World Masterpiece Theater
Encyclopedia
is a Japanese TV
anime
staple that showcased an animated version of a different classical book or story
each year on 7:30p.m. on Sunday. It originally aired from 1969 to 1997 then resumed in 2007.
It was originally produced by Zuiyo Eizo, and then by its successor Nippon Animation
. In both cases, the series originally aired primarily on Fuji Television
. Hayao Miyazaki
and Isao Takahata
both worked on several of the series. World Masterpiece Theater lasted for 23 seasons, from A Dog of Flanders in 1975 to Remi, Nobody's Girl
(家なき子レミ, Ie Naki Ko Remi, Sans Famille) in 1997. Nippon Animation restarted the series in 2007 with the release of Les Misérables: Shōjo Cosette
, which premiered on BS Fuji on January 7, 2007, with Porufi no Nagai Tabi (The Long Journey of Porphy) subsequently airing on the same network beginning on January 6, 2008, making it the 25th World Masterpiece Theater series. The most recent and 26th series is Kon'nichiwa Anne 〜 Before Green Gables (lit. Hello Anne ~ Before Green Gables).
To date, only three series were ever dubbed in English for the American market: Tom Sawyer
(1980), Swiss Family Robinson
(1981), and Little Women
(1987). The anime satellite television
network, Animax
, who also aired numerous installments of the series across Japan
, later translated and dubbed many of the series' installments into English for broadcast across its English-language networks in Southeast Asia
and South Asia
, such as Princess Sarah
(小公女セーラ, Shōkōjo Sēra), Remi, Nobody's Girl
(家なき子レミ, Ie Naki Ko Remi), Little Women
(愛の若草物語, Ai no Wakakusa Monogatari), and others. The serials also found success in Europe, with Anne of Green Gables
(1979, Miyazaki's last work for Nippon Animation before leaving the studio), Heidi, Girl of the Alps
as well as the aforementioned Princess Sarah.
The series has been known by various names over the years (as shown below), but "World Masterpiece Theater" is the name most commonly used by viewers. Nippon Animation's official English name for the series is "The Classic Family Theater Series"http://nipponanimation.com/catalogue/cata_theater.html.
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
anime
Anime
is the Japanese abbreviated pronunciation of "animation". The definition sometimes changes depending on the context. In English-speaking countries, the term most commonly refers to Japanese animated cartoons....
staple that showcased an animated version of a different classical book or story
Children's literature
Children's literature is for readers and listeners up to about age twelve; it is often defined in four different ways: books written by children, books written for children, books chosen by children, or books chosen for children. It is often illustrated. The term is used in senses which sometimes...
each year on 7:30p.m. on Sunday. It originally aired from 1969 to 1997 then resumed in 2007.
It was originally produced by Zuiyo Eizo, and then by its successor Nippon Animation
Nippon Animation
is a Japanese animation studio. The company is headquartered in Tokyo, with chief offices in the Ginza district of Chūō and production facilities in Tama City....
. In both cases, the series originally aired primarily on Fuji Television
Fuji Television
is a Japanese television station based in Daiba, Minato, Tokyo, Japan, also known as or CX, based on the station's callsign "JOCX-DTV". It is the flagship station of the Fuji News Network and the ....
. Hayao Miyazaki
Hayao Miyazaki
is a Japanese manga artist and prominent film director and animator of many popular anime feature films. Through a career that has spanned nearly fifty years, Miyazaki has attained international acclaim as a maker of animated feature films and, along with Isao Takahata, co-founded Studio Ghibli,...
and Isao Takahata
Isao Takahata
is a Japanese anime filmmaker that have earned critical international acclaim for his work as a director. Takahata is co-founder of Studio Ghibli with long-time collaborative partner Hayao Miyazaki. He has directed films such as the war-themed Grave of the Fireflies, the romantic-drama Only...
both worked on several of the series. World Masterpiece Theater lasted for 23 seasons, from A Dog of Flanders in 1975 to Remi, Nobody's Girl
Remi, Nobody's Girl
was a 26-episode Japanese anime television series by Nippon Animation, broadcasted since 1996 to 1997 across Japan on the Fuji Television network as an installment to Nippon Animation's famed World Masterpiece Theater series...
(家なき子レミ, Ie Naki Ko Remi, Sans Famille) in 1997. Nippon Animation restarted the series in 2007 with the release of Les Misérables: Shōjo Cosette
Les Misérables: Shojo Cosette
is a Japanese anime series by Nippon Animation, and is the first installment in the famed World Masterpiece Theater series in ten years after the major flop Remi, Nobody's Girl...
, which premiered on BS Fuji on January 7, 2007, with Porufi no Nagai Tabi (The Long Journey of Porphy) subsequently airing on the same network beginning on January 6, 2008, making it the 25th World Masterpiece Theater series. The most recent and 26th series is Kon'nichiwa Anne 〜 Before Green Gables (lit. Hello Anne ~ Before Green Gables).
To date, only three series were ever dubbed in English for the American market: Tom Sawyer
Tom Sawyer no Boken
is a Japanese anime series, directed by Hiroshi Saitô which was aired in 1980. It is based on the well-known and popular novel The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain....
(1980), Swiss Family Robinson
The Swiss Family Robinson: Flone of the Mysterious Island
is an anime series produced by Nippon Animation.The story is loosely based on the novel "Swiss Family Robinson" by Swiss author Johann David Wyss....
(1981), and Little Women
Ai no Wakakusa Monogatari
Little Women, also known as is a 1987 Japanese animated television series adaptation of Louisa May Alcott's Little Women, produced by Nippon Animation.A sequel series, Little Women II: Jo's Boys, premiered in 1993.- Plot :...
(1987). The anime satellite television
Satellite television
Satellite television is television programming delivered by the means of communications satellite and received by an outdoor antenna, usually a parabolic mirror generally referred to as a satellite dish, and as far as household usage is concerned, a satellite receiver either in the form of an...
network, Animax
Animax
is a Japanese anime satellite television network, dedicated to broadcasting anime programming. A subsidiary of Japanese media conglomerate Sony, it is headquartered in in Minato, Tokyo, Japan, with its co-founders and shareholders including Sony Pictures Entertainment and the noted anime studios...
, who also aired numerous installments of the series across Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
, later translated and dubbed many of the series' installments into English for broadcast across its English-language networks in Southeast Asia
Southeast Asia
Southeast Asia, South-East Asia, South East Asia or Southeastern Asia is a subregion of Asia, consisting of the countries that are geographically south of China, east of India, west of New Guinea and north of Australia. The region lies on the intersection of geological plates, with heavy seismic...
and South Asia
South Asia
South Asia, also known as Southern Asia, is the southern region of the Asian continent, which comprises the sub-Himalayan countries and, for some authorities , also includes the adjoining countries to the west and the east...
, such as Princess Sarah
Princess Sarah
is a 1985 Japanese anime series produced by Nippon Animation, based on Frances Hodgson Burnett's novel, A Little Princess. Spanning 46 episodes, it originally premiered in 1985 across Japan on Fuji Television as the 11th series of Nippon Animation's famous World Masterpiece Theater staple.It was...
(小公女セーラ, Shōkōjo Sēra), Remi, Nobody's Girl
Remi, Nobody's Girl
was a 26-episode Japanese anime television series by Nippon Animation, broadcasted since 1996 to 1997 across Japan on the Fuji Television network as an installment to Nippon Animation's famed World Masterpiece Theater series...
(家なき子レミ, Ie Naki Ko Remi), Little Women
Ai no Wakakusa Monogatari
Little Women, also known as is a 1987 Japanese animated television series adaptation of Louisa May Alcott's Little Women, produced by Nippon Animation.A sequel series, Little Women II: Jo's Boys, premiered in 1993.- Plot :...
(愛の若草物語, Ai no Wakakusa Monogatari), and others. The serials also found success in Europe, with Anne of Green Gables
Anne of Green Gables (anime)
is an animated television series, part of Nippon Animation's World Masterpiece Theater. It was adapted from the novel Anne of Green Gables by Canadian writer Lucy Maud Montgomery. Produced by Nippon Animation in 1979, it was first broadcast on Fuji TV from January 7, 1979 to December 30, 1979...
(1979, Miyazaki's last work for Nippon Animation before leaving the studio), Heidi, Girl of the Alps
Heidi, Girl of the Alps
is a 1974 anime series by Zuiyo Enterprises based on the Swiss novel "Heidi's Years of Wandering and Learning" by Johanna Spyri . It was directed by Isao Takahata and features Yoichi Kotabe , Hayao Miyazaki .Heidi is one of several World Masterpiece Theater titles produced around the "classical...
as well as the aforementioned Princess Sarah.
The series has been known by various names over the years (as shown below), but "World Masterpiece Theater" is the name most commonly used by viewers. Nippon Animation's official English name for the series is "The Classic Family Theater Series"http://nipponanimation.com/catalogue/cata_theater.html.
Productions
Series length
- Dororo - 26 episodes
- Moomin - 65 episodes
- Andersen Monogatari - 52 episodes
- Moomin (1972) - 52 episodes
- Fables of the Green Forest - 52 episodes
- Heidi, Girl of the Alps - 52 episodes
- Dog of Flanders - 52 episodes
- 3000 Leagues in Search of Mother - 52 episodes
- Rascal the Raccoon - 52 episodes
- The Story of Perrine - 53 episodes
- Anne of Green Gables - 50 episodes
- The Adventures of Tom Sawyer - 49 episodes
- The Swiss Family Robinson: Flone of the Mysterious Island - 50 episodes
- Lucy of the Southern Rainbow - 50 episodes
- Story of the Alps: My Annette - 48 episodes
- Katri, Girl of the Meadows - 48 episodes
- Princess Sarah - 46 episodes
- The Story of Pollyanna, Girl of Love - 51 episodes
- Little Women - 48 episodes
- Little Lord Fauntleroy - 43 episodes
- The Adventures of Peter Pan - 41 episodes
- My Daddy Long Legs - 40 episodes
- Trapp Family Story - 40 episodes
- The Bush Baby - 40 episodes
- Little Women II: Jo's Boys - 40 episodes
- Tico of the Seven Seas - 39 episodes
- Romeo's Blue Skies - 33 episodes
- Famous Dog Lassie - 26 episodes
- Remi, Nobody's Girl - 26 episodes
- Les Misérables: Shōjo Cosette - 52 episodes
- Porphy no Nagai Tabi - 52 episodes
- Hello Anne - Before Green Gables - 39 episodes