A press conference was held on Oct. 7 to announce the opening of the Fukuoka Anpanman Children’s Museum in Hakata Riverain next April. An official from the partnership that will run the museum stressed Anpanman’s popularity over the past 26 years since the comic was turned into an animated TV program, and hopes are high that the new facility will reinvigorate Hakata Riverain. The Fukuoka museum will be operated by a limited liability partnership between ACM, the company that runs the four other Anpanman Museums in Japan, and Fukuoka Broadcasting. Visitors will be welcomed by popular characters, including Anpanman and Shokupanman, and daily live shows will be held. Kids will surely enjoy the careful reproductions of the Anpanman Car and Jam Ojisan’s bakery. The official opening date is April 18, and the museum aims to attract 500,000 visitors in the first year. Source: Nishinippon Shimbun 10/8
