#16. Anpanman

Superhero with head of bread.

THIS WEBSITE CALLED ANPANLAND HAS WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW

But for those who actually want me to write something, Anpanman is the creation of children's author Takashi Yanase, first appearing in print in 1968. The anime started in 1988 and runs to this day.

HERE IS ANOTHER ARTICLE THAT IS OF INTEREST FOR THOSE WISHING TO LEARN MORE

Why not make a paper Anpanman?

This article from AWN in 1999 reports that the Anpanman museum was more popular than the Tezuka museum. He's clearly become one of those creations that has passed from being a mere character to becoming iconography. It's worth noting that the chracter is essentially drawing on other icons such as Superman and Pinocchio to a certain extent. Considering the amount of Superman clones and variants America has produced, few have become icons on the level Anpanman has in Japan. Unlike some of the other animated icons of Japan though, Anpanman's fame doesn't seem to have spread as far and as wide. There appears to be an Arabic version of the show, but he doesn't have the international coverage of Hello Kitty or Doraemon.