Shotaro Ishinomori

Shotaro Ishinomori (石ノ森 章太郎), born Shotaro Onodera, was a Japanese writer and illustrator born in Tome, Miyagi, Japan on January 25th, 1938. Ishinomori is a pioneer of the Manga and Anime visual style of animated artwork and was responsible for the creation of several popularly regarded science fiction/super-hero related works. He was also the founder of Ishimori Entertainment, a division of Ishimori Production, Inc. Ishinomori was a student of famous manga pioneer Osamu Tezuka, creator of Astro Boy. Following in his mentor's footsteps, Ishinomori's work dominated the medium throughout the 1970s. By the 1990s, Ishinomori's health began to deteriorate and he asked a young mangaka named Kazuhiko Shimamota to work on a continuation/remake of his 1970 Manga series Skull Man. On January 28th, 1998, three days after his 60th birthday, Shotaro Ishinomori passed away from heart failure. His final work was the tokusatsu superhero television series, Voicelugger, televised a year later.

Career
One of Ishinomori's earliest works was a Manga called Cyborg 009, which was first serialized in Monthly Shōnen Magazine and Weekly Shōnen Magazine. The premise of the Manga revolved around a team of nine cyborgs banded together to fight an evil organization known as Black Ghost.

Ishinomori's most enduring influence however was the tokusatsu (live-action) superhero series Kamen Rider, which aired from 1971 to 1973 on the Mainichi Broadcasting System. A Manga serial of Kamen Rider was published in Shōnen Magazine as well. The series proved immensely popular and spawned a franchise of related spin-off projects. Kamen Rider birthed the concept of the henshin, or, "transforming superhero", in which a character would strike a pose before instantly transforming into his or her heroic identity.

Ishinomori followed the success of Kamen Rider with a series of similarly-themed superhero adventures, many of which were brought to life through the efforts of Toei Animation. Kikaider for example, was a Manga franchise inspired by Mary Shelley's Frankenstein and Carlo Collodi's children's story, Pinocchio. The series ran from July, 1972 to May, 1973 and aired on TV Asahi. The series was rebooted in 2000-2001 as Android Kikaider and was also released as a four-part OVA in 2001. Ishinomori's other works include Inazuman, Robotto Keijii and Secret Task Force Goranger and 009-1.

Film
Note:  was not necessarily directly involved in all media based on his work.''
 * Cyborg 009
 * Cyborg 009: Underground Duel
 * Flying Phantom Ship
 * 30000 Miles Under the Sea
 * Kamen Rider: All Back Again! 7 Riders
 * Cyborg 009: Legend of the Super Galaxy
 * Brain 17
 * Kamen Raidâ 10's Birth! Riders Unite!
 * Kamen Raidâ Burakku: Kyoufu! Akumatouge no kaijinkan!
 * Shin Kamen Raidâ
 * Kamen Raidâ Z
 * Kamen Raidâ Jei
 * Jinzô ningen Hakaidâ
 * Kamen Raidâ: The Next
 * Kamen Raidâ G
 * Gekijô ban Kamen raidâ Kiba: Makaijô no ô
 * Kamen Raidâ W

Television
Note:  was not necessarily directly involved in all media based on his work.''
 * Saibogu 009
 * Kamen Raidâ
 * Kamen Raidâ tai Shokkâ
 * Kikaida: Android of Justice
 * Kamen Raidâ tai jigoku taishi
 * Kikaida Zero Wan
 * Kamen Raidâ bui surî
 * Robotto keiji
 * Kamen Raidâ Bui Surii tai Desutoron Kaijin
 * Inazuman
 * Hang in There, Robocon!
 * Kamen Raidâ Ekkusu
 * Inazuman Furashu
 * Go-Nin Raidaa tai kingu Daaku
 * Kamen Raidâ Amazon
 * Himitsu sentai Gorenjâ
 * Kamen Raidâ Sutorongâ
 * Akumaizâ surî
 * Jyakkâ Dengekitai
 * Cyborg 009
 * Kamen Raidâ
 * Kamen Raidâ Sûpâ Wan
 * Kamen Raidâ Burakku
 * Kamen Raida Burakku Aru Ekkusu
 * Kamen Raida Burakku: Onigajima he kyuko seyo!
 * Blazing Robocon!
 * Kamen Raidâ Kuga
 * Android Kikaider: The Animation
 * Kamen Raidâ Agito
 * Kamen Raidâ Ryuki
 * Kamen Raidâ 555
 * Kamen Raidâ Bureido
 * Kamen Raidâ Hibiki
 * Gekijoban kamen raider hibiki to shichinin nosenki
 * 009-1
 * Kamen Raidâ OOO

Notes & Trivia

 * Was a student of Astro Boy creator Osamu Tezuka.


 * Changed his family name to Ishinomori in 1986.


 * Around 1955, Ishinomori submitted work to a contest seeking new talent in the magazine, Manga Shonen. Osamu Tezuka was impressed by his drawings and asked Ishinomori to help him with Astro Boy.


 * His work posthumously awarded him the Guinness World Record for most comics published by one author, totaling over 128,000 pages.