Machiko Hasegawa

Birthplace Taku, Saga Prefecture Machiko Hasegawa was one of the first female manga artists. She started her own comic strip, Sazae-san, in 1946. It reached national circulation via the Asahi Shimbun in 1949, and ran daily until Hasegawa decided to retire in February 1974. Her comic strip was turned into a dramatic radio series in 1955 and a weekly animated series in 1969, which is still running as of 2016. She received People's Honor Award in 1992. She died of heart failure at the age of 72 on May 27, 1992.