The Sterling North Society, Edgerton, has announced it will be hosting a program featuring a Japanese cartoon about Edgerton, and “Rascal” the character made famous through the book titled by the same name and written by Edgerton author Sterling North.
According to a news release, 2022 marks a 25th anniversary for the Sterling North Home and Museum.
Each month of this year the Sterling North Society is offering a special program to celebrate the legacy of the late author.
This month, the program will feature Janesville writer and computer consultant John Foust, who will be discussing “Araiguma Rasukaru,” the Japanese “anime” cartoon series produced by Nippon Animation Co. Ltd., based on Sterling North’s book “Rascal: A Memoir Of A Better Era.” The free program will be held Sunday, May 15, at 2 p.m. in the barn of the Sterling North Museum, 409 W. Rollin St.
“This is the first time the museum has featured a presentation on the history of the Japanese cartoon. Because the cartoon was never dubbed into English or shown in the United States, very few know about this Wisconsin-themed anime,” the release noted.
Additionally, at 3 p.m., a “Rockoon” rock painting activity will be available at no cost to artists of all ages.
About the cartoon
According to the release, the cartoon featuring Rascal was first shown on Japanese television in 1977.
The “Raccoon Rascal” animated series was part of Nippon Animation’s “World Masterpiece Theater” program. Each year, from 1975 through 1997, the company adapted a children’s book into a year-long series. Other books (adapted by the company) include “Heidi, Girl of the Alps,” “Anne of Green Gables” and “Swiss Family Robinson.”
Foust, a member of the Sterling North Society board, is developing a book about “Araiguma Rasukaru” and has created and maintained a webpage for 16 years describing the connections between North’s “Rascal” book and the worldwide popularity of the Japanese cartoon.
“My ‘Rascal’ anime website has drawn fan mail from all over the world. The ‘Rascal’ anime was dubbed or subtitled into many languages, including German, Spanish, Italian, Arabic, Tagalog and Chinese. Millions of kids all around the world watched it after school since 1977. I think it is the only anime set in Wisconsin,” Foust was quoted as saying in the release.
Foust noted that the cartoon’s Rascal raccoon continues to serve as the mascot of Nippon Animation today and is often featured within the company’s promotions.
Rascal’s image has been adapted into hundreds of products including plush toys, dishes, coloring books and even postage stamps. Some of these items are on display in the Museum and will be shown during the talk, the release continued.
The year 2022 also marks the 45th anniversary of the anime series. To celebrate, Nippon Animation’s YouTube channel features all 52 episodes of the series in the original Japanese. They can be seen at https://www.youtube.com/user/NipponAnimation, according to the release.
World-renowned animator Hayao Miyazaki was lead animator on 19 of the 52 episodes. Animator Isao Takahata directed. Later, Miyazaki and Takahata founded Studio Ghibli, best known for animated feature films such as “Kiki’s Delivery Service,” “My Neighbor Totoro,” “Princess Mononoke” and “Howl’s Moving Castle,” the release stated.
“In 1976, the Nippon Animation team traveled to Edgerton. They visited the North home, the elementary school, the downtown train depot and tobacco warehouses, and the Indianford dam area. Indeed, the cartoon accurately represents all these places. The opening theme song is titled ‘To The Rock River’ and shows Sterling riding his bicycle down County Highway F to the dam,” the release noted.
The Museum is open from 1 to 4 p.m. Admission is $5 for adults and $3 for students. For more information, visit: http://sterlingnorthsociety.com/.
John Foust, back row, a board member with the Sterling North Society and the featured presenter Sunday in a program about Rascal and his adventures as an anime character, is pictured with several visitors from Japan. The group, including Senae Hatta and her daughter, Mayu, from left, and television star Tadashi Izumi, were among winners of a sweepstakes held by Nippon Animation, the creators of the Rascal anime, in celebration of the character in 2007. The grand prize was a trip for two to Edgerton to visit the Sterling North home and other sites. A tour group of a dozen people from Japan visited Edgerton in June 2008, according to information supplied by Foust. Photo courtesy of John Foust.
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