Akira Toriyama, the creator of the popular Dragon Ball manga and anime series, passed away on Friday, March 1st, due to an acute subdural hematoma, according to a statement from his production studio.
Akira Toriyama is a renowned manga artist who gained fame for creating the widely popular manga series called Dr. Slump. The series earned him the prestigious 1981 Shogakukan Manga Award for being the best shōnen manga. Dr. Slump went on to sell over 35 million copies in Japan alone.
Toriyama’s next creation, Dragon Ball, is considered his most famous work and is one of the most successful and popular manga series worldwide. Dragon Ball has sold over 260 million copies worldwide, making it one of the best-selling manga series ever.
Toriyama has also contributed as a character designer for several popular video games, such as the Dragon Quest series, Chrono Trigger, and Blue Dragon. At the time of his death, Bird Studio said Toriyama had “several works in the middle of creation with great enthusiasm.”
“He has left many manga titles and works of art to this world,” the studio wrote in the statement. “Thanks to the support of so many people around the world, he has been able to continue his creative activities for over 45 years.” In addition, the studio stated, “Also, he would have many more things to achieve.”
The official handle of Goku from Dragon Ball announced that Akira Toriyama, the legendary manga creator and the father of Dragon Ball, had passed away, as per King Kai’s message from the Other World Check-In Station.