Tag: Masaoka

  • 1936: MURATA’S END

    1936: MURATA’S END

    On February 26th 1936, a group of young military officers, convinced that their brand of ultranationalism was correct and losing the internal struggle for the ear of the Emperor, attempted to overthrow the Japanese government; a coup d’etat.

  • 1935: ALMOST EVERYONE

    1935: ALMOST EVERYONE

    Today, JO Studio works on a shoestring, Masaoka throws in the towel, a skiving fuel store owner keeps going, and Murata runs out of steam.

  • 1934: FOUR DIRECTORS

    1934: FOUR DIRECTORS

    Masaoka Kenzō gets unlucky, Ofuji Noburo uses another name, Seo Mitsuyo monkeys around, and an unknown director drives his characters mad.

  • 1933: MASAOKA, OFUJI, AND TEAM GODZILLA

    1933: MASAOKA, OFUJI, AND TEAM GODZILLA

    MASAOKA was the first Japanese director to make a talking animated picture. Unless he wasn’t and it was OFUJI instead. Elsewhere, Godzilla’s owners shake a claw or two.

  • 1931: NIKKATSU AND YAMAMOTO

    1931: NIKKATSU AND YAMAMOTO

    In 1929, Nikkatsu Studios set up a new animation department at their studio in Uzumasa, to the north-east of Kyoto. They would soon hire “the father of anime”.