Hideaki Sorachi was born on May 25, 1979 and grew up in Hokkaido, Japan. His ongoing series, GIN TAMA, became a huge hit when it began running in the pages of Japan's Weekly Shonen Jump in 2004. A GIN TAMA animated series followed soon after, premiering on Japanese TV in April 2006. Sorachi made his manga debut with the one-shot story DANDELION, which is included in volume 1 of the GIN TAMAgraphic novels.