Hachiko The Full Story of a Loyal Dog_ AI Colorization & Real Bark

The story of Hachiko the loyal dog from Shibuya station has been told a thousand times over. But did you know you can still see Hachiko at the National Science Museum of Japan? Hachiko was born on the 10th of November 1923 in the Akita prefecture in the north of Japan. He first met his master Hidesaburo Ueno, a professor at the University of Tokyo's agriculture department, in January 1924 when he was bought for the sum of 30 yen. The Japanese Akita breed of dog and Ueno lived in Shibuya's Doganzaka district, not far from Shibuya station. Ueno would catch the train from Shibuya station every day to go to work, and Hachiko was often found waiting for Ueno just outside the ticket gates to greet him at the end of each day. The two would continue their routine until Ueno died suddenly at work. While delivering a lecture, having suffered a cerebral hemorrhage at the age of 53, Hachiko was then taken in by Ueno's former gardener and continued to go to Shibuya station for another 9 years, 9 months and 15 days until he too died in 1935 of natural causes at the age of 11. Hachiko was initially treated as a pest by station staff and commuters who used the station, but as time went on, he was recognised for his loyalty, and this caught the attention of Hirokichi Sato, who was a specialist in Japanese dog breeds. He would go on to write an article for the Asahi newspaper on October 4th 1932, titled The Story of a Sweet Old Dog, and then a follow-up article in 1933, which shone the national spotlight on Hachiko, turning him into an instant beacon symbolising loyalty in the Japanese culture. As the legend of Hachiko grew across the nation, people travelled to Shibuya station to catch a glimpse of the golden brown dog, who was now 9 years old. In 1934, he would appear in a movie named General of the Alps, and later that same year, a bronze statue was unveiled at Shibuya station, upon which Hachiko was in attendance. The statue would later be melted down to support the war effort, however it wouldn't take too long for a replacement to be made after the war, and by 1948, a new statue was sitting on the original stone plinth. After his death, a funeral service was held at Shibuya station, which included Hidesaburo Ueno's partner and station staff in attendance, on the 8th of March 1935. He was cremated and laid to rest next to his master Ueno, in Tokyo's Aoyama Cemetery. However, before his cremation, he went through a taxidermy procedure and was stuffed, to preserve his likeness using his fur. During this process, it was found that he had cancer, and 4 yakitori skewers in his stomach, which apparently didn't damage his insides or contribute to his death. His 64cm tall body has been on permanent display ever since, at the National Museum of Nature and Science in Ueno Park. On top of the Shibuya station statue, other statues have been erected around Japan, such as the one on the grounds of the University of Tokyo in 2015, depicting Hachiko and Ueno in happier times, and another one in the birthplace of Hachiko, in the Akita Prefecture. Several movies depicting the life of Hachiko have been made, including the Japanese version made in 1987 called, The Tale of Hachiko, and the more recent Americanized version in 2009, starring Richard Gere, called Hachi, A Dog's Tale. In the 1990s, Nippon Cultural Broadcasting came across a damaged record containing the recorded bark of Hachiko from the 1930s. After a restoration project, the recording was revealed to the world in 1994, 59 years after his death, on morning TV and radio programs where millions tuned in. As Shibuya station has changed over the last 100 years, the Hachiko statue has been a constant, on the ever-changing station landscape, and has become a tourist attraction and meeting place that everyone has come to know and love. Sitting on his stone plinth in Hachiko Square, he still participates and is very much included in all events that affect the people of Shibuya today, from the more happy Halloween and Christmas celebrations and occasional Tokyo snowfalls, to the more serious post-war riots and global pandemics of recent time. Okay guys, that was the story of Hachiko. What did you think about Hachiko's bark? Or have you seen Hachiko at the National Museum of Nature and Science at Ueno Park? Let me know what your thoughts are in the comment section below. Anyway, I'm Mike, thanks for watching and I'll see you on the next one.