[1][2][3] As the first president of Tatsunoko Production, Yoshida supported the dawn of Japanese animation by producing numerous hits such as Science Ninja Team Gatchaman, Hakushon Daimaō, and The Adventures of Hutch the Honeybee.
[4][5][6][b] Born in Kyoto in 1932 as the eldest son of the Yoshida family, Tatsuo grew up in the hardship of war-torn Japan.
[1] His parents died shortly after the war, and he became a self-taught artist at an early age, supporting his family by drawing illustrations for newspapers and magazines and sketches for Kamishibai (paper plays).
[7] After working for a local newspaper in Kyoto, he moved to Tokyo and began his career as a novel illustrator and E-monogatari[c] artist.
[12] After his death, the presidency was taken over by his younger brother Kenji (from 1977 to 1987; chairman since 1995), followed by Ippei Kuri (since 1987), but they both left the company in 2005 when Tatsunoko became a subsidiary of major toy manufacturer Takara.