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Osamu Tezuka Awards

Named for Osamu Tezuka, the creator of Astro Boy (among other famous characters), and generally considered to be the father of Japanese comics. There have been at least three separate awards that have gone by this name; two Japanese and one American. (For ease of display, all three are presented here under one title.)

The original incarnation was a biannual award created by the publisher Shueisha for its "Weekly Shonen Jump" magazine [Shukan Shonen Janpu] to recognize promising young manga artists; Tezuka himself was the chief judge of the award until his death in 1989.

The second incarnation was actually an American award for anime & manga, given out at the AnimEast convention.

The latest incarnation was established by the Asahi Shimbun (Asahi Newspaper), and is given to single-volume manga (including a volume that is part of a series) published in the preceding calendar year, usually at a ceremony in early June.

Original version
Also known as: Tezuka Awards, Biannual Osamu Tezuka Awards
Sponsored by: Shueisha Publishing
First year of award: 1971
Last year of award: Unknown
Award status: Unknown
Awarded at: Unknown
Number of categories: Unknown
Hall of Fame: No
Award for children's material: No
Type of Award: Unknown
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Second version
Also known as: Tezuka Awards
First year of award: Unknown; sometime in or before 1995
Last year of award: Unknown; sometime in or after 1995
Award status: Unknown, probably inactive
Awarded at: AnimEast convention
Number of categories: 17 (2 for manga/comics, 5 for anime/cartoons, 4 for either manga or anime, 6 for fan activities)
Hall of Fame: No
Award for children's material: No
Type of Award: Unknown
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Latest version
Also known as: Tezuka Awards, Osamu Tezuka Cultural Prizes, [Tezuka Osamu bunka shō 手塚治虫文化賞], Osamu Tezuka Manga Awards
Sponsored by: Asahi Newspaper [Asahi Shimbun]
First year of award: 1997
Award status: Active
Awarded at: Special ceremony arranged by Asahi Shimbun
Number of categories: 4 (Current); 2, one of which has 1st & 2nd places (Historical)
Hall of Fame: No
Award for children's material: No
Type of Award: Nominated
Nominations open to: Public
Voting open to: Judging panel
Official web page: www.asahi.com/tezuka/kiroku.html (Japanese only)
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Categories

  • Comics grand prize [Manga dai shō マンガ大賞] (1997-present)
  • Comics excellence award [Manga yūshū shō マンガ優秀賞] (1997-2002)
  • New life award, a.k.a. New hope award [Shinsei shō 新生賞] (2003-present)
  • Short story award [Tampen shō 短編賞] (2003-present)
  • Special award [Tokubetsu shū 特別賞] (1997-present)

Notes:

  • In 2003, the awards were reorganized into four categories: the Grand Prize for Manga, the New Life Prize (for freshness of content and expression), the Short Story Prize, and the Special Prize (for contributions to 'manga culture').
  • After a preliminary stage which includes participation by ordinary readers and industry professions and typically results in about 50-70 "nominees," members of the selection committee rank what they see as the top five finalists in descending order. (Each judge can award one or more fives, one or more fours, and so forth, but can award points to no more than five total finalists.) All of the judges' points for each finalist are added together, and the top vote-getter receives the Grand Prize for Manga. Before 2003, judges picked their top six finalists, and the second-place finisher received Honorable Mention ("Award for Excellence"). The winner of the Grand Prize for Manga receives a bronze statuette (in the shape of Atom Boy) and a cash prize of 2 million yen. Other winners receive the bronze statuette and 1 million yen.

  • English-language versions of the Japanese titles are given when they are known or can be easily discerned, followed by a transliteration of the Japanese title. Uncertain translations of titles are given in parentheses.
  • The modified Hepburn transliteration system was used, even for titles that are themselves Japanese transliterations of English words. (For example, the Japanese title for Vagabond is transliterated as Bagabonto.)
  • All names are given in the same order they would normally appear in English publishing (given name then family name).
  • I speak no Japanese, so I have had to rely on third party reporting and my own transliterations and translations for much of this information; the blame for any mistakes in interpretation, translation, and transliteration must lie on my shoulders.


Osamu Tezuka Award [Original]

1971-1979 (1st-17th)
No information

1979 (18th)
Grand Prize: Unknown
2nd prize: Tsukasa Hojo, for Space Angel

1980 (19th)
Katsura Masakazu, for Tsubasa

1980 (20th)
No information

1981 (21st)
Katsura Masakazu, for Tenkousei was Hensousei!?

1981-1986 (22nd-32nd)
No information

1987 (33rd)
Nobuhiro Watsuki, for [title?]

1988 (35th or 36th)
Inoue Takehiko, for Purple Maple [Kaede Purple]

1988-1992 (35th or 36th-43rd) No information

1992 (44th)
Jun-Nyuusen award: Eichiro Oda

1993-2002 (45th-64th)
No information

2003 (65th)
Yuuziro Sakamoto, for King or Cures (Shueisha)


Osamu Tezuka Award [AnimEast]

1995
Best Japanese Language Anime/Manga Publication: NewType
Best Non-Japanese Language Anime/Manga Publication: Animerica
Best Japanese Language Manga: Ranma 1/2
Best Japanese Anime/Manga Artist: Rumiko Takahashi
Best Translated Manga: Ranma 1/2
Best Non-Japanese Anime/Manga Artist: Steve Bennett
Best Anime Soundtrack: Macross Plus
Best Japanese Language Anime Not Released in US: Dragonball Z
Best English Language Anime: Macross Plus
Best English Voice Actor: for Isamu Dyson (Macross Plus)
Best English Voice Actress: for Nabiki (Ranma 1/2)
Best Anime/Manga Fanzine/Newsletter: The Rose (Anime Hasshin)
Best Anime/Manga Fan Club: Anime Hasshin
Best Anime/Manga Related Project: Hitoshi Doi synopses, and Otakon
Best Fan Artist: John Barrett
Most Dedicated Fan: Steve Pearl
AnimEast's Music Video Award Winner: Captain Nemo/Nadia by Marc Hairston


Osamu Tezuka [Cultural] Awards
1997 (1st)
1998 (2nd)
1999 (3rd)
2000 (4th)
2001 (5th)
2002 (6th)
2003 (7th)
2004 (8th)
2005 (9th)