| Karate Master | |
 Volume one cover art | |
| 空手バカ一代 (Karate Baka Ichidai) | |
|---|---|
| Genre | |
| Manga | |
| Written by | Ikki Kajiwara |
| Illustrated by | Jirō Tsunoda (1971–73) Jōya Kagemaru (1973–77) |
| Published by | Kodansha |
| Magazine | Weekly Shōnen Magazine |
| Demographic | Shōnen |
| Original run | 1971 –1977 |
| Volumes | 29 |
| Anime television series | |
| Directed by | Osamu Dezaki |
| Produced by | Eisuke Nozawa Nobuo Inada |
| Studio | A Production Tokyo Movie |
| Licensed by | |
| Original network | ANN (NET) |
| Original run | October 3, 1973 – September 25, 1974 |
| Episodes | 47 |
| Live-action film | |
| Directed by | Kazuhiko Yamaguchi |
| Studio | Toei |
| Released | 14 May 1977 |
| Runtime | 91 minutes |
Karate Master (空手バカ一代,Karate Baka Ichidai, lit. "A Karate-Crazy Life") is a Japanesemanga drawn byJirō Tsunoda and Jōya Kagemaru, with the story written byIkki Kajiwara. The story was inspired by the life of the real-lifekarate martial artistMas Oyama.[1][2]
The manga was published inWeekly Shōnen Magazine between 1971 and 1977, and accumulated in 29tankōbon volumes.[1] It was adapted into ananime television series from 1973 to 1974, and a live-action film in 1977.
Theanime television series was produced byTokyo Movie and aired Wednesdays, from 19:30 to 20:00, onNET from October 3, 1973 to September 25, 1974, totaling 47 episodes.[1][3][4]
The manga was first adapted into a live-action film byToei asKarate Baka Ichidai, which was released on 14 May 1977 (the English release title wasKarate for Life).[5] It was directed byKazuhiko Yamaguchi and starredShin'ichi ("Sonny") Chiba.[5] The two-part film,Shin Karate Baka Ichidai: Kakutōsha, which was directed by Takeshi Miyasaka and released in 2003 and 2004 to commemorate the seventeenth anniversary of Kajiwara's death, is often treated as an adaptation of the manga,[5] but its direct source is a book by Hisao Maki, Kajiwara's younger brother.[6]
The anime is now available onHulu (in the U.S.) under the nameKarate Master.Discotek Media has licensed the anime for home video release in North America.[7]
The success of the manga and the anime are often credited for producing a "karate boom" in Japan in the early 1970s.[8][9]
Video game artistKeiji Inafune drew inspiration fromKarate Master for several character designs in the arcadefighting gameStreet Fighter (1987).[10]
