Shunsaku Ban [a.k.a. Higeoyaji] (Star) (Tezuka In English)

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Shunsaku Ban [a.k.a. Higeoyaji] (Star)

Shunsaku Ban

"Higeoyagi, born in Kanda..."

Easily recognizable by his huge, bristly mustache, Shunsaku Ban, also affectionately known as "Higeoyaji" and/or "Mustachio", is one of Tezuka's longest-running characters. Most often cast in the role of a spirited, if not particularly sophisticated, middle-aged man, he has appeared in many of Tezuka's most important series, including (but not limited to): Lost World (1948), Metropolis (1949), Next World (1951), Astro Boy (1952-68), The Adventure of Rock (1952-54), Lion Books (1956-57), Black Jack (1973-83), The Three-Eyed One (1974-78), MW (1976-78), Rainbow Parakeet (1981-82), among many others. Short-tempered and rough, he is also warm-hearted with a burning sense of justice - perfect for his usual occupation as a plucky detective.

It is interesting to note that, even though Shunsaku Ban appears in so many of Tezuka's series, he didn't really create him. As Tezuka confesses in his book I am a Manga Artist, Higeoyagi's character design is in fact based on a doodle that a good friend of Tezuka's drew of his own father, when both were in middle school. Tezuka swiped it and used it in Old Man Detective, one of his early amateur works, and he soon became an indispensable part of Tezuka's work.

Don't miss a rare appearance by Shunsaku Ban as a young man, with jet-black hair and sans his famous mustache, in the Lion Books (1956-57) chapter entitled "The Green Cat" (1956).

Manga Appearance List

Date	Series	Chapter Title	Appearing As...	Notes:
1947	Golden Bat		Count Salad
1948	The Magic House		Dr. Higeta
1948	The Mysterious Underground Man		Bill
1948	The Jungle Kingdom		Sandwitch
1948	Q-chan's Arrest Warrant
1948	The Four Fencers of the Forest		Braton the bandit
1948	Tobi's 20		The manservant
1948	King Rocket		Dr. Kamo
1948	The World of the Queen from a Thousand Years in the Future		King Boro
1948	Tuberculosis
1948	Secret Base on the Shari River		Frank
1948	Lost World		The private investigator
1949	Angel Gunfighter		Ship Captaion/One of the crowd
1949	Men with Tails		Frank Alan
1949	Metropolis		The private investigator
1950	The Golden City		A passenger on the ship
1950	The Wonderful Journey
1950	The Plain of Abusegahara		The barber
1950	The Strange Travels of Dr. Tiger		King Petakon
1950	The Tutelary God's Fire
1950	Manga University		The detective
1950	Jungle Emperor		Kenichi's uncle
1950	Ashiato Hot Spring
1951	Ambassador Atom
1951	Next World
1951	The Moony Men		The old man
1951	Fossil Island		The rock
1952	Astro Boy	Gaseous Beings
1952	Astro Boy	Frankenstein
1952	Skyscraper Kid		The manager
1952	A Man From Mars
1952	The Adventure of Rock
1952	People with Pistols on their Heads		Nurete Awabei
1953	Astro Boy	The Red cat
1953	Astro Boy	Sea Serpent Island
1953	Astro Boy	Flying Skyscraper
1953	X-Point in the South Pacific		Sam Yudo
1953	The Monster of the 38^th Parallel
1954	Astro Boy	Adventure on Mars
1954	Astro Boy	Cobalt
1954	Astro Boy	Fuhrer ZZZ
1954	The Devil of the Earth
1954	Wonder-kun		Kuzuoyaji
1954	Benkei		The sailor
1955	Astro Boy	Lightning Man
1955	Astro Boy	Guernica
1955	Astro Boy	Rejuvenating Gas
1955	Astro Boy	The Yellow House
1955	The Age of Great Floods		The former doctor who escaped from jail
1956	Astro Boy	Atlas
1956	Astro Boy	Midoro Swamp
1956	Astro Boy	The Robot Bombs
1956	Lion Books	The Next Human Beings	Kuroki
1956	Lion Books	The Green Cat
1956	Oh! We Three
1956	The Rainbow Fortress		The police detective
1957	Astro Boy	Black Lux
1957	Astro Boy	Alien's Ball
1957	Lion Books	The Crazy Border	A customer at the club
1957	Lion Books	Multiple-Eyed Devil	A customer at the station
1957	Lion Books	Bullet Hole in the Wilderness	The dentist
1957	The day when seal taking withered
1957	Mignon		Count Rotario
1957	The Earth War		Don Taro's uncle
1958	Astro Boy	Cruciform	Astro's teacher Mr. Mustachio
1958	Astro Boy	The Temma Race	Astro's teacher Mr. Mustachio
1958	Astro Boy	Count Bat	Astro's teacher Mr. Mustachio
1958	The Three Who Glimpse the Future		Dorokusa
1959	Astro Boy	The Eyes of Christ	Astro's teacher Mr. Mustachio
1959	Astro Boy	The Secret of the Egyptian Conspirators	Astro's teacher Mr. Mustachio
1959	Astro Boy	The Deep-underground Tank	Astro's teacher Mr. Mustachio
1959	Merchant of Venice		The chief judge
1959	The Doodle Encyclopedia
1959	My memory
1960	Astro Boy	Space Leopard	Astro's teacher Mr. Mustachio
1960	Astro Boy	Transparent Giant	Astro's teacher Mr. Mustachio
1960	Astro Boy	Day to Remember	Astro's teacher Mr. Mustachio
1960	Astro Boy	Uran	Astro's teacher Mr. Mustachio
1960	Astro Boy	His Highness Dead cross	Astro's teacher Mr. Mustachio
1960	Secret Order No.3		Inuoka
1960	Fire Valley		The bar owner
1961	Astro Boy	Plant Man	Astro's teacher Mr. Mustachio
1961	Astro Boy	The Robot Buron X	Astro's teacher Mr. Mustachio
1961	Astro Boy	Hot Dog Corps	Astro's teacher Mr. Mustachio
1961	Astro Boy	Teh Third Magician	Astro's teacher Mr. Mustachio
1961	The Ant and the Giant		The journalist
1962	Astro Boy	Space Parasites	Astro's teacher Mr. Mustachio
1962	Astro Boy	Robot Land	Astro's teacher Mr. Mustachio
1962	SHIKYOYAMAENGI Picture scroll
1962	A Blue Shadow Behind the Backstop		A painting
1963	Astro Boy	The Demon Bees	Astro's teacher Mr. Mustachio
1963	Astro Boy	The Devil's Balloon	Astro's teacher Mr. Mustachio
1963	S.F. Fancy Free	The inch insect
1963	The Eye of the Building		The detective
1964	Astro Boy	The Last Day of Earth	Astro's teacher Mr. Mustachio
1964	Astro Boy	The Grafted Brain	Astro's teacher Mr. Mustachio
1964	The Great Zeo		The minister
1964	The Story of Animals	Chapter of Sanma
1965	Astro Boy	Roboid	Astro's teacher Mr. Mustachio
1965	Astro Boy	Robio and Robiet	Astro's teacher Mr. Mustachio
1965	Astro Boy	The Blue Knight	Astro's teacher Mr. Mustachio
1965	Astro Boy	Heroes of Tezuka Osamu Manga	Astro's teacher Mr. Mustachio
1965	Astro Boy	Stolen Astro Boy	Astro's teacher Mr. Mustachio
1965	Jungle Emperor & Higeoyaji		Higeoyaji
1965	W3 [a.k.a. Amazing Three]		The fisherman
1966	Astro Boy	Jinmeniwa	Astro's teacher Mr. Mustachio
1966	Astro Boy	Resurrection of Astro Boy	Astro's teacher Mr. Mustachio
1966	Flying Ben		The private investigator
1967	Astro Boy	The Treasures of Zolomon	Astro's teacher Mr. Mustachio
1967	Astro Boy	Chronicles of Astro Boy	Astro's teacher Mr. Mustachio
1968	Astro Boy	The Man Who Returned From Mars	Astro's teacher Mr. Mustachio
1970	The Crater	The Mask of Tomoe	The toy company man
1970	Gachaboi's Record of One Generation
1971	Let's expel pollution From this year
1971	Zephyrus		The peasant
1972	Lion Books	Mother River	The XYZ TV staff member
1972	Lion Books	The March Covered with Mud	The journalist
1973	Lion Books	The Distant Planet	The Tokyo University professor
1973	Black Jack	Miyuki and Ben	The policeman
1973	Black Jack	Tale of a Snowy Night	The relief party
1973	Lolo's Journey		The customer in the exposition of made in Hokkaido
1973	Microid S		The vagabond
1973	The Euphrates Tree		The detective
1974	Black Jack	Lost Memory	The owner of Tokiwa apartment
1974	Black Jack	Ashes and Diamonds	The old man Matsukata
1974	Black Jack	Sinking Woman	The municipal officer
1974	Black Jack	A Wrong Diagnosis	The patient
1974	Black Jack	Two Loves	The customer in a sushi bar
1974	The Three-Eyed One	Mystery of the Third Eye	The owner of Rairaiken
1974	The Three-Eyed One	Underground Dungeon of the Jumyo in Residence	The owner of Rairaiken
1974	The Jumbo		The trading company employee
1975	Black Jack	Stradivarius	The passenger on a plane
1975	Black Jack	The Cat and Shozo	The doctor
1975	Black Jack	The Boy with the Belly	The professor of M University
1975	Black Jack	Swindler Apprentice	Dr. Yabui
1975	The Three-Eyed One	Mystery of the Three-Eyed Family	The owner of Rairaiken
1975	The Three-Eyed One	Secretin Glebe	The owner of Rairaiken
1975	The Three-Eyed One	The Flying Saucer	The owner of Rairaiken
1975	Astro Boy	Astro Boy II	Astro's teacher Mr. Mustachio
1976	It is Difficult Though Understands
1976	Black Jack	Race Against Time	The resident of a city
1976	Black Jack	U-18 knew	The patient
1976	Black Jack	Vibrations	The passenger on a bullet train
1976	Black Jack	Burglary
1976	Black Jack	Lost Money	The passenger on a train
1976	The Three-Eyed One	Seven Mysteries of seven-snake temple
1976	Astro Boy	Astro Boy Fights with Computer	Astro's teacher Mr. Mustachio
1976	Horror Tales of Yotsuya		The doctor
1976	MW		The bar master
1977	Black Jack	There were Two Films	Nozaki Mari
1977	Black Jack	The Disowned Son	The father
1977	Black Jack	The three-legged race	Shogo's father
1977	The Three-Eyed One	Mysterious Floating Debris	The owner of Rairaiken
1977	Auto Assistance Number 110, This is JAF
1978	Black Jack	The Changeing	The chief judge
1978	Black Jack	Light Fingers	Tetsu
1978	Black Jack	Callit Life	The train conductor
1978	Auto Assistance Number 110, This is JAF
1979	Untitled NEC Advertisment
1979	Tezuka Osamu on American Comics
1980	Astro Boy	The Doll of Spaceman	Astro's teacher Mr. Mustachio
1980	Astro Boy	The Guardian Deity Cat	Astro's teacher Mr. Mustachio
1981	Rainbow Parakeet	Shuzenji Story	Fuwata Tsugihagi
1981	Rainbow Parakeet	R.U.R	The puppeteer
1982	Rainbow Parakeet	Othello	The face of the butterfly
1982	Rabbit House 2001
1982	Volcanic Eruption		The primary-school principal
1982	SUNTORY Draft beer advertisement
1982	The 21st General Assembly of the Japanese Association of Medical Science
1983	This is what's going to happen in 1983
1986	Atom Cat

Anime Appearance List

Date	Series	Episode Title	Appearing As...	Notes:
1969.xx	Marine Express		Count Salad
1980.12	Astro Boy	Astro's First Love	Astro's teacher	Early Appearance

Astro Boy
Jungle Emperor Leo
Jungle Emperor, Go Ahead Leo!
Marine Express
Fumoon
Remake of Astro Boy
The Green Cat
The Last Big Event of the 20th Century

Published Jun 20, 2012 (Updated Sep 17, 2012)