Posted on 01/09/2007 7:27:04 AM PST by NormsRevenge
Korean martial arts master Bong Soo Han, who helped revolutionize Hollywood's understanding of martial arts by creating fight sequences for modern American films, died on Monday. He was 73.
Han died at his home in Santa Monica, said John Davis, director of operations for the International Hapkido Federation, which Han founded. The cause of death was not disclosed.
Han, who held a 9th-degree black belt and the title of grand master in Hapkido, dedicated his life to spreading the martial art, which combines the kicking and punching of Taekwondo and the joint locks and graceful throws of Judo.
Often called the father of Hapkido in the Western world, Han was careful about whom he promoted, awarding only slightly more than 100 black belts in more than 35 years of teaching in the United States.
Many martial artists in Hollywood trained with him.
"Grand Master Han is one of the finest men I have ever met, and it has been an honor to call him a friend for over 30 years," action star and martial arts expert Chuck Norris once told The Associated Press.
Legendary Kung Fu Grand Master Eric Lee described Han as a true gentleman.
"Everybody says he's a grand master-this or grand master-that, but they don't act like it," Lee said of other martial arts experts. "He does. He has a lot of quiet inside and peace that we can all learn from."
Han was discovered by Hollywood in 1969, shortly after he arrived in the United States, while giving a Hapkido demonstration at a park near Malibu. Actor Tom Laughlin saw him perform and asked for help with his action film "Billy Jack."
Up to that time, most martial arts scenes in movies were portrayed by actors with little martial arts training. Han choreographed fight scenes for the film, now a cult classic, and served as a stunt man, demonstrating a level of martial arts skill rarely seen before.
Han also worked on the 1988 thriller "The Presidio," as well as other action films, and was featured in Wesley Snipes' 1998 documentary "Masters of the Martial Arts."
He began studying martial arts as a boy in his native Seoul and trained under the founder of Hapkido, Young Sul Choi. He opened his first school in Seoul in 1959 and later taught self-defense to U.S. forces in Korea and Vietnam before coming to Los Angeles, where he set up his own school and frequently offered seminars for FBI agents.
He wrote the 1974 classic "Hapkido, The Korean Art of Self-Defense" and produced a series of instructional videotapes.
He was also the founder and president of the International Hapkido Federation, which has affiliate schools in California, Hawaii, North Carolina, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Texas and Indiana.
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In this undated photo released by Grand Master Bong Soo Han International Hapkido Federation-Korean martial arts master Bong Soo Han, who helped revolutionize Hollywood's understanding of martial arts by creating fight sequences for modern American films died on Monday. He was 73. (AP Photo/Bong Soo Han International Hapkido Federation)
"Hollywood's Martial Arts Teacher Dies"
Woose.
What a distinguished-looking gentleman. May he rest in peace.
May GM Bong Soo Han rest in peace. He did much to promote martial arts in the United States. To this date, his small hapkido book he wrote back in the 1970's continues the best one out there.
I like the photo on the left. He has that bemused, "I can break your arm in twelve places," look about him.
Good to see that Eric Lee is still around.
Billy Jack. Now there's a blast from the past! I think I'll dig it out and watch it on DVD this week. Thanks, Han. R.I.P.
Yes ... the aura of supreme confidence. A man who is secure in himself is very attractive, in my opinion.
He also did several movies, including the hilarious parody of "Enter The Dragon" in "The Kentucky Fried Movie".
For real fans, try and obtain the rare movie "Kill the Golden Goose", starring both Master Bong Soo Han (good guy) and the late Master Ed Parker (bad guy) of Kenpo karate.
It is a singularly unique martial arts movie, as only real martial arts techniques were used. Far too dangerous for stunt men, Master Parker used several of his students as "victims".
Since Master Parker's style specializes in "in-fighting", sometimes called "fast hands", it is very hard to get on film, so it really helps to know what is going on if you already know martial arts.
After one big fight scene, Master Han goes through a morgue looking at Master Parker's casualties. He makes it a point to mention their injuries--which they really would have suffered had Master Parker "meant it." This was made possible by a thesis one of Master Parker's students had written about the medical consequences of martial arts blows.
It took a lot of discussion to figure out a way to end the movie. A martial arts fight scene between Master Han and Master Parker was out of the question, since all sorts of problems would happen if either styles master was seen in any position of weakness.
**Spoiler Alert**
So Master Han ends up shooting Master Parker half a dozen times with a very large caliber revolver; which by itself doesn't kill him, because he is wearing a bulletproof vest. But the force hurls him backwards into a sharpened stake that hits him on the damaged part of his vest, impaling him.
Since that was sort of how Grand Master Kien Shih was killed by Bruce Lee in "Enter The Dragon", I guess they decided that it was okay for Master Parker to die that way.
**End Spoiler Alert**
As an aside, Master Ed Parker also appeared in a comedy movie, "Revenge of the Pink Panther", as an assassin sent to kill Inspector Clouseau.
I remember him from Kentucky Fried Movie. What was really cool was the guy had solid comic timing. What a great life he must have had.
Thanks, I hadn't looked at what roles he might played over the years.
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