Clay Donahue Fontenot is one of Hollywood's most sought after and successful stuntmen and coordinators. He has doubled some of Hollywood’s biggest stars. His work includes such huge hits as Blade, Iron Man , Logan , Django Unchained and most notably the Equalizer franchise. Business Insider named Fontenot one of the most famous Celebrity Stuntman doubles in Hollywood. Check out his interview with Tony Parrish as they discuss his specialties, his favorite stunts, andadvice for entering Hollywood.

Agreement includes live event distribution of PFL MMA Global Regular Season, Playoffs and World Championship on ESPN Platforms . ESPN+ PPV will also distribute the new PFL PPV Super Fight Division. The Professional Fighters League (PFL) and ESPN have announced a new U.S. multi-year media rights renewal agreement which includes live event distribution of the PFL Regular Season, Playoffs and World Championship on ESPN linear networks and ESPN+. ESPN+ PPV will also distribute the new PFL PPV Super Fight Division in the U.S. when it launches in 2024. The PFL features some of the sport’s top fighters who will also be highlighted across ESPN platforms in pre- and post-fight coverage, as well as shoulder programming on linear and digital channels. “We’ve had five successful seasons on ESPN and we’re excited for the next phase of growth for MMA and the Professional Fighters League with this agreement,” said PFL CEO Peter Murray. “Our innovative sport-season format, elite roster of athletes, and the launch of the PFL PPV Super Fight Division, which will feature some of the world’s greatest combat sports stars such as Francis Ngannou and Jake Paul, are ushering in the new era of MMA as a mainstream global sports entertainment platform.” The PFL PPV Super Fight Division will be a global platform for some of the best MMA fighters and combat sports stars. Francis Ngannou, arguably one of the greatest heavyweight fighters in the world today, is under an exclusive MMA contract to fight in the division and is joined by one of the most influential figures in combat sports, Jake Paul, and women’s star fighters Claressa Shields, Amanda Serrano and Savannah Marshall. The first PFL PPV Super Fight will be in early 2024 with headlining fighters and location to be announced at a later date. PFL is the only organization in MMA with the sports-season format, where individual fighters compete in a regular season, playoffs, and championship each year. The combined roster of PFL and Bellator boasts 30% of its fighters independently world-ranked in the top 25 of their respective weight-class. PFL has an expansive global vision for the sport and is building the “Champions League of MMA” with PFL Europe, PFL MENA, and more international leagues in development. PFL leads in technology and innovation, with its proprietary PFL SmartCage, powering fight analytics, real-time betting, AI scoring, and a next-generation viewing experience. PFL is on ESPN/ESPN+ in the U.S. and is broadcast and streamed in 150 countries with 20 premium media distribution partners.

The five-round main event superfight will take place at the Ariake Arena in Tokyo. On Thursday morning at a press conference in Tokyo, ONE Championship unveiled the massive main event for its return to Japan. ONE 165 will finally see the flyweight kickboxing dream match between Rodtang Jitmuangnon and Takeru Segawa happen. The flyweight strikers have each been public in their want for a match with the other. The match seemed inevitable when Takeru signed with ONE back in April of 2023. Now, it finally has a date. Rodtang has become a global superstar with his non-stop aggression inside the ring. It has carried him to the ONE Flyweight Muay Thai World Championship and the #1 ranking in the kickboxing division. Takeru stands atop the kickboxing world in Japan. The national hero is impeccable when the spotlight shines upon him with a 42-3 career mark. ONE also announced that the lightweight MMA battle between Sage Northcutt and Shinya Aoki will also happen on the card. The two stars have called each other out on social media in the last year, with Aoki’s colorful language setting the stage for the rivalry. Northcutt returned in May following a four-year absence due to injury. In his return, he stunned fans with a 39-second submission win at ONE Fight Night 10. He is looking for another victory to put himself in the title hunt against the former divisional king. The two marquee bouts were made official and help set the stage for an incredible 2024 for the promotion. ONE 165 airs live from Tokyo, Japan, on Sunday, January 28. More bout announcements will follow in the weeks to come.

This tale starts with two people whose story could have been a twilight zone episode. It’s about a timeless force that bound a man and a woman from different worlds and directed them to become one with the past so they could move into the future. By Terry L. Wilson Photo Credit – Rick Hustead The woman is Rumiko Urata. She was raised in a fishing village on the coast of Kyushu, Japan. Like most kids her age, she grew up with cartoons and comic books. Although she had plenty of heroes to look up to, she only had eyes for an iconic Japanese crusader. “When I was little, ninja were very popular on television, in movies and in comic books,” Urata said. “To me, the ninja was a superhero, and I wanted to be one, too. I used to play with swords and pretend that I was a ninja even though I knew they weren’t real anymore.” Thousands of miles away, the ninja bug also bit — this time, it got Stephen K. Hayes, a tang soo do student from Dayton, Ohio. “I saw an article about ninja in Black Belt,” he said. “That changed my life forever. I vowed to someday move to Japan, find a ninja master and train under him to become a real ninja.” Neither Urata nor Hayes could have known it at the time, but their lives eventually would intertwine and their ninja fantasies would become reality. After graduating from college, Hayes moved to Japan. It was around the same time Urata graduated from Sophia University in Tokyo. “I met Rumiko in 1979,” Hayes said. “I was in Tokyo doing English advertising for Canon Camera to support myself while training at the ninja dojo. They had just hired Rumiko. Luckily for me, they put her in the advertising department at a desk directly across from me. That’s how we met.” For the American, it was love at first sight. He carefully pondered his next move, figuring that their first chat could be their last if he brought up the real reason he was in Japan. Hayes played out several first date conversations in his head, unaware that his secret identity had already been compromised. Unknown to him, gossiping around the office water cooler was as much a tradition in Japan as it was in the States. The subject du jour at Canon was the American who wanted to be a ninja. “I knew all about Stephen’s ninja training long before he told me about it,” Urata said. “When you work in a large company, there will always be a group of ladies who know everything about what’s going on. There are no secrets.” “Once, I made the mistake of telling someone that I was in Japan learning how to be a ninja,” Hayes said. “They sat silently and gave me the look.” That look, he said, entailed the person going silent, his eyes rolling back and shaking his head in disbelief. The Japanese are a polite people, so no one would ever ridicule a stranger. Afterward, however, whenever a local asked him why he was in Japan, Hayes was more careful. “When I first met Stephen, he said he was in Japan to study martial arts,” Urata said. “He skirted around what he was really doing because if you tell someone in Japan that you’re a ninja, it could raise a few eyebrows, especially if you’re an American from Ohio.” Later, however, Hayes found the perfect moment to pull off the ninja mask and reveal the truth. “That conversation couldn’t have gone better,” he said. “Rumiko was not only OK with the ninja thing; she was completely on board from day one and began translating some arcane books given to me by Masaaki Hatsumi, who was the headmaster of the dojo.” Urata said: “As a kid, I thought ninja could crawl up walls, shoot fire from their eyes and disappear at will. It wasn’t until Stephen asked me to translate his teacher’s books into English that I began to learn the depth of training involved in this specific art.” She explored the texts, and with each page turned, another secret of the shadow warriors was unveiled. “As I studied the writings, I not only had to read what was written but also what was not written,” she said. “I had to decipher the philosophy that was hidden behind the words by reading between the lines. “By translating the grandmaster’s books,I was given the opportunity to rediscover facets of my own culture that had been lost to time. With each translation, my passion grew. I felt a connection, a bond even, with the ninja mindset, and I wanted to become part of their legacy.” Hayes wasn’t surprised when Urata asked him to teach her. Fearing that it could become a double-edged sword, he suggested she ask permission to train with Hatsumi himself. After she followed the proper protocols, he accepted her as a student. All the lessons and ranks she would receive came directly from him. “The training was the hardest thing I’ve ever gone through,” Urata said. “My body was filled with aches and pains combined with physical and mental stress. Everything we did was designed for us to overcome any challenges we may encounter in real life. In the end, what I gained as a person was how to look at life from a higher perspective. By that, I mean how to really value yourself, your relationships and others — it’s what I call the ninja mind.” Hayes and Urata fell in love with the spiritual facet of the art, but the combat applications also promised rewards. “I am a small person,” Urata said. “So for me, the best part of close quarters training was learning that by using precise timing and proper body positioning, the self-defense techniques put me at an advantage against a much larger adversary.” Hayes said: “I began ninja training with a tang soo do background, so everything I’d been doing prior to going to Japan was linear and overpowering. We never grappled; we just ran over our opponents. We never did weapons, we never did chokes and we never did takedowns. But when I began ninjutsu, all of that and more opened up to me.” “We got married in Japan in a traditional Shinto wedding ceremony,” Hayes said. “In 1980 we came back to America just as the ninja boom was beginning.” Soon after they had children, Urata and Hayes made sure they learned the art, too— from other instructors. “We had our staff teach them,” Hayes said. “Our daughters accepted criticisms and corrections, and it was no big deal coming from a staff member. From Mom and Dad, they only got positive feedback. “I talked to a lot of martial artists who taught martial arts to their kids, but after a while they’d quit. The secret is you can’t be your own kids’ teacher. Kids think if the parent corrects them, they are disappointing Mom and Dad, so we dodged the whole thing.” The daughters are now in their 30s, living lives of their own — which begs the question, Did their ninja training stick? During a recent visit from their parents, they demonstrated their ninja skills while wearing Oculus virtual-reality headsets. “Reina had some goggles on and was fighting cyber ninjas,” Urata said. “She was down in a low crouch stance sword fighting — we were amazed! At 39, she still has it.” The daughters grew up with the sword —and with hard workouts, Hayes explained. “We built a seminar center at our home in Ohio, and Reina and Marissa would train there. They never had other kids to train with, so they trained with adults for 20 some years. They still have the moves!” And the art of ninjutsu still has the ability to captivate a new generation.

FEATURED ON: The Combat Show BORN: Rio de Janeiro AGE: 56 STYLE: Brazilian jiu-jitsu CELEBRITY STUDENTS: Keanu Reeves, Ashton Kutcher, Vin Diesel Tony Parrish interviews Rigan Machado You’ve probably been in 30 movies. … Rigan Machado: And TV shows, but now I started getting bigger jobs. The biggest job I ever got was with Nicolas Cage and Tony Jaa [in Jiu Jitsu]. I play a warrior — it was pretty cool. I also did a comedy with Russell Peters and Michael Jai White: [The Outlaw Johnny Black], a Western. Now I got an offer to do a movie in Bollywood. I play a zombie. They kill me and my wife, and I come back [for] revenge and I know martial arts. How am I going to say no to being a zombie? (laughs) Wasn’t your first movie Brazilian Brawlers? Machado: In the beginning, it was called Bad Boys From Brazil, but because they just came out with Bad Boys, they said, “No, you can’t call it Bad Boys From Brazil.” They changed it to Brazilian Brawlers, which is the worst movie in history. I recommend not to watch. That movie is so bad. When you finish the movie, you want to break the TV. I smiled the whole time. There were also some cameos in there — not only your brothers but I also saw Dan Inosanto in the movie. Machado: It was kind of funny because Dan Inosanto was my student, and I called him and said, “Dan, why don’t you play my uncle or something?” He said, “Sure, no problem.” That was great — a Brazilian boy has a Filipino uncle. Machado: The movie makes no sense. Wasn’t your brother John part of writing that movie? Machado: John was the head of the show for sure. He came up with the idea to copy a Charles Bronson film and add the brothers and stuff. But the problem when you have no experience and work with people who don’t know what they’re doing is everything can go wrong. Everything went wrong from the beginning to the end. I don’t know how the movie was able to finish because [they] finished the money in the budget in the middle of the movie. I think the process of how hard it is to do a good film — people have no idea. When you look from outside, you imagine, I’m gonna be a movie star. I’m gonna do this, do that. It’s not that easy. You need a great cinematographer, an engineer for sound, a good fight choreographer and a good director who knows how to film the angles. Then you need good postproduction. It’s a lot of work, but it’s kind of nice because I believe the best way for you to be good at something is to learn from your mistakes. I learned so much. Today, I believe I have the knowledge and the experience to do a movie from the beginning. I have the ability to finish the film by myself. I think I can put the team together. As I look over your shoulder, I see a picture on the wall. Is that you and master Helio Gracie? Machado: I have a picture of me, Helio Gracie and Carlos Gracie. And on top of that, I have a picture of me and Rolls Gracie, one of my coaches. I know you started very young, about 5 years old, right? Who was coaching you at that time? Machado: It’s kind of funny because growing up, I had a lot of issues — like a little bit of asthma and dyslexia. I had a lot of problems in school. Carlos Gracie was a doctor of nutrition. He created the Gracie Diet and was the mentor of the whole family. He married my mother’s sister. We became very close. He brought me to live with him and do the Gracie Diet, do jiu-jitsu and swim twice a day. He put me in to train with all his kids. It basically was like you were surrounded by fighters 24 hours a day. I started getting good. And my cousin Rolls and Carlos Gracie Jr. went to talk to my mother. They said, “This kid has a chance to be really good. Why don’t you give him a chance to stay here longer? He’s a horse. He’s pretty big. He’s strong. We believe we can make him a fantastic fighter.” And my mother said, “No problem. If that’s what he wants, let’s give him a chance to have a shot.” I lived with my cousins for 15 years or something like that. When you moved in with your cousins, what was your mindset? Were you excited to go? Machado: My uncle lived in a place in Ipanema Beach. He lived in this amazing house with mats in the house. We ate so healthy. We surfed, went to school and trained all the time. People came to the house, all these black belts and some great athletes to practice with us. And I was a young bird, a rookie. I was the youngest in the group. I got beat up a lot. When you are in an environment of pit bulls, you become a pit bull in a way because you have amazing partners to train with. I started winning. You start winning, and more people start to support you. And I remember Carlos Gracie called Rickson, and Rickson liked me a lot. Then Rickson started to teach me, too. And I trained with my brothers. I felt at the time like the luckiest man alive because I had the best of the best surrounding me. The luck I had was the environment. The second thing was I had amazing people behind me. I love the environment of fighting. One of the best feelings in the world for me was to look across the mat and see another guy who wants to take my head off, another warrior who wants to give his best to take his spot on the mat. And we go to war. And when you end up with the victory, it’s the best feeling in the world because you feel like a gladiator, like a champ.

Graciela Casillas I was staring down the barrels of a shotgun. At that precise moment, I realized that I was not fully prepared to defend myself. It was by the grace of God that I was able to get out of that situation. In other words, I was incredibly lucky. This near miss served as a stark reminder of my vulnerabilities. That was the moment I began my journey of self-defense and empowerment, determined to break through the barriers that society had placed before me and every other woman. Growing up in an era where women were discouraged from participating in male-dominated sports and martial arts remained largely inaccessible to them, I became acutely aware of the disparities in gender representation. Men outnumbered women in this field by a staggering thirty to one, and societal norms cast men as the protectors while women were perceived as damsels in distress. I vividly remember conducting a women's self-defense seminar in North Carolina in the early 1980s. Some attendees admitted to deceiving their husbands, claiming they were going to the mall rather than a self-defense seminar. Why? Because many men didn't feel the need to learn self-defense; it was their role to protect their spouses. Decades have passed since then, and although men still dominate martial arts dojos, it has become increasingly normal, especially in the U.S., for women to engage in various styles of contact sports and martial arts. Women have realized that, ultimately, they must rely on themselves for protection. As an advocate for women's personal protection skills, I've expanded my approach well beyond physical and tactical skills. I believe the mind should be trained before the body. Self-defense extends beyond physical protection; it encompasses mental and spiritual well-being, equipping us to strengthen our minds and nurture our souls. By practicing self-awareness, mindfulness, and spirituality, anyone can learn how to cultivate resilience, inner strength, and discover a profound sense of purpose. By embracing self-defense in all its dimensions enables us to live more fulfilled and empowered lives. When it comes to personal well-being, we should prioritize the importance of self-defense in these areas of our lives. On a mental and psychological level, self-defense equips you with the tools to protect and fortify your mind. In a world filled with stress, anxiety, uncertainty, and negativity, developing a robust mental defense is vital. I emphasize the power of self-awareness, the ability to recognize and confront negative thoughts and emotions, and the practice of techniques such as meditation, mindfulness, and positive affirmations to cultivate mental clarity and inner strength. The importance of self-defense extends to the spiritual realm. Students should be encouraged to explore and nurture their spiritual well-being, which plays a critical role in self-defense. By connecting with one’s inner self, you can tap into a wellspring of resilience, faith, and purpose. Spiritual nourishment can take various forms, depending on personal beliefs and values, including prayer, meditation, or engaging in fulfilling activities. Stay tuned for Pt 2.

by Robert W. Young Black Belt started working with Bruce Lee before he was a star — witness our October 1967 issue, which featured him on the cover at a time when his name was deemed less attention-getting than the phrase “Green Hornet’s ‘Kato’: Does he really practice kung fu?” Since he passed away, the magazine has continued to work with the Lee family to keep readers up to date on all the projects that are in the works. In that vein, we present our annual interview with his daughter Shannon Lee , who has her hand in so many projects that it’s hard to imagine her ever resting. First of all, could you make a few comments about Bruce Lee in Black Belt, the book that Black Belt Publishing is about to release? I think this is going to be a real treat for people, even for myself, to have all this content in one place. We have such an amazing long history with Black Belt. The magazine gave a voice to my father way back in the 1960s and ’70s, and we continued this relationship over 50-plus years. There’s been a lot of content, and now for all that to be in one place — I just think it’s exciting. The exciting thing for us is that it also deals with those iconic first generation students who became well-known masters — like Dan Inosanto and Richard Bustillo. It’s a continuation of the work your father started. It’s like a tree. It starts with the seed from him, and then it sprouts out from there. All those people are part of his legacy. Could you comment on the Bruce Lee app? Is it the vehicle that people use to access your “Be Water” membership program, or is it something else? Yes, it’s about the “Be Water” membership. The reason it’s changed to an app is so we could offer it internationally. When we launched the program, it was just within North America, and it was a texting-based program, which was great, but there were so many people from other countries asking, “How do I get this?” We didn’t have the technology quite yet, but now we do. I have the app on my phone, and it’s great when I get a text message — Ihave the number saved as “Baba,” which means “father.” That’s what I used to call my dad, so it’s like getting a text from my dad five times a week. (laughs) They’re great daily reminders. When you sign up, you are entered into a monthly giveaway, also — and we give away some pretty cool stuff. (laughs) They are random thank-you prizes for continuing to be a part of my father’s legacy. It’s amazing to read your father’s quotes because they seem timeless, as well as concise and meaningful. They will be relevant forever. There are teachings from different people that continue to be popular for centuries because they’re based on essential life practices and wisdom, which his are. One thing I’ve noticed is that whenever I read a Bruce Lee quote, it has an impact, but then if I watch a video of your father saying that quote, it’s even more memorable and more powerful because of the way he delivered it. On our website and on our social media, we love to post those videos because they’re just so inspiring. At this point, would you say your father is still better known as a martial artist or is he better known for his philosophies, the kind of wisdom that comes from a culture that goes back thousands of years? That’s an interesting thing. He’s probably still best-known as a martial arts action-movie person. That said, I do think that most people know that he had at least some quotes such as “Be like water,” and that he had other inspirational things to say. But I don’t think he’s quite reached the level of having people understand the depth of his research and philosophical practice, which is part of what I tried to present in my book Be Water, My Friend. And that’s really the foundation that made him the impactful human being that he was. The reason I asked that question is the example set by people like Miyamoto Musashi, whose writings initially gained popularity in the martial arts world but then moved into the business world and many other fields. I’m wondering if you’re seeing that same thing happen with the wisdom your father was presenting through martial arts. I believe that it is. But we have to remember Musashi lived how many hundreds of years ago, so I think it takes time to make that transition. But I think we’re very much in the midst of it now. Are there still a lot of philosophical writings that you have not released yet? In terms of the actual words, most of them have been technically released, but I don’t know if they’ve been released in a way that puts them in the proper light to be consumed and fully graspable. There’s still a lot to be done. And you probably feel compelled to tie certain quotes and philosophies in with what’s happening now in the world, just to make them more relevant. Totally. The thing is, his philosophies are so relevant to the condition of being a human being (laughs) — from which we all suffer — that they’ll be relevant for a long time to come. How is your podcast going? We took a break for almost a year — for no reason other than we wanted to focus on different things. But we just started recording a new season, and it’s going to be really interesting. We’re focusing on the efforts of the Bruce Lee Foundation, which is in a mode of expansion and reinvention. We’re in a lot of active conversations with incredible partners, and we want to shine a light on that. Could you briefly mention the different websites and who they’re designed to appeal to? I know you have BruceLee.com — is that the basic place where all fans should start? Is there still a Bruce Lee Foundation website? If so, whom does that target? So BruceLee.com is our fan website. You can access the podcasts and general information about Bruce Lee, our social media handles and their links, and our online store. There are announcements about things that are happening in the world of Bruce Lee, so it’s a great place to start. Then there is BruceLeeFoundation.org, which is for the Bruce Lee Foundation. Some people think that the whole thing is the foundation, but the foundation is our 501(c)(3) public charity. That website focuses on the work of the foundation, the camps we run, the museum exhibits, and different talks and events that we participate in. We would love to have more people following it. You can donate at the Bruce Lee Foundation because we are a public charity. We have to raise a good portion of our funds from the general public in order to remain a charity.A really great place to stay in touch with everything that’s going on is our social media channels. Are the big three for you Facebook, Twitter and Instagram? Yes. Maybe this is a good time to quickly mention that we’re really taking my father’s teachings and practices and creating a new curriculum to put into people’s hands — in particular, youth hands — to work in “youth mental wellness.” We’re calling it Mind Body Spirit Wellness tools. It helps young people navigate their mental-emotional landscape a little better. We’re using my father’s teachings to help people with the inner conflicts they’re struggling with. Were young people a group your father was interested in addressing when he was alive, or are they a group that you have decided to help with your father’s teachings? I’m of course interested in helping all people with my father’s teachings. That said, the youth of today — I guess what I would say is my father was a youth. (laughs) Youth is really a category that goes all the way up to age 24 or 25. Today, these people are coming into such a complicated world with so many difficulties. The tools are available to everyone, but this is a way to try to put those tools in the hands of people who are in the process of molding themselves and their lives within this world — in particular, in communities of color and marginalized communities that have a lot of struggles and challenges already. We want to help kids navigate life’s storms before they’re at a point of crisis. That’s very noble. The foundation is also focused on community building and bridge building. It’s about focusing on culture, care and community. We have our exhibits, and we have things that we do to gather people together to help promote the message. Earlier you mentioned your book. What has the reaction to it been? The book is doing great. Actually, I’m in Seattle right now, meeting with the Wing Luke Museum, who we opened an exhibit with in July of this year. They have an exhibit focused entirely on my father’s book collection. And it happens to be called “Be Water, My Friend.” We sent my father’s books up to the Wing for care and housing and display. My father had over 2,800 books in his collection. I’ve seen that black-and-white photo of him sitting in front of a wall of books. And that’s not even the half of it. (laughs) My mom says he loved to go to bookstores, especially old bookstores, and hunt through editions of books on all manner of subjects. It’s an interactive exhibit up here, which is really cool. You get to see some of the influence that those books had on him and how that was turned into what he did in his life. I’m also meeting with a school up here that has been teaching my book to their high-school seniors as a way to help orient them for the journey they’re about to go on when they leave high school. It’s such an honor. A friend of mine from high school decided to teach this book, and it’s led to us using the book as a template for a lot of the curriculum and programming we’re doing. In a few weeks, I’m going to launch my own website separate from the whole Bruce Lee thing, dedicated to my own writings and teachings that connect to my book. Do you have plans for any more books? I do love to write. (laughs) I have more plans, but they’re not in concrete form just yet. You mentioned the Wing Luke Museum and its permanent exhibit. Does it change according to what you and they want to focus on at different times? We’ve had an exhibit here for several years that has rotated a few times, and right now it’s focused on the books. It’s interactive, which is a new thing for the space and the museum. The difference is that the space has become a dedicated permanent Bruce Lee gallery. Different exhibits will flow through. The exhibit that’s here now will remain for at least a couple of years. We will work on it and expand the existing exhibit because we can add to the interactivity, and we want to put more of the original books into the space, as well. We’re very excited about this because we’ve long wanted to have a permanent museum exhibit here in Seattle. It seems like there’s a lot of interest in your father in Seattle. There is. We also have an endowed scholarship at Seattle Central College. Seattle Central used to be Edison Tech, which is where my father got his GED. It is a Bruce Lee Foundation scholarship. With all these things going on, are you still involved in Warrior? Yes. In fact, I was in South Africa in July for the kickoff of our third season. That’s where we film — in Cape Town. Everyone was so excited to be back to do a third season. The show has been on a bit of a roller coaster. Cinemax’s original programming got canceled, and our show got canceled. We felt like all hope was lost, but we continued to fight to get it back on air, and we were able to. Season 3 will be on HBO Max probably mid- to late next year. We’re excited that everyone at HBO saw the merit of our show and decided to keep it going. You can watch Season 1 and Season 2 on HBO Max now. What’s your role with Warrior? I’m an executive producer. I help oversee the creation of the show and the scripts and storylines. That must be fulfilling because you have the ability to focus on what was important to your father and what’s important to continuing his message. It really is a rewarding and creative job. Even though I definitely have my input, making sure it stays within a certain energetic imprint, I have to say that Jonathan Tropper, our show creator, and Justin Lin, my executive producing partner, and all the people who are running the show now — they do the hard work and the heavy lifting. (laughs) Knowing that it affects so many people around the world, does carrying on the Bruce Lee legacy ever weigh on you? Is it stressful to make sure things are disseminated carefully and accurately to his fans and his potential fans? There is definitely a lot of care taken. We try our best to do things in the way that we feel fits with what my father was all about. We’re not perfect. Sometimes we partner with people who end up not being great partners, or we have a difference of opinion or get involved in something and then we’re like, “This is way more difficult than we thought it was going to be.” (laughs) We’re human beings just like everyone else. But I have to say that we have a very strong foundation of integrity with everything we try to do. So even when it doesn’t turn out how we would’ve liked, we at least feel good about the thing we tried to do and what our initial goal was. That helps me sleep at night. (laughs) I would really like to encourage people to follow Bruce Lee and the Bruce Lee Foundation because this is where we’re doing some really impactful social work, and it all comes from the goodness of my father’s teachings and practices. Stay tuned to see all the amazing stuff that’s coming. The year 2023 is the 50th anniversary of my father’s legacy, so there’s going to be some fun celebrations and lots of things going on. Bruce Lee, the Bruce Lee image, likeness and all related indicia are trademarks and copyrights of Bruce Lee Enterprises LLC and are used herein with its express and prior permission. All rights reserved. brucelee.com This article was originally published in the November 2022 edition of Black Belt Magazine.

Chris Bournea’s documentary Lady Wrestler: The Amazing Untold Story Of African-American Women in the ring chronicles a handful of pioneers in the fight sport, women who braved racism and sexism in the male-dominated world of wrestling from the 1950s through the 1970s. Kathleen Wimbley, now 88, trained at promoter Billy Wolfe’s gym and was a member of the first group that integrated pro wrestling. By Gerry Chisolm "My big brother came home from the Marines. I told him that I wanted him to teach me how to do judo. He said that women didn’t do judo but the closest thing that I could do was wrestling. When I found out that we had a wrestling school in Columbus, Ohio, I went!" — Kathleen Wimbley (shown) Wimbley grew inspired watching women’s wrestling champ Mildred Burke on television. She began training while in high school and made her professional debut four days after Graduating. Chris and I talked about the incredible athleticism and training that you all had. Your publicity shot shows you flexing your guns! Wimbley: (laughs) Babs [Wingo] was the very first, then her sister Ethel [Johnson] came in. Ethel was so agile and probably one of the only girls who could do a drop kick. She became very popular because she was smaller and moved much faster and was quite attractive. Their sister Marva [Scott] joined us later. I met Mildred Burke once and she said, “I recognize you — you’re the girl with my arms!” We trained and worked out in the gym. Billy Wolfe [and Mildred Burke] had a stepson Joe. [He] was always in the gym with us. He never wanted to be a wrestler, but he knew a lot about certain things, and he could tell you how to do it this way or that way and stuff like that. Frankie Talaber was in the gym and so was Roy [Shire]. Anyway, the girls had a time, and the guys had a time. We were there first. Sometimes they’d see us practicing and would come into the ring and show us new holds and things, you know. Bournea: They ate lots of lean proteins, practiced tumbling techniques and holds, even lifting weights and performing acrobatics for three hours every day. They practiced with the white women who were older and well-known in the organization, like Mae Young and others. They worked well together and mentored them. Did the women talk much about their fan base? Bournea: They had loyal fans all over the world, and what’s interesting about women’s wrestling even now is that the majority of the fans were men of all different races. They traveled to places like Japan, Canada, Mexico, Cuba before the embargo, Australia, Latin America and across the States. People always came up after their matches and stood in line to ask for autographs. They were very gracious and would always greet them afterward. Why do you think so many people came out to see women wrestle? Wimbley: We brought it to a different level audience wise. And one of the things — I’ll tell you, wrestling had some gorgeous girls. You’d think that we were movie actresses! Yeah, we didn’t come out looking like Buffalo Bill; the girls were gorgeous. And so whenever the girls were added to the card, they drew more people because people really liked to see the girls. I think we had more fire. We were moving more because wrestling was just big, heavy, chunky guys that just walked around, grunting and all. We would fly all over the place — in the ropes, out of the ropes, on the ground, jumping over the ropes, jumping off the ropes. My specialty was the “airplane spin,” so when I wrestled my opponents [and] did the airplane spin, they knew it was over. Is there any footage out there of the lady wrestlers in action? Bournea: Yes, there actually is. I have just a little clip that I was able to find. There’s more on YouTube, but I don’t know the source of it, and it would have taken so much time to try to find out who owns it, but there is footage out there. It’s very grainy and just little moments here and there. I don’t know if there’s like a whole match on film. - During the golden age of women’s wrestling, these female athletes traveled the country and the world, and they were respected for their strength, athleticism and “beauty in motion.” They were paid professionals and superstars on television. Before the rise of the storefront dojo, the sport-karate tournament and even a magazine called Black Belt, these women were feted in mainstream periodicals and major newspapers. What most people don’t know is that the integration of African-American women into this part of society by Wolfe and Burke was inspired by Branch Rickey’s success with Jackie Robinson in Major League Baseball. The combat-sports queens and female martial artists we know so well today stand on the shoulders of all those pioneers of women’s wrestling — and on the shoulders of Robinson. These grapplers played a critical role in breaking down barriers built on sexism and racism. Lady Wrestler pays homage to and illuminates the contributions of these unsung sheroes of “herstory.” Gerry Chisolm was Black Belt’s 2020 Instructor of the Year. For more information about Lady Wrestler, visit ladywrestlermovie.com.

Clay Donahue Fontenot is one of Hollywood's most sought after and successful stuntmen and coordinators. He has doubled some of Hollywood’s biggest stars. His work includes such huge hits as Blade, Iron Man , Logan , Django Unchained and most notably the Equalizer franchise. Business Insider named Fontenot one of the most famous stunt doubles in Hollywood. You said, “Dying is one of my specialties.” How did this come about? Well, as a Stuntman in Hollywood we make most of our living getting beat up, crashing cars, being shot off buildings, being lit on fire or being blown up by the actors in order to make our stars look good on TV and the Big Screen. But as a Stunt Double for the hero in TV or film, the Stuntman gets to do much of the same action, but in most stories the hero lives. Take us through your martial arts training: Where did you start? What styles did you start with? Who did you study with? How did that training carry over to stunts? My first exposure with Martial Arts came about the age of 6 or 7 years old. We lived in an apartment complex in Tallahassee, FL. and sometimes I would see this guys out in the grass between the apartment buildings moving in stance or practicing Kata. I went over and asked him what he was doing and he said “Karate, do you want to learn?” I asked my parents and they said yes to letting me practice Shotokan and Shōrin-Ryū with him off and on for a year or so before he moved away. I loved it!! After that I went on to study Shinjimasu Goju with Sensei/Renshi Gallop Franklin for a few years where I learned so much about body conditioning, chi, and perseverance. You know those great stories about schools that have you running a mile bare foot on asphalt holding your arms at shoulder level straight out to the sides with a half gallon jug of water in each hand without stopping or letting your arms drop to your sides? Or being in horse stance on a tile floor for minutes at a time while balancing cups of soapy water on each thigh, where if you spilled it, …well now you gotta get back in that stance on a super slippery tile floor and hold your balance while being whacked with the Bamboo Shinai. This was one of those great “old school” schools that was off the beaten path that hadn’t yet been commercialized. It offered lots of great adventures in personal growth…not for the faint of heart. A few years later, at this same Goju school is where I would meet my next instructor Sensei Darryl Baldwin and begin my journey in the art of Kyokushin Karate! In Goju, we sparred on Saturdays and on this particular Saturday there was a guest whom I’d never seen before. He was an acquaintance of Renshi Gallop’s who had stopped in for a workout. I agreed to spar with him and he proceeded to expose my every weakness during our session with tips and pointers on how to correct each one, …while at the same time effortlessly executing the fastest yet crisp, clean and accurate techniques I had ever seen. I went home inspired by this man and upped my training game 100%. A full year would pass before I would run into Sensei Darryl Baldwin again upon his return from the military in Okinawa. He studied Kyokushin under Shihan Bobby Lowe of Hawaii and came back to Tallahassee, FL to open his Kyokushin School. I would join his school the week of his grand opening and stayed with him all the way up through the ranks to black, fighting on the on the circuit and competing in the Kyokushin world championships in Atlantic City. Since then, I’ve been exposed to lots of different disciplines in the film and entertainment industry but Kyokushin is my home! I now have two Daughters who have entered the world of martial arts and they have studied under Sensei David Dunn at Premier Martial Arts Academy in Santa Clarita, CA. While my Daughters were training there Mr. Dunn introduced me to Jujutsu for the first time. I only had the opportunity to spend a month on the mats with them but it has sparked fondness and inspiration to continue studying here in Costa Rica. Most people growing up can only dream of the places you have been and things you have done, but was it ever a dream for you growing up? And what gave you the confidence to pursue this dream? As a martial artist, I had always dreamt of being Stunt Actor and Stuntman in the entertainment industry but, when I was younger it was a goal that seemed unobtainable by a small town guy like myself. Then at 22 years old, I saw a TV show that was starring a female friend I went to high school with and I instantly thought, “If she can do it, I can do it!” I started saving my money to move to Hollywood, CA. the very next day. 6 months later I was in California trying to figure it all out. Even at that point I had no idea of the opportunities that would be presented to travel to all over the world and have so many wonderful experiences. I was just happy I got to do the things I love doing as my occupation, … the rest has been and still is a welcomed bonus! What is the most difficult stunt role you've had to prepare for and film? The most difficult stunt role I’ve had to prepare for was the work in the Ironman suit for several reasons. (I did the work in the suit for the end of Ironman I, all of Ironman II, all of Avengers and all of the reshoots for Ironman III). The first reason it was difficult is because I wasn’t Doubling someone when I was in the suit. Robert Downey Jr. was Tony Stark but Ironman was a completely separate character that I had to become. I had to make all of the heroic movement choices for the character. I didn’t have a coach, someone to watch or someone to tell me what to do. Lucky for them Ironman was my favorite comic book hero and I ran around practicing all his move when I was a kid so that came somewhat naturally. The second reason why it was difficult was because of how restrictive the suit actually was when trying to do fight choreography in a scene. Not only was your movement restricted but it also pinched and drew blood at all the joints when bending 90 degrees or more. Still an absolute honor and I’d do it again in a heartbeat! What is the most memorable stunt? Most memorable stunt is a hard one to answer because there are so many, … and so different! So here are a few: The Blood Club Fight in the first Blade movie. Great choreography by the Great Sifu Chuck Jeffries, Wesley Snipes, and Jeff Ward! Heck, all the Blade fights in all the Blade movies were so fun and memorable I have to list them all! Another memorable stunt was a cannon car crash in the movie RIPD where I flipped a car through an intersection in the streets of downtown Boston. I can send you the footage if you like. What is the most dangerous stunt? I would have to say the most dangerous stunt was in the movie US Marshals where I jumped off the roof of an 18 story building holding a rope attached to the opposite end of the roof. This created a gigantic swing which swung me down and over a train station roof that I transferred to. I then had to run along the roof and jump to the last car of the train as it went by. No safety nets back then so the steaks were pretty high! In what ways have you evolved since the beginning of your career? Has your mindset changed? Your expectations/standards? Have you altered goals? My goals will alway be the same and that is to give the absolute best performance I have in me, no matter how big or small the project or job is! Since the beginning of my career my fights and the way I fight had to change right out of the gate! Since movies and TV entertainment are not real we have to pull our punches and kicks, or sometimes throw bigger and wider haymaker type techniques for it to register on camera. This can allow us to sell the desired effect for a specific reaction and then the audience can follow the story being told. More often than not, it feels really weird and or the timing is off, but if it looks good on camera then it works for the action. This takes getting used to because we don’t see what the camera sees until we watch playback, so you have to develop the skills of being aware of the camera at all times and understanding the angles so you can play to them as the action in the scene develops. My expectations and standards of today's talent, techniques and technologies have far been exceeded. The bar has been raised so much that I can’t wait to see where we go from here. I’m so blown away by today’s filmmakers as well as today's modern martial arts practitioners. MMA is where it’s at! After jumping off buildings, fighting space aliens, going against the Russian mob, and dying in countless ways including a Mandingo battle to the death, is there a stunt you still want to do? I’m totally grateful that I’ve had the opportunities over the years to experience all the great big blockbuster gags and to have had the chance to work with the amazing film crews and fellow stunt professionals that make all the incredible action possible in this business. I still train hard week in and week out and keep my body ready for whatever the industry has for me next! I’m open, so Bring it!

Master Simon Rhee is a World Taekwondo Kukkiwon certified 7th degree black belt and Tournament Grand Champion, a professional stuntman, actor, martial artist, fight choreographer and stunt coordinator. He is a member and past president of the International Stunt Association and is a recipient of 2 Taurus World Stunt Awards and numerous Screen Actors Guild Awards and nominations. Simon Rhee has doubled Jackie Chan and has worked with some of the most sought after Hollywood actors, musicians, and directors including Clint Eastwood, Leonardo DiCaprio, Anthony Hopkins, Tom Cruise, Keanu Reeves, Ben Stiller, Ang Lee, Christopher Nolan, John Woo, Doja Cat, Kendrick Lamar, Ed Sheeran, Post Malone, The Weeknd, Kendall Jenner, Kaia Gerber, and many, many more. You have had a very successful career in Hollywood, how did that first evolve? It was 1975, me and my brother Philip were visiting Master Jun Chong in Los Angeles. He was shooting a Korean movie called Bruce Lee Fights Back from the Grave in a Long Beach junkyard. He told us to come and do a fight scene. That's how it got started. Share with us your martial arts journey, how you got started and what led you to Los Angeles? When I was 10 years old, I came down with viral meningitis and stayed in the hospital for two months. After I got out of the hospital, my father started Phillip and I into a taekwondo studio in Seoul, South Korea to make us strong. After we got our black belt, we immigrated to San Francisco to attend junior high school and high school. After graduating high school in San Francisco, our whole family moved to Los Angeles in 1976. Describe the early days training with your brother and how that motivated or inspired you? What I remember about training taekwondo in South Korea, we had to train every day except Sunday. I remember cleaning the wooden floor with wet rags before starting the class to make sure the wooden floor was clean, otherwise we would get a knuckle sandwich from our instructor. You have a very successful career in teaching and training celebrities and athletes. What was your approach in teaching them and was it different than teaching group classes? When I was teaching the Raiders football players, I wanted to make them have good reflexes and flexibility so they wouldn't injure themselves while they were playing. When I'm teaching actors, it all depends on what is written on a script. Pretty much all the basics are the same in martial arts, so I would start them with very basic but strong foundations. Once they have that, it's pretty easy to teach other materials. It would be very different from group classes since they are not focusing on belt testing. When you are creating and directing stunts is there still a teaching element involved and what is your emphasis? When I'm creating or directing stunts, the most important thing is safety. If one of my actors gets hurt, that stops the production, so safety is the first thing. The second is being true to the script and helping our director shoot his vision. Tell us about some of your recent movie projects? I just finished a movie called Spaceman with Adam Sandler. We play astronauts on a spaceship. Before that I was the stunt coordinator for two seasons of American Horror Stories and Lucifer. Who are your martial arts heroes and inspirations? My martial arts heroes are my instructors, Master Jun Chong for TKD, Master Moo Ryang Choi for Hapkido, and Ron Balicki for FMA and, of course, I got my inspirations from Bruce Lee. After 40 years you are still at the top of your game, What keeps motivating you to stay passionate? I love solving problems by using my brain. When I was sparring, I'm always thinking about how I could score and win. Same thing when I'm coordinating stunts, once you receive a script, you have to break it down: What kind of stunts are in the script? Who can I hire to do the stunts safely? Is my budget going to work with this script? Many things go into making a TV show and I love solving the problems and I think that's what makes it passionate for me. Today many martial artists find social media fame but still strive for the silver screen. What is your advice for those that want to explore a career path in stunts? I get this question a lot, I can not hire anyone without the Screen Actors Guild union card, so first thing they have to do is try to get that card. It's not easy, it took me 11 years to finally get it. You could go to the Screen Actors Guild website to find out how to join. You should also have a one minute demo reel of what you are good at on YouTube or Vimeo. Make sure it is not more than one minute. Make it short and have your headshot at the end with your contact info. Go to YouTube and take a look at some other stunt peoples demo reel to get the idea.

Wuxia films 1905-1982: Quasi Non-Fiction Wrapped in Fantastical Fight by Dr. Craig D. Reid The coolest wuxia film of the 1920’s, Burning of the Red Lotus Temple (1928) Who could have guessed that the fate of the first 44 years (1905-1949) of wuxia cinema was heavily affected by the sexist attitudes of the Ching Dynasty? It all started in 1772, the year the Ching government banned females from performing on stage, which created the tradition of female impersonators in Beijing Opera. However, realism demanded real women's bodies. So once film came around, women would be cast in female roles. During the silent era, being an actor was considered one of the lowest occupations around, so men would rarely risk losing face by becoming an actor. This opened the doors for actresses to be the cinematic heroes, and as weird as this may sound, this was highly detrimental to the industry, and it was not because of sexism. When we left the first half of the Chinese Wuxia Xiaoshuo ( wuxia novels) blog, the famous martial arts novels of Chinese yore created during the Warring State Period (481 BC–221 BC), had received the biggest commercial boost for their wuxia novels when in 1905, the first martial arts movie in history was filmed at Beijing’s Fengtai Photography Studio. Tan Xin-pei in Dingjun Mountain (1905), the first film to feature martial arts. Starring Chinese Beijing opera star Tan Xin-pei as General Huang Zhong, the silent film Dingjun Mountain dramatized the Battle of Mount Dingjun (A.D. 219) based on a chapter from the 14th-century wuxia novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms . Featuring opera-born fight choreography, it was the first film ever that featured martial arts action. For Tan, it was not a loss of face, yet using his opera face to elevate the honor of his traditional Chinese theatrical art. By 1925, there were 175 movie companies in China’s major cities, 141 of them in Shanghai, that all focused on making love stories, Confucian morality tales and martial arts movies. It’s no stretch of the imagination that many wuxia films were made prior to 1925. The first known full-length wuxia pian ( wuxia film), thus oft considered the first Chinese martial arts movie, starred actress Fen Ju Hua in Swordswoman Li Feifei (January 1925) as a female wuxia hero that saves a woman from committing suicide who’s being forced into marriage. It’s noteworthy that Feifei was produced by the eldest Shaw brother, Runje Shaw, when their Shanghai studio was called Tianyi Film Company. When the family moved to Hong Kong in 1957, they became known as Shaw Brothers, a tour de force in the wuxia film industry. Probably the coolest 1920’s wuxia film was The Burning of the Red Lotus Temple (1928). Adapted from The Tale of the Extraordinary Swordsman , it was a 27-hour long extravaganza split into 19 feature length parts about a daring rescue of a general being held in a trap-infested temple that features insane, special effect-enhanced weapon fights. (see opening photo) Rise, Exodus, Purge By the 1930s, new directions evolved. Wuxia writers were not scholars tinkering with period fiction, instead they were money-making, newspaper serial writers with bold imaginations that dared to break socio-political rules as their heroes faced outrageous situations. Think of it as Chinese sword and sorcery events filled with demons, monsters, secret scrolls and magic spells. These characters had extraordinary leaping abilities, could shoot flying swords and daggers out of their hands and weapons. When superheroes fought supervillains, they’d sit opposite each other and fight with their astral spirits, while Daoist and Buddhist priests remind us of humanity, as only they can attain cong jian zhong wu dao (from the sword, they have realized the way ). Starting with Chivalrous Swordsmen of the Sichuan Mountains , Huanzhu Louzhu (aka Li Shoumin) ended up running 27 novel franchises with an accumulative 100+ volumes that influenced the development of the wild and wacky Cantonese wuxia films of the 1950s and ‘60s, where heroes battling creatures, and beasts, and behemoths, oh my!, were par for the course. His novel Blades from the Willows (1946) was one of the first wuxia novels translated into English. Another influential writer at that time who also churned out gobs of wuxia fiction was Wang Du-lu (aka Wang Baoxiang). He avoided dwelling on martial fantasies and heroic escapades, and instead focused on the social weight of the martial heroes, their love-lives, agonizing tragedies, and valiant sacrifices, and how all these pressures affected the heroes’ martial paths. Hong Kong's Cantonese cinema arose when the Nationalist Government laid down the law that all films made in Shanghai (the Chinese Hollywood of the 1920s-1930s) had to be shot in mandarin, which forced a mass exodus of Cantonese speaking talent to Hong Kong. Soon thereafter, the Nationalist Government heavily censored then banned these films because they were repulsive, and the government believed that many of their plots and themes would engage the populace toward rebellion, improper behavior, and political disorder. In the late 1920’s, actress Jiang Qing dreamed of becoming an actress yet none of the 141 Shanghai film companies would hire her. This is the biggest mistake in Chinese cinema history. Jiang Qing married Mao Ze-dong in 1938, and in the 1950s she became the head of the Film Section of the Communist Party's Propaganda Department. Only 20, pre-1949 films are known to have survived her destructive cleansing (fires) of the Chinese Proletarian Cultural Revolution. Earliest known surviving wuxia film, starring Fan Xue-ping in Red Heroine (1929). I had the privilege and pleasure to watch two big silent films of that era that survived the cleansing at a nationwide traveling film festival called Heroic Grace in March of 2003 at UCLA: the Red Heroine (1929) starring actress Fan Xue-ping; and Swordswoman of Huangjing (1930), which starred Sammo Hung’s grandmother Xu Chin-fang. The production values matched the American films, yet the choreographed fights were way ahead of their American counterparts. No one knows how many wuxia films were erased from history and especially the timeline of their existence and growth since 1905 to 1949. Furthermore, wuxia novels were now also banned in China and Taiwan. This left only Hong Kong to be the torchbearer for wuxia novels and films. Hong Kong, Land of the Rising Wuxia Pian In the early 1950s, Hong Kong based wuxia novelists Liang Yu-sheng and Jin Yong (aka Louis Cha), were influenced by Western literature and the freedom of thought attitude that existed during British Colonial times, as they infused their characters with narcissistic lifestyles that embraced the idea of non-conformity and won over the masses by placing their heroes during historic Chinese times when China was under foreign rule, i.e, now Britain in Hong Kong. Their success circled around honoring the sensibilities and schticks created by Huanzhu and Wang. Some of Jin’s well-known novels that have multiple must-see movie adaptations are Legend of the Brave Archer (1957), The Flying Fox of Snowy Mountain (1959), Demi Gods and Semi Devils (1963) and The Smiling, Proud Warrior (1967). For Liang, Story of the White-Haired Demon Girl (1959) and Three Women Warriors (1960) also has cool film and TV adaptations. When Mandarin filmmakers arrived in Hong Kong in the 1950s, they held wuxia film in contempt as reflected in their preference for Chinese opera and wen yi (literary art) films. Yet by the mid-1960s Shaw Brothers Studios and the rise of directors like King Hu and Chang Cheh, Mandarin filmmakers began to overcome the prejudice of the wuxia film in Mandarin cinema. With their new-wave style of kinky plots, unique fight-detailed choreography with sumptuous sight gags, camera choreography and pacey editing, Chang and Hu revolutionized the wuxia film by instilling a new literary dynamic via the rise of two outstanding wuxia novelists: Taiwan based Gu Long; and Shanghai born turned prolific screenwriter Ni Kuang. Ni churned out over 300 scripts, many of them for Chang and another influential wuxia film director Chu Yuen, who also filmed many of Gu’s novels that were scripted by Ni. Gu’s brusque language lined his cloak and dagger sensibilities, while using hidden danger tropes akin to the secretive natures of James Bond and western detective thriller genres. His neo-twisted plot designs attracted the younger generation of Chinese filmgoers with films like Jackie Chan’s To Kill With Intrigue (1977) and Magnificent Bodyguard (1978). Jimmy Wong Yu, on the left, in One-Armed Swordsman (1967) Between 1965-1985, Shaw Brothers kickstarted a new era of wuxia films by producing 150 wuxia movies. Two heavily influential films that defined this age’s beginning were the Chang directed, Ni Kuang written and Jimmy Wong Yu starring, manly-man epic One-Armed Swordsman (1967). Inspired by the one-armed character in Jin’s novel The Eagle Lovers (1959) the movie featured the fight instructor duo chops of Liu Chia-liang and Tang Chia. The second was the King Hu directed, co-written by Ding Shan-xi (Ding directed the first kung fu movie I starred in) and headlined the first official Queen of Kung Fu films Cheng Pei-pei as a swordswoman in Come Drink With Me (1966). The film highlighted the fight instructor skills of Hang Ying-jie (lead villain in Bruce Lee’s Big Boss (1972)) and his assistant Sammo Hung. As the kung fu and the wuxia films of the times started to lose their luster, due to Hong Kong's industry-destroying copy-cat mentality, Jackie Chan created a new genre of martial art films called wu da pian (fight films with martial arts) that put wuxia movies on the chopping blocks. With films like Project A (1984) and more officially via Police Story (1985), Chan intelligently combined athleticism, martial arts and dangerously outrageous stunts wrapped in more contemporary themes and settings. He was now even a bigger man on campus. Yet in the final chapter of this wuxia story, a real hero of wuxia who graduated from the University of Texas, Austin, stepped up and saved the day. How? The Rise of Fant-Asia. *Note: Before 1983, When Chan’s Golden Harvest kung fu films Snake in the Eagle Shadow (1978) and Drunken Master (1978), overpowered the Hong Kong film industries, Shaw Brothers had director Chang and fight director Liu Chia-liang create a new martial art genre, guo shu pian (national art films). The 36th Chamber of Shaolin (1978) is a famous early example. Poster Art for Come Drink with Me (1966) Image Sources: Photo 1: The coolest wuxia film of the 1920’s, Burning of the Red Lotus Temple (1928) https://www.karenfang.net/blog/2019/3/11/zrmanja-falls-croatia-f3exm-mlrtw Photo 2: Tan Xin-pei in Dingjun Mountain (1905), the first film ever to feature martial arts. . https://www.wikiwand.com/en/Dingjun_Mountain_%28film%29#Media/File:Tan_Xinpei_Dingjunshan_1905.jpg Photo 3 : Earliest known surviving wuxia film, starring Fan Xue-ping in Red Heroine (1929). https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0019996/mediaviewer/rm286088448/ Photo 4: Jimmy Wong Yu in One-Armed Swordsman (1967) https://vintagegeekculture.tumblr.com/post/680653626143801344/rip-to-jimmy-wang-yu-one-armed-swordsman-the Photo 5: Poster Art for Come Drink with Me (1966) https://hkmdb.com/db/movies/image_detail.mhtml?id=4504&image_id=84140&display_set=eng

A master in Jeet Kune Do, Burt Richardson has spent his life in pursuit of the mastery of several martial arts styles including BJJ and Filipino Martial Arts. Under the tutelage of such greats as Dan Inasantos, Tony Diego, the Machado Brothers, and Carlson Gracie he is on a constant quest for knowledge. He’s an author and teacher working with people from law enforcement to civilians. We are thrilled to reconnect with Black Belt Hall of Fame inductee Burt Richardson. In this interview, Tony Parrish talks with Burt Richardson about: - The most dangerous fighter alive is not in the UFC - A story of ​​Antonio Tatang Illustrismo, the legendary Kali master - Mixing styles to create the ultimate street fighting system - Burt Richardson shares his recipe for success - And shares a story of learning Zulu stick fighting in Africa