Astro Boy (partially found Canadian English dub of anime series; 1985): Difference between revisions

From The Lost Media Wiki
Jump to: navigation, search
No edit summary
mNo edit summary
(28 intermediate revisions by 15 users not shown)
Line 1: Line 1:
{{InfoboxLost
{{InfoboxLost
|title=<center>Astro Boy (Canadian Dub)</center>
|title=<center>Astro Boy (Canadian dub)</center>
|image=AB1985CanadianVLM.png
|image=AB1985CanadianVLM.png
|imagecaption=Screencap
|imagecaption=Credits.
|status=<span style="color:orange;">'''Partially Lost'''</span>
|status=<span style="color:orange;">'''Partially Found'''</span>
}}
}}
Osamu Tezuka's '''Shin Tetsuwan Atomu''' was a 1980 anime series as well as the first full colour animated series featuring Mighty Atom, known in English as Astro Boy. An English dub was recorded in 1980 in America and primarily played in Australia and America throughout the 1980s. However, a second English version was produced by Cinélume Postproduction Inc. <ref>[http://www.astroboy-online.com/forums/showthread.php?t=4104 Astro Boy Online thread about the dub]</ref> in 1985. Global Television licensed the dub for exclusive use within Anglophone Canadian regions.


Osamu Tezuka's ''Shin'' ''Tetsuwan Atomu'' was originally released in Japan and America in 1980, as the first full colour animated series featuring the character Mighty Atom / Astro Boy. An English version was recorded in 1980 in America, which primarily played in Australia and America through the 1980s. However, a second English version was produced in 1985 for exclusive use within Anglophone Canadian regions by Cinélume Postproduction Inc. <ref>[http://www.astroboy-online.com/forums/showthread.php?t=4104 Astro Boy Online thread about the dub]</ref>
This Canadian English version was never released on home video, and in the decades since, has since become extremely rare. As of October 6th, 2020, only 7 of 51 episodes have been recovered and released online.
{{#ev:youtube|https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AR7jD15-IWQ|320x240|right|A Global TV promo from 1988, featuring the Canadian actors.}}
 
This Canadian English version was never released on home video, and has since become extremely rare. As of April 2016, only 5 of 51 episodes have been recovered and released online.
==Dub edits==
<br>
The dubbed audio was originally recorded in late 1985 in Montreal, as described by [http://astroboy-online.com/forums/showthread.php?t=4524 Astro's voice actor Stephen Bednarski]<ref>[http://astroboy-online.com/forums/showthread.php?t=4524 Forum post by Astro Boy's Canadian voice actor.]</ref>. Early Canadian copyright laws did not require dub actors to be listed in credits, so most of the Canadian English cast is unknown. Actors have only been previously identified by recognizing their voices from previous roles.
== Dub Edits ==
 
The dub audio was originally recorded in late 1985 in Montreal, as described by [http://astroboy-online.com/forums/showthread.php?t=4524 Astro's voice actor Stephen Bednarski]<ref>[http://astroboy-online.com/forums/showthread.php?t=4524 Forum post by Astro Boy's Canadian voice actor.]</ref>. Early Canadian copyright laws did not require dub actors to be listed in credits, so most of the Canadian English cast is unknown. Actors have only been previously identified by recognizing their voices from previous roles. Janice Chaikelson and Walter Massey have been identified as additional voices.
{{Video|perrow  =1
[[File:AB1985CanadianVLM.png|thumb|220x220px]]
  |service1    =youtube
Unlike the American English dub, the Canadian version was highly edited for violence, with entire sequences being re-edited. One such example was in the episode "Light Ray Robot," where the original ending - an invisible robot runs away with a bomb and explodes in a forest - was edited with spliced in footage to make it seem as if the bomb failed and never went off. The episode "Save the Carolina-3" originally has a scene with a man being shot in the eyes with a laser, but footage was reorganized to completely remove scenes of him being shot, in pain, or even with his eyes bandaged for the rest of the episode. These edits are identical to those of the French dub, which was known as ''Astro le Petit Robot ''and also recorded in Montreal.
  |id1          =AR7jD15-IWQ
  |description1 =A Global TV promo from 1988, featuring the Canadian actors.
}}
 
Unlike the American English dub, the Canadian version was highly edited for violence, with entire sequences being re-edited. One such example was in the episode "Light Ray Robot," where the original ending - an invisible robot runs away with a bomb and explodes in a forest - was edited with spliced in footage to make it seem as if the bomb failed and never went off. The episode "Save the Carolina-3" originally has a scene with a man being shot in the eyes with a laser, but the footage was reorganized to completely remove scenes of him being shot, in pain, or even with his eyes bandaged for the rest of the episode. These edits are identical to those of the French dub, which was known as ''Astro le Petit Robot ''and also recorded in Montreal.


[[File:AB1985CanadaCinelume.png|thumb|220x220px]]
[[File:AB1985CanadaCinelume.png|thumb|220x220px]]
Curiously, the Canadian dub uses the American English dub's opening and ending themes, which were sung by the American dubbing cast. This suggests that the show's masters were either licensed from the other English dub production company, or the pre-existing English themes were provided by Tezuka Productions' international department.
Curiously, the Canadian dub uses the American English dub's opening and ending themes, which were sung by the American dubbing cast. This suggests that the show's masters were either licensed from the other English dub production company, or the pre-existing English themes were provided by Tezuka Productions' international department.


Almost every character's name was changed, aside from Astro Boy, Atlas, and some background characters. Character name changes include Astro's sister Uran being named "Sarah," and Astro's scientist mentor Dr. Ochanomizu (or Dr. Elefun in American English) being renamed "Professor Peabody." Most famous is the addition of sequences at the end of each episode, where Astro reports his adventure to a computer named Geronimo. There is always one error in his report, which the viewer is encouraged to identify as part of a game. The exact error was never specified in other episodes, instead left for the viewer to find themselves.
Almost every character's name was changed, aside from Astro Boy, Atlas, and some background characters. Character name changes include Astro's sister Uran being named "Sarah," and Astro's scientist mentor Dr. Ochanomizu (or Dr. Elefun in American English) being renamed "Professor Peabody." Most famous is the addition of sequences at the end of each episode, where Astro reports his adventure to a computer named Geronimo. There is always one error in his report, which the viewer is encouraged to identify as part of a game. The exact error was never specified in other episodes, instead of left for the viewer to find themselves.
 
==Known cast==
* '''Stephen Bednarski''' as '''Astro Boy'''
* '''Walter Massey''' as '''Mac McNugget''' (Higeoyaji), various
* '''Janice Chaikelson''' as various
* '''Rick Jones''' as various


== Legacy ==
==Legacy==
The series ran exclusively on regional stations belonging to Global Television from 1985 to 1996. Global Television's stations were generally free basic stations or available with basic cable, making the dub accessible to children of the time. Since it is moderately recent, many older viewers primarily remember the Canadian dub's character names, scenes, and jokes over the ones in the more accessible American version. Amazon.com reviews for the American ''Astro Boy'' Anchor Bay and Madman Entertainment DVD releases often contain complaints about not being the version the reviewer remembers.
The series ran exclusively on Global Television-affiliated regional stations from September 29, 1985, to September 10, 1994.<ref>[https://www.newspapers.com/image/325579887/?terms=%22Astro+Boy%22 27 Sep 1985, 28 - Nanaimo Daily News at Newspapers.com] Retrieved 05 Jul '18.</ref><ref>[https://www.newspapers.com/image/323967976/?terms=%22Astroboy%22 07 Sep 1994, 78 - 100 Mile House Fress Press at Newspapers.com] Retrieved 05 Jul '18.</ref> As a broadcast network, Global Television's stations were available free over-the-air and in basic cable packages, making the network's content highly accessible at the time. Many older viewers primarily remember the Canadian dub's character names, scenes, and jokes over the ones in the more accessible American version. Amazon.com reviews for the American ''Astro Boy'' Anchor Bay and Madman Entertainment DVD releases often contain complaints about not being the version the reviewer remembers.


== Availability ==
==Availability==
{{#ev:dailymotion|http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x3qp02f_astro-boy-1980-episode-2-the-robot-circus-canadian-dub_fun|320x240|right|Astro Boy 1980 Episode 2-Episode 2, "The Robot Circus", the earliest episode in the series available. This episode notably contains an different name and voice for Professor Peabody.}}
To date, only seven Canadian English episodes have been recovered. It was never released in any official home video format, and all surviving copies of the Canadian dub were recorded off of Global-affiliated stations during its run in syndication. A former employee of the Saskatchewan channel STV (now Global Saskatoon) has described the Canadian episodes being kept on beta tapes. Unfortunately, these beta tapes were then wiped and reused for another programming when ''Astro Boy''<nowiki/>'s syndication period ended.


To date, only five Canadian English episodes have been recovered. It was never released on any home video format, and all surviving copies of the Canadian dub were recorded off of Global-affiliated stations during its run in syndication. A former employee of the Saskatchewan channel STV (now Global Saskatoon) has described the Canadian episodes being kept on beta tapes. Unfortunately, these beta tapes were then wiped and reused for other programming when ''Astro Boy''<nowiki/>'s syndication period ended.
The French counterpart ''Astro le Petit Robot'' is available in full on DVD, but of course, these DVDs only contain the French dub audio.


The French counterpart ''Astro le Petit Robot'' is available in full on DVD, but of course, these DVDs only contain the French dub.
Dailymotion user [http://www.dailymotion.com/robotkat Robotkat] has been actively searching for more episodes and maintains web uploads of all seven recovered episodes. Episode 5 was provided by contributor Daniel Owen. The first minute was lost due to tape damage, but the first minute was thankfully recorded prior by Owen as proof of him owning it.


Dailymotion user [http://www.dailymotion.com/robotkat Robotkat] has been actively searching for more episodes, and maintains uploads of all five recovered episodes:
On October 6th, 2020, a Myspleen user named Conelrad uploaded the previously lost episode Episode 4: [https://mega.nz/file/BU1TTKTC#Jj4ivMRGVScYloWaj2NHX_pYGZS071SXJ6TMPhnamC4 Save the Classmate], while also stating he had one more episode of the Canadian Astro Boy dub to upload.
* Episode 2: [http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x3qp02f_astro-boy-1980-episode-2-the-robot-circus-canadian-dub_fun "The Robot Circus"]
* Episode 15: [http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x43i3my_astro-boy-1980-episode-15-astro-fights-aliens-canadian-dub-1-3_shortfilms "Astro Fights Aliens" part one], [http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x43i3mz_astro-boy-1980-episode-15-astro-fights-aliens-canadian-dub-2-3_shortfilms two], and [http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x43i3n0_astro-boy-1980-episode-15-astro-fights-aliens-canadian-dub-3-3_shortfilms three]
* Episode 22: [http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x43iaio_astro-boy-1980-episode-22-the-girl-from-alsoar-canadian-dub_shortfilms "The Girl From Alsoar"]
* Episode 27: [http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x3qp02e_astro-boy-1980-episode-27-the-time-machine-canadian-dub_fun "The Time Machine"]
* Episode 41: [http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x43iain_astro-boy-1980-episode-41-the-robots-nobody-wanted-canadian-dub_shortfilms "The Robots Nobody Wanted"]


{{Video|perrow  =3
  |service1    =dailymotion
  |id1          =x3qp02f
  |description1 =Astro Boy 1980 Episode 2, "The Robot Circus", the earliest episode in the series available. This episode notably contains a different name and voice for Professor Peabody.
  |service2    =dailymotion
  |id2          =x7wroiv
  |description2 =Episode 4: "Save the Classmate."
  |service3    =dailymotion
  |id3          =x6umsom
  |description3 =Episode 5: "Atlas Lives Again."
}}
{{Video|perrow  =3
  |service1    =dailymotion
  |id1          =x43i3my
  |description1 =Episode 15 part 1
  |service2    =dailymotion
  |id2          =x43i3mz
  |description2 =Episode 15 part 2.
  |service3    =dailymotion
  |id3          =x43i3n0
  |description3 =Episode 15 part 3
}}
{{Video|perrow  =3
  |service1    =dailymotion
  |id1          =x43iaio
  |description1 =Episode 22: "The Girl From Alsoar."
  |service2    =dailymotion
  |id2          =x3qp02e
  |description2 =Episode 27 "The Time Machine."
  |service3    =dailymotion
  |id3          =x43iain
  |description3 =Episode 41: "The Robots Nobody Wanted."
}}
==References==
==References==
<references></references>
{{reflist}}


[[Category:Lost audio]]
[[Category:Lost TV]]
[[Category:Lost TV]]
[[Category:Lost animation]]
[[Category:Partially found media]]
[[Category:Lost audio]]

Revision as of 13:07, 14 October 2020

AB1985CanadianVLM.png

Credits.

Status: Partially Found

Osamu Tezuka's Shin Tetsuwan Atomu was a 1980 anime series as well as the first full colour animated series featuring Mighty Atom, known in English as Astro Boy. An English dub was recorded in 1980 in America and primarily played in Australia and America throughout the 1980s. However, a second English version was produced by Cinélume Postproduction Inc. [1] in 1985. Global Television licensed the dub for exclusive use within Anglophone Canadian regions.

This Canadian English version was never released on home video, and in the decades since, has since become extremely rare. As of October 6th, 2020, only 7 of 51 episodes have been recovered and released online.

Dub edits

The dubbed audio was originally recorded in late 1985 in Montreal, as described by Astro's voice actor Stephen Bednarski[2]. Early Canadian copyright laws did not require dub actors to be listed in credits, so most of the Canadian English cast is unknown. Actors have only been previously identified by recognizing their voices from previous roles.

A Global TV promo from 1988, featuring the Canadian actors.

Unlike the American English dub, the Canadian version was highly edited for violence, with entire sequences being re-edited. One such example was in the episode "Light Ray Robot," where the original ending - an invisible robot runs away with a bomb and explodes in a forest - was edited with spliced in footage to make it seem as if the bomb failed and never went off. The episode "Save the Carolina-3" originally has a scene with a man being shot in the eyes with a laser, but the footage was reorganized to completely remove scenes of him being shot, in pain, or even with his eyes bandaged for the rest of the episode. These edits are identical to those of the French dub, which was known as Astro le Petit Robot and also recorded in Montreal.

AB1985CanadaCinelume.png

Curiously, the Canadian dub uses the American English dub's opening and ending themes, which were sung by the American dubbing cast. This suggests that the show's masters were either licensed from the other English dub production company, or the pre-existing English themes were provided by Tezuka Productions' international department.

Almost every character's name was changed, aside from Astro Boy, Atlas, and some background characters. Character name changes include Astro's sister Uran being named "Sarah," and Astro's scientist mentor Dr. Ochanomizu (or Dr. Elefun in American English) being renamed "Professor Peabody." Most famous is the addition of sequences at the end of each episode, where Astro reports his adventure to a computer named Geronimo. There is always one error in his report, which the viewer is encouraged to identify as part of a game. The exact error was never specified in other episodes, instead of left for the viewer to find themselves.

Known cast

  • Stephen Bednarski as Astro Boy
  • Walter Massey as Mac McNugget (Higeoyaji), various
  • Janice Chaikelson as various
  • Rick Jones as various

Legacy

The series ran exclusively on Global Television-affiliated regional stations from September 29, 1985, to September 10, 1994.[3][4] As a broadcast network, Global Television's stations were available free over-the-air and in basic cable packages, making the network's content highly accessible at the time. Many older viewers primarily remember the Canadian dub's character names, scenes, and jokes over the ones in the more accessible American version. Amazon.com reviews for the American Astro Boy Anchor Bay and Madman Entertainment DVD releases often contain complaints about not being the version the reviewer remembers.

Availability

To date, only seven Canadian English episodes have been recovered. It was never released in any official home video format, and all surviving copies of the Canadian dub were recorded off of Global-affiliated stations during its run in syndication. A former employee of the Saskatchewan channel STV (now Global Saskatoon) has described the Canadian episodes being kept on beta tapes. Unfortunately, these beta tapes were then wiped and reused for another programming when Astro Boy's syndication period ended.

The French counterpart Astro le Petit Robot is available in full on DVD, but of course, these DVDs only contain the French dub audio.

Dailymotion user Robotkat has been actively searching for more episodes and maintains web uploads of all seven recovered episodes. Episode 5 was provided by contributor Daniel Owen. The first minute was lost due to tape damage, but the first minute was thankfully recorded prior by Owen as proof of him owning it.

On October 6th, 2020, a Myspleen user named Conelrad uploaded the previously lost episode Episode 4: Save the Classmate, while also stating he had one more episode of the Canadian Astro Boy dub to upload.

Astro Boy 1980 Episode 2, "The Robot Circus", the earliest episode in the series available. This episode notably contains a different name and voice for Professor Peabody.

Episode 4: "Save the Classmate."

Episode 5: "Atlas Lives Again."

Episode 15 part 1

Episode 15 part 2.

Episode 15 part 3

Episode 22: "The Girl From Alsoar."

Episode 27 "The Time Machine."

Episode 41: "The Robots Nobody Wanted."

References