The Indianapolis Star from Indianapolis, Indiana • Page 44

12 THE INDIANAPOLIS STAR SATURDAY. AUGUST 2. 1S97 Fsonl3 Manga, anime rooted in Japanese histoiy from staff and wire reports by Corky Richmond were mass-produced using woodblock printing and a division of labor similar to what manga artists and their assistants use today. Residents of cities such as Osaka and Edo (now Tokyo) were avid readers of the woodblock serials, which some people consider the world's first comic books. Today, Japanese manga readers still are avid fans.

According to the Research Institute for Publications, manga comprised nearly 40 percent of all books and magazines sold In Japan In 1995. "You get a lot of very authentic popular art that Is very loyal to its origins and to the emotions that draw people to it," says Tod Har-rick, a producer In the animation division at Pioneer Entertainment in Long Beach, Calif. "It's very hip, not soft, and it's always got an edge." For adults While some Americans are shocked by the violence and sexually graphic material depicted in some Japanese series, others point out that anime (animation) and manga (comics) also are considered adult media in Japan, so they must be evaluated as such. Before passing Judgment, critics should first compare Japanese action-adventure anime with American action movies, he says. "In Japanese animation, you get blood and violence what you would see in an American action film," he says.

"Their en tertainment industry doesn't have the money to produce the kind of action movies that Hollywood makes. It's much cheaper to do the same kind of thing with anime." The exportation of Japanese manga and anime to Europe and the United States has made it easier for people outside Japan to see these media as respected art forms. "Once you decide animation Is going to treat serious themes. It's going to take you into love, into violence. Into sex." Harrlck says.

These are all serious parts of life, and If you decide animation is a medium for expressing what It means to be human, it's going to take you those places." 12-century scrolls, -'poking fun at clergy, tare among the works long loved in Japan. By Ruth Mullen STAFF WRITER wrrm ne Japanese nave lone naa i a love for art that Is funny 1 and fantastic, erotic and en-Itertalning even violent. One of the most famous early examples is Animal Scrolls, a 12th-centurv satire on the JaDa- -'nese clergy and nobility, written a Buddhist priest named Toba. In the 18th and 19th centuries. these entertaining picture books Continued from Page 1 well as a cultural institution that dates to the 12th century.

"In Japan, you'll see businessmen and school kids reading the sarhe issues," says Kosowan, a computer technician. "Over there, they don't have the stigma of comics as adolescent trash fiction." 'In 1995, there were 1.9 billion manga books and magazines sold in Japan, which translates Into about 15 Issues for every man, woman and child In that country, according to the Research Institute for Publications. Comic form first -Most well-known series develop a fan base in comic form first before they are produced and sold as TV series, on home video or, in some cases, as full-length feature movies. "Animation is like what we consider movies and TV," Costello says. something for everyone.

It's an art form that they take very seriously." Cathedral High School grad Niki Dillinger, 26, got hooked 10 years ago when she was a foreign exchange student in Osaka, Japan. TV was always on, even tyhen we were eating dinner," she "They would play the ani- mated shows during what we would consider prime time. The whole family would watch it, not st the kids." Dillinger was especially drawn "to the. strong female characters in series like Gunsmith Cats or Ranma 12, about a boy schooled In the martial arts who turns into a girl if he Is doused with cold water. The lead characters are females, which is more rare in traditional American comics," she says.

"I like the role model it promotes for women." Some Generation X'ers might not be aware that Compiled 'Beavis, Butt-head' gets button pulled on MTV this fall Beavis and Butt-head got the ax heh, heh, heh after a four-year run of weekly wisecracking on MTV. MTV and creator Mike Judge have ,1 10 call it quits for the tales of two channel-surfing teen-agers. The last episode will air Oct. 10. Not to worry, though.

Their adventures most likely from a shabby sofa from where they watch music videos and provide their own off-color commentary will live on indefinitely in reruns, according to a spokeswoman. The duo also may resurface in specials or a sequel to Beauts and Butt-head Do America, the feature film released In December. Indianapolis dancer receives ballet award Seventeen-year-old Lisa Kacz-marek of Indianapolis has been awarded the first Coca-Cola Scholar Award as the outstanding participant in the American Ballet Theatre's Summer Ballet Intensive program in New York City. She was chosen from among 152 young dance student participants. She Is also one of five recipients of national scholarships from the Coca-Cola National Training Program, which enables young dancers to train with local instructors rather than relocating to New York City.

She will continue her studies in Indianapolis with Ballet Internationale. REDMOND Continued from Page 1 This has become the popular perception of men in late 20th Century America. It is more or less accepted that we're all TV-Dad-type bumblers who wouldn't remember to tie our shoes if we didn't have acld-tongued TV-Mom-type wives and smartmouth TV-brat-type kids to remind us. That is so unfair. Did it ever occur to anybody that men might have invented loafers so we wouldn't have to remember to tie our shoes? And that it might have taken a little extra brainpower to come up with something so clever? I believe men use their extra THUMBS Continued from Page 1 all aspiring thumb-wrestlers young and old are invited to participate.

The $5 entry fee includes a professional thumb-wrestling ring invented by Rick Hartman, 35, of Issaquah, Wash. Hartman got the idea several years ago while working as an elementary-school teacher in Seattle-area public schools. "I found out that every kid in the universe knows how to thumb-wrestle the old-fashioned way," he said. "I don't think it's genetic. I think it's passed down through this secret kid society." The $5.95 gadget has become something of a wacky phenomenon, inspiring thumb-wrestling tournaments across the country and even a mention in the Wall Street Journal Some competitors even go so far as to dress up their thumbs before matches, creating a hodgepodge of competing monsters, aliens and superheroes.

One person may masquerade as Super Thumb, complete with a flowing cape and a prominent Hartman said. Once, a contestant dressed her thumb in evening attire and called It'Thumb Enchanted Evening." "You get people in the ring and play Rocky music," said Mark He- Murphy drops lawsuit against the 'Enquirer Eddie Murphy dropped, a $5 million libel suit against the National' Enquirer over a story about his encounter with a transsexual prostitute. The May 20 Eddie Murphy issue of the su- Dermarket tabloid carried the sto ry beneath the headline, "Eddie Murphy's Secret Sex Life His Transvestite Hooker Tells All." It detailed his alleged encounters with two transsexuals. Murphy sued the Enquirer, as well as the Globe for a similar story, alleging their reporters knew the articles were false. In a statement, Murphy publicist Arnold Robinson said the actor dropped the suit against the Enquirer after after deciding the tabloid didn't act maliciously.

Murphy has said he was Just trying to be nice when he picked up Atisone Sdull, 20, In West Hollywood on May 2. Murphy, 36, was pulled over by deputies after Seiull got Into his car. Seiull was arrested on a warrant, but authorities said Murphy had broken no law. A year older Former Sen. Paul Laxatt, Actor Carroll O'Connor, 73.

Actor Peter O'Toole, 65. Rock musician Garth Hudson (The Band), 60. Actress Joanna Actress Kathryn Harrold, 47. Singer Andrew Gold, 46. brain cells to dream up life-im- proving inventions like loafers and monster trucks and hats that hold your beer can for you.

We also need extra storage space for baseball statistics and secret recipes for barbecue sauce. Denmark doesn't have baseball or barbecue. It's a little shy In the monster truck department, too. No wonder those researchers over there said that men's 4 billion extra brain cells don't seem to serve any useful purpose. Danish, scientists are unfamiliar with the proper uses of Male Brainpower.

Either that, or they've been watching American TV. Mike Redmond's column appears Wednesdays and Saturdays in The anapolis Star and The Indianapolis News. Professional Thumb Wrestling Tournament When: 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday.

Where: Comer of Broad Ripple and Guilford avenues in Broad Ripple. How: Early registration is from 10 a.m. noon at the comer of Broad Ripple and Guilford avenues. Fee: $5 entry fee includes a professional thumb-wrestling ring. Benefits: All proceeds go to the Kid's-Cafe program of Gleaners food bank, Kid's Cafe is a national after-school program that provides food for kids atj community centers and churches.

There are eight Kid's Cafes in Indian- apolis. benstreit, owner of Hog Wild, the Portland, toy company that markets the thumb "There are adult men who climb through the ropes and take their jackets and ties off and get very theatrical." Some tournaments are orga- nlzed according to thumb size and divided into different divisions, such as two-Inch- and four-inch-thumb classes. "Sometimes a real small thumlj can outsmart some of those big-ger, clumsier thumbs," Hartmanv said. On Sunday, Broad Ripple's -i tournament will be divided Into three girls' and boys' divisions and a senior division, which in eludes anybody 18 and older. "We'll be following rules there will be no biting," Reed said.

Who's in it? What's it Call 624-4636 Enter four digit category I Beloved poem teaches acceptance, independence at Pioneer Entertainment in Long Beach. one of the largest distributors and producers of anime in the United States. "They have a real ability to laugh at themselves, and at how awkward and difficult life really Is for people." Harrick's company produces the popular Tenchl Muyo series, a romantic comedy about a half-alien, half-human boy whose loyalties between those two worlds are constantly tested. "It's like Archie in space, with Betty and Veronica as space aliens," Harrick explains. Chinese character The phenomenally popular Dragon Ball which garnered $2.95 billion worldwide last year in merchandise alone Is based on a Chinese legendary character named Goku, a boy with a monkey's tail.

In addition to their often fantastic nature, what attracts most American fans Is the artistic integrity of popular series, Harrick says. Japanese artists are not shackled by the same kinds of marketing forces that seem to Influence so many comics and animated films produced in the United States, he says. "There is more sophistication and more of an artistic edge to Japanese animation and manga," Harrick says. "That has been lost here somewhat as American pop culture has become more commercialized. It all goes back to: Are you trying to create art or are you trying to sell toys?" Like most American fans, Kosowan Is attracted to the complex nature of the storylines, which 'entertain and Intrigue by delving into serious and humorous subjects.

"It's adult stuff," Harrick says. "It's complex. It concerns Itself with the emotions and themes which literature cannot exist without." feel. When you do not give them a set of keys, they will get the message. On the occasions when you plan to leave the city and would like them to water the plants and bring in the newspapers and mall, you will then give them the keys, but don't fail to ask for them back when you return.

Dear Ann Landers: I agree that computer chat lines can be addictive. You wind up on-line for three hours instead of the 20 minutes you had planned. And, yes, they can be dangerous. If you agree to meet an on-line pal in person, bring at least two friends along and make sure the meeting is at a very public place. Granted, there are hazards, but the Internet also can bring love.

My boyfriend and I met on a chat line four months ago. We sent e-mail several times a day and "chatted" whenever our schedules permitted. After two weeks, we exchanged phone numbers and discovered we had a lot In common. We then decided to meet in person. We've been dating ever since.

I have met his parents, and he has met mine. Our relationship is strong because it is based on mutual interests and long-term goals. Our personalities mesh, and we are wonderfully compatible. So, please, Ann, stop bashing the In ternet. It not tor everyone, Dut for some of us, it can bring true love.

Totally Happy In N.Y. Dear Totally: It sounds beautiful. I wish you and your cyber-soulmate a lifetime of happiness. Creators Syndicate Exclusive Engagement, Not Puking! uuriu 'wiu I their favorite 70s cartoons such as Robotech, Speed Racer, Kimba the White Lion and Astro Boy originated in Japan. Even then, American viewers were drawn to the animation's kinetic, action-packed style and attention to detail.

"A lot of times the animation is higher quality than we have here in the United States." says Brad Keen, manager of Comic Carnival on the Westside. "It doesn't look like an episode of The Flintstones, where somebody Is moving his arm back and forth." Popular conventions Anime and manga conventions in New York, California, Texas and Virginia attract fans from all over the United States. Related merchandise such as T-shirts, dolls, model kits, sticker books, role-playing games, reference guides, animated CDs and soundtracks also are doing brisk business, Keen says. And presents aren't promises, And you begin to accept your defeats With your head up and your eyes open, With the grace of a woman, not the grief of a child, And learn to build all your roads on today Because tomorrow's ground is too uncertain for plans, And futures have a way of falling down in midflight. And after a while, you learn That even sunshine burns if you get too much.

So you plant your own garden and decorate your own soul, Instead of waiting for someone to bring you flowers. And you learn that you really can endure That you really are strong And you really do have worth And you learn and learn With every goodbye, you learn. Dear Ann Landers: "Bob" and I have been married for two years. When we first married, I moved Into the home he had been living in for quite some time. The problem? He gave his parents a key to the house long before we met.

They are accustomed to using It whenever they wish, including when we are not at home. Bob's parents are nice people, and they always let us know when they are coming, but still it bothers me that they have access And since Japan has more relaxed copyright laws than the United States, Internet-sawy fans are continually posting original storylines on personal websites, using their favorite anime and manga characters. Others prefer to read about popular Japanese artists or get news and reviews on upcoming series in U.S.-based fan magazines like Animerica. Kosowan credits the rising popularity of anime and manga to the artists' elaborate artwork and complex storylines. As in the United States, common themes include government conspiracies and alien Invasions.

The two most popular genres are sci-fi action adventure and romantic comedies, which appeal to children and adults. "The Japanese think it's awfully funny how awkward adolescence Is," says Tod Harrick, a producer in the animation division to our home when we are at work. I have talked with Bob about this, but he sees nothing wrong with his parents having a key and entering our place whenever they wish. I don't want to Insist that my husband ask his parents to return the key because I know what an explosion that would cause. I don't even mind having them drop in when we are at home.

Bob's argument is that since we are planning to buy a new house in a year or two, it will automatically put an end to the problem, so why rock the boat now? Meanwhile, I am becoming increasingly annoyed at the thought that my Inlaws have access to our home, and I don't want to wait "a year or two" to put an end to it. I need some advice, Ann. Northern Belle Dear Belle: It is not uncommon for people to give the keys to their home to a relative or neighbor when they go on a trip out of town, but you have a right to be annoyed at your husband for insisting that his parents have access to your home whether you are there or not. In order not to offend Bob's parents, I suggest that you and Bob agree to change the locks "for security reasons." Install a new state-of-the-art burglar-proof lock, and tell them how much safer you va, ki I EXCLUSIVE ENGAGEMENT NOW SHOWING! "oVery n'T Dear Ann Landers: Enclosed is a copy of a poem I cut from a newspaper many years ago. It seemed It had been placed there Just for me because at that time of my life, 1 was very sad and lonely.

I have Carried it In my wallet it: Ann lenders since then, and whenever I feel morose, I get It out and read it. I have no idea who wrote It and would really like to know the author. 1 felt that should you print it In your column, someone else night carry it around as I have for inspiration when there is a need. i-Blue Springs, Mo. Dear Blue Springs: This poem Is one of the most requested pieces I have run In my column, $md I am pleased to print it again for those who may have missed it.

After a While I by Veronica A. Shoffstall a while, you learn the subtle difference Between holding a hand and chaining a soul, And you learn that love doesn't Jnean leaning And company doesn't mean se-' s. And you begin to learn that Jcisses aren't contracts MovieLine New Release! 7458 187 (R) 74 14 Air Bud (PC) 7407 Air Force One (R) 7473 Ferrule Perversions (R) 7445 Good Burger (K) 7446 Mrs. Brown (K) 7434 Picture Perfect (PC-13) 7431 Spawn (PC-1 3) "It's Marvelous!" GANNt.rr.Jirk Canwr MY BEST FRIEND'S f9 www. tony, com A itjN tH(rts CHERRY TREE LAFAYETTE SQUARE 9599 WASHINGTON ST.

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