My book on animation smears is finally out! This has been in production since 2011 and it briefly beat one of the biggest animation textbooks of all time for Amazon best sellers. Featuring dozens of techniques and artists that helped contribute, it answers any question you ever had about smears.

If still around, Heihachiro would be in his 80s. Despite the loss of potentially many of his works due to the lack of original animator credits, he was a seasoned veteran of the industry and boasts an impressive portfolio that showcases a remarkable and unique style.

Aspects of Tanaka's life remains unknown, but an excerpt from a Hatena blog site lists him as responsible for Shingo Araki's storyboards. Whether this indicates a connection to the artist or the Araki Production studio remains unclear but is nevertheless an interesting anecdote.

At the age of 72, he started independently producing animations after learning how to use a computer. He continues to produce shorts for film festivals, winning awards like one at the 2018 Yokohama Independent Film Festival. It's unknown if any of his shorts are available online.

Heihachiro animated for various companies in the 2000s and also briefly worked for Tezuka Productions. They later disappeared from anime credits altogether after working mainly on single episodes between projects with their last on-screen credit appearing in 2009.

Heihachiro Tanaka was at Disney Japan until 1997-98, when he and other Disney artists started to leave on a much smaller scale. Some went to Group TAC, where they initially handled outsourcing animation to western productions before transitioning entirely to only anime.

After the box-office flop of "Little Nemo," several TMS employees resigned including then-president Yutaka Fujioka. Most joined the newly started Walt Disney Animation Japan in 1989, as many had prior experience with them and were presented with deals such as actual onscreen credits for their work.

The biggest shift in his career was when Tanaka started animating on foreign productions at Tokyo Movie Shinsha ever since 1982. Japanese animators earned more wage from the number of drawings than the length of footage, making Tanaka a suitable choice due to his work ethic.

As Toru Tanaka, he would later join Studio Pierrot in the early 80s and after working there was credited as Heihachiro Tanaka from 1982 onwards. Books like "Portrait of the Zero" and "Lupin III The 40!" as well as firsthand accounts verify that the two names are the same person.

Heihachiro, initially known as Toru Tanaka, began his career at Studio Zero in 1966, where he became an animator by personally knowing the company's staff. As recounted by @rhythm8823, his uncle was a founding father of the studio and the one that gave Tanaka the job.

I'm the real WHYx3, accept no substitutes. I'm mostly dormant when it comes to posting on sites, so fair warning in case anyone expects steady updates (other than the usual obscure animation discoveries seen on my other online profiles or highlight clips).