Kazuo Umezu or Kazuo Umezz (楳図 かずお, Umezu Kazuo, birth name 楳図一雄; born September 3, 1936) is a Japanese manga artist, musician and actor. Starting his career in the 1950s, he is among the most famous artists of horror manga and has been vital for its development, considered the "god of horror manga". In 1960s shōjo manga like Reptilia, he broke the industry's conventions by combining the aesthetics of the commercial manga industry with gruesome visual imagery inspired by Japanese folktales, which created a boom of horror manga and influenced manga artists of following generations. He created successful manga series such as The Drifting Classroom, Makoto-chan and My Name Is Shingo, until he retired from drawing manga in the mid 1990s. He is also a public figure in Japan, known for wearing red-and-white-striped shirts and doing his signature "Gwash" hand gesture.
16 movies · 2 shows
Kaidan. Strange Stories of Japanese Ghosts
2023·0.0
Why Horror?
2014·5.9
Gu Gu, the Cat
2008·6.6
God's Left Hand, Devil's Right Hand
2006·5.1
Tokyo Zombie
2005·5.6
Yaji & Kita: The Midnight Pilgrims
2005·6.0
Gozamareji
2003·0.0
Kazuo Umezu's Terror Zone: Horror!
1993·7.0
Monster Heaven: Ghost Hero
1990·5.7
The Drifting Classroom
1987·5.2
Monster Heaven
1986·7.0
Monday Drama Land: Akuma-kun
1986·0.0
Umezu Kazuo no Gyaru 10 Island
1983·0.0
Makoto-chan
1980·9.0
The Snake Girl and the Silver-Haired Witch
1968·6.8
Hoodlum Soldier
1965·7.2