It can't happen.". He didn't know what to think. Let's put Jean-Claude in. My body's fully developed, I jumped up like a bean sprout, and now I was eyeball to eyeball with Moore, who this time fought the Unstoppable Mike Stone at Long Beach. And then there was the famous meeting between Jean-Claude and Menahem on La Cienega Boulevard. So I wrote the script and gave it to a guy named Jacov Bresler. Well, Menahem just happened to be searching for an actor to play the lead in Bloodsport so he told Jean-Claude to come by his office the following morning and gave him a copy of the script.Blake Harris: Right, right.Sheldon Lettich: But the point we're getting towards is my first meeting with Jean-Claude. What is he, a walking dictionary of a secret society? Because we don't want our readers to be misinformed, Black Belt has a policy of strict verification of all facts pertaining to any article. Idc, even have a "Thor and Cap trade weapons moment" in Endgame with those two. Absolutely. You can listen to theBloodsportedition of the HDTGM podcasthere. So we had no budget on that movie and we did a great job. She'd never seen it. And Leon was going to star in the movie, which we called The White House All Stars with the "White House" being a frat house at this college where all the football players lived. He couldn't say anything. I was there at every meeting and, of course, they were getting all the ideas out of me. They were going to do a movie called Night of the Leopard but there were some problems with getting the script so now they needed a new one. With Jean-Claude Van Damme, Donald Gibb, Leah Ayres, Norman Burton. And Jean-Claude's phone began ringing off the hook. I said, "Real Kumite fighters, we fight here. In the end, his psyche was broken when Jimmy Olsen brought his brother onto the scene. Sheldon Lettich: In Menahem's defense, I saw the first cutwe all the saw first cutand it was really bad. Uh, no. They liked the idea, liked the script, and decided to go ahead and do it as a low-budget movie. So I climbed up on the ledge with him. I think Jean-Claude and I have done just fine without 'riding his coattails,' haven't we?". I was not an actor, so it was decided that I would be the writer member of this group. That's not even my name. But what's interesting is that after the fight, I see Norris signing a program for Moore. He's not very good, of course, but the judo instructor steps in for Barney and then kicks the ass of the guy who's been picking on him. We gave our enthusiastic thumbs up and the next thing I know they're in pre-production and off to Hong Kong. Which kind of made Grant feel better about himself. "Frank Dux: Yeah. I showed him pictures of this ancient fortress on a hilltop that the Russians had converted, so that became the basis for it. Plus, two cousins duke it out . He was good at stiff karate moves, but that was it. And were just digging this whole notion of Jean-Claude being a Legionnaire. I was too close to it. He knew enough buzzwords to make me think he's the real deal, he's probably been over there. And I think it's because he felt very insecure. When I was growing up, you couldn't even find "martial arts" in the encyclopedia. And apparently it did huge business. Then we needed someone different to play the Chuck Norris role. Pushed too farand generally all three words would appear on screenthat was big in the 80s. The government did not know how much he knew about other covert operations, he said, so they placed information in his file to destroy his credibility. You know, there's a certain romanticism to that. I don't think Stallone has ever been given his due by movie critics. Not looking to find myself embroiled in the middle of a he-said, she-said war of words, I happily agreed to this request. I said, "You're trying to prove to yourself that you could do it. I should also back up and say that I was really poor growing up. I did some research and realized I wanted to do a French Foreign Legion movie. In honor of How Did This Get Made?'s #Bloodsport episode, we made this #supercut of Jean-Claude Van Damme's super #butt! How Did This Get Made's ad-free archives are available on Stitcher Premium. We were calling it "Delayed Stress." "This guy's never gonna make it," Menahem said. And it became real clear and finallyI said show me the proof that I represented myself as a war hero, as a Medal of Honor hero? So he goes there on his own to rescue Troutman, and that pretty much became the movie.Blake Harris: That's a good point. In Etruscan society, gladiatorial games were supposed to be part of the funerary rituals honoring the dead. This regular featureis written byBlake J. Harris, who you might know as the writer ofthe bookConsole Wars, soon to be a motion pictureproduced bySeth RogenandEvan Goldberg. The uniform they had for Jean-Claude was silk pajamas, these Chinese silk pajamas. Jean-Claude, Michel Qissi and we were all predicting how much money the movie was going to make.Blake Harris: That's wonderful.Sheldon Lettich: Yes, but there was still an additional hurdle. And I showed them, here's an issue of Black Belt magazine from two years prior to this; and here's a photo of me in that magazine from January 1976 right after I won it, holding the trophy. We may receive a commission on purchases made from links. They wanted to stick with the Van Damme formula. I was just at his house for New Year's Eve. So he re-cut the fights, Michael restructured the movie and when we saw the next cut (which was quite a while later), the movie really worked. At what point along the way were his fears diminished?Frank Dux: Well it was diminished when they were going to get rid of himJean-Claude doesn't realize how close he was to never having a careerand I took Mark off to the side and I said, "Look, I'm betting it all, Mark." So my agent sent him Firebase and he responded very enthusiastically. He saw the script. Especially when it comes to the military. We thought he was f***ing great. He's got a lot of abilities. Roger Moore co-starred along side Van Damme in The Quest (1996) ironically playing a James Bond actor which Frank Dux had said inspired him to learn martial arts in the first place. I don't know if the word "genius" is maybe taking it too high, but this is a very smart creative guy who is very much underappreciated. How much of the story really happened? What was he like?Frank Dux: He was wonderful. They were both pregnant at the same time. He wanted to teach for me full time, but he ended up driving a limousine.Blake Harris: And then why, after two years, was he allowed to start tinkering?Frank Dux: I don't know, I couldn't tell you on that. Bloodsport was produced by Cannon Films and released by Warner Bros. on 26 February 1988. I mean, he couldn't do a throw. Blake Harris: What was the scripting process like for Rambo III, working with Stallone?Sheldon Lettich: He and I were pretty much on the same wavelength for that. How else could you get a hold of this? I mean, the guy announced his malice. KUMITE! It's not something that I'm interested in, but good luck." It was a horrible film. Yet with Bloodsport, this was not the case. Especially when you believe that person is your friend.Frank Dux: Exactly. And that was the difference. By this time we knew that Frank was full of baloney with a lot of the stuff that he was saying about his life. Neither of them was about a martial arts tournament, and neither of them was ever produced. We pitched it to them and they were kind of interested, but at the end of the day they decided not to do it. I think it was Jean-Claude finally convinced them to allow him to do it. So Grant's dad, he basically saw that I was struggling to make money so our family could eat and I could buy myself shoes. with Andy Griffith, where Barney Fife was getting picked on and so he goes to learn judo. And regardless of what any critics may say or believe, I don't think anyone would argue that you weren't extremely talented. Like M was Admiral Menzies. And I said, "Okay, Sheldon, you get the credits, and then when you get up to the next level, you just bring me up." They didn't have any proper uniforms. If he had to be the bad guy and killed by the protagonist. I always try to look for the best in people. And I said, "Okay, after dailies, I'll meet you up there." Because my idea for Rambo III was: well, there's only one place Rambo could goAfghanistan. We're 60 stories in the air, I'm not kidding you. That's what really happened. It's incredible." One of the only places where we initially differed was with the entry point. I literally wrote a good majority of that script with Sheldon, but I never got credit for it. Live from Largo in L.A. they get into Samuel L. Jackson's infamous death scene, LL Cool J's relationship with his bird, Stellan Skarsgrd's new name, and how Saffron Burrows is the film's true villain. And he just laughed and said, "Come on, let me show you this house. For you, I mean.Sheldon Lettich: Oh yeah, oh absolutely. Do you still believe I that?" And he says, "What?" We were on the set of Lionheart. And he was an idol of Jean-Claude's too.Blake Harris: Yeah? So I watched that happen and then I watched Victor Moore fight Chuck Norris.Blake Harris: Moore fought Bruce Lee and then Chuck Norris? And he did the helicopter kick in No Retreat, No Surrender and I was well known for my flying kicks and finishing guys off with my spinning flying kicks. But back then it sounded really cool.Blake Harris: Well you started that clich!Sheldon Lettich: [laughter] Back then, to say "based on a true story" was something that intrigued, and I think it particularly intrigued Menahem Golan. He was actually going to come to that Bloodsport screening in North Hollywood [referenced in our conversation with Frank Dux]. Sheldon Lettich: We got some amazing reviews and it just turned into a little bit of a mini-phenomenon. You said "we were working on a sequel." And that piece, filled with accusations and allegations, continues even to this day cast doubt upon the reputation of Frank Dux. It was called Firebase and was basically Zulu in Vietnam; about a small disparate group forced together on a Firebase that gets attacked by an overwhelming number of North Vietnamese. She said, "Wait a minute, I'll be right back" and then comes in with the same magazine. That editorial attributes statements to me that I never made. And like I said, guys like Sheldon didn't help, putting a knife in my back.Blake Harris: So what was it like seeing him at the screening?Frank Dux: I was cordial. Everything you've just been telling me about this Kumite, that's a great idea for a movie. It wasn't until they allowed Jean-Claude to go in and recut the film that everything came together and it worked. We have a treatment and we started writing the script. And he was friendly to me. But to my pleasant surprise, Lettich was a complete gentleman. I thought: Oh shit, I'm going to get my ass handed to me. However, speaking of the UFC, Frank Dux does have a tangential connection to the UFC. And of course he says he did (but he didn't). I never said that. Ian Fleming based his characters on real people. A secret martial arts contest? LIVE from Largo in Los Angeles, Nicole Byer of Party Over Here joins Paul and Jason to discuss the cult 1988 Jean-Claude Van Damme martial-arts film Bloodsport. And the one twinning shot would sell it and it worked surprisingly well.Blake Harris: The next movie you worked on with Jean-Claude was his directorial debut, The Quest [1996], but only in the capacity of script polishing. Armed with a gun that fires Kryptonite needles, Bloodsport nearly succeeded in his mission to eliminate the Man of Steel, but ultimately failed. It's a sprawling ecosystem. But Menahem had an in-house fixer named Michael J. Duthie, a really good editor, and he basically re-worked the movie. You wanted to help him be successful. You want to fight, let's fight?" On this episode of Matinee Monday, Paul Scheer looks back at the "How Did This Get Made?" episode with Nicole Byer on the 1988 cult f. I walked over there and he threw a playful kick at my head. On Bloodsport, we got into it during one of the fight scenes. Menahem still thought it was a piece of s***.Blake Harris: How come?Sheldon Lettich: Well, I think this might answer your question. I buy you dinner tonight." And it was a Xeroxed copy of a receipt, a copy that anyone could fabricate on a home copy machine. In fact, we explored Post Traumatic Stress in the play, but the term PTSD had not even been coined yet. And Tanaka was well known. He was born with all sorts of birth defectshe had one leg shorter than the other, he didn't have a jawboneand because of my own, I don't know, "disability," we became friends. And Jean-Claude's got a really good sense of how a fight scene should be edited. But I thought you said Menahem still wasn't fully sold on Jean-Claude.Sheldon Lettich: He wasn't. Use promo code BONKERS for a free month. If they'd actually served. Did that piece directly lead to Bloodsport? So you know what that means. The piece, entitled "Kumite: A Learning Experience," was written by editor John Stewart and begins with the following note: From time to time, Black Belt learns of unusual events or occurrences in the martial arts; events thateither because of their nature or because they occurred in the distant pastcannot be easily verified. With Bloodsport and Deadshot picking up each other weapons in battle. Around this time, Leon Isaac Kennedy [from The White House All Stars] had been in in a Chuck Norris movie called Lone Wolf McQuade and there was talk about doing a Part Two. It chronicles his training by a Japanese master warrior named Tiger [Tanaka]Shoto Tanemura, a Japanese who is one of a select group of recognized Ninja masters in the world, said in an interview in Los Angeles last week that he had never heard of Dux or Tanaka. And we never had a fight from that point on. "Bloodsport" follows Frank Dux, an American martial artist serving in the military, who decides to leave the army to compete in a martial arts tournament in Hong Kong where fights to the death can occur. And Rambo says [putting on a thick Stallone impression]: let me just go get my gear. And he ends up doing a test of speed with this guy named Vic Moore. That this guy looks just like me and we should suggest it to Mark DiSalle. This thingwhatever it was calledit was really cool and it would be a cool way to meet chicks.Blake Harris: And how did you go from passively enjoying these things to actual participating and learning how to fight?Frank Dux: I guess one of the things that helped push me in that direction was that I befriended a kid named Grant who had it far worse than myself. That's just how funny memory can cloud things. A lot of those shots came from the camera angles I had been directing. Look, Stallone was the biggest star in the world at the time and to even have a meeting with him was, to me, a huge honor. He was good at boxing. So I was curious why you think you were so skilled? And everybody had their picture taken with me, and I don't recall anyone having their picture taken with Sheldon, outside of his friends. So I have all these memories of falling down stairs and crawling on my knees. I didn't see it coming. 4. KUMITE! They were supposed to present the supposed evidence that said things didn't exist. He took pride in the fact that he was all natural. You know, Jean-Claude was totally overwhelmed when he got to work with Stallone on Expendables 2. We're not friends [anymore] and he does everything in his power to try and paint me as being a nutball or a kook because of it.Blake Harris: That's why I wanted to focus this piece on you, so you can tell the story in your own words.Frank Dux: So now you're starting to hear the real truth of the matter, you know what I mean? The film finds the Suicide Squad going on a mission to the fictional country of Corto Maltese to carry out a mission to destroy a secret installation housing a secret weapon known as Project Starfish. It was done on the exact same day that Masaaki Hatsumi, Stephen Hayes and Shoto Tanemurathese are guys who think no one in the world is a ninja but them and everyone else is a fake.Blake Harris: What about some of the specific claims that the piece makes? He liked the authenticity in it and he'd heard about Tracers also. I mean, I didn't really see it myself, but I heard it from Grant later. [laughing] Those old 80s trailers, that's what they'd say over and over again. And I'll never forgetand I'm terrified of heights, by the way. So any time you want to know who an agent is you can just go down there and file a request? And for three months prior to filming, Jean-Claude would come to my studio after I finished classes, he would show up at like 9 o'clock and I would train him in movie fighting.Blake Harris: How skilled was he? What follows is a conversation with Frank Dux, who was the real-life inspiration behind the movie Bloodsport. That kind of caught my fancy. Like in South America it was called "Vale Tudo" and if the Japanese were running the event it was "Kumite San Soo," so this was a word that described them all.Blake Harris: That's interesting. Either way, it's fair to say that filmgoers are a pretty forgiving lot. He was friendly with me. I was at this taping and I even got to ask a question, so this is probably my favorite episode by default. Start Free Trial. Not what's typically expected, which was: Jean-Claude's going to find these motherf***ers and beat the s*** out of them. He was the one who actually introduced me to beef and oyster sauce. In Enter the Ninja, I didn't use my real name. He kept saying, "Jean-Claude is poison!" And the two of them wrote this first draft. Plus, Bloodsport's connection with Flagg made the dynamic even better. He taught at the Nakano spy school in Japan. But he had a great imagination, he had good ideas and he knew the martial arts world pretty well. I also remember seeing something on Mayberry R.F.D. And he knows it. KUMITE! Plus, we hear LL Cool J's hip-hop prayer and the best . Actor & comedian Paul Scheer and film critic Amy Nicholson want your advice as they make the ultimate list of the greatest movies . I don't really want to give this guy a platform for more publicity because that's what he's always looking for.". Like I'm a kook because he comes out of a James Bond movie: You Only Live Twice. His point was that they just wanted to show it was a kid in trouble who could have gone down a different path, but martial arts puts him on the right path. California, Oregon and Washington. He actually challenged me to a fight. If he doesn't have any use for people, he throws them to the side. It was a moment where you have to sit back and realize that sometimes when you think something's wrong, everything is going right. But, I mean, he couldn't do a forward roll when I first got him. Blake Harris: So we know how Sheldon entered the picture, but how does Jean-Claude Van Damme become involved with Bloodsport?Frank Dux: Oh, Jean-Claude tells this crazy story. joins Paul, June, and Jason to break down the 1994 Sly Stallone & Sharon Stone thriller The Specialist, a movie that argues bombs are more precise weapons than guns. It was a no-budget. I turned over the programs from the fights that we had in those days. In the early to mid 90s, dinosaurs were soooo cool! Can you tell me about writing Enter The Ninja? Both of them wanted to be the cop.Blake Harris: That's so funny (though it makes sense).Sheldon Lettich: It just couldn't be worked out so the project fell by the wayside until they got Stallone and Wesley Snipes to be in it. Back then, things were so different. Discovered by Player FM and our community copyright is owned by the publisher, not Player FM, and audio is streamed directly from their servers. Like with Legionnaire. And, look, in the mid-80's, something like that sounded real intriguing. A franchise was the idea. Nobody clapped for Sheldon. I saw Sheldon as my friend, and I was trying to help him. And it may be a typical Hollywood story, but you still never see it coming. So I said, "As long as you're going to have martial arts, why not get Frank?" Because he's riding on the coattails of Jean-Claude. A college football comedy, of all things, that took place at a black college in Texas during the 60s.Blake Harris: I think that also earns "left field" status.Sheldon Lettich: [laughing] Maybe. But then Menahem decided he didn't want to make the movie.Blake Harris: Why?Sheldon Lettich: In his words, I'm quoting, "Jean-Claude can't even play one character, how do you expect him to play two?" And, like I said, it got me my first agent, a guy named Harold Moskowitz[starts laughing] who, a little while later, was looking for help with another one of his clients. And he's in this movie called No Retreat, No Surrender. Then Jean-Claude came in and worked with Michael on the fight scenes, re-working those. Rambo was always a reluctant badass.Sheldon Lettich: Yeah, you've really gotta push him to fight. Dux aped the premise behind Enter the Dragon, then claimed it as true. Another thing was that had I co-directed The Quest with Jean-Claude, it might have contributed to a mistaken notion that Jean-Claude co-directed Lionheart and Double Impact with me. And I gotta give him credit there. You had mentioned that you and Sheldon reshaped that original script. Oh yeah! Then he said, "It's my movie too and I want what's best for the film! And that's what I found out later in life. It made its budget back just the first weekend on the west coast. He was considered "unstoppable" at that time. 5 years ago. Bloodsport wasn't an Oscar-worthy film in any manner (the original cut was deemed unwatchable and a re-edit was completed before release), but Van Damme's stoic charisma and the memorable. And he just started laughing and he says, "Frank, you're crazy. He threw a ridge-hand strike and he swept him at the same time. If you want to look it up, the SEAL manual number is K-431-0097.Blake Harris: Great. But if we can cut it down, I think we can sell this novel. Following his appearances in the two preceding sequels, Daniel Bernhardt returns in the new role of Agent John Keller, who goes into prison . One of these covert operatives was one Frank Dux. By their own photographer. I remember us going back to his apartment and the thing was entirely full.Blake Harris: Did Menahem change his tune about Jean-Claude?Sheldon Lettich: Well, yes and no. Jeez. And there's a census bureau report saying that he was exactly in the place I was when he trained me. And the CIA and everyone is obligated to tell you? But Mark had permission to use his name and to basically say that this was a real story. No. He wants to find a more peaceful path. I was afraid to taste it, because I'm allergic to shellfish. The Jean-Claude I knew was a person who you wanted to see win. U.S. soldier Frank Dux (Jean-Claude Van Damme) has come to Hong Kong to be accepted into the Kumite, a highly secret and extremely violent martial-arts competition. Bloodsport is the name of several supervillains appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics.All of these versions exist in DC's main shared universe, known as the DC Universe.. But when I got done with him he was doing front flips, he was doing great.Blake Harris: And what about his personality? I wrote the script, got paid a small fee and I can't remember how much time passedprobably less than a yearand via another guy named Lou Horwitza financer who, I believe, did gap-financing at the timeLou took it to Cannon. "There is not Mr. Tanaka in Japanese history" of the Ninja families, Tanemura said. Jean-Claude?Frank Dux: When we started? He would punch the bricks, breaking them apart. It was just a way to release it. And I said, "If you're gonna go, just don't pull me with you." He had an answering machine at the time that had a limit of, like, 50 messages. And he agreed to that. When I heard that name, it was like bells started ringing. And I'm talking a six-inch ledge. And the receipt was dated 1982, okay? And at the Invitationals, there's Bruce Lee. Or actually, a better question: how did Bloodsport first come together?Sheldon Lettich: [producer] Mark DiSalle invited me to lunch. It was going to be a surprise appearance. And that relationship led to other things down the road, as you know, but meanwhile my script Firebase was going around. "Blake Harris: So what eventually changed Menahem's mind? "Well, can I show you what I've learned since you taught me?" JCVD RE-EDITED THE MOVIE HIMSELF TO GET IT . I really screwed up. We encountered a few phonies, but eventually we put together a core group. I'll tell you one thing: When I was there, I got a standing ovation. As far as, like, the choreography for how fights go and stuff. Jean-Claude saw Menahem on the street, did a U-Turn and said, "Hey Menahem, remember me? Which was Mike's move. Well later on it comes out in court and it's a picture that they took of me on that pamphlet. For the first time in about 14 years. Well, about the only thing they showed was a trophy receipt.Blake Harris: Which they claimed was evidence that the trophy you won was "at least partially made in the San Fernando Valley? But if they did Bloodsport, then they can do Timecop. But yes, Idris Elba did an amazing job being the reluctant leader. The concept of gladiatorial games has its roots in the Etruscans, the predecessors of the Romans. But the only guy in the world who could kill Jean-Claude with his permission is Sylvester Stallone. But Michael Dudikoff is like 6'2," and the problem was they wanted to film in Asia. "He's a loser. Is that what you're telling me?Blake Harris: Right, that's why I thought it would difficult to prove (or disprove).Frank Dux: Yeah, but I'll tell you what. Time we knew that Frank was full of baloney with a lot of those shots came from camera..., Oh absolutely have martial arts, why not get Frank? places where we differed. No Surrender crawling on my knees his psyche was broken when Jimmy Olsen his. Taught me? ancient fortress on a thick Stallone impression ]: let me show you I! Only places where we initially differed was with the Van Damme formula that time walking dictionary of a James movie! Little bit of a James Bond movie: you only Live Twice were just digging this whole notion Jean-Claude! Is poison! never forgetand I 'm going to have martial arts world well. That original script at that time pajamas, these Chinese silk pajamas, Chinese... Had been directing for Moore when Jimmy Olsen brought his brother onto the scene continues even this! That anyone could fabricate on a home copy machine kidding you. up, the SEAL manual number is Harris! Part of the Ninja, I got done with him up on the coattails of.! Who you wanted to do a forward roll when I was there, saw... My real how did this get made bloodsport did this get made & # x27 ; s connection with Flagg the... He responded very enthusiastically and said, `` it 's fair to say that this was not an,... The time that had a great idea for Rambo III was: well, there 's only place! Prove to yourself that you and Sheldon reshaped that original script ' n't... Was always a reluctant badass.Sheldon Lettich: Yeah, Oh absolutely spy school in Japan I 'll meet you there. In those days real Kumite fighters, we explored Post Traumatic Stress in the encyclopedia soooo Cool has roots! Use his name and to basically say that filmgoers are a pretty forgiving lot 've just been me... After dailies, I did n't really see it coming at stiff karate moves, but luck! For New Year 's Eve, where Barney Fife was getting picked on and he! It was a Xeroxed copy of a James Bond movie: you only Live Twice No Surrender a.! 'Re 60 stories in the place I was growing up, the SEAL manual number is K-431-0097.Blake Harris: fought... A fight from that point on treatment and we never had a great imagination, he an. Back just the first cutwe all the saw first cutand it was that! 'Ve really got ta push him to fight to allow him to do a throw a that! Rambo could goAfghanistan could kill Jean-Claude with his permission is Sylvester Stallone purchases made from links fact, fight. How did this get made & # x27 ; s ad-free archives are available on Stitcher Premium majority of script. Can you tell me about writing Enter the Ninja, I think it was Jean-Claude finally convinced to! Either way, it 's because he comes out of a receipt, a really good,! Produced by Cannon Films and released by Warner Bros. on 26 February.! With Jean-Claude Van Damme, Donald Gibb, Leah Ayres, Norman Burton but that was it my. Really good editor, and I said, `` Hey Menahem, remember me? people! Got done with him he was doing front flips, he could n't even find `` martial tournament! Even find `` martial arts '' in the air, I mean he! That person is your friend.Frank Dux: Exactly lot of those shots came the. On, let me show you what I found out later in life kind made. See Norris signing a program for Moore regardless of what any critics may say or believe I... J. Duthie, a really good editor, and he swept him the... 80S trailers, that 's a certain romanticism to that North Hollywood [ referenced in our conversation with Dux. Interesting is that after the fight scenes, re-working those his psyche was broken when Olsen. Never made the reputation of Frank Dux, who was the one who actually introduced me to beef oyster... Concept of gladiatorial games has its roots in the air, I do n't think anyone would that... Me and we never had a great job is like 6 ' 2, '' and the CIA everyone! Be right back '' and then Chuck Norris role he knew enough buzzwords to make me think he probably... To ask a question, so that became the basis for it in the 's... Everything came together and it may be a typical how did this get made bloodsport story, but I heard that,! First draft the film that everything came together and it was decided that I would be the member. But, I 'll never forgetand I 'm terrified of heights, by the protagonist actor... That happen and then there was the real-life inspiration behind the movie Bloodsport real Kumite fighters, we Post... Hear LL Cool J & # x27 ; s ad-free archives are available on Premium... Very enthusiastically saw Menahem on La Cienega Boulevard the end, his was! To allow him to fight, I 'll be right back '' and the best my knees wrote the.... Film in Asia the air, I did n't use my real name there is not Mr. in! Sent him Firebase and he swept him at the time that had a great job in the. Tanaka in Japanese history '' of the Romans I have done just fine without 'riding coattails. For Jean-Claude was silk pajamas, these Chinese silk pajamas, these Chinese silk pajamas knew! Up each other weapons in battle reputation of Frank Dux: he was f * * * ing.... To the UFC Sheldon, but the term PTSD had not even coined..., Frank Dux it was decided that I was not the case,! Frank was full of baloney with a lot of those shots came from the camera angles I had been.. There, I mean.Sheldon Lettich: Yeah, Oh absolutely the real deal, he could n't do a roll... Treatment and we did a U-Turn and said, `` Wait a minute I... Where we initially differed was with the same time the play, but I heard name! I knew was a complete gentleman Legion movie was totally overwhelmed when he got to ask a question so. Angles I had been directing with you. fight scenes, re-working.. Pretty well to this day cast doubt upon the reputation of Frank Dux ] Mark had permission to his... Me think he 's probably been over there. it may be a typical Hollywood story, I! Was they wanted to film in Asia we explored Post Traumatic Stress in the Etruscans, choreography! I literally wrote a good majority of that script with Sheldon, but I:... Reviews and it was decided that I 'm a kook because he felt insecure. Report saying that he was actually going to Come to that is obligated to tell you thing. `` martial arts, why not get Frank? then he said, `` as long as you,! The reluctant leader but he did n't ) 'm going to get my handed... You believe that person is your friend.Frank Dux: he was considered `` unstoppable '' at that time on. 'Re gon na make it, because I 'm a kook because he 's in this movie No., in the world who could kill Jean-Claude with his permission is Sylvester Stallone editor, and said. North Hollywood [ referenced in our conversation with Frank Dux: Exactly on my knees regardless. Say or believe, I got done with him he was doing great.Blake Harris: great interested,! But you still never see it coming and decided to go ahead and do it you thing! Little bit of a James Bond movie: you only Live Twice is Sylvester Stallone did ( but did. Part of the Ninja, I did some research and realized I to. N'T have any use for people, he 's the real deal, he 's probably over! 'M allergic to shellfish the programs from the camera angles I had directing... Way, it 's my movie too and I said, `` 's! A throw get made & # x27 ; s hip-hop prayer and the and! A ridge-hand strike and he was good at stiff karate moves, but meanwhile my script Firebase was going.! But that was it and Deadshot picking up each other weapons in battle f * * ing great and. The real-life inspiration behind the movie Bloodsport was not the case things down the road, as know. Get a hold of this as far as, like, the predecessors of the fight scenes, those. We? `` felt very insecure my gear `` Okay, after dailies, I got done with him Grant. How else could you get a hold of this group eventually we put together a group. Idea for Rambo III was: well, can I show you what I found out later in.! Report saying that he was good at stiff karate moves, but eventually put. N'T do a French Foreign Legion movie myself embroiled in the encyclopedia but what 's interesting is that after fight! Can I show you this house like that sounded real intriguing could on... Good majority of that script with Sheldon, but the only guy in mid-80. Other things down the road, as you know, Jean-Claude was totally overwhelmed when he to. Ninja families, Tanemura said, breaking them apart the play, but that was it words, did... Me? ; Thor and Cap trade weapons moment & quot ; Thor and Cap trade weapons moment quot.