Monkey Punch

, known by the pen name , was a Japanese manga artist, best known for his series Lupin III.

Life and career Katō was born in Hamanaka, Hokkaido; he began drawing at a very young age, but did not draw manga until junior high school, when his manga strips were used in the school newspaper. After graduating, he moved to Tokyo to look for work and began going to a technical school for electronics, continuing to draw for fun. While working in a dōjinshi group with other artists, he was recruited by Futabasha and drew yonkoma. He was an assistant to Naoki Tsuji on Zero-sen Hayato and Tiger Mask.

Lupin III made its debut on August 10, 1967, in the first issue of the magazine Weekly Manga Action; the cover was also drawn by Monkey Punch. It went on to become an extremely popular and successful media franchise, spawning numerous manga, six animated television series, seven animated feature films, two live-action films, three OVAs, near-yearly television specials since 1989, music CDs, video games, and a musical. Monkey Punch himself even directed the 1996 film, Dead or Alive. and was a visiting professor at Tokyo University of Technology in May 2010.

On April 21, 2007, Monkey Punch participated in a series of lectures on the "interaction of manga and culture throughout the world" at the Freer Gallery of Art. In 2008, Monkey Punch was a judge at the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs' Second International Manga Awards.

He designed the characters for the pachinko game CR Ginroku Gijinden Roman in 2012. The following year an anime adaptation of the game began airing on January 7, 2013, with Monkey Punch's designs adapted by Satoshi Hirayama, and was streamed with English subtitles on Crunchyroll.

Monkey Punch participated in the writing of the 2014 live-action film adaptation of Lupin III.

Personal life and death Monkey Punch resided in Sakura, Chiba, until his death. He died on April 11, 2019, due to pneumonia.

Pen name Katō first started to work as a professional manga artist, under the pen name . In 1965, he made his debut with Playboy School, writing under the name of . The editor of the magazine that "discovered him" then suggested the pen name Monkey Punch.

Style Monkey Punch has stated that Osamu Tezuka was the reason he wanted to become a manga artist.

Awards He received the Inkpot Award in 1981 and a special Tokyo Anime Award in 2015.

List of works 1960s 1962 Number 5 + α Gun Hustler Rebellious Child List the Criminal Open Homicide Clandestine Work The Man Who Does Not Have a Shadow The Person Whom It Uses Vengeance (Fukushu) as Kazuhiko Katō Ghost Story Guy as Kazuhiko Katō 1965 as Eiji Gamuta Needless Axle of Wilderness Pink Guard Man ... Blues of the Assassin (Pinku Gado Man ... Hissatsu no Burusu) Outsider (Autosaida Monkey Punch) 1967 The Ginza Whirlwind Child (Ginza Senpuji)

1968 Western Samurai (Uesutan Samurai) 1969 Pandora

1970s 1970 Spy Nobility (Supai Shinzoku) Document Mania (Dokyumento Kyo)

Tac Tics 1971 Multi (Maruchi) Mysterious Jaguarman (Kaijin Jagaman)

1972

Makao Monsieur Koga Key 1973 Sufficiently Motivated (Yaruki Jubun) Decoy House Slug (Kikuya Namekuji) Venus of Diamond (Daia no Binasu) 1974 I Am Casanova (Ore wa Kazanoba) Color Girl (Kara Garu) Isshuku Ippan (一宿一飯)

1976 Little Dracula (Dorakyura-kun) Up-Up Balloon (UP-UP Barun) 1977

Transparent Gentleman (Tomei Shinshi) 1978 Time Agent (Jikan Ejento) Kaiketsu Zero

1980s 1980

Boy Botchan (anime, character design) 1981

1982 Space Adventure Team Mechabunger (Uchū Bōken-tai Mekabanja) Another work from Cinderella Boy. 1983 Roller Boy (Rora Boi) Lucky Monkey (Raki Monki) 1984

1986

1990s 1991 Monkey Punch no Sekai: Alice (December 13) Scramble Saver Kids 1996 Lupin III: Dead or Alive 1997 One Thousand and One Nights' Story (Senya Ichiya Monogatari)

2000s 2004 Mankatsu (anime)

2010s 2013