MARTIAL ARTS ENTERTAINMENT

In the twenty-first century, martial arts movies have moved from the back lots of Hong Kong to the klieg lights of Hollywood in the United States.

The 60’s and 70’s produced the golden age of kung fu movies and karate and samurai films, from the production machines of legendary producers such as Run Run Shaw out of Hong Kong and iconic directors such as Akiro Kurosawa from Japan.

Probably the martial arts breakthrough movie in the United States was “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon” with porcelain Chinese beauty Zhang Ziyi. With this movie, the kung fu or martial arts movie once identified with Hong Kong low-budget productions entered American mainstream entertainment. Other blockbusters followed, such as the Jet Li opus “Hero” and another Zhang Ziyi action epic named “House of Flying Daggers.”

On TV, martial arts probably got its biggest exposure with the seminal American series “Kung Fu.” Kwai Chang, an outlawed Shaolin monk played by American actor David Carradine, wandered the tough, arid West, spreading Confucian wisdom, unveiling the secrets of the Shaolin temple in flashbacks and demonstrating the deadly techniques of kung-fu.

Today, martial arts on TV has joined the reality series bandwagon. Spurred by the dizzying success of reality shows like Survivor and Big Brother, martial arts reality shows have run the gamut from thinly veiled boxing bouts like “The Contender” to screen tests or auditions for action parts, like “The Next Action Hero.”

To date, no martial arts TV show has savored the same phenomenal success as “American Idol” or “Survivor.” But it is probably a matter of time when, just like the movies, the martial arts reality show will be as mainstream as “American Idol” or “Big Brother.”

This site will feature and spotlight TV as well as movie productions as they use the martial arts and action genre’ in entertainment.

It will also cover martial arts entertainment including martial arts festivals, demonstrations, seminars, tournaments and other sporting events, as well as musical and rock concert benefits,  and book signing and literary and cultural promotional events for martial arts all over the world.

Enjoy.
Jay de Leon
Taipan Productions