Leo the Lion (TV series)
Sequel series following Leo's adult life and his cub Rune.
Leo the Lion is a 1966 Japanese anime television series that serves as a sequel to Jungle Emperor (known in English as Kimba the White Lion). Produced without American co-producers, it gave creator Osamu Tezuka complete creative control. The series focuses on the adult Leo and later shifts to his cub Rune, chronicling Rune's growth from a helpless cub to a confident leader.
- field
- Anime television series
- known_for
- Sequel to Jungle Emperor; English dub with altered scripts
- nationality
- Japanese
- original_run
- 1966
- english_dub_broadcast
- 1966 on NBC
Quick Facts
- Based On
- Kimba the White Lion · Osamu Tezuka
- Director
- Rintaro
- Producer
- Eiichi Yamamoto
- Music
- Isao Tomita
- Company
- Mushi Productions
- Network
- Fuji TV
- Country
- Japan
- Language
- Japanese
- First Aired
- 1966-10-05
- Last Aired
- 1967-03-29
- Num Episodes
- 26
Facts from the source article.
Lore & Background
Leo the Lion (新ジャングル大帝 進めレオ!, Shin Janguru Taitei: Susume Reo!) was produced in 1966 as a sequel to the 1965 series Jungle Emperor. Unlike the first series, it was made without American partners, giving Osamu Tezuka full creative freedom. The story begins years after the first series, with Leo now a full adult white lion. In the original Japanese script, Leo interacts with humans and animals freely. As the series progresses, the focus shifts from Leo to his son Rune (nicknamed 'Runi'), and the narrative becomes about Rune's journey from cub to leader.
Reader's Guide
The English dub of Leo the Lion was produced by SONIC-Sound International Corporation in Miami, Florida, run by Enzo Caputo. Stuart Chapin colloquialized all 26 scripts, but after clashing with Caputo over references to Kimba and the gazelle's name, Chapin largely ignored the original plots and made up scripts to match lip movements. This led to eccentric additions, such as an elephant quoting Emily Dickinson and a spy episode featuring James Bond's hapless brother 'Sterling Bond.' In the final script, Leo (voiced by Caputo) explained the Kimba name mix-up by claiming 'Kimba' meant 'little coward.' The English dub used original Japanese names for nearly all characters, contrary to common misconception that Rune is Leo. The series was first broadcast in the United States in 1984 on the CBN Cable Network (now Freeform). Its legacy includes being a rare example of a dub that radically altered content, and it remains a point of interest for fans of Tezuka's work and anime localization history.
Did You Know?
- The English dub was produced by SONIC-Sound International Corporation in Miami, Florida, run by Enzo Caputo.
- Stuart Chapin, who dubbed many voices, ignored most original plots and made up scripts to match lip movements.
- In the English dub, an elephant quotes a poem by Emily Dickinson.
- The final script has Leo explain that 'Kimba' means 'little coward.'
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