![]() ![]() This process repeated itself seven or eight times, by Johnson's estimate, before the bullies finally gave up in search of easier targets. Of course they knew who did it, and the next time they'd see me they'd beat the heck out of me." "I'd pick up a bottle, and when one of them came around the corner I'd smack him over the head as hard as I could and run home like crazy. "I would hide behind one of these long brick buildings, because I knew where all of these young men went," he recalls. Sick of being jumped by a gang of older children whenever he walked home, Johnson took matters into his own hands and laid an ambush. Miyagi of his own, but the bullying escalated until Johnson knew he had to do something. It was here that Johnson's first unofficial martial arts training took place. I got to a point where I was afraid to go out anywhere." "When I first got there I saw a bunch of boys playing, and I went out there and said 'Hey guys, can I join you?'" he remembers. The family moved into the projects where everyone, like the Johnson family, was "dirt poor." Many of the new neighbors were less than friendly, and some were openly hostile. "Finally my mother went to work for the International Paper Mill and was well-established enough to get us out of the orphanage." "It was not a wonderful time, let's put it that way," he says. He would remain at the orphanage until he was nine. As a result, Johnson and several siblings were removed by child welfare authorities and sent to the Sisters of Mercy Orphanage in Buffalo, NY. When Johnson was two, his father deserted the family, leaving Johnson's mother, who had only a fourth-grade education, to provide for her children. Pat Johnson was born in 1939 in Niagara Falls, New York, the youngest of 11 children. His story is as intricate, poignant and inspiring as any film could ever be. ![]() Miyagi's sensei? There was another man behind the scenes, coaching Morita on how to not only be a karate practitioner, but a teacher as well. There is no doubt that he was a great actor, but, ironically, the man who would play a karate master had no martial arts training prior to taking his famous role. The performance netted Morita an Academy Award Nomination for Best Supporting Actor. Miyagi, played by Pat Morita, epitomizes the standard of wisdom, patience, and pure skill anyone should be so lucky to find in a teacher. “Don’t forget to breathe,” he tells Daniel. Miyagi, the physical discipline of karate cannot be separated from its broader philosophical and practical underpinnings. Underneath lies an enlightened, mischievous, and extremely generous old man. Miyagi’s broken English and various idiosyncrasies make him somewhat inscrutable to the untrained eye. Personality… mysterious, reserved, and wise. “Train so you don’t have to fight,” he tells Daniel. Miyagi teaches Daniel that karate isn’t about fighting. Their training continues through his unorthodox Mr. Miyagi was teaching him defensive karate maneuvers via the muscle memory conscripted in the specific hand motions of each task. Daniel questions the usefulness of these tasks, but soon learns that Mr. Miyagi agrees and sets him to work waxing his antique cars, sanding his wooden deck, and painting his fence (both sides) and his house. He wants to defend himself against some bullies at his school and ultimately defeat them in the All-Valley Karate Championship. Miyagi never remarried, and still celebrates their anniversary, sometimes with a big helping of liquor.Ĭhallenge… mentoring a young man named Daniel LaRusso, who approached Mr. She and their son died there due to birth complications. She was sent to the Manzanar internment camp around the same time he joined the army. Interests… fishing and taking care of his bonsai trees. He is also a karate master, but that is not very lucrative. ![]() Profession… maintenance man at South Seas Apartment Complex. “If man can catch fly with chopsticks, he can accomplish anything,” he explains. Sometimes, he’ll sit and try and catch a fly with chopsticks. Miyagi spends much of his free time in his small complex, complete with wooden wind chimes, bonsai trees, and a backyard garden. He immigrated to the United States, enrolled in UC-Santa Barbara, and joined the army to fight in World War II, eventually earning the Congressional Medal of Honor for his bravery. Miyagi learned karate from his father, a fisherman. Grew Up… in Okinawa, the chain of islands between Japan and China. ![]()
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