Facts / Anime History

5 Anime History Facts You Probably Didn't Know

Facts about how the whole medium came to be.

1. "Anime" comes from English

   The word is a shortening of animēshon, the Japanese borrowing of the English word "animation." In Japan it refers to all animation, not just Japanese.

2. Sazae-san has been on TV since 1969

   Sazae-san holds the Guinness World Record for the longest-running animated TV series, airing weekly on Fuji TV since October 1969.

3. Astro Boy set the template for TV anime

   Osamu Tezuka's Astro Boy (1963) was Japan's first popular weekly animated TV series. Its low-budget production methods shaped TV anime for decades.

4. Tezuka is called the "god of manga"

   Osamu Tezuka created Astro Boy, Kimba the White Lion, Black Jack and Phoenix, and trained as a medical doctor.

5. Japan's first commercial anime was 1917

   The oldest surviving Japanese animated film is the 1917 short Namakura Gatana, a two-minute comedy about a dull sword.

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