Museum Featuring Manga, Anime Planned for Kobe, Japan

The Nagata district in the central Japanese city of Kobe was devastated by the Great Hanshin earthquake in 1995, but district merchants plan to rent reconstructed vacant buildings to young manga creators to give them a working place. They are also planning a museum dedicated to Japanese animation with works by Osamu Tezuka (Astro Boy), Fujio Akatsuka (Tensai Bakabon), and Fujiko Fujio (Doraemon). Comedy gag manga creator Fujio Akatsuka passed away on August 2 after suffering with esophageal cancer since 1998 and a cerebral hemorrhage since 2002. A life-size model of the Ironman #28 robot (Tetsujin 28-gō, adapted as Gigantor in English) from Mitsuteru Yokoyama's manga and anime is being errected in the area.

Source: Daily Yomiuri Online