Fujio Akatsuka, a pioneer of gag manga, died of pneumonia at a Tokyo hospital on Saturday afternoon. He was 72.

Akatsuka was born in Manchuria in 1935 but grew up in Nara after his family moved there following the end of World War II. Inspired by the work of Osamu Tezuka, he decided to pursue comics, and in 1953 he moved to Tokyo where he worked in factory while submitting his manga to magazines.

He made his debut in 1956 with "Arashi wo Koete." He found popularity with "Nama-chan" in 1959, and three years later he started two of his biggest hits, "Osomatsu-kun" and the magical girl series "Himitsu no Akko-chan." He later published dozens of comics, including the popular "Tensai Bakabon."

Akatsuka received the Bungeishunju Manga Award in 1972, and in 1998 he was given the Shiju Hosho.