Miki Tori
Hometown: Hotoyoshi, Kumamoto Prefecture, Japan
Tori Miki (とり・みき), also known as Micky Bird or Mickey Bird, is a Japanese manga artist, character designer, essayist, and screenplay writer born 23 February 1958 in Hotoyoshi, Kumamoto Prefecture, Japan. Tori has won multiple awards for his work, including two Seiun Awards (in 1994 for "Dai-Hon'ya," and in 1998 for SF Taisho) and one Bungeishunjuu Manga Award (in 1995 for "Tooku e Ikitai"). His pen name was created by mixing up the pronunciation of the kanji making up his real name. He worked as a writer on "WXIII: Patlabor the Movie 3."
Tori attended Meiji University, majoring in English literature, though he left his studies before receiving a degree. He was a member of the rakugo research club during his time there, and attended at the same time as owarai, tarento, and senpai Masayuki Watanabe.
He made his professional debut in 1979 afer winning an honorable mention for his story "My Alien" (ぼくの宇宙人 Boku no Uchuujin) at the 12th Shounen Champion Rookie Manga Awards, after which he became known mainly for his gag manga such as "Kuru Kuru Kurin" and "Tooku e Ikitai," as well as manga featuring science fiction elements. For many years, his manga appeared in the television guide "TV Bros."