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Astro Boy Statue Unveiled at Tezuka's Old Grade School
posted on by Egan Loo
On Monday, the Ikeda Elementary School in Osaka's Ikeda City unveiled a statue of the Astro Boy (Tetsuwan Atom) character that was created by the school's most famous alumni, the late manga and anime pioneer Osamu Tezuka. The school is marking its 100th anniversary on November 1; coincidentally, November 3 is the 80th anniversary of Tezuka's birth. Tezuka graduated from the school in 1941. Just before he died in 1989, he made a speech at the school's 80th anniversary celebration and called upon the children to embrace "love for nature and the preciousness of life."
The stone statue stands two meters (about seven feet) tall at the school's entrance. Inscribed on the statue's globe are the English words: "I love the earth and all creatures on it." The statue's base has a plaque that reads, "I love all living things that inhabit this earth. I want to take care of life. I want to bequeath this love to the next generation."
Source: Sankei Sports
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