11 Ultimate Facts About Jean-Claude Van Damme's 'Bloodsport'
My recent friend David Abdullah Muhammad, aka brother news https://youtu.be/o0FNaWDqB1U I started posting vintage martial arts movie posters to go along with my upcoming album, and it reminded me of the movies I watched when I was younger. Most of these are nothing like “Enter the Dragon.” Most of them are from his 80's which I consider to be the golden age of the martial arts film genre. There were films like “The Force of One'' with Chuck Norris and Bill Wallace, “Bloodsport'' with Jean-Claude Van Damme, and “Above the Law'' with Steven Seagal. These films featured some of the biggest martial arts stars of the time and fueled an explosion of martial arts films over the next decade.
david abdullah muhammad
Today's movies feature action stars doing big stunts, but they're generally much more associated with car stunts and explosions than pure martial arts like they were in the '80s. Certain movies still have plenty of martial arts fight scenes, but unless you were alive in the '80s or his '90s, you probably can't understand how many movies in this genre were being made back then. I love all the old Bruce Lee movies, but what Bruce started was later elaborated upon by the 80's star. Not only were the actors you know and loved the biggest stars of their time, but cult films like The Last Dragon, The Best of the Best, and even The Trouble in Little China captured the essence of wuxia films at the time. Also includes masterpieces. The reason I bring this up is because I feel like a lot of young fighters are starting to lose touch with the people who paved their path for them, not just on film but on the tournament side as well. Many young fighters know Richard Plowden as Avery and Morgan's dad, or as the American WKC representative, but when I was a young fighter, Richard was one of the top fighters on the planet at the time. did. I remember reading Sport Karate Illustrated and seeing how Richard, Billy Blanks, and Steve “Nasty” Anderson were always talked about and wanting to emulate them. It's not just the previous generation of martial artists who sometimes don't get the recognition they deserve. Years ago, I had a student in class who was talking to other students about a new band he had discovered. When I finally heard the song she was talking about, I had to laugh. The song was “Rock and Roll All Night” by Kiss. When I told her it wasn't a new band, it was from the mid-1970s, she gave me a puzzled look.
The reason I think this is important is because, as Maya Angelou said, “You can't really know where you're going until you know where you've been.” One of the many mentors who influenced me over the years was Mike Stone. Mike was an early legend in U.S. Karate, winning many tournaments in the 1960s. Mike was known to many for his days in the ring, but he was perhaps more famous for the comrades around him, including Ed Parker, Chuck Norris, Bruce Lee, and Priscilla Presley. During this period, Mike wrote several screenplays and appeared in some of the films of the time, including Enter the Ninja and the American Ninja series, to name a few. Many of my generation of fighters know who Mike is and what he has done, but I want to encourage the younger generation of fighters to go back into the vaults of time and find out where they were born. We want people to explore some of their roots. I think some of the younger fighters on the circuit today, like Jackson Rudolph, watch old footage from back in the day, but he's always impressed with his knowledge of the history of martial arts. I am. I was even more shocked a few years ago in Tulsa, Oklahoma, when I introduced myself to Bailey Murphy, who many consider one of the best points fighters today. He actually said he felt like he already knew me from watching old videos of the NBL Super Grand. Some of today's fighters still study history and watch old videos because I refereed some of the fights.
Hopefully Cobra Kai's explosive success on Netflix will reignite interest in movies from that era and allow people to learn a little more about the martial artists who paved the way for today. So what's your favorite martial arts movie that maybe people might know or you might be interested in as well?
David Clifton has refereed over 1,500 MMA, kickboxing and boxing matches. He also serves as center officer and training officer for WAKO USA, NBL Super Grand, World Sports Karate Federation, World Karate Committee (WKC), and many Nazca national events.
