LogFAQs > #979750922

If you want to talk about an influence Dragon Quest III may have had, it's that the typical design of the monster mimics may have came from Akira Toriyama's design for them in DQ III, where they have teeth.

several readers suggested that the now-commonplace image of a mimic as a chest with teeth might have its origins outside of Dungeons & Dragons itself. According to this theory, it was the artwork of Akira Toriyama best known in the West for his manga, Dragon Ball for the Japanese video game, Dragon Quest III (1988)

http://grognardia.blogspot.com/2024/01/more-on-mimics.html

Now, he didn't create mimics, that's still Dungeons and Dragons, just the design of a monster chest with teeth.

While I don't necessarily think that's grounds for being included on a Rushmore, it's a neat trivia.