Major Events in Martial Arts

[G95champ]

Here is a list of what I think are the most important events in making Martial Arts a world wide practice. Of course I'm focusing on the orient and events after WW2.

1. American Military bases on Okaniwa as part of the post war occupation of Japan under the Marshall Plan.

2. Bruce Lee in the Green Hornet

3. 1980's moves (Chuck Norris, Karate Kid, and hundreds of Ninja movies)

4. The first UFC in 1993 (Gracie Ju-Jitsu)

5. The Internet (allowing the networking like KF and YouTube)

[Himokiri Karate]

Here is a list of what I think are the most important events in making Martial Arts a world wide practice. Of course I'm focusing on the orient and events after WW2.

1. American Military bases on Okaniwa as part of the post war occupation of Japan under the Marshall Plan.

2. Bruce Lee in the Green Hornet

3. 1980's moves (Chuck Norris, Karate Kid, and hundreds of Ninja movies)

4. The first UFC in 1993 (Gracie Ju-Jitsu)

5. The Internet (allowing the networking like KF and YouTube)

I want to throw Kyokushin and Mas Oyamas contribution since the Kyokushin style karate did have off-shoot styles which led to K-1 kickboxing.

[G95champ]

Not saying that did not have an impact but do the general masses know that?

Kickboxing - Jo Lewis or Bill Wallace would be more popular to the average person. However, both would be a distant second to the JCVD movie kickboxer lol

As a martial artist I agree with your post, I was referring to something that made little kids, teens, or adults want to find a dojo.

[tallgeese]

Here is a list of what I think are the most important events in making Martial Arts a world wide practice. Of course I'm focusing on the orient and events after WW2.

1. American Military bases on Okaniwa as part of the post war occupation of Japan under the Marshall Plan.

2. Bruce Lee in the Green Hornet

3. 1980's moves (Chuck Norris, Karate Kid, and hundreds of Ninja movies)

4. The first UFC in 1993 (Gracie Ju-Jitsu)

5. The Internet (allowing the networking like KF and YouTube)

For our generation I think that's a pretty comprehensive list. I'm a product of 3 and 4 while using 5 to market my own school these days. My first instructor was a direct result of 2 and his of 1, so I'd say that's a good list. I'm also certain that I'm not the only one who can say that.

[Spodo Komodo]

From a British perspective everything in the list pretty much applies here but I would add a couple of things.

The first is the de-alienation of eastern cultures through takeaway food. In the late 60s - early 70s Chinese restaurants would make their way into the heart of pretty much every community, re-igniting the British love of all things far-eastern.

1970s TV - before the 80s boom we had Japanese television series of Chinese classics such as Monkey and The Water Margin. Even Inspector Clouseau vs his faithful sidekick Kato or Hong Kong Phooey had a lasting impact on the psyche of British youth.

[G95champ]

Chinese food - very interesting and I can see that as having an impact.

[DWx]

How about the 1964 Olympics in Tokyo and the 1988 Olympics in Seoul? This is when Judo and TKD were introduced.

For TKD, the end of the Japanese occupation of Korea and Korean war were large factors. Both American and British military were stationed there and brought TKD back with them.

[JR 137]

I’ll say SOME of the masses outside karate knew what Mas Oyama brought to the MA...

Fighting Black Kings played in some theaters in ‘76. My CI was in Kyokushin at the time. According to him, dojos in NYC filled up with adults wanting to learn Kyokushin. And then the kids - he said there were so many parents who brought their kids to the dojos and said “I need you to teach my kid how to fight like the Fighting Black Kings.” Especially in Harlem and the Bronx. The kids wanted to be just like William Oliver, Charles Martin, and Willie Williams. William Oliver had a decent student base beforehand, his enrollment reportedly sky rocketed afterwards.

I’m not sure if it had that effect everywhere it was shown or not. I think it played mostly in a lot of bigger market inner-cities. I was born in ‘76, my recollection of those events is a bit shaky I saw him on Saturday and was going to ask him about it, but then I remembered that story and didn’t go there.

Someone relatively recently asked Charles Martin about that movie. He allegedly chuckled and responded “that movie’s still around?”

[bushido_man96]

I like the list, but the internet seems like quite a jump forward in relation to the first four you list (but it is definitely a big part of it the last decade or so). I'd say that Black Belt Magazine probably played a large role in it, as well.

[sensei8]

I just don't see any major events occurring within the MA world, past, present, and future because we're the product of our environment to some varying degree since we've the power to choose!!

Mr. Han possibly said it best...

"We are unique, gentlemen, in that we create ourselves... through long years of rigorous training, sacrifice, denial, pain. We forge our bodies in the fire of our will."