
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: TUESDAY, August 9, 1994                   TAG: 9408090093
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL                    PAGE: B5   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Short

CARTOONISTS: DISNEY COPIED JAPAN SERIES

TOKYO - Dozens of Japanese cartoonists have signed a letter to Disney, displeased by similarities between the smash ``The Lion King'' and a 1960s hit Japanese cartoon series and seeking credit for the cartoon's creator.

The president of a TV production company founded by the cartoon's creator, meanwhile, suggested today that the company was rethinking its original stand that any similarities between the two projects were a form of flattery.

by CNB