: From Monkey Kung Fu to

Frozen in Time

OCOL – Wednesday, April 18, 2018 April 12, 2018

Guest: Veronica Hendricks

Dr. Hildy Notes:

STORY LINE TEXT Donnie Yen Chi-tan is a HOT TICKET at the movies as one of ’s top action stars. He is an actor, martial artist, film director, producer, action choreographer and multiple time world wushu tournament gold medal champion.

Yen is widely credited for bringing mixed martial arts (MMA) into the mainstream of Chinese culture by choreographing MMA in many of his films. He has displayed notable skills in a wide variety of martial arts, being well-versed in , Boxing, Kickboxing, Jeet Kune Do, Hapkido, Taekwondo, Karate, Muay Thai, Wrestling, Brazilian Jiu-Jitzu, Judo, Wing Chun and Wushu. He is seen as one of the most popular film stars in the global Asia movie fans and the world at large since the early 2000’s.

Yen was born in Guangzhou, China. His mother, Bow-sim Mark, is a Fu Style Wudangquan (internal martial arts) and Tai Chi grandmaster, while his father, Klyster Yen, is a newspaper editor. When he was two years old, his family moved to Hong Kong and then to Boston when he was 11. His younger sister, Chris Yen, is also a martial artist and actress, and appeared in the 2007 film Adventures of Johnny Tao: Rock Around the Dragon. His parents taught him to play musical instruments at an early as well as his natural skils in hip-hop dancing and break dancing form years of martial arts.

One of the Chinese martial arts is Monkey Kung Fu or Monkey Fist, which utilizes ape or monkey-like movements as part of its technique as a descendant martial art of Wuzuquan. This skill was choreographed in the most exquisite way through his character the MONKEY KING.

There are a number of independely developed systems of Monkey Kung Fu, which include Xingzhemen named after the protagonist Sun WuKong (Monkey Kings name) of the popular Ming Dynasty novel Journey to the West and Nanhouquan or Southern Monkey Fist originating from the Southern Shaolin Temple as well as the better known Da Sheng Pi Gua Men style of Hong Kong.

No matter what the martial art skill is Donnie Yen’s fans know for sure he will be expressing it through his movies. Each independent style has its own unique approach to the expression of how to incorporate the various martial art forms into self-defense, but Yen does it with such style, grace and honor. And yes that honor is well reflected in the martial art weapons used in his films as well, which honor the Ancient Chinese Ancestors who were among the earliest of self-defense or hand to hand combat trained warriors. Yes – warriors throughout all of time and various nations fought to protect their homeland, a royal Emperor or Empress, life of their family and to have a continuous way to earn an income for their families in times of famine. And it is said in the Bible and other religious text that all soldiers who die on the battle field will go to heaven as all mothers and babies who die at birth.

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