HISTORY
The following History is an indepth compilation by Dr. James A. Tindall, President, of the United States Kenpo Karate Association. Depicted here with Permission from Dr. Tindall. All of its content are Dr. Tindalls and Dr. Tindalls alone.
A Brief History of Grand Master Edmund K. Parker
Edmund K. Parker (10th degree black belt) is the undisputed "Father" of
American Karate having opened the first commercial Karate studio in 1954 at
the age of 23. He was a native of Honolulu, Hawaii and a graduate of
Kamehameha High School. In 1956 Grand Master Parker graduated from Brigham
Young University (BYU) with a B.S. in Psychology. As Grand Master Parker
learned Karate in Hawaii, he realized the need for new innovations to
combat modern day methods of fighting. To fulfill this need, he developed
revolutionary concepts, theories, and principles that are practical--not
classical. Because of this, his innovative concepts and ideas have greatly
enhanced the Martial Arts in the United States and throughout the world.
After graduation from BYU, Grand Master Parker moved to California and
opened his second school in 1956 in Pasadena; at this time he was a 3rd
degree black belt. Due to his skill and prowess as a martial artist, within
two years Grand Master Parker was teaching many well known entertainment
personalities.
Time Magazine referred to Grand Master Parker in 1961 as the "High Priest
and Prophet of the Hollywood sect." Grand Master Parker taught many well
known screen personalities including, Robert Wagner, Blake Edwards, Robert
Culp, Robert Conrad, Darrin McGavin, Hose Ferrar, George Hamilton, Warren
Beatty, Dick Martin, Elke Sommers, Joe Hyams, Joey Bishop, the late Elvis
Presley (4th degree black belt rank), Audie Murphy, Jeff Speakman (4th
degree black belt rank), and many others.
Quoting Black Belt Magazine, "Many Kenpo stylists refer to Ed Parker as the
last word on the proper way to do their techniques" (February, 1975).
Similar praise for Ed Parker appeared in a special issue of Inside Kung Fu,
commemorating 20 years of Karate in America: "You don't become the father
of American Karate by being the second in line... Universally acknowledged
as the man who introduced Karate to America some twenty-nine years ago, Ed
Parker has been one of the most innovative and successful influences in the
development of the Art in the new environment" (May, 1974). Karate Kung-Fu
Illustrated quotes Ed Parker's Kenpo as being "America's logical and
unstoppable fighting system...discovered in America, it's Karate's gold
mine of motion" (September, 1986).
The interest Mr. Parker had in employing logic dates to his beginning
Martial Arts studies in Honolulu. He approved of the exciting methods that
he learned as a novice in Kenpo, but as an experienced street fighter felt
that innovations were necessary in order for the classical concepts he
learned to become practical concepts on the street. As a result of his
research, Mr. Parker generated innovative answers by comparing Kenpo to
other fields of endeavor. By relating past experiences with the functional
aspects of Kenpo, he has revealed astounding breakthroughs in body motion
as it applies to martial arts, power shifting, and strength concepts.
Because of his formal education, Mr. Parker was able to extract principles
from physics, geometry, mathematics, and alpha-numeric systems and compare
them to life experiences that caused a new Kenpo discipline to emerge which
is without equal in the world today. As a result, his use of analogies,
short sories, and quotes has created distinctive methods to convert verbal
language into physical body motion. His unique ability to communicate Kenpo
and other Martial Arts information remains unparalleled.
Through formal martial arts training under William K.S. Chow, experience,
experimentation and thought provoking study, Mr. Parker developed the
Parker Kenpo System as we know it today. The Parker Kenpo System has
achieved a steady growth and with it, Mr. Parker developed a timeless
Martial Art. The Parker Kenpo System was effective yesterday, is effective
today, and will continue to be effective in the future.
Since the time of Grand Master Parker's death on December 15, 1990 at the
young age of 59, many have sought to degrade both Mr. Parker and the Kenpo
system which he extensively innovated. These people have gratuitously
attacked Grand Master Parker making many false claims. The attacks have
been basically to discredit Parker, his honor, system of Martial Arts, and
his integrity as an individual. It is interesting to note that these people
claim to have been intimately associated with Mr. Parker and because of
this feel they have every right to condemn and criticize however, most of
them were not associated with Mr. Parker at all. It is particularly
interesting that these people only surfaced after Parker's death when, as
we all know, he can no longer defend himself. Also, why do they make such
claims now? It seems very clear that they are making such claims to bring
greater attention to their own system of Martial Art or for other selfish
desires. Such claims could have been made as early as 1960 or any time
before Mr. Parker's death in 1990 in the numerous magazines which printed
articles about him and his Art, but no one stepped forward, nor did they
step forward in 1963 when Mr. Parker published his book "Secrets of Chinese
Karate" which traced the roots of the Ed Parker Kenpo System back to Tamo
in the Shaolin Monastery in 515 A.D. As a matter of fact, this single event
made it possible over the next decade for other systems to trace their
ancestry back to their Chinese origins for which many Martial Arts masters
were very grateful.
If the reader will investigate the references listed above from Black Belt
Magazine, Time Magazine, etc. one will see that the Martial Arts community
in general and the Masters of various systems were very impressed by Parker
and his contribution to the Martial Arts in America. He has received praise
from some of the most well known Masters including Tak Kubota, Tadashi
Yamashita, Fumio Demura, Tino Tuiolosega, Jhoon Rhee, Chuck Norris, and
many others. Mr. Parker was similarly praised by many columnists, film
producers, and actors including Curtis F. Wong (former publisher of Inside
Kung Fu Magazine), Joe Hyams, Ricardo Montalban, Blake Edwards, Robert
Culp, Rick Jason, Nick Adams, MacDonald Carey, Darren McGavin, Rory
Calhoun, and others. During all this time, these individuals had the utmost
respect for Mr. Parker and he respected them as well for who they were and
what they did. Perhaps Chuck Norris put it best when he was once asked how
many styles of Martial Arts were available, to which he replied, "alot". He
was next asked if he had to defend himself against a particular style or
system which one would he least like to defend against? The style he named
was the Ed Parker Kenpo System because of its principles and philosophies.
Mr. Norris did not degrade Mr. Parker, nor by answering this question in
such a manner did he degrade his own Art. He simply made a factual
statement which he felt was honest. The conduct of Chuck Norris was that of
a true champion and one which we should all follow. It never serves the
best interest of any individual or group to condemn others for what they
believe; it only brings about enmity and anymosity. Respect will never be
earned by those who consciously seek to bring disrespect and ill repute
upon others in order to serve their own selfish designs. Thus, be a true
Martial Artist and "choose the right".
Now! The History of American Kenpo
The most widespread account of the origin of Chinese Martial Arts is
credited to the 28th East Indian Patriarch of the Buddhist Faith named
Tamo. He was also called Bodhidharma and was known to the Japanese as
Daruma Daishi. His arrival in China is dated about 515-530 A.D. In addition
to being credited with the development of the Martial Arts, Tamo is also
credited with developing principles for using the Bo as a karate weapon of
self-defense in 517 A.D. (Demura, 1976). Upon Tamo's arrival in China, he
found that the Canton Warlords had disarmed the general public which left
them completely defenseless against marauding bandits and other warring
factions. Tamo made extensive travels within China endeavoring to teach the
Zen philosophy i.e., that one must coexist with nature and the surrounding
environment. He promised that if the people would do so they would have a
better understanding of their individual relationship with nature. He was
basically rejected by the people initially because such a philosophy did
not seem reasonable during war time thus, he began teaching in seclusion at
the Shaolin Monastery in the Hunan Province. As a result, his Zen doctrine
became the foundation of study for Monk's within China's religious
structure. As a note of interest to the reader, Dr. Tindall, USKKA
President, learned on his research trip to China in August, 1993 that the
inhabitants of the Shaolin Monastery still practice the Martial Arts as a
way of meditation and training today, the Chinese were impressed with Dr.
Tindall's skill in Kenpo.
The Shaolin Monastery is also called Shorin-ji in Japanese. Tamo was able
to get his foot in the door because the monks were constantly harassed by
bandits. He told them that peace was within each person and not within the
world. Tamo tried to teach the monks, but found that many fell asleep
during meditation. As a result, Tamo introduced exercise to improve their
fitness levels and taught the original 18 hand movements of the martial
arts for both defense and offense. Under Tamo's tutelage, the monks became
formidable opponents. To graduate from the Shaolin Monastery, the monk had
to compete to travel through, what we term in the USKKA the "corridor of
death." This was a corridor equipped with 108 dummies which were triggered
into action by the body weight of the monk as he proceeded along the
corridor. Each monk could trigger up to 5 dummies at once depending on
their weight. Many of the monks died in the process and some were injured
and taken to the infirmary. As accounts relate the incidents, no one had
ever lived to make it through if they failed during the first journey. This
resulted in defection of the monks from the monastery who emigrated to
southern China and Okinawa and began the teaching the part of the full
system which they liked best. Thus some would teach straight line power
movements and some would teach circular, flowing movements, animal forms,
etc. This may explain why there is so much similarity between certain
martial arts styles and why there are so many of them. If the monk made it
to the end of the corridor, he had to lift a burning metal urn which
branded a dragon on his left forearm and a tiger on his right forearm. This
should be familiar to many readers who have watched the old "Kung Fu"
series on television in the 1970's with David Carradine. The historical
setting for the program was taken from Ed Parker's book "Secrets of Chinese
Karate" which was published in 1963. It was about 5 years after this book
was published that many other Martial Arts systems began tracing their
beginnings back to the Shaolin Monastery, no doubt a result of Ed Parker's
hard work and research which was of great benefit to Martial Artists.
During the Yuan Dynasty (1260-1368 A.D.) there was noticeable improvements
in the Martial Arts. Chueh Yuan had increased the original 18 hand
movements to 72. Chueh Yuan eventually became partners with Li Ch'eng and
Pai Yu-feng and increased the number of movements from 72 to 170. As time
passed, Martial Arts training became integral to the Chinese lifestyle
because they were in a constant state of war. However, due to its lethal
qualities, the Martial Arts were taught only by select clans who had their
own master and who would teach only selected individuals in each clan.
Great pride was taken by each master in his distinctive style. Family clans
were swore never to divulge the teachings they received from their masters.
The Ming (1368-1644 A.D.) and Ch'ing (1644-1911 A.D.) Dynasties were the
golden age of Martial Arts in China and many of the styles taught today
were founded and expanded on during this period. In 1372 Chinese-Okinawan
relations were consilidated and in 1470 Sho-ha-shi became king of Okinawa
and confiscated all weapons from the people. This forced the Okinawans to
seek for other forms of self-defense. As a result, some Okinawans emigrated
to China to learn what was then called Chinese Kenpo from top masters. As
the years passed, practitioners continued to learn and demonstrate their
skills in private and the Martial Arts improved considerably. Then in 1609,
the Japanese dominated Okinawa and Lord Shimazu removed all forms of
weapons from the public at large. Between 1609-1903 the greatest
achievements were made in the Martial Arts. As a result, a variety of
styles and systems emerged. The Okinawans had always termed the Martial
Arts as "Te" which literally means hand. During this period (1609-1903)
"Karate" meaning "hands of China" replaced the word "Te" (during the latter
part of the 19th century) until the Chinese character which denoted "hands
of China" or "China Hand" (the latter being more correct) was changed by
the Japanese to their character which meant "empty hand". This change
(officially dated to1923) angered many of the Okinawan masters who were
proud of the term designating their fighting style. They also did not wish
to dispense with their loyalty and association with China. However, there
was great pressure by the Japanese and the masters very reluctantly
accepted the new character change. The change was spearheaded by a student
of Chogun Miyagi named Nagashi Hanage of the Goju-ryu style of karate. It
was actually Chogun Miyagi himself who desired to make the change and
compelled his disciple Nagashi Hanage to pursue the change with great
vigor. While the change may have brought a deeper meaning according to
Chogun Myagi, in which spiritual overcomes the physical, it is yet another
example of how the Japanese managed to make many think that the Art was
theirs and not the Chinese from whom it descended. The Bonzai tree is also
an example because the Bonzai tree was propagated in China long before
anyone ever heard of it from Japan. This has, and still does anger many
Chinese which is especially true since the Japanese language descended from
their Chinese ancestors.
For further clarification, if the reader will observe the last two oriental
characters on the right hand side of the Parker System patch, you will note
that these are the true Chinese characters referring to "empty" and "hand"
respectively. This was done intentionally by Mr. Parker to honor the
Chinese from which our system descends. It is not a mixture of Japanese and
Chinese. This has always been a primary mistake of many students of the
Kenpo system and others. It is due primarily to the fact that both the
Chinese and Japanese character for "te" meaning hand, are identical. This
is the last character on the right hand side of the Parker patch.
Consequently, it is easy to mix the two or rather to think they are mixed
when you look at both the Chinese and Japanese characters--the character
for "kara" is different in both languages. If one uses the word Kenpo,
which took on the Japanese meaning when "kara" was added before "te" as
described above and has generally been the accepted norm ever since, it
literally means fist law. The Pinyin pronunciation in Chinese for fist-law
is "Ch'uan Fa" and is sometimes incorrectly called "Ch'uan Shu" which is
the Chinese term for Kung Fu. We have tried to remedy this in the design of
the new USKKA patch. We give credit to the Chinese from whom our art
descends.
The characters on the left side of the USKKA patch literally mean "the way,
passed from father to son", this can also be read as "the way of the Art
passed from generation to generation". The Chinese characters on the right
side of the patch mean "the way of the fist-hand and strategy of the long
knife" or also "the way of the fist and empty hand and strategy of the use
of ancient weapons". The long knife is the most ancient of weapons and
therefore, its symbol is used. The weapons were included because weapons
have always been taught in the Kenpo system, the earliest of which was
likely the Bo staff in 517 A.D. (Demura, 1976). You will notice on the
USKKA patch that the Chinese characters on each side of the patch are
balanced; this is because good Chinese writing is always balanced i.e., for
every character on the left side, there is an equal number on the right
side. This is the Chinese philosophy and is a way of life with them. Thus,
there really doesn't have to be any confusion about the meaning of Kenpo
because it literally took on the Japanese definition when the orginal
change was made to "te" in 1923. Until that time, the Chinese definition
and characters had always been used. Indeed, we can actually claim that the
Japanese copied the Chinese since their character for hand is exactly the
same as the Chinese character for hand and also because the Japanese
characters and language descended from China. Thus, it may be seen that the
term Kenpo Karate as used by William K.S. Chow to describe his art has, and
will always be, Chinese since his father (who was Chinese) passed the Art
down to him.
Many Chinese began emigrating to the United States about 1840 and began
work as common laborers on railroad construction and digging gold mines.
The Chinese syndicates, also known as Tongs, came with otherwise honorable
Chinese people seeking a better life in the United States. The Tongs had
many internal conflicts and began to import top Martial Arts masters from
China to protect them and teach their families how to adequately defend
themselves. Kenpo was first introduced in Hawaii during the beginning of
World War II by James Masayoshi Mitose who had learned it during his early
years in Japan. As accounts dictate, Tamo was the founder of his system;
this system was called Shorinji-ryu Kenpo by the Japanese; this is the
Japanese equivalent of the Chinese "Ch'uan Fa or Ch'uan Shu". This as you
recall, coincides with what has been passed down by ancient masters through
the centuries. Because of Tamo's contribution to Kenpo it is logical that
Mitose's ancestors of the Martial Arts refer to the term of Shorin-ji as
the system of Kenpo taught by Tamo. However, the Kenpo system which had
been learned from ancient Chinese Masters and then taught by Mitose's
ancestors was altered and extensively modified to a form and method more
suitable to Japanese understanding and culture. These modifications and
extensive changes were made by Choki Motobu who claimed to receive new
revelations regarding Kenpo and changed the name of their system to
Kosho-ryu Kenpo (Parker, 1982). When Mitose began teaching in Hawaii, he
named his art Kenpo Jiu-Jitsu. Today, many people call his art Kempo and
sometimes use the term Kempo synonomously with Kenpo, but this is in error
since Kempo is a linear system of movements much like Shotokan and while it
has some similarity to Kenpo it is both distinctively and stylishly
different. The "m" in Kempo also refers to its Okinawan origin.
When the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, Mitose was
residing in Honolulu and had to come to grips with the fact that he was
Japanese by birth, but American by citizenship. Thus, one day he asked his
students "You are strong believers in Kenpo and Buddha. If the Kenpo
founder, Buddha came to attack and conquer your country with soldiers, what
would you do? Would you take ups arms to defend your country? Or would you
assist Buddha in his design?" (Mitose, 1980). While there were many varied
answers from his students Mitose replied that: "This is our country so it
is our duty to defend and protect it and in the presence of God we are
right. So naturally we must fight against the founder Buddha. We should
take the invaders prisoner and make them realize the wrong they have
attempted to do. This is the way of the true Kenpo man and this is the
Kenpo man's duty." (Mitose, 1980). Mitose went on to open the Official
Self-Defense Club where he trained fellow servicemen and civilians and
began to expound the merits of his Japanese Kenpo. He hoped that one day
Kenpo would become Americanized.
William K.S. Chow cultivated the seeds of American Kenpo. He was primarily
a student of his father W.K.S. Chow, but also had some training from
Mitose. Chow's father was Chinese and thus, Chow learned mostly the Chinese
ancestral art of Kenpo Karate which has been passed down from Tamo. Chow
was also a streetfighter and while he learned many circular and flowing
motions from his father, he incorporated some of the linear movements and
take-downs he learned from Mitose. Seeing the value of incorporating both
systems, Chow began to modify Kenpo Karate. Chow could see that one day,
Kenpo could reach its full potential and once its potential was reached,
Kenpo would greatly exceed other systems. Through the efforts of William
K.S. Chow and Ed Parker, American Kenpo has reached this potential.
American Kenpo is the most sophisticated and scientific Martial Art
designed to cope with confrontations on America's streets today. However,
if the skill of the Kenpo practitioner utilizing the system falls short of
expectation, the outcome would be questionable (Parker, 1982).
Edmund K. Parker began studying Kenpo with William K.S. Chow at the age of
16 which would be about 1947. Ed Parker learned all he could from Master
Chow and studied with other well known students of Chow such as Adriano and
Joe Emperado who founded their own system call Kajukenbo which is a blend
of Kenpo, weapons, and also has influences from other systems. Other
practitioners included Bobby Lowe (representative for Mas Oyama in Hawaii),
Paul Yamaguchi, Masaichi Oshiro (representative for Gogen Yamaguchi of the
Goju-ryu style), and Manny de la Cruz. Parker later attended Brigham Young
University and at the outbreak of the Korean War was stationed in Hawaii
with the U.S. Coast Guard. This gave him the opportunity to study further
with Master Chow. Chow wanted Parker to begin Kenpo full-time on the
mainland and was prepared to move to California when Ed Parker opened his
second club. However, Chow later declined; possibly because of his strong
ties in Hawaii, Ed's formal education which would stand him in good stead
with the general public, and possibly Chow's accent which he did not think
would be of great asset to Ed Parker's presentations. Chow saw that he
could still continue to teach Ed from Hawaii and thus, never moved to the
continental U.S. While at Brigham Young University, Ed Parker, 23 years of
age at the time, had a closed club, teaching only students of Polynesian
descent and law enforcement officers. One of the law enforcement officers
was Charles Beeder Sr. who became Ed's permanent assistant. As a note,
James Tindall, USKKA President was a fellow student with Frank Beeder, one
of Charles' Sons. Both were under the tutelage of Mr. Stephen M. Snelson, a
33 year student of Mr. Parker.
After graduation from BYU, Ed Parker moved to California and opened his
second school in 1956 (ranked as a 3rd degree black belt) and also founded
the International Kenpo Karate Association the same year. He continually
advanced the Kenpo system which pleased Master Chow very much. Ed Parker
had numerous students and friends in the film industry and went on to
assist in many films as a Martial Arts technical advisor. He can be seen in
most of the "Pink Panther" movies in which he not only did the acting, but
also the fight scenes. Mr. Parker believed that the Martial Arts did not
always have to be serious, but that one should have fun with them as well.
This is evident in the "Pink Panther" film series. He also played the
bad-guy in a film entitled "The Seven" which showed some great Kenpo moves.
In 1964, Mr. Parker held his first "Longbeach International Karate
Championships" which became the largest Martial Arts tournament in the U.S.
for many years and still ranks in the top three today. It was at this
tournament that he introduced Bruce Lee to the American Public who became
enamored with him. Contradictory to what the film "The Dragon" portrayed,
Bruce Lee did not fight anyone at the tournament, but simply gave a
demonstration of his style which has since became known as Jeet Koon-do.
Mr. Parker helped Bruce Lee obtain the role of Kato in the "Green Hornet"
television series. Bruce Lee was later to have a chance as the star in the
"Kung Fu" television series. However, it was felt by the film producers
that the general public was not yet ready for an Oriental starring actor
and the part was given to David Carridine instead. After this, Bruce Lee
began making his movies in the Orient instead of the U.S.
Shortly before his death, William K.S. Chow promoted Edmund K. Parker to
the rank of 10th degree black belt. Ed Parker was the only student Chow
ever promoted to 10th degree rank, despite what others claim. This was done
not only because of Mr. Parker's skill in the Art, but because of the many
innovations and advancements Parker had made to the system with Master
Chow's approval. Mr. Parker was the first to open a commercial karate
studio in the U.S., the first to conduct a karate class on a college
campus, the first faculty member to teach karate on the college campus, the
first authentic karate technical advisor for T.V. and film, the first to
publish a rule booklet on free-style competition, the first to teach karate
to law enforcement officers, and many other firsts. He was truly, and has
been recognized as such, the Father of American Karate. As Parker
"Americanized" (as Chow had envisioned) and further developed the Kenpo
system, he developed specific requirements for each rank over a period of
about 15 years. He was initially opposed to a belt ranking system since
many of the Chinese systems only had a rope for a novice and a black belt
for the advanced student. However, as the needs of each group such as law
enforcement compared to the average citizen were more keenly recognized,
Mr. Parker introduced a belt ranking system to go along with his
requirements. The colors are yellow, orange, purple, blue, green, brown,
and black. In the Parker Kenpo system there are three levels of brown: 3rd,
2nd, and 1st which is next in rank to 1st degree black belt. The colors
signify proficiency, achievement, and authority. This belt ranking system
has become widely used by most major Martial Arts systems in the U.S.
today. Others have claimed to come up with many of Mr. Parker's ideas
first, but their claims have absolutely no credibility according to
historical accounts and published records. Mr. Parker is without question
the most innovative Martial Artist that has ever lived. He has often been
referred to as a "genius of motion" and was called by many throughout the
world as "Mr. Karate".
One of Mr. Parkers first students was Chuck Sullivan (Mr. Sullivan was the
4th person to gain a black belt in the IKKA under Parker's tutelage in
1961) who is a Master in his own right. Mr. Sullivan along with Vic Le Roux
(ranked by Mr. Parker as 7th and 5th degree black belts respectively) have
founded an organization called the International Karate Connection. Mr.
Sullivan knew Grand Master Parker very well, perhaps better than any other
since they remained long time friends until Grand Master Parker's death,
but the memories live still. Other long-time, early students of Mr. Parker
include Joe Palanzo (8th), Bob White (8th), Richard "Huk" Planas (7th),
Stephen M. Snelson (7th), Larry Tatum (7th), Jay T. Will (7th), Lee Wedlake
Jr., Robert Perry (7th), Mike Pick, and many others. The rank given in
parenthesis is the rank given to these individuals by Mr. Parker before his
death in December 1990. As one may see, the highest rank ever given by Mr.
Parker was that of 8th degree to Mr. Palanzo and Mr. White; others have
higher rank status which has typically been awarded to them by their
respective systems based on a proficiency test. For the interested reader,
a complete family tree is given with the first volume of the Infinite
Insights Series. A more up to date family tree is currently being prepared
by Mr. Eric Johnson and should be available in 1996 (when available, the
specifics will be posted in our "What's New" section). This tree lists all
the belts who were ranked to about 1980, but many others were not included
because of the difficulty in keeping track of everyone. No other names have
been added since that time. Other students of recognition which Mr. Parker
taught were Jeff Speakman, Frank Trejo, Steve Sanders, Sterling Peacock,
Mim Grunwald, Ron Chapel, Roy MacDonald, Mohammed Tabatabai (not listed on
the tree, but ranked as 5th degree by Mr. Parker), Brian Adams, Brian
Hawkins, Harry Hutchings, Arturo Petit, and many others. The USKKA plans to
update the tree, if you would like your name on the new tree, please send
us a photocopy of your original Parker certificate at the 1st degree black
belt level. We'll be glad to add your name to the list.
Al and Jim Tracy (two other Parker students) began taking Kenpo from Mr.
Parker in about 1958 and left his tutelage about 1961 to open their own
school. Since that time they have created the Tracy Kenpo system with
headquarters in Lexington, Kentucky. The Tracy system is essentially the
only other Kenpo system with any recognition and is considered a minor
system in comparison to the Parker System (which was extensively innovated
by Parker with Chow's approval) through Master William K.S. Chow. At the
time they broke off, Parker was making significant changes (again, with
Master Chow's approval) in the Parker Kenpo System which, because they left
after only a few years tutelage, never benefitted from. The Tracy system
taught many of the principles learned from Mr. Parker during its early
years. However, it now teaches only minimal ideas and concepts learned from
Mr. Parker. The Tracy's developed their own system as an original branch
from Parker, but began to mix the Japanese ancestral teachings of Mitose
which did not impress Mr. Parker (see the following paragraphs). On
November 18, 1990 they closed out their "old" Tracy System and terminated
all roots and ties to both Ed Parker and William K.S. Chow (Tracy, 1993).
During this time, Al Tracy promoted Ray Arquilla to 8th degree black belt,
the last to be promoted in the "old" Tracy sytem. Directly after this, Ray
Arquilla (who worked as a prison guard in Folsom Prison and who had
supposedly been promoted to Master #3 in March 1981 by Mitose while Mitose
was incarcerated), immediately promoted Al Tracy to 10th degree black belt.
This promotion supposedly gives the Tracy's legal, legitimate succession
through the Mitose clan on the Japanese side (Tracy, 1993). It is claimed
that Ray Arquilla's rank from Mitose as Master #3 was in the Kosho Shorei
system. The name itself appears to be a mixture of the Kosho-ryu (Old Pine
Tree Style) and the style of Shorin-ji Kenpo which the Mistose clan
originally learned from Chinese masters (as passed down from Tamo) and
later extensively modified and renamed Kosho-ryu. The rank Al Tracy
received is not recognized as rank in the Parker system and is in no way
affiliated with the Parker system or what it teaches. It is interesting to
note that while the Tracy System claims to teach the original concepts of
Grand Master William K.S. Chow, that they have completely and officially
cut all ties to both Chow and his most recognized disciple Ed Parker
(Tracy, 1993) to whom Chow passed the mantle of authority. Thus, the
concepts which Parker and Chow sought so diligently to combine for over 80
years--the circular and linear--were very easily discarded.
It is commonly believed that many of the students who left Mr. Parker to
brave the world on their own did so in great bitterness. However, it is
simply analagous to a parent and child. The child grows up doing everything
the parent instructs them to do, but the day comes when the child must
develop and grow on his own. This is what Mr. Parker anticipated and what
has generally happened with many of his advanced students. Chuck Sullivan,
Joe Palanzo, Stephen Snelson, Huk Planas, and Larry Tatum are good examples
of this. The starting of their separate organizations in no way diminishes
the Parker system or the authority to promote. Remember the old adage,
"emulation is the sincerest form of flattery". Within the Parker System, Ed
Parker gave the authority to promote to two belt levels below a chief
instructors rank. For example, if instructor A is 6th degree, then he/she
may promote student B to 4th degree before a 3-5 member panel of advanced
ranked black belts. Consequently, as some have suggested, the Parker system
is not dead but will live on because the Masters in the system have
authority to promote and expand the art. Also, organizations or masters of
other systems can separately or band together and with their combined rank,
promote another to grandmaster or 10th degree black belt. This in no way
diminishes the rank, but makes it more recognizable because the promotion
is under the auspices and authority of a board of governors or council of
instructors. In established systems, the Grand Master will not likely
promote any disciple to 10th degree black belt who does not present
his/her-self before a board or council of recognized, advanced ranked
masters and other black belts for the purpose of a test questioning the
experience, knowledge, and physical teaching ability and application skills
of the individual. This gives credibility to any such promotion and has
always been the way with the Martial Arts.
The Parker System has expanded to many countries around the world, but as
Mr. Parker suggested himself, it is not mere numbers that are important, it
is the conscientious and sincere instructors and students which are wanted;
those who thirst for knowledge in a truly unique martial art. There have
been many myths and untruths espoused about Mr. Parker and the Parker
system. His relationship to Chow and Mitose, etc. Mr. Parker was the only
student which William K.S. Chow ever promoted to 10th degree black belt in
Kenpo (despite claims by others). Legally and in simplistic terms, one can
say that Mr. Parker simply failed to protect himself--it's rather ironic.
Regardless of this, Mr. Parker was recognized throughout the world in the
Martial Arts community and by most Martial Arts masters as a Grand Master
because of his significant contributions to the Martial Arts in America,
his unrefuted proficiency and skill, and his extensive improvements and
innovations of the Kenpo Karate taught to him by Master Chow. This
fulfilled Chow's own vision of Kenpo to such an extent that Master Chow was
both eager and excited to promote a student who had achieved higher
recognized merits in the Martial Arts than Master Chow had ever expected.
Mr. Parker was the "Father" of American Kenpo Karate, is the undisputed
"Father" of American Karate, and an innovative genius. To obtain the
achievements Mr. Parker obtained took over 40 years of hard work; he was
truly a first class pioneer of American Karate. Contrary to widely held
accounts, Mr. Parker was never a student of James Mitose. Here are Mr.
Parker's own words regarding the subject. "Contrary to some of the claims
that have been made in publications, I was never a student of James M.
Mitose. However, he did visit me at my home and Kenpo School in Pasadena,
California during the early 1970's. His visits extended over a five month
period. Each time I saw him, he was dressed as an ordained minister. Many
of our conversations lasted hours on end, touching upon an array of topics
as well as his proposed money raising projects. He was knowledgeable about
the evolution of Kenpo, revealing many interesting historical facts. On
occasion, he would take off his shoes, walk on the mat area (of my Pasadena
School), demonstrate self-defense techniques and discuss Kenpo principles
with some of my Black Belt students; namely, Tom Kelly, Richard "Huk"
Planas, Bob Perry, and Mike Pick. I noticed , after Mitose demonstrated
techniques, that my students would look at me hoping to detect from my
facial expressions some reaction confirming or condemning Mitose's
performance. As I gazed into their faces, I could detect telltale
expressions of bewilderment and disappointment. Many of Mitose's moves
leaned heavily toward impractical methods of application. They seemed to
lack continuity and forethought and left him dangerously exposed. My
disappointment was heightened when I witnessed an almost total void of
circular movements which Chow had so emphatically stressed in his
teachings. During the months that followed, many other unanswered questions
surfaced. Why had the Mitose (Kosho) Clan so drastically deviated from the
original teachings of Tamo (Daruma) and his Chinese disciples in the
frequent use of circular movements? Circular moves had certainly been a
vital part of the original system that added to the totality of movement. I
could not understand why the Mitose Clan, who had so proudly traced their
roots to Tamo (Daruma) were willing to discard and abort circular
disciplines as well as other rudiments of motion. I support the Mitose
(Kosho) Clans's desire to change the Art to suit the needs of the Japanese
people during that period of history, but why did the Clan employ moves
that were predominantly linear in context? Circular moves, used within the
framework of reason (logic) undisputedly balances the blend of motion
which, when given time, inevitably leads to useful and practical movements.
Lacking this ingredient would be comparable to replacing round tires for
square ones on an automobile. Thanks to William Chow and his father, the
crucial link has been restored as well as preserved. They have been
responsible for circular movements having again found their rightful place
in the Kenpo system. Naturally, it is how you apply circular movements in
todays environment that will render the true validity of their significance
and importance. Now that circular movements have been brought back into
perspective, regardless of modern innovations to make them practical, we
can truthfully say that American Kenpo salutes China as its original and
prime source of ascendancy. However, while respect and credit will always
be accorded China, we are not obligated nor compelled to be subservient to
them." (Parker, 1982).
Thus, one may see that Ed Parker was never a student of James Mitose. Mr.
Parker was to be disappointed several years after this incident in his
studio. Mr. Mitose was arrested for conspiracy to committ murder and
subsequently died in a California prison. This caused grave distress to Mr.
Parker because it did not fit the definition of the "Kenpo Man" as given by
Mr. Mitose (Mitose, 1980) and was quite out of character; it had brought
shame to the art. It saddened Mr. Parker to see a master in such a
predicament. There are accounts of students who learned from Mr. Mitose
while he was in prison, but according to Mr. Parker, many would not desire
to be associated with any Martial Arts master who had so shamed the art as
it would greatly decrease the validity of claims of rank, ethics, and
morality of the individual practitioner. How can one trust the message if
one can not trust the messenger?
From Parker's own comments, one can ascertain that the Chinese ancestry and
not the Japanese ancestry is the more important of the two because in
Parker's system a circular movement becomes a linear move and at the same
time, a linear move becomes a circular motion so that the system fully
incorporates both types. Remember that the Japanese version of Kenpo taught
by Mitose was void of circular motion. Mr. Parker was a legend in the
Martial Arts and has made a lasting impact on the Martial Arts in America.
He has many widely recognized students and some that are very skilled, but
not as well known. A good example of one of these is Mr. Gil Hibben. Gil
developed his black belt thesis on knife fighting using Kenpo tactics. It
was his thesis that led to the development of Long Form VIII (the double
dagger form) which uses two knives in mock combat. Mr. Hibben's work is
well known to any who have seen the "Rambo", "Deep Space Nine", or recent
"Star Trek" films. Gil is the craftsman and Kenpo Black Belt who made the
knives and edged weapons for these films. Thus, there are worthy and
respected black belts in all walks of life who practice and teach the
Parker Kenpo System. For a complete history of the Ed Parker Kenpo System,
the reader is referred to the books--"Secrets of Chinese Karate" and
"Volume 1: Infinite Insights into Kenpo: Mental Stimulation" by Ed Parker.
We at the United States Kenpo Karate Association pay our greatest respects
and admiration to Grand Master Ed Parker and his skill and insights into
Kenpo Karate and the lasting legacy he has left. As recognition of Grand
Master Parker, we wear the Parker System Patch on the right sleeve of our
gi's near the shoulder. We are determined to teach Grand Master Ed Parker's
Art the way he outlined in volume 5 of the Infinite Insights Series which
is the way he taught us. We intend on making the Parker Kenpo System the
most well known style of Martial Arts in the world. We have both the
authority and ability to promote all who wish to learn the Parker Kenpo
System and welcome the sincere and conscientious instructor and student
with open arms. If you are a Parker Kenpo System practitioner, we are here
to serve as a support group. We provide personal instruction, seminars,
seminars from masters of other systems, the most beautiful rank
certificates in the world, tee-shirts (customized for your school),
patches, newsletters, membership certificates, studio support, school
charters, and much more. We are here to assist you in any way possible and
since we are primarily an information based organization willing to share
the Parker Kenpo System with all interested individuals, most of our
services are free. As a sample, check out the technique write-ups
associated with our homepage. If you would like your school listed within
our newsletter, please send us your instructors name and rank, address, and
school name.
References Cited & Selected Readings Section
Demura, F. 1976. Bo: Karate Weapon of Self-Defense.
Mitose, J.M. 1980. What is Self-Defense? California State University.
Parker, E. 1963. Secrets of Chinese Karate.
Parker, E. 1975. Ed Parker's Guide to the Nunchaku.
Parker, E. 1982. Infinite Insights into Kenpo--Volume 1: Mental
Stimulation.
Parker, E. 1983. Infinite Insights into Kenpo--Volume 2: Physical
Analyzation I.
Parker, E. 1985. Infinite Insights into Kenpo--Volume 3: Physical
Analyzation II.
Parker, E. 1986. Infinite Insights into Kenpo--Volume 4: Mental & Physical
Constituents.
Parker, E. 1987. Infinite Insights into Kenpo--Volume 5: Mental & Physical
Applications.
Tracy, A. 1993. Collectors Edition: Catalog of Products and Services.
Lexington, Kentucky.