Editing Fansub (section)

===Pre-fansubs (pre–1970s)===
The first documented Japanese animation to be distributed in the United States was ''[[Panda and the Magic Serpent|The Tale of the White Serpent]]'' airing on March 15, 1961.{{cn|date=April 2024}} Until the late 1970s, Japanese community TV stations' broadcasts were aimed exclusive at very young children.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Feilitzen |first1=Cecilia von |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qRBkYQWTsDgC&q=late+1970s,+Japanese+community+TV+stations'+broadcasts+were+aimed+exclusive+at+very+young+children |title=In the Service of Young People?: Studies and Reflections on Media in the Digital Age |last2=Carlsson |first2=Ulla |date=2006 |publisher=UNESCO International Clearinghouse on Children, Youth and Media, Nordicom, Göteborg University |isbn=978-91-89471-35-1 |pages=405 |language=en}}</ref> Soon after the release video cassette recorders in November 1975,<ref>{{Cite book |last=Grabowski |first=John F. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=tVpmDwAAQBAJ&dq=Soon+after+the+release+video+cassette+recorders+in+November+1975&pg=PA64 |title=Television |date=2011-02-23 |publisher=Greenhaven Publishing LLC |isbn=978-1-4205-0665-5 |pages=64 |language=en |access-date=2024-04-11 |archive-date=2024-04-27 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240427042648/https://books.google.com/books?id=tVpmDwAAQBAJ&dq=Soon+after+the+release+video+cassette+recorders+in+November+1975&pg=PA64#v=onepage&q=Soon%20after%20the%20release%20video%20cassette%20recorders%20in%20November%201975&f=false |url-status=live }}</ref> post-''[[Astro Boy]]'' anime began to spread throughout the United States.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2023-09-24 |title=The Global Influence Of Japanese Manga On Western Cartoons - Toons Mag |url=https://www.toonsmag.com/the-global-influence-of-japanese-manga/ |access-date=2024-04-07 |website=www.toonsmag.com |language=en-US |archive-date=2024-04-07 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240407085125/https://www.toonsmag.com/the-global-influence-of-japanese-manga/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Jozuka |first=Emiko |date=2019-07-29 |title=How anime shaped Japan's global identity |url=https://www.cnn.com/style/article/japan-anime-global-identity-hnk-intl/index.html |access-date=2024-04-07 |website=CNN |language=en |archive-date=2024-04-12 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240412121152/https://www.cnn.com/style/article/japan-anime-global-identity-hnk-intl/index.html |url-status=live }}</ref> By March 1976, TV stations in the United States began broadcasting [[super robot]] shows such as ''[[Getter Robo]]'',<ref>{{Citation |title=Gettâ robo |type=Animation, Action, Adventure |url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0275838/ |access-date=2024-04-07 |others=Akira Kamiya, Ken'ichi Ogata, Rihoko Yoshida |publisher=Asatsu-DK, Dynamic Planning, Toei Animation |archive-date=2023-02-17 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230217142452/https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0275838/ |url-status=live }}</ref> and due to the availability of VCRs, fans could record these shows to show to their friends. [[Fred Patten]] describes his first exposure to anime at the Los Angeles Science Fiction Society (LASFS) in 1976 when he met up with another fan who was an early adopter of Sony's [[betamax]] technology. By May 1977 he and a group of fans founded the first anime club in the United States, the Cartoon/Fantasy Organization (C/FO).<ref name=Leonard>Leonard, Sean. [http://ics.sagepub.com/cgi/content/abstract/8/3/281 Progress against the law: Anime and fandom, with the key to the globalization of culture] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100617150643/http://ics.sagepub.com/cgi/content/abstract/8/3/281 |date=2010-06-17 }} International Journal of Cultural Studies, 9 2005; vol. 8: pp. 281–305.</ref>

In November 1977, the C/FO began corresponding with other [[Japanese animation]] fans across the country and because the distribution of shows across the [[United States]] was different based on location, fans began trading tapes of shows they were missing between each other.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Progress Against the Law: Fan Distribution, Copyright, and the Explosive Growth of Japanese Animation |url=https://web.mit.edu/mit-Japan/outreach/working-papers/Sean%20Leonard.PDF |access-date=2024-04-07 |website=groups.csail.mit.edu |archive-date=2024-04-07 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240407085125/https://web.mit.edu/mit-Japan/outreach/working-papers/Sean%20Leonard.PDF |url-status=live }}</ref> At the time many LASFS members maintained contact with members around the world, and thus C/FO members began exchanging videos with fans located in [[Japan]], typically [[US military]] personnel, who wanted ''[[Star Trek]]'' and ''[[Battlestar Galactica]]''. Fortunately, shows from either the [[United States]] or [[Japan]] could be played in either region as both used the [[NTSC]] format for broadcast. These shows were not translated; however, Japanese animations remained simple enough that the average viewer could discern the plot exclusively from the visuals. By 1979, fans and clubs of Japanese animation had begun to separate from the science fiction movement and began to refer to the media they watched as anime.<ref name=Leonard />

Throughout this period it was considered socially acceptable to screen anime for an audience without the publisher's consent, as few companies had American offices, and the few that did would invariably refuse to grant permission. Japanese companies made it apparent that they knew fans in the [[United States]] engaged in unauthorized distribution and screening, but also knew that fans were not profiting. Japanese companies asked fans to help them publicize; for instance, [[Toei Animation]] asked the C/FO to aid it with some marketing research at [[San Diego Comic-Con]]. Starting in 1978, Japanese companies tried to set up their own American divisions; however, with the exception of the film ''[[The Sea Prince and the Fire Child]]'' which was licensed to RCA/Columbia Pictures Home Video, they realized they were not going to succeed in the American market and the last American anime company branch closed in 1982.<ref name=Leonard />