideas. Abiko worked at Fujiko Studio K.K. and Fujimoto at Fujiko F. Fujio Pro K.K.

Abiko started using the name Fujiko A. Fujio, and Fujimoto used Fujiko F. Fujio. Abiko focused on stories with more mature themes, while Fujimoto continued to create works for younger audiences. Abiko later shared that Fujimoto had health issues in 1986. They wanted to sort out their copyrights and finances before Fujimoto passed away in 1996.

A TV show about the lives of Fujiko Fujio was shown on TV Asahi in 2006. A museum dedicated to Fujiko F. Fujio opened in Kawasaki, Kanagawa on September 3, 2011. It shows a copy of Fujio's studio and their artwork.

Awards and Recognition

• 1963 – Shogakukan Manga Award for Old Song and Tebukuro Tecchan
• 1981 – Kawasaki City's Cultural Prize (川崎市文化賞)
• 1982 – Shogakukan Manga Award for children's manga
• 1989 – Film Special Meritorious Prize (映画特別功労賞)
• 1989 – Golden Gloss Prize (ゴールデングロス賞)
• 1997 – The first Tezuka Osamu Cultural Prize Grand Prize

Works

Fujiko Fujio's works

Fujiko F. Fujio's works

Fujiko A. Fujio's works

See also

In Spanish: Fujiko Fujio para niños