Award-winning manga artist Shinji Mizushima died of pneumonia in a Tokyo hospital on Jan. 10, he reported ANN News
during his lifetime Mizushima published over 500 tankobon volume, making him one of the most prolific manga artists of all time. He was a giant of the manga world, and his death is national news in Japan.
Born in Niigata in 1939, Mizushima debuted as a manga artist in 1958 at the age of 18 and retired in December 2020. “I’ve worked hard for 63 years to this day, but now I’ve decided to retire,” he explained (via ANN). “I pray from the bottom of my heart for continued growth in the manga and baseball worlds.”
His last manga was released in August 2018.
Mizushima was best known for his baseball manga, such as Dokaben, Yakyu-kyo no Uta, and Abu-san, for which he first became famous in the 1970s. His manga narrated events of the Japanese baseball world and mixed characters of his creation with real players and coaches.
Abu-san, which ran from 1973 to 2014, follows the exploits of fictional baseball player Yasutake Kageura. It won the 1977 Shogakukan Manga Award and the series has sold over 22 million copies. dokaben, which ran from 1972 to 1981, was published in a total of 205 tankobon volumes –that’s the most volumes for a series. dokaben was a high school baseball manga, but the characters lived on in spin-offs that followed their amateur and pro careers. Yakyu-kyo no Uta, which ran from 1972 to 1976, told the story of a young woman who wanted to be a vet but ended up playing baseball. The manga won the Kodansha Literature Culture Award for Children’s Manga and has been adapted into an anime series, an animated film, a live-action film, and a live-action TV series.
(Full disclosure: Kodansha published my first two books.)
As ANN notes that in 2014, Mizushima received the Order of the Rising Sun Gold Rays with Rosette Award from the Japanese government for contributions to entertainment and culture.
As requested by Mizushima, his family held a private funeral. Rest in peace.
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