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Karate Master

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Karate Master
Volume one cover art
空手バカ一代
(Karate Baka Ichidai)
Genre
Manga
Written byIkki Kajiwara
Illustrated byJirō Tsunoda (1971–73)
Jōya Kagemaru (1973–77)
Published byKodansha
MagazineWeekly Shōnen Magazine
DemographicShōnen
Original run1971 – 1977
Volumes29
Anime television series
Directed byOsamu Dezaki
Produced byEisuke Nozawa
Nobuo Inada
StudioA Production
Tokyo Movie
Licensed by
Original networkANN (NET)
Original run October 3, 1973 – September 25, 1974
Episodes47
Live-action film
Directed byKazuhiko Yamaguchi
StudioToei
Released14 May 1977
Runtime91 minutes

Karate Master (空手バカ一代, Karate Baka Ichidai, lit. "A Karate-Crazy Life") is a Japanese manga drawn by Jirō Tsunoda and Jōya Kagemaru, with the story written by Ikki Kajiwara. The story was inspired by the life of the real-life karate martial artist Mas Oyama.[1][2]

The manga was published in Weekly Shōnen Magazine between 1971 and 1977, and accumulated in 29 tankōbon volumes.[1] It was adapted into an anime television series from 1973 to 1974, and a live-action film in 1977.

Anime and film adaptations

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The anime television series was produced by Tokyo Movie and aired Wednesdays, from 19:30 to 20:00, on NET from October 3, 1973 to September 25, 1974, totaling 47 episodes.[1][3][4]

The manga was first adapted into a live-action film by Toei as Karate Baka Ichidai, which was released on 14 May 1977 (the English release title was Karate for Life).[5] It was directed by Kazuhiko Yamaguchi and starred Shin'ichi ("Sonny") Chiba.[5] The two-part film, Shin Karate Baka Ichidai: Kakutōsha, which was directed by Takeshi Miyasaka and released in 2003 and 2004 to commemorate the seventeenth anniversary of Kajiwara's death, is often treated as an adaptation of the manga,[5] but its direct source is a book by Hisao Maki, Kajiwara's younger brother.[6]

The anime is now available on Hulu (in the U.S.) under the name Karate Master. Discotek Media has licensed the anime for home video release in North America.[7]

Reception and legacy

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The success of the manga and the anime are often credited for producing a "karate boom" in Japan in the early 1970s.[8][9]

Video game artist Keiji Inafune drew inspiration from Karate Master for several character designs in the arcade fighting game Street Fighter (1987).[10]

References

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  1. ^ a b c "Karate baka ichidai". Dejitaru Daijisen Purasu (in Japanese). Shogakukan. Retrieved 11 May 2014.
  2. ^ "Waru Action Manga Artist Joya Kagemaru Passes Away". Anime News Network. Retrieved 2014-03-23.
  3. ^ "Karate baka ichidai". Movie Square (in Japanese). Retrieved 11 May 2014.
  4. ^ "TV Anime Karate baka ichidai". AllCinema (in Japanese). Retrieved 11 May 2014.
  5. ^ a b c "Karate baka ichidai". Kinenote (in Japanese). Kinema Junpo. Retrieved 11 May 2014.
  6. ^ "Shin Karate Baka Ichidai: Kakutōsha". Cinema Topics Online (in Japanese). Retrieved 11 May 2014.
  7. ^ "Discotek Adds Hana Yori Dango, 07-Ghost, Beelzebub, Kyousougiga, Getter Robo Armageddon, Z/X Iginition, Karate Master". Anime News Network. August 27, 2015. Retrieved August 29, 2015.
  8. ^ Hashimoto, Norihiro. "'Karate Saikyō Gensō' Futatabi". Number (in Japanese). Bungei Shunju. Retrieved 11 May 2014.
  9. ^ "1969-1987". Kokushin Kaikan no Rekishi (in Japanese). Kokushin Kaikan. Retrieved 11 May 2014.
  10. ^ McLaughlin, Rus (16 February 2009). "IGN Presents the History of Street Fighter". IGN. Retrieved 31 January 2022.
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