Steven Ho's Blog – Deconstructing Fighting and Stunts for your enjoyment

Big thanks to Francis Pineda of Jhoon Ree Tae Kwon Do in Arlington, Virginia for finding this in his VHS drawer.  I believe this was the first 540 kick I ever through on the East Coast.  The watermark is dated June 2, 1990 and it was a demo in either Washington D.C. or Boston.

Youtube is restricted for housing the NBC/Universal stunt segments with Conan (from the Tonight Show with Conan O’Brien episodes).  But I was able to upload them at Funny or Die for now….and btw….we’re working on ideas for Asian Conan, episode 2.

CONAN STUNTS ON FUNNY OR DIE

Pronounced: nun·cha·ku also nun-chucks

In the early seventies after Bruce Lee exploded onto the bigscreen with Fist of Fury, Return of the Dragon and Enter the Dragon, nunchakus and other martial art weapons gained huge popularity.  Shortly after, lawmakers worldwide associated this mystical Asian weapon with violent street gangs.  The world was being introduced to the martial arts and non practitioners and law enforcement feared the worst.

Soon after, the banning of nunchakus became a worldwide and trending law.  I can’t seem to find any backup information on widespread nunchaku gang fights or home invasions by “nunchaku gangs”, but like many strange laws created by vocal politicians….this one stuck.

Why those same lawmakers did not also make brooms, kitchen knives, coke bottles, rolls of quarters, razor blades, and baseball bats illegal is beyond me…apparently they didn’t see The Warriors.

Most martial artist know that although nunchakus are technically illegal in many areas, they are easily purchasable from a number of martial art supply stores.

I have yet to hear of SWAT raids on martial art studios or little karate kids being arrested at weekend tournaments or mall demonstrations.  But the fact that this law has not been revoked is a bit annoying and a disconcerting loophole that can potentially cause a martial artist big problems.

Currently possession of nunchaku is illegal in a number of countries including Germany, Norway, Canada, Russia and Spain. In the United Kingdom for many years it was thought legal for anyone over the age of 18 to buy and possess Nunchaku, although public possession is not allowed unless transporting between a place of training or private addresses.

However, following a case brought by Strathclyde Police and the Procurator Fiscal heard at Glasgow Sheriff Court on the 10th February 2010, a Sheriff ruled that nunchakus fell into the category of a prohibited weapon as defined by the Criminal Justice Act 1988 (Offensive Weapons) Order 1988 Section 141 (n). If, and only if it were upheld by a senior court, this ruling would have the effect of making it an offense to import, manufacture or sell nunchakus in the UK. It would also criminalize hundreds of thousands of martial arts enthusiasts who own a set of nunchakus.

In the U.K., even the depiction of nunchakus in Bruce Lee movies and even the Ninja Turtle movies were banned.  Believe it or not, the word “Ninja” was even banned from use.  The TMNT movies had to be retitled Teenage Mutant Hero Turtles in order to get a release there.

In Hong Kong, it is illegal to possess metal or wooden nunchaku connected by a chain. It can be possessed by obtaining a license from the police as a martial arts instructor. Any rubber nunchaku are allowed. However, possession of nunchaku in Mainland China is legal.

Legality in Australia is also determined by individual state laws. In New South Wales, the weapon is on the restricted weapons list, and thus can only be owned with a permit.

Legality in the United States varies at state level, e.g., personal possession of nunchaku is illegal in New York, Arizona, California and Massachusetts, but in other states possession has not been criminalized. In New York, attorney Jim Maloney has brought a federal constitutional challenge to the statutes that criminalize simple in-home possession of nunchaku for peaceful use in martial-arts practice or legal home defense. As of March 2009, the case was awaiting the filing of a petition for review by the U.S. Supreme Court.

CHECK OUT BRUCE LEE OFFICIAL SITE HERE

NUNCHAKU LAWS ON TOTALNUNCHAKU.COM

There’s a lot of pretty amazing talent these days, but this blew my mind.

Damien Gareth Walters from Derby, United Kingdom is a professional stuntman, gymnastics coach and free runner.

Damien has competed for Great Britain in tumbling and at his peak, was ranked 4th in the world, winning the European and world championships with the team. He said his first move was a frontflip on his grass when he was 4 or 5, which he subsequently failed, and so his mother took him to train in gymnastics. He has had over 20 years training experience, and currently trains for about 3-4 hours each day.

Damien’s tumbling and gymnastics skills mean that many free running moves come naturally to him, and he was first noticed in the community after releasing his 2007 showreel, which featured many free running inspired moves. This video got him scouted by Jackie Chan’s stunt agent, and he has now given up on gymnastics to pursue a career being a stuntman, where he is a part of a core group of stuntmen who work for Brad Allan, the first non-asian member of Jackie Chan’s stunt team.

He often features in videos with Tim “Livewire” Shieff including the popular Youtube series The Walters & Shieff Show, and his 2009 showreel has become one of the most popular videos of all time on Youtube after being featured on many video sharing sites.

OG spotlight: Dick Wei

You may not know Mr. Wei by name, but if you’re a fan of Hong Kong cinema (especially Sammo Hung films), you certainly recognize him as a martial artist, stuntman, and actor who was THE Hong Kong martial arts villain of the eighties.

I had the pleasure of working with Mr. Wei on my first film Long zai Tian ya (“Dragon Fight) starring Jet Li and Stephen Chow.

We shot Dragon Fight in Northern California 1988.  Jet had recruited me into the business just a few months prior after seeing me at the Compete National Karate Championships in Irvine California.

It was my first stunt job and  the first time I had even stepped onto a set.  I hadn’t known anyone in the business at that point and wasn’t even aware that I was supposed to bring my own “stunt pads” to set, so I ended up stuffing my waistband with t-shirts and towels for a hillside fall I did.

I clearly remember my fight scene with Mr. Wei – we started one of the shots with me throwing a spinning back kick to his chest.  I was so excited to be there that I kept throwing my kick on “roll cameras” … as opposed to the obvious “action” cue.

I kept thumping Mr. Wei in the chest with pretty hard back kicks, but he never lost his temper – he just kept repeating to me “wait until action.”

The entire crew got a good laugh out of it and Mr. Wei was kind enough to offer a new rookie lots of helpful advice throughout the rest of that shoot.  The world may know him as a villain, but I will always remember him as giving and kind mentor.

Here’s a nice compilation pf his work I found on youtube…

You know, I have no idea why I never caught this movie when it was first released in the states in 2002.  But after recently watching clips on youtube, this film is going on the top of my to-dvd list.

N

Yesterday I posted on my Facebook page that I was shocked to hear that a few teens I had spoken to had absolutely no idea who Bruce Lee was.  It got me thinking about all our great OGs that have paved the way for us and that will hopefully not go overlooked by the following generations.

For our “Know your OGs Category”, let’s start today with Buster Keaton. Along with Douglass Fairbanks, Charlie Chaplin, and Harold Lloyd, Mr. Keaton was a genius of physical comedy who did his own stunts….in a time before the special effects, camera tricks, and sophisticated wirework that we have today.  His cameramen were told to keep rolling until he yelled “cut” or was killed.

Buster Keaton (1895-1966) was one of the best known and most respected of the silent film comedians. Dubbed “The Great Stone Face” for his stoic demeanor, he wrote, directed and produced many of his films in the 1920s and 1930s. An innovator behind the camera as well as in front of it, Keaton was lauded for his sometimes dangerous brand of physical comedy and impeccable comic timing.

Here’s a continuation of the Oscar blog I posted a few days ago.  Check out the latest tricking reel from Jeremy, Anis, and Daniel…

Here’s a rare rehearsal picture from TMNT 2.  We got fitted at Jim Henson’s famed Creature Shop in London and had a few weeks to practice on our own with some parts they lent us, but this was really our first day of official rehearsal in the entire costume with stunt coordinator Mr. Pat Johnson.  The trickest part (other than the obvious lack of vision) was getting used to the shell.  Most of the weight was distributed on our backs, so our “core” (I hate that I justed used that word) was thrown off.  It definitely took a minute to get used to these things.

Here’s the full HD stunt segment where Conan kicks ass, then saves the Asian Baby from a pyro explosion.  I dare any other late night host to try this.

More Conan stunt clips filed under COCO HD STUNT FOOTAGE on this blog.

You can view more Conan & Steven Stunt Footage on Funny or Die