Fred Ladd’s Works and Legacy
Fred Ladd was the trailblazing visionary who introduced anime (Japanese animation) to the Americas, revolutionizing the entertainment industry in North and South America. As the pioneer in the field, he brought the captivating world of anime to areas where it was previously completely unknown, including the U.S., Canada, and Latin America— forever changing the landscape of animation and storytelling.
This website is dedicated to honoring his groundbreaking work and providing fans with information about his creations. Explore his legacy and gain insight into the remarkable journey that transformed the cultural and artistic landscape across the English-speaking world. Join us in celebrating Fred Ladd’s works, which built the bridge between Japan and America through the world of Animation.
Fred Ladd: Kimba Producer on The Lion King Controversy
Kimba - I mean Simba (The Simpsons)
Gigantor TV Series
Ladd Introduces Gigantor to America
In the summer of 1963, Fred Ladd first saw artwork featuring a giant robot remotely controlled by a young boy, for the purpose of staving off enemies and defending humanity. That artwork had been created in Japan some seven years earlier by Tokyo-based artist Mitsuteru Yokoyama. In Japan, the adventures of Tetsujin 28, translated as IronMan 28, had first appeared in a boys' magazine (Shonen). Its success then led to a black-and-white animated TV Series called Tetsujin 28-Go.
Ladd, at work then on an animated feature film called Pinocchio In Outer Space, an animated TV series he titled The Big World of Little Adam, and the Japanese-animated TV series Astro Boy, was intrigued by the story of an empowered youngster controlling an enormous, and enormously powerful, robot, to protect mankind. With then-partner Al Singer, Ladd formed a corporation called Delphi Associates, Inc., specifically to acquire and produce, in English, 52 half-hour episodes, for a series he named Gigantor after giving the robot that same name.
Ladd renamed the robot Gigantor, the 12-year old boy who controlled the robot became Jimmy Sparks, the latter’s guardian and mentor, Dr. Shikishima, emerged as Doctor Bob Brilliant, and the robot's mission became a crusade against crimeLadd also renamed the 12-year old boy, who controlled Gigantor, Jimmy Sparks; Jimmy’s guardian and mentor, Doctor Bob Brilliant; and the chief inspector with whom Jimmy Sparks and Bob Brilliant often worked, despite his being a bit of a bumbler, Inspector Ignatz J. Blooper. Gigantor’s mission, meanwhile, was framed as a crusade against crime. In this pursuit, Jimmy worked hand in hand with oft-inept detective chief inspector Otsuka, known in English as Inspector Ignatz J. Blooper.
A theme song, “Gigantor!,” was composed for the 52 episodes, and Gigantor, the series, became a reality in 1964, and a hit show, appearing throughout the 1960s on television stations in the U.S. and other English-speaking territories across the globe.
The New and the Original Gigantor
n 1993, Ladd and Tokyo-based TMS animation studio joined forces to convert TMS' 51-episode color series of Shin Tetsujin 28 to The New Adventures of Gigantor. Character designs are based upon the same drawings seen earlier in the black-and-white series. Meanwhile, for fans of all generations, Ladd’s version of the original Gigantor continues to air via streaming media, with more to come!
