Richard Kim (karate)

Infobox_martial_artist
name = Richard Kim


imagesize =
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birth_date = 17 November 1917
birth_place = Honolulu, Hawaii, USA
death_date = 8 November 2001
death_place =
martial_art = Okinawan Kobudo, Shōrinji-ryū karate, Tai Chi [ [http://www.shimakarate.com/sensei_kim.shtml O'Sensei Richard Kim, His Life] ] , Judo, Pa Kua, Daito-ryu Aiki jujitsu, Yi Quan [ [http://www.zbbk.com/SenseiKim.html About Master Richard Kim] ]
teacher = Arakaki Ankichi, Chao Hsu Lie, Chen Chin Wuan, Kaneko-sensei, Toyama Kanken, Yabu Kentsu, Yoshida Kotaro, Mizuho Mutsu [ [http://seinenkai.com/salute-kim.html The Hawaii Karate Seinenkai Salutes: Richard Kim] ] , Kenichi Sawai, Tachibana Sensei, Wang Xian Zhai
rank = 10th "dan"
students =

Richard Kim (17 November, 1917–8 November, 2001) was an American karate teacher. Born in Honolulu, Hawaii, he began studying judo as a child in the early 1920s, under Kaneko. Around the same time, he also began studying karate under Arakaki Ankichi [ [http://books.google.com/books?id=1NiiC4CVw2gC&pg=PA3&lpg=PA3&dq=richard+kim+kaneko+arakaki&source=web&ots=JRCIBjOB9Z&sig=SX3Fv6VS4UR0sows37vn9F0zaAg The Weaponless Warriors] ] . Before World War II, his service in the merchant marines took him to east Asia. He cited many martial artists as his teachers, including Tachibana, Chen Chen Yuan, and Choa Hsu Lai.Fact|date=September 2007 While in Japan, Kim claimed to have studied Daito-ryu under Kotaro Yoshida and to have lived with him for seven years. [For a non-referenced and anecdotal biography of Richard Kim, see: Warrener, Don (2006). "20th Century Samurai" (Martial Arts Masters).] Kim stated that he had in his possession the Daito-ryu scrolls and had been granted the Daito-ryu menkyo kaiden. [For an anecdotal article on Richard Kim, see: Simon, Geraldine (1963). "20th Century Warriors: Prominent Men in the Oriental Fighting Arts.] This is an unsubstantiated claim. Kim also studied and taught Japanese and Okinawan weaponry.

In 1959, Kim began teaching martial arts in San Francisco. In the following years, he also taught in Santa Cruz, and Sacramento. He traveled extensively throughout the United States, Canada, and Europe teaching wherever he went. As well as teaching the physical aspects of the martial arts, Kim taught the philosophy, history, strategy, and spiritual aspects. He died on 8 November, 2001.

Kim wrote a monthly column for "Karate Illustrated" magazine, and wrote a number of books including: "The Weaponless Warriors", "The Classical Man", and an instructional series on weaponry (Kobudo). There has been some controversy surrounding "The Weaponless Warriors", published in 1974, as the bulk of the work appears taken, without acknowledgement, directly from Eizo Shimabukuro's 1963 work "Old Grandmaster Stories" [Similar controversy and claims of exaggerated or false achievements followed Kim throughout his career. [http://toyei.com/DVD.html] ] , which was translated into English for the first time in 2003. Kim was named "Black Belt Magazine"'s "Karate Sensei of the Year", in 1967, and was later inducted into the "Black Belt Magazine" Hall of Fame. Kim was the Director of the American Amateur Karate Federation and Vice-President for the International Traditional Karate Federation (ITKF). At his memorial service, Hidetaka Nishiyama of the ITKF presented Kim with the rank of Judan (10th degree black belt) posthumously.Fact|date=September 2007

Kim's students continue his legacy primarily through two organizations: the Kokusai Butokukai and the Zen Bei Butokukai International.

References

External links

* [http://www.butokukai.info KOKUSAI BUTOKUKAI - Official Homepage]