{"id":37700,"date":"2024-08-04T12:28:24","date_gmt":"2024-08-04T19:28:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ourstarblazers.com\/vault\/?p=37700"},"modified":"2026-01-23T14:48:52","modified_gmt":"2026-01-23T22:48:52","slug":"973a","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ourstarblazers.com\/vault\/973a\/","title":{"rendered":"Vintage Report 27: July 1980"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"2408icon\"<\/p>\n

This was the last round before the premiere of Be Forever Yamato<\/em> in theaters, and thus became the single busiest month in all of Yamato<\/em> history until the remake era began. To this day, no anime film has been promoted as heavily, and it’s hard to imagine one reaching these heights ever again. [2 pages]\n

<\/div>\n

<\/p>\n

This was the last round before the premiere of Be Forever Yamato<\/em> in theaters, and thus became the single busiest month in all of Yamato<\/em> history until the remake era began. To this day, no anime film has been promoted as heavily, and it’s hard to imagine one reaching these heights ever again.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Toei Animation Fan Club News #3<\/h3>\n

Since Toei Pictures was the production company for the film (with all preproduction coming out of Yoshinobu Nishizaki\u2019s studio, Office Academy), Be Forever<\/em> was a natural subject to cover in this issue of their own fan club newsletter. It was a modest publication of just 12 pages with minimal color, but still managed to get some unique and exclusive content. There was a brief bit about the May 26 press conference, comments from both Nishizaki and Leiji Matsumoto, a collection of little-known production notes, and announcements for the three biggest summer events: a sea cruise, a train tour, and the Festival in Budokan.<\/p>\n

See the pages and read the text here:<\/p>\n

Press conference, Nishizaki and Matsumoto comments<\/a>
\nProduction secrets, event announcements<\/a><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

July 1: Animec<\/em> No. 12<\/h3>\n

The 12th issue of Rapport’s bimonthly magazine contained a 5-page article that led an entire month of speculation on the meaning of the words “Warp Dimension.” The publicity office handed out a new spoileriffic story synopsis to be published here, there, and yonder, but not a word leaked about “Warp Dimension.”<\/p>\n

See the article here<\/a><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

July 1: Terebiland<\/em>, August issue<\/h3>\n

The first page inside the cover was a real grabber, fronting for an article that highlighted Yamato<\/em>‘s seven technology powerups for the movie (now just a month away).<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

July 1: SF Movie Magazine ’80<\/em><\/h3>\n

Thanks to George Lucas, Be Forever<\/em> wasn’t the only SF movie everyone looked forward to in the summer of 1980. Kinema Junpo Co., publisher of the biweekly Kinejun<\/em> magazine, covered all the big releases (live action and anime) in a dense 106-page squarebound mook. Be Forever<\/em> earned four pages that showcased some of the art provided to all magazine publishers in June and July.<\/p>\n

See the pages here<\/a> <\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\n

<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

July 1: Be Forever Yamato<\/em> Music Collection<\/h3>\n

The Be Forever<\/em> music onslaught began with the largest number of releases on a single day. The biggest was this LP, was the first of two symphonic albums from Nippon Columbia. They continued the tradition of Hiroshi Miyagawa’s 1977 Symphonic Suite<\/em> by transforming soundtrack music into multi-layered orchestral arrangements. This gave symphonic albums their own unique identity, but continually frustrated fans who wanted to hear exactly what was played on screen. That frustration would continue for another six months until Columbia finally relented.<\/p>\n

Another milestone represented here was the promotion of classical pianist Kentaro Haneda to help Miyagawa with the workload of writing new compositions. This more than any other factor contributes to the evolution of the Be Forever<\/em> score beyond what was heard before.<\/p>\n

Trivia:<\/em> this was the last official product to put the character name “Kiman” in print; shortly after the album went to press the name was changed to “Alphon.” In the remake years, it evolved into “Keyman” as a new character in Yamato 2202<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Read more about the album here<\/a><\/p>\n


\nMagazine ads, King Records<\/em><\/p>\n

July 1: Until the Day of Love\/Galaxy Legend<\/em> single<\/h3>\n

The most hotly-anticipated song from the film was Akira Fuse’s uplifting end title theme, which filled the same niche in 1980 that Kenji Sawada’s From Yamato With Love<\/em> did in 1978. The B side contained Fuse’s cover of Galaxy Legend<\/em>, a composition by Hiroshi Miyagawa that would be recorded by another artist (on the same day this single was released, in fact) and heard after the end credit roll. 44 years later, it would be revived as the end title for Be Forever Yamato REBEL 3199<\/em> Chapter 1.<\/p>\n

Click here<\/a> to read more about it and find translated lyrics | Listen to both tracks on Youtube here<\/a><\/p>\n

See a live performance from July 1980 here<\/a> | Listen to Isao Sasaki’s cover version here<\/a><\/p>\n

<\/span><\/p>\n

July 1: Pendant of Stars\/Face in the Stars<\/em> single<\/h3>\n

It was a given that Isao Sasaki would sing an \u2018insert song\u2019 for the movie, and his was the first to be heard. It follows Yamato<\/em>\u2018s launch from the asteroid base Icarus and expresses Kodai\u2019s feelings of loss after being parted from Yuki. The song is more akin to mainstream music than the average anime theme, carrying on the spirt of The Scarlet Scarf.<\/em><\/p>\n

The B-side, Face in the Stars<\/em>, was the first Yamato<\/em> song written by a woman, pop songwriter Yoko Yamaguchi. It carries a decidedly more feminine tone, especially when performed by rising star Mitsuko Horie. It would be the first of four songs she would add to the Yamato<\/em> catalog. Not heard in the film, it classifies as an “image song,” in this case evoking Starsha\u2019s thoughts of her daughter.<\/p>\n

Click here<\/a> to read more about the single and find translated lyrics<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

July 1: Picture disc single<\/h3>\n

The now-classic Yamato<\/em> theme wasn’t actually heard in Be Forever<\/em>, and neither was The Scarlet Scarf<\/em>, but it was unthinkable for these two most beloved songs not to get a fresh release on the occasion of a new film. <\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Nippon Columbia stepped up by doing something extra special, reissuing them as part of a series of picture discs in their “Colorport” line. Substantially thicker than vinyl, it was released in limited quantities and became cherished by collectors. The lyric sheet insert, usually printed on paper, came in clear plastic.<\/p>\n


\nDon’t become an ordinary Earthling. You need good dreams. You need good nutrition. – Japan Fish Sausage Association<\/em><\/p>\n

July 2: Fish sausage tie in<\/h3>\n

Read that line again, it will still say “fish sausage tie in.” What gives? Here’s an explanation from Yamato<\/em> historian Toshinori Watanabe (from his book Hero’s Trajectory<\/em>)…<\/p>\n

100,000 pencil boards! 15,000 B-size posters! Distributed to about 500 elementary and junior high schools nationwide from early July to August 20th! Since they were distributed so widely, it seems like it would be easy to get one, but it’s difficult to get one now. It’s very valuable!<\/span><\/p>\n

At the time, Yamato<\/em> became the savior of the sausage industry. Perhaps there was a picture of Yamato<\/em> on the packaging, etc. If that’s the case, a photo of the sausage may have appeared in supermarket flyers. Such flyers would be even more valuable, but do they actually exist?<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

From July 30th to August 5th, they were displayed in about 140 major stations of the national railways (now JR), private railways, and subways nationwide. The impact this sausage had on us was amazing!<\/span><\/p>\n

At the movie theater, several commercials are shown just before the main movie starts, and after a Columbia Records commercial, a serious Yamato<\/em> commercial started. I wondered what it was about, and then it said “Fish sausage, a gift from the sea.” The whole place burst into laughter (I recorded it). The ad ended with the catchphrase, “Don’t become an ordinary Earthling!” and everyone laughed out loud!! The impact was very strong.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

July 3: Bouken Oh [Adventure King]<\/em> August issue<\/h3>\n

Akita Shoten’s monthly manga magazine made room for Yamato<\/em> with a 4-page Be Forever<\/em> article that kept the fires burning. They also promoted a couple bonus items to be bundled with the next issue.<\/p>\n

See the pages here<\/a><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

July 5: Kinejun<\/em> issue no. 791<\/h3>\n

Kinejun<\/em> (a contraction of Kinema Junpo<\/em>, which roughly means Biweekly Cinema)<\/em> is a long-running magazine specializing in live-action film that started all the way back in the 1950s and continues to this day. Farewell to Yamato<\/em> was the first anime film to get a cover story, and lightning struck again two years later with Be Forever<\/em>. <\/p>\n

Opening with 7 pages of stills, the magazine contained three articles that investigated the thoughts of key staff members to a degree found nowhere else. Scriptwriter Keisuke Fujikawa wrote a personal essay that took an unabashed look at both the positive and negative aspects of Yamato<\/em> production. Directors Tomoharu Katsumata and Toshio Masuda provided separate interviews that explored their careers and reflected on the emergence of live-action sensibilities in the world of anime.<\/p>\n

The screenplay for Be Forever<\/em> was also presented, up to the point where Yamato<\/em> pierces the Dark Nebula. The rest was published three issues later so as not to spoil the ending.<\/p>\n

See the pages and read the text here:
\nEssay by Scriptwriter Keisuke Fujikawa<\/a>
\nInterview with Chief Director Tomoharu Katsumata<\/a>
\nInterview with Director Toshio Masuda<\/a><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

July 6: Mystery Tour ticket lottery<\/h3>\n

What was the “Mystery Tour”? Think of it as a summer vacation sponsored by a movie. Toei Pictures did it in 1979 for Galaxy Express 999<\/em>, which was a slamdunk of an idea since it was a train trip into the countryside. Like the Adventure Roman<\/em> cruise, tickets were awarded in a prize lottery.<\/p>\n

“Mystery Tour 2” would follow the same model with Be Forever<\/em> as the theme, and a similar lottery for tickets was held on this day at Ueno train station in Tokyo. 1,233 fans applied for 560 seats. The destination for the trip was kept secret until arrival at the end of the month.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

July 9: Maeterlinck’s Blue Bird<\/em> finishes<\/h3>\n

Having started broadcasting on January 9, this fantasy series produced by Nishizaki and Office Academy concluded with its 26th episode today. It’s intimidating to imagine the workload; the second half of Blue Noah<\/em>, the development phase for Yamato III<\/em>, and all of Be Forever<\/em> were produced during this period. Small wonder Nishizaki never undertook that many simultaneous productions again.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

July 9: Novel Junior<\/em>, August issue<\/h3>\n

Shueisha was the publisher of this monthly magazine that promoted reading for young people. The August issue contained a 5-page excerpt as a teaser; the following issue would contain a “junior” novelization of the movie.<\/p>\n

See the pages here<\/a> <\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

July 9: Tokyo Sports<\/em> article<\/h3>\n

“Yamato<\/em> is only possible because of the fans, says Nishizaki.” That’s what the caption under the photo says in this article from a movie gossip column of the Tokyo Sports<\/em> newspaper. It presented a brief but illuminating profile of Nishizaki’s state of mind at this particular point, in which he admits lessons were learned when success caught him off guard.<\/p>\n

Read the article here<\/a><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

July 9: Middle First Age<\/em>, August issue<\/h3>\n

Obunsha’s student digest for 7th graders went hard at Be Forever<\/em> with a 13-page article that packed in as many color stills as possible, revealed the secrets of Asteroid Icarus with original art, spilled as much of the story as they could, and tested readers with a quiz.<\/p>\n

See all the pages here<\/a><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

July 9: Middle 2nd Age<\/em>, August issue<\/h3>\n

Obunsha’s student digest for 8th graders contained this handy foldout calendar, which helpfully indicated two important dates: the Be Forever<\/em> premiere (August 2) and the next issue of Middle 2nd Age<\/em> (August 9).<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

July 9: Middle 2nd Year Course<\/em>, August issue<\/h3>\n

Gakken’s student digest for 8th graders seemed intent on spoiling as much of Be Forever<\/em> as possible, cramming all the biggest spoilers into two pages.<\/p>\n

Read the article here<\/a><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

July 10: Hokkaido Shimbun<\/em> [newspaper] article<\/h3>\n

Despite what must have been a killer schedule, Nishizaki teamed up with Leiji Matsumoto and Isao Sasaki to attend a promotional fan club meeting in Sapporo on July 7. As with previous outings, this included a press conference from which this article originated.<\/p>\n

In it, Nishizaki responds (maybe for the first time) to criticism for bringing Yamato<\/em> back to the big screen after assuring everyone that Farewell<\/em> was the finale, and incorrect assumptions are made about Leiji Matsumoto’s authorship. All in a day’s work for the mainstream media.<\/p>\n

Read it here<\/a><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

July 10: Academy Production becomes Tokyo Animation, Ltd.<\/h3>\n

Big things were afoot apart from movie production. On this day, the name Academy Production Ltd. (seen above in the end credits of Blue Bird<\/em> and God Sigma<\/em> and below in Be Forever<\/em>) changed to Tokyo Animation Ltd. Its capital would triple from 3 million yen to 9 million yen on September 12. The roster of company officers changed, too. Koji Yukawa (formerly of Academy) was named CEO\/President, Takashi Iijima became CEO\/Producer, and the three new board members were Tatsuo Shibayama, Hiroshi Sasagawa, and Shozo Suto.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

This broke away from the closely-associated image of Yamato<\/em> = Academy, but it was a fresh start for a production company with a broad range of projects. After Blue Noah<\/em> and Blue Bird<\/em> both wrapped, the staff shifted over to devote their full attention to Yamato III<\/em>. Contrary to such a high pedigree, there would be a hard fight for TV ratings, and as a result it became a series that would represent the company at the peak of its quality.<\/p>\n

In case it’s not immediately obvious, this is just one slice of a much bigger business pie; find other slices here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

July 10: Animage<\/em> Vol. 26, August issue<\/h3>\n

Animage<\/em> loaded this issue up with 16 pages of Be Forever<\/em> coverage and a substantial collection of new artwork. They lead with the longest story synopsis seen so far, impressively-detailed character and mecha guides, interviews with the various production departments at Toei Studio (giving some of the staff members their first and only public exposure), event details directly from the publicist, and a brief report of the June 6 live radio drama. It was also the first article to reflect the name change from Kiman to Alphon.<\/p>\n

See the entire article here<\/a><\/p>\n

Read the text here:
\nStaff messages<\/a>
\nPublicist interview, radio drama<\/a><\/p>\n

Also within these pages is a little-remembered Easter egg in the form of an ad for upcoming model kits from Bandai. See if you can spot it…<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Second row, far right: that photo shows the prototype for the Dark Nebula’s Heavy Transport Ship. This model was never released. Instead, it had to wait decades for garage kit technology to catch up and fill the gap (as seen here<\/a>).<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Promotional poster for the August issue of Animage<\/em>.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

July 10: The Anime<\/em> Vol. 9, August issue<\/h3>\n

Not to be outdone, The Anime<\/em> turned out their own beefy article, this time 19 pages long with as much variety and creativity as their June issue. There was a hefty guide to characters on both sides of the story, several new color scenes, a one-of-a-kind mission map (never reprinted elsewhere), the biggest and most vivid report on the June 6 radio drama, sheet music for new songs, and coverage of the June fan club meetings that went beyond the official fan club magazine (with an interesting scoop on what happened during the train ride between meeting sites).<\/p>\n

Bonus items bundled with the magazine included a Sasha poster and an anime song book.<\/p>\n

See the entire article here<\/a><\/p>\n

Read the text here:
\nRadio Drama Report<\/a>
\nFan Club Meetings<\/a>
\nBonus items<\/a> <\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

July 10: Monthly Animation<\/em> No. 7, August issue<\/h3>\n

Despite a promising run, this would be the final issue of Monthly Animation<\/em>, but they went out swinging. The cover story on Be Forever<\/em> ran for 15 pages, including unique interviews with Yoshinobu Nishizaki, Leiji Matsumoto, Animation Director Tomoharu Katsumata, and Assistant Director Kazunori Tanahashi. The capper was a short essay by the always-insightful Director Toshio Masuda.<\/p>\n

Read the articles here:
\nMain article<\/a>
\nYoshinobu Nishizaki interview<\/a>
\nLeiji Matsumoto interview<\/a>
\nTomoharu Katsumata interview<\/a>
\nKazunori Tanahashi interview<\/a>
\nToshio Masuda essay<\/a><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

July 10: TV Anime Battlefront \/ Personal Opinion: 17 Years in Anime<\/em><\/h3>\n

Noboru Ishiguro is a legend in the anime world, with a resume that probably outstrips anyone else\u2019s. He got into the business well before Yamato<\/em> and continued long after with his name on everything from Astro Boy<\/em> to Macross<\/em>. (See his resume on Anime News Network<\/em> here<\/a>.)<\/p>\n

This paperback was a real-world account of life as an animator, co-written with Niroko Ohara. He\u2019d parted ways with Yamato<\/em> by this time after enduring the punishing blows of Yamato 2, The New Voyage<\/em>, and a handful of scenes in Be Forever<\/em>. His main project in 1980 was a color remake of Astro Boy<\/em> for Tezuka Pro. Macross<\/em> was still two years away.<\/p>\n

Click here<\/a> to read the Yamato<\/em> chapter from his book, which revealed behind-the-scenes stories that went on to become industry legends.<\/p>\n


\nShusei Nakamura (Shima) and Kei Tomiyama (Kodai) at the mic<\/em><\/p>\n

July 13-15: Voice recording<\/h3>\n

The “afreco” (after-recording) for Be Forever<\/em> took place over three days with different actors in each session at Avaco Studio in Tokyo, using a rough cut of the film. It signaled the shift into post-production with less than three weeks to finish all the sound work in time for the premiere.<\/p>\n

The fan club magazine published an account in its next issue just ten days later. Click here<\/a> to read it.<\/p>\n

See a short report from The Anime<\/em> magazine here<\/a><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

July 15: Fanroad<\/em> magazine debuts<\/h3>\n

Part of Animec<\/em>‘s goal in distinguishing itself from other anime magazines was to include fan-generated content and focus on fan activities. That effort was successful enough to spawn a quarterly spinoff magazine. Rather than promoting the latest anime titles or interviewing industry folk, the mission was to celebrate the fan lifestyle and sprinkle in some anime coverage on the side.<\/p>\n

That mission is reflected in the editorial tone of their 4-page Be Forever<\/em> article, which “advises” a fan on what sort of experience they might look forward to.<\/p>\n

Read the article here<\/a><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

July 18: OUT<\/em>, September issue<\/h3>\n

Given OUT<\/em>‘s unique role in Yamato<\/em> history (read all about it here<\/a>), it was only natural that Be Forever<\/em> would get treated with full honors, and the editors outdid themselves with 43 pages of adulation. That meant that when it was published, this single issue of OUT<\/em> contained about a quarter of all the Be Forever<\/em> magazine coverage you could get up to that moment.<\/p>\n

The articles covered a wide range of topics including staff interviews, numerous testimonials and essays, the first attempt to reconcile the saga\u2019s timeline, and a reliably candid round-table discussion among fans whose perspectives were changing as SF anime entered the 1980s.<\/p>\n

See all the pages here<\/a><\/p>\n

Read the text here:
\nIntroduction and Producer\u2019s message<\/a>
\nI love Yamato<\/em> essay<\/a>
\nLeiji Matsumoto interview<\/a>
\nMecha research<\/a>
\nProduction staff interviews<\/a>
\nMusic essay<\/a>
\nMaps & timeline<\/a>
\nA Study of Love in Yamato<\/em> essay<\/a>
\nYamato<\/em> Cocktail columns<\/a>
\nRound-table fan discussion<\/a><\/p>\n

<\/br><\/p>\n

That’s the first half of this vintage report. Click here<\/a> to keep going!<\/p>\n

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