Kimba the White Lion (TV series)

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
For the Japanese shōnen manga, see Kimba the White Lion.
Kimba the White Lion
Jungle Emperor Leo
GenreAnime
Created byOsamu Tezuka
Based onThe Jungle Emperor
Directed byHayashi Shigeyuki
Voices of
  • Ota Toshiko
  • Matsuo Keiko
  • Akashi Hajime
  • Tamura Kinto
  • Katsuta Hisashi
  • Kato Seizo
  • Kawakubo Kiyoshi
  • Kumakura Kazuo
  • Sekine Nobuaki
  • Yamamoto Yoshiko
  • Chiba Junji
Opening theme"Jungle Emperor Leo's Theme"
Country of originJapan
No. of episodes52
Production
Running time23 Minutes
Production company
Fuji TV
ReleaseOctober 6, 1965 (1965-10-06) –
September 28, 1966 (1966-09-28)

Kimba the White Lion, originally known as Jungle Emperor Leo (Japanese: ジャングル大帝, Hepburn: Janguru Taitei) in Japan, was a 1965 television series produced by Mushi Production. This series was based on the manga written and illustrated by Osamu Tezuka. The series was broadcast by the Fuji TV Network from October 6, 1965, to September 28, 1966;[1] as such, it was the first full-colored Japanese anime broadcast on TV. This series consisted of 52 episodes and won a few awards like Special Award of the 4th TV Editors' Award 1966 and the Cultural Award of Children's Welfare under the Ministry of Health and Welfare 1966.[2] Since its first airing, there have been sequel TV shows, films, and remakes made.

Plot

Main article: List of Kimba the White Lion episodes

The series begins in Africa where a group of human hunters begin capturing many of the animals. Among these animals are a lion cub named Kimba (Leo in the Japanese version) and his mother Snowene (Eliza in the Japanese version). Kimba's father Caesar (Panja in the Japanese version), who is the king of the jungle, is killed trying to save Kimba. The ship that captured Kimba and his mother starts to sink and his mother provides Kimba a way to escape and he finds his way back to the jungle.[3] Throughout his journey, Kimba returns to his home in the jungle and becomes a leader of the animals like his father and tries to bring peace between humans and animals.[4] Some of the ways Kimba does this is by adapting human techniques into the animal kingdom such as farming.

Characters

Voice Actors for the Original Japanese Series. To see a full list of voice actors for the English dub, see List of Kimba the White Lion characters.

  • Leo/Kimba: voiced by Ota Toshiko
  • Lyre: voiced by Matsuo Keiko
  • Tommy: voiced by Akashi Hajime
  • Coco: voiced by Tamura Kinto
  • Mandy: voiced by Katsuta Hisashi
  • Totto: voiced by Kato Seizo
  • Dick: voiced by Kawakubo Kiyoshi
  • Bo: voiced by Kumakura Kazuo
  • Kenichi: voiced by Sekine Nobuaki
  • Mary: voiced by Yamamoto Yoshiko
  • Higeoyaji: voiced by Chiba Junji

International syndication

Other than the original broadcast in Japan in 1965, the series has been broadcast in many countries around the world.

In Asia, it was broadcast in

Saudi TV and in Sri Lanka
on ART TV.

In Europe, it was broadcast in

TV3
.

In North America, it was broadcast in Canada on Knowledge; in Mexico on

Paul J. Zaza. In 2012 Bayview Entertainment/Widowmaker releases "Kimba the White Lion: The Complete Series" 10 DVD box set of the original 1965 series.[6] It was broadcast several times in the United States: on KHJ-TV (1965–67; Billie Lou Watt dub), on NBC (1965–77, re-runs until 1980; Billie Lou Watt dub), on syndication (1965–77; Billie Lou Watt dub; 1993, re-runs until 1995; Yvonne Murray dub), on Kids & Teens TV
(1993 re-runs; 2005–2009) and on Inspiration Life TV (1993 re-runs; 2005–2009).

TV sequel, films, remakes

All of the TV and film titles are translations from the Japanese version.

New Jungle Emperor, Go Ahead Leo! (1966)

This series is a sequel to the original 1965 series where it takes place in the future when Leo is now a full-grown lion. Osamu Tezuka's dream was to create a series that went through all phases of Leo's (Kimba's) life. The episodes follow Leo and his family, Lyre, Rune and Rukkio as they face many different challenges in the jungle.[7]

Jungle Emperor Leo (1966)

This feature-length film is based on the manga of Jungle Emperor Leo, but the plot is not related or a continuation of the 1965 TV series. It is another retelling of the original story by Osamu Tezuka. This film was awarded the St. Mark's Silver Lion Award at the 19th Venice International Film Festival in 1967.[8]

Jungle Emperor Leo (1989)

This series is a remake of the 1966 series made by Tezuka Productions. It aired on the TV Tokyo Network from October 11, 1989 – October 12, 1990 and was made up of 52 episodes similar to the original series. Much like the 1965 series, this series focused on the early life of Kimba (Leo).[9]

Jungle Emperor Leo (1997)

Released on August 1, 1997, the feature film Jungle Emperor Leo follows a similar story line to the original manga and goes through Leo's life. The notable difference in this retelling compared to the previous anime is that the 1997 film features the original ending that Osamu Tezuka intended for Leo. While the 1966 sequel TV series features a happy ending to accommodate the younger audiences, this film ends with Leo's sacrifice in order to bring peace to all life.[10]

Jungle Emperor Leo: The Brave Changes the Future (2009)

A remake of the original Television series. This series follows a new story line set in the future of 20XX, where there is an artificial jungle created by man. In this artificial jungle, a lion cub named Leo is born and grows up in this environment. This TV series is meant to be a retelling of Jungle Emperor Leo for a newer generation.[11]

Claims of resemblance to The Lion King

In 1994,

Mufasa from the Lion King appears and says to her "You must avenge my death, Kimba, I mean Simba," referencing the similarities between the two works.[13] Matthew Broderick, the voice actor for the Adult Simba, recalled in an interview back in 1994 that he once believed that he was cast in a project about Kimba, bringing up memories of watching the series as a child.[14]

In 2019, Walt Disney Pictures released a CGI remake of their film The Lion King, which resurfaced the controversy between Kimba the White Lion and The Lion King. When the Disney remake was released, an article by The Washington Post discussed the copyright issues between the remake and Kimba the White Lion. The Tezuka Family and director of Tezuka Productions claims that copyright laws are slightly different in Japan and therefore, The Lion King is not viewed as infringing copyright. They both viewed that the two works featured similarities in broad elements about nature, and copyrighting facts would not be possible. Furthermore, Billy Tringali states that it is common for Japanese writers to take inspiration from each other; however, as a result, the controversy in the American production of The Lion King lies in the lack of acknowledgment or similarities.[15]

References

  1. ISBN 978-1476665993
    .
  2. ^ "Jungle Emperor Leo｜animation｜Tezuka Osamu official". TezukaOsamu.net(EN). Retrieved 2020-03-06.
  3. ^ "Jungle Emperor Leo｜EPISODES｜TEZUKA OSAMU OFFICIAL". TezukaOsamu.net(EN). Retrieved 2020-03-31.
  4. ^
    ISSN 0022-3840
    .
  5. ^ "Kimba The White Lion: History of the original series". Kimbawlion.com. Retrieved 2014-07-19.
  6. ^ "Kimba the White Lion: The Complete Series". Amazon. 9 July 2013.
  7. ^ "New Jungle Emperor, Go ahead Leo!｜ANIMATION｜TEZUKA OSAMU OFFICIAL". TezukaOsamu.net(EN). Retrieved 2020-03-31.
  8. ^ "Feature Film: Jungle Emperor Leo｜ANIMATION｜TEZUKA OSAMU OFFICIAL". TezukaOsamu.net(EN). Retrieved 2020-03-31.
  9. ^ "Jungle Emperor Leo (New)｜ANIMATION｜TEZUKA OSAMU OFFICIAL". TezukaOsamu.net(EN). Retrieved 2020-04-04.
  10. ^ "Jungle Emperor Leo: The Movie｜ANIMATION｜TEZUKA OSAMU OFFICIAL". TezukaOsamu.net(EN). Retrieved 2020-04-04.
  11. ^ "JUNGLE EMPEROR -THE BRAVE CHANGES THE FUTURE-｜ANIMATION｜TEZUKA OSAMU OFFICIAL". TezukaOsamu.net(EN). Retrieved 2020-03-31.
  12. ^ "A 'Kimba' Surprise for Disney : Movies: 'The Lion King' is a hit, but reported similarities to the Japanese-created American cartoon of the '60s are raising some questions". Los Angeles Times. 1994-07-13. Retrieved 2020-03-06.
  13. ^ Cunningham, Phillip (December 17, 2019). "How 'The Simpsons' Lost Its Edge". The Washington Post. Retrieved April 4, 2020.
  14. ^ [1]
  15. ^ Denham, Hannah. "'Lion King' has been clouded by intellectual property controversy for 25 years. Here's the story behind it". Washington Post. Retrieved 2020-04-03.
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