Gosho Aoyama (Japanese: 青山 剛昌, Hepburn: Aoyama Gōshō, born June 21, 1963)[2][3] is a Japanese manga artist best known for his manga series Case Closed (Detective Conan, 1994–present). As of 2017, his various manga series had a combined 250 million copies in print worldwide.[4]
Gosho Aoyama
Aoyama at Comic-Salon Erlangen in Germany, 2006
Born
Yoshimasa Aoyama (青山 剛昌, Aoyama Yoshimasa)[1] (1963-06-21) June 21, 1963 (age 61) Hokuei, Tottori, Japan
Aoyama was talented in drawing even at an early age. In elementary school, his painting of "Yukiai War" won a competition and was displayed at the Tottori Daimaru Department Store.[3] He has an older brother who is a scientist and helps him out with the "gimmicks" in Case Closed.[5] He has another brother who is a doctor.[6]
Aoyama graduated from Yuraikuei High School, before going on to study at Nihon University College of Art in Tokyo. In winter of 1986, Aoyama won a comic contest for freshmen students.[3] When he was an art student, Aoyama had a part-time job working at Tokyo Disneyland, where he painted backgrounds for Pirates of the Caribbean.[7]
Aoyama made his debut as a manga artist with Chotto Mattete, which was published in the magazine Weekly Shōnen Sunday in winter of 1987. Shortly after that, he began Magic Kaito in the same magazine. Magic Kaito protagonist Kaito Kuroba later appeared in Case Closed.[3]
Between 1988 and 1993, Aoyama created the series Yaiba, which ran for 24 volumes. Later, he would release other manga series in single volumes, such as Third Baseman No.4 and Gosho Aoyama's Collection of Short Stories.[3] Aoyama also designed the characters for the "Twilight of Edo Japan" chapter in the 1994 video game Live A Live.[8]
Aoyama began serializing Case ClosedinWeekly Shōnen Sunday on January 19, 1994. When the series was first released in English, it was given the title Case Closed.
Aoyama has won two awards for his work as a manga artist. In 1992, he won the Shogakukan Manga Award for shōnen for Yaiba.[3] He would go on to win the same award for a second time in 2001, this time for Case Closed.[9]
Additionally, his hometown Hokuei has undertaken several machi okoshi (town revitalization) projects in honor of his contribution as a manga artist and resident. The first projects were the Conan Bridge across the Yura River and Case Closed statues.[10] On March 18, 2007, the Gosho Aoyama Manga Factory, a museum that celebrates Aoyama's career as a manga artist, was opened.[11]
On May 5, 2005, Aoyama married Minami Takayama, the singer of Two-Mix and voice actress for Conan in the anime adaptation of Case Closed.[12] On December 10, 2007, the two divorced.[13]
A five-volume manga series that tells the adventures of Kaito Kid, a mysterious gentleman thief who uses his skills as illusionist and master of disguise to commit robberies; his secret identity is that of high school student Kaito Kuroba. The first two volumes of the manga series were released in 1988, the third in 1994, the fourth in 2007, and the fifth in 2017; three more chapters were published in 2024. Although the series is currently on hiatus, Kaito Kid still appears regularly in Case Closed.
A 24-volume manga series about the adventures of a young samurai named Yaiba Kurogane. It was adapted into a 52-episode anime series which aired between 1993 and 1994.
A one-volume manga that tells the story of a boy named Shigeo Nagashima, a mediocre baseball player on his high school team. One day, he buys a magical bat from a sporting goods store that allows him to hit every pitch. However, he has to pay the mysterious store for each pitch he hits.
Gosho Aoyama's Collection of Short Stories (青山剛昌短編集, Aoyama Gōshō Tanpenshū)
Various short works written over the years:
Play It Again (プレイ イット アゲイン, Purei Itto Agein)
Excalibur (えくすかりばぁ, Ekusukaribā)
Santa Claus in the Summer (夏のサンタクロース, Natsu no Santa Claus)
The Detective George's Job (Detective George's Little Little & Great Operations) (探偵ジョージのミニミニ大作戦, Tantei Jōji no Minimini Daisakusen)
Wait a Minute (ちょっとまってて, Chotto Mattete)
Shōnen Sunday 19 (Talk) Show "The Wandering Red Butterfly" (サンデー19show さまよえる赤い蝶, Shōnen Sandē 19(Tō-ku) Show "Samayoeru Akai Chō")
Case Closed/Detective Conan (名探偵コナン, Meitantei Konan)(1994–present)
Ongoing series that tells the story of genius high school detective Shinichi Kudo, who one day is turned into a child by mysterious men and assumes the alias of Conan Edogawa. While trying to track down these men, he often encounters complicated mysteries, most of which only he can solve. This series is Aoyama's most well-known creation, and has been collected in 105 volumes as of April 10, 2024.
Tell Me a Lie (〜私にウソをついて〜, ~Watashi ni Uso o Tsuite~) (2007)
A one-shot about a girl named Terumi Arai (新井輝海, Arai Terumi), who can read people's minds when she looks them in the eyes.
