Manga artist and gekiga icon Takao Saito passed away at the age of 84 from pancreatic cancer on Sept. 24.
Saito’s Legacy: Saito, whose death was announced on Wednesday by the editorial department of Big Comic, was best known for creating the longest-running Japanese comic-book series of all time, “Golgo 13”.
- “Golgo 13,” the tale of a legendary professional assassin, has been serialized in Shogakukan’s seinen manga magazine Big Comic since October 1968.
- When its 201st edition was released in July, it was certified by Guinness World Records as the highest number of volumes ever published for a single manga series.
- The manga has been adapted into an anime series, an animated film, video games and two live-action films.
- “Golgo 13” is the second-best-selling manga series of all time after “One Piece” and ahead of “Dragon Ball” and “Naruto.”
- In 2003, Saito was awarded the Medal with Purple Ribbon from the Japanese government for his contributions to academic and artistic developments.
Saito’s wishes: His production company, Saito Production, will continue “Golgo 13” in accordance with Saito’s wishes.
- While Saito did everything from drawing to writing, his production company was restructured to ensure his manga would continue.
- “Even without me, I want ‘Golgo 13’ to continue,” Saito reportedly said.
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