Shinji Nagashima

Shinji Nagashima 永島ながしま 慎二しんじ
Nagashima
Born	Shin'ichi Nagashima 永島ながしま 眞一しんいち (1937-07-08)July 8, 1937 Kita, Tokyo, Japan
Died	June 10, 2005(2005-06-10) (aged 67)
Nationality	Japanese
Education	assistant to Osamu Tezuka
Known for	Manga
Movement	Shōnen manga, Seinen manga, Alternative manga
Awards	Shogakukan Manga Award Japan Cartoonists Association Award

Shin'ichi Nagashima (永島ながしま 眞一しんいち, Nagashima Shin'ichi, July 8, 1937 – June 10, 2005), better known by the pen name Shinji Nagashima (永島ながしま 慎二しんじ, Nagashima Shinji), was a Japanese manga artist born in Tokyo, Japan. His pseudonym came about due to a publisher's error when printing his name, and he continued using the pseudonym after that.

His oldest son is classical guitarist Shiki Nagashima.

History

From the time he was in junior high school, Nagashima aspired to become a manga artist. After dropping out of school during junior high, he worked as a paperboy and a tofu salesman. He made his professional debut as a manga artist in 1952 with his story Sansho no Piri-chan (さんしょのピリちゃん).

After becoming acquainted with Osamu Tezuka due to occasionally living at Tokiwa-sō, he became Tezuka's assistant. While there, he formed the group Musashi Production with artists including Atsushi Sugimura (who was working under the pseudonym Kontarō), Kyūta Ishikawa and Kuni Fukai (who was working under the pseudonym Hirō Fukai).

He soon became friends with several members of the Gekiga Kōbō, including Yoshihiro Tatsumi and Takao Saito, while living in a provincial temple. After the breakup of Gekiga Kōbō, Nagashima began working for Saitō Production and his work began to reflect a more cinematic and dramatic feel. During this time, he began a somewhat wandering lifestyle living in Shinjuku.

In 1961, Nagashima published The Harsh Story of a Manga Artist (漫画まんが家か残酷ざんこく物語ものがたり, Mangaka Zankoku Monogatari), a story which showed the "other side" of the manga industry and which brought Nagashima to the forefront of that industry.

He continued publishing new works in a variety of magazines such as COM and Garo, and due to his unusual style began to be called the "father of seinen manga". From 1964 to 1966, he worked at Mushi Production working on anime television series such as Jungle Taitei, and later again worked for Mushi as a character designer on Wansa-kun (1973).

Nagashima won the Shogakukan Manga Award for his Hanaichi Monme (花はないちもんめ) in 1972. Two years later, he won the Japan Cartoonists Association Award for Manga Lunch Box (漫画まんがのおべんとう箱ばこ, Manga no Obentō Hako).

Beginning in the 1980s, he began releasing fewer series, and went into semi-retirement. He was diagnosed with diabetes, which subsequently caused him to begin having dialysis treatments in 2000. Nagashima died of heart failure on June 10, 2005, at a Tokyo hospital.

Works

• Beloved Pet Dog Taro (愛犬あいけんタロ, Aiken Taro) (1956, Shōjo)
• The Harsh Story of a Manga Artist (漫画まんが家か残酷ざんこく物語ものがたり, Mangaka Zankoku Monogatari) (1961–1964, Keiji)
• Wonderful Parent and Child (ステッキ親子おやこ, Sutekki Oyako) (1962, Akahata)
• The Seven Runts (チビッコセブン, Chibikko Sebun) (1964, Atom Club)
• Genta and Okkaa (源みなもと太ふとしとおっかあ, Genta to Okkaa) (1967, Shōnen King)
• Wanderer (フーテン, Fūten) (1967–1970, COM, Garo, Play Comic)
• Jūdō Icchokusen (柔道じゅうどう一直線いっちょくせん) (1967, written by Ikki Kajiwara, Shōnen King, was later adapted into a drama starring Ken'ichi Sakuragi)
• A Flower Blooms in the Forest of the Heart (心しんの森もりに花はなの咲さく, Kokoro no Mori ni Hana no Saku) (1968–1969, Wakamono)
• The Young Ones (若者わかものたち, Wakamono-tachi) (1970)
• Manga Youth History (まんが若者わかもの史し, Manga Wakamonoshi) (1971, Perfect Liberty)
• Image Calendar (イメージ・カレンダー, Imēji Karendā) (1971–1973, high school course books)
• Hanaichi Monme (花はないちもんめ) (1971, Weekly Shōnen Sunday)
• Street of Angels (天使てんしのいる街まち, Tenshi no Iru Machi) (1972, Shinfujin)
• Sabu the Tease (いじめっ子こサブ, Ijimekko Sabu) (1972, Shōnen King)
• The Young Traveler (旅人たびびとくん, Tabibito-kun) (1972–1973)
• Miracle Girl Limit-chan (ミラクル少女しょうじょリミットちゃん, Mirakuru Shōjo Rimitto-chan) (1973–1974)
• Night on the Galactic Railroad (銀河ぎんが鉄道てつどうの夜よる, Ginga Tetsudō no Yoru) (1996, based on the novel by Kenji Miyazawa, NHK Publishing)
• The World of Shinji Nagashima (永島ながしま慎二しんじの世界せかい, Nagashima Shinji no Sekai) (2006, Chikuma Shūpansha)

Essays

• The Republic of Shinji Nagashima (永島ながしま慎二しんじ共和きょうわ国こく, Nagashima Shinji Kyōwakoku) (1981, Daiwa Shobō)
• Midnight Laundry (真夜中まよなかのせんたく, Mayonaka no Sentaku) (1983, Kizukisha Bijutsu Shuppan)
• Like a Stranger in Asagaya (阿佐谷あさがや界隈かいわい怪人かいじんぐらいだあ, Asagaya Kaiwai Kaijin Gurai daa) (1984, Obunsha)

External links

• Shinji Nagashima at Anime News Network's encyclopedia