1 00:00:17,199 --> 00:00:22,399 Hey, everybody, this is Life is a Gamble Episode number five. My 2 00:00:22,559 --> 00:00:28,160 guest today is Don the Dragon Wilson, and I am going to jump into 3 00:00:28,199 --> 00:00:31,800 this right away because we have a lot to talk about. So Don, 4 00:00:31,960 --> 00:00:36,039 welcome to Life as a Gamble. Thank you for inviting me to speak to 5 00:00:36,119 --> 00:00:41,159 your audience, and I'm looking forward to the interview. Great. So before 6 00:00:41,240 --> 00:00:46,200 we get into where I want to go, which was a very big risk 7 00:00:46,240 --> 00:00:50,119 in your life, I just want for the audience that is not familiar. 8 00:00:51,600 --> 00:00:57,399 Is it fair to say you were the Michael Jordan of kickboxing? What? 9 00:00:58,159 --> 00:01:02,200 One of them? One of them? I didn't deny that that I was 10 00:01:02,359 --> 00:01:06,599 one of the top guys in my day. Yeah, so, but let's 11 00:01:06,640 --> 00:01:11,079 just kind of say who you were. You held the title in four weight 12 00:01:11,079 --> 00:01:17,799 classes or five weight classes, four weight classes, but in five different sanctioning 13 00:01:17,840 --> 00:01:22,079 bodies. Yes, right, correct, So, and you held the title 14 00:01:22,200 --> 00:01:26,079 for ten years eleven ten years for the light of the weight title, which 15 00:01:26,079 --> 00:01:30,280 is the one I really my main concentration was the w K light anyweight world 16 00:01:30,359 --> 00:01:34,959 title that I consider Now. I did win other ones, but they were 17 00:01:34,000 --> 00:01:38,879 never goals. They were just just because the associations sanctioned the fight of the 18 00:01:38,879 --> 00:01:41,799 title fight, I won another title, but I never even defended them. 19 00:01:41,799 --> 00:01:46,319 I just relinguished them. Part of that was there weren't There wasn't anybody left 20 00:01:46,359 --> 00:01:49,920 in your white weight class to beat, right. Look, I fought the 21 00:01:49,959 --> 00:01:53,120 top guys, beating the champion. You can't duck the number one to ten 22 00:01:53,760 --> 00:01:57,239 once a year. You gotta fight them, Okay, So for the WK 23 00:01:57,359 --> 00:02:00,159 title for ten years, I held it well, I thought the number one 24 00:02:00,519 --> 00:02:05,359 and several other top ten fighters those twelve those ten years, and none of 25 00:02:05,400 --> 00:02:07,719 them beat me. I never lost a title in the ring. I relinquished 26 00:02:07,719 --> 00:02:13,039 titles and I gave them up, and I did that retire them, or 27 00:02:13,080 --> 00:02:15,520 however you want to put it. But I did not lose. It's a 28 00:02:15,560 --> 00:02:22,520 world title after winning one being granted one in the ring. And another thing 29 00:02:22,599 --> 00:02:28,360 which seems crazy to me is you went to Hong Kong and fought for the 30 00:02:28,479 --> 00:02:34,759 Mui Tie title, which was not Which is different kicking. Generically we called 31 00:02:34,840 --> 00:02:38,199 the sport kickboxing, but there's a form of the sport started nineteen seventy four 32 00:02:38,199 --> 00:02:43,599 in America called full contact karate. Now that is punching and kicking, but 33 00:02:43,719 --> 00:02:46,800 no kicking below the weights. So if you were the champion of that. 34 00:02:46,800 --> 00:02:51,199 That's great, and you know, I have nothing against them. But in 35 00:02:51,240 --> 00:02:54,400 the Orient, they all keep the leg so they don't even respect that stylid 36 00:02:54,400 --> 00:02:58,560 fighting. Full contact karate is what they called it, and this is when 37 00:02:58,560 --> 00:03:01,360 I first started in nineteen seventy four. So I wanted to fight under all 38 00:03:01,360 --> 00:03:06,560 the styles, and the three main ones were full contact karadas. I said, 39 00:03:06,639 --> 00:03:10,360 only kicking above the ways. Then Japanese scott kickboxing, where you have 40 00:03:10,479 --> 00:03:14,479 the leg kicks and you can use knees, but you can't hold the head. 41 00:03:14,719 --> 00:03:16,800 Then you have tie boxing, where you can use elbows, knees, 42 00:03:17,199 --> 00:03:23,199 you kick the whole body, you fight barefoot. It's the most realistic style 43 00:03:23,199 --> 00:03:28,199 of kickboxing. Would be muid time and I liked it. I enjoyed it. 44 00:03:28,240 --> 00:03:31,199 I did while I fought every fight that I was offered. But but 45 00:03:31,479 --> 00:03:35,919 you know, when you start beating the Tide, they quit offering you fight 46 00:03:37,039 --> 00:03:40,240 because they don't like foreigners. It's like we're the super Bowl champions, right, 47 00:03:42,000 --> 00:03:45,599 and then you get a team from some other country co comes over and 48 00:03:45,639 --> 00:03:49,800 beats the super Bowl champion. You don't want that happening, and the Tides 49 00:03:49,840 --> 00:03:53,719 didn't. They didn't allow any of their fighters to fight me after nineteen eighty 50 00:03:53,719 --> 00:03:58,280 four. September of eighty four, I fought fourth rated fighter in Hong Kong 51 00:03:58,800 --> 00:04:01,280 and I broke his leg, beat him and that was the last TIPE fight 52 00:04:01,319 --> 00:04:06,319 I was ever off have September of eighty four. Yeah. Wow. Now, 53 00:04:06,560 --> 00:04:14,879 Also when MMA came about, you were one of the announcers. I 54 00:04:14,919 --> 00:04:18,319 was waiting before him. I was in the original UFC that different owners came 55 00:04:18,360 --> 00:04:21,199 and they brought in Joe Rogan. You know, he was good, he 56 00:04:21,279 --> 00:04:24,800 was good. He was the martial artist. I met the guy, very 57 00:04:24,879 --> 00:04:31,879 nice guy, very well informed, opinionated, interesting, entertaining announcement. Right, 58 00:04:32,040 --> 00:04:35,920 But I know that when because this is around the time that I met 59 00:04:36,000 --> 00:04:42,160 you. Well, it was after when I met you and you were chomping 60 00:04:42,199 --> 00:04:46,399 at the bit. Oh I was trying to fight. Yeah, but Richard, 61 00:04:46,759 --> 00:04:49,000 this is nineteen ninety, but you weren't how old at that time. 62 00:04:49,480 --> 00:04:54,279 I've got to fight scheduled right now in Dubai, right now, I'm already 63 00:04:54,319 --> 00:04:58,040 trying to contract. Now that call it exhibition. Now, wait, you're 64 00:04:58,160 --> 00:05:02,000 sixty eight right now? Right, that's a close estimation. Yes, I'm 65 00:05:02,040 --> 00:05:06,480 sixty eight. If I'm at sixty eight. I would love to get in 66 00:05:06,519 --> 00:05:10,439 the ring. What do you think I felt like back in the nineties. 67 00:05:10,680 --> 00:05:14,560 Of course I would have taken a fight with Hoyce Gracie, but they wouldn't 68 00:05:14,560 --> 00:05:17,439 promote it because he was beating all the guys and they didn't want some of 69 00:05:17,480 --> 00:05:20,920 you come from the outside and just win the thing. But what ended up 70 00:05:20,920 --> 00:05:25,839 happening is Murray Smith, a kickboxer, end up winning the world the UFC 71 00:05:25,959 --> 00:05:33,120 title heavyweight title. And yeah, kickboxers became pretty and wrestlers, grapplers, 72 00:05:33,199 --> 00:05:38,360 you know, jiu jitsu guys, and they kind of like dominated the UFC 73 00:05:38,560 --> 00:05:42,439 at different times. At different times, you know it Evan flows. You 74 00:05:42,480 --> 00:05:46,160 know, sometimes the strikers get on top and they become champions, sometimes the 75 00:05:46,199 --> 00:05:49,720 grapplers. And you had a wrestling background in school, right, Yes, 76 00:05:49,920 --> 00:05:54,519 I was. Of all the sports I did, and I was the MVP 77 00:05:54,600 --> 00:05:57,720 of my high school football team and the MVP of the basketball team. Lap 78 00:05:58,000 --> 00:06:00,800 Of all the sports they did, though, the sport the fastest and the 79 00:06:00,800 --> 00:06:05,920 easiest was wrestling. I went out for wrestling as a college stude. I 80 00:06:05,959 --> 00:06:12,319 never wrestled in high school, and they said the athlete versus son that's impossible. 81 00:06:12,600 --> 00:06:15,879 No one, no athlete ever starts the sport at the collegian level. 82 00:06:16,480 --> 00:06:20,199 Like your first day on a wrestling Matt is in college, which for me 83 00:06:20,639 --> 00:06:24,199 and I go, look, I'm an athlete. I can learn to wrestling. 84 00:06:24,360 --> 00:06:27,079 Just let me go on the mat out and he gives me a scholarship. 85 00:06:27,120 --> 00:06:29,879 I'll learn, and he said, okay, there's one hundred and ninety 86 00:06:29,879 --> 00:06:31,879 poundands. So I get in there and I'm wrestling with Then of course the 87 00:06:31,879 --> 00:06:35,079 guy is I didn't even know the rules. Really, I didn't even ruin 88 00:06:35,160 --> 00:06:39,519 the wrestling, but I knew this. Whatever he tried to do to me, 89 00:06:39,920 --> 00:06:44,279 I knew. I resisted, And the athletic director and the wrestling coach 90 00:06:44,279 --> 00:06:46,399 at this college I was going to, said, you know, he's got 91 00:06:46,439 --> 00:06:49,040 a little potential. Let's put him on a one week trial period. I 92 00:06:49,079 --> 00:06:51,360 think it was one week. It might have been too regardless, in a 93 00:06:51,360 --> 00:06:55,360 few days they said, no, give him a full scholarship. Wow. 94 00:06:55,519 --> 00:06:59,160 And my second year wrestling for that, I took fourth and state of Florida 95 00:06:59,160 --> 00:07:02,399 at one seventy seven. Now I went from no. No wrestling to fourth 96 00:07:02,480 --> 00:07:05,120 the state. And that's against all the schools. Richard I was going to 97 00:07:05,120 --> 00:07:09,879 a junior college, so it's only first two years. But we wrestled University 98 00:07:09,920 --> 00:07:13,680 of Florida, University of Miami, Florida State University. We wrestled the big 99 00:07:13,720 --> 00:07:19,120 guy, and yeah, I kicked to that sport the fast. Although kickboxing 100 00:07:19,680 --> 00:07:23,879 was I had to learn how to box. I could kick. I was 101 00:07:23,879 --> 00:07:27,560 always a big kicker. But and I still work. I go to the 102 00:07:27,560 --> 00:07:30,279 boxing gym. I don't go to our mortial arts school. I go to 103 00:07:30,279 --> 00:07:32,759 the boxing gym when I trained, And yeah, I still work my hands 104 00:07:32,759 --> 00:07:36,160 because you know, if that's your weak spot, that's what you need to 105 00:07:36,199 --> 00:07:41,839 concentrate on. Right. And my punching was a weak part of my fighting 106 00:07:41,959 --> 00:07:45,480 abilities. I could have really really done well in the M and A. 107 00:07:45,560 --> 00:07:48,079 I believe, Yeah, if that the sport I was born to do because 108 00:07:48,120 --> 00:07:51,759 with the grappling, you know, the submission. So many things that I 109 00:07:51,800 --> 00:07:57,560 was good at I couldn't use as a striker. Like strength doesn't matter as 110 00:07:57,680 --> 00:08:03,040 much as to me anyway a striker, as strength does to a grap that's 111 00:08:03,040 --> 00:08:07,040 a good advantage to have on somebody, to be stronger than that if you're 112 00:08:07,120 --> 00:08:11,279 trying to manipulate their bodies on the ground. If you're trying to strike them, 113 00:08:11,439 --> 00:08:15,079 sometimes that added weight on your arms and your back and slows you down. 114 00:08:15,120 --> 00:08:18,279 As a striker, you're gonna be getting hit more because the other guy's 115 00:08:18,360 --> 00:08:24,279 lean faster. For me, the advantage that the sport that I would have 116 00:08:24,439 --> 00:08:30,079 the most advantage would be emma and I never did one competition. Unfortunately it 117 00:08:30,160 --> 00:08:33,200 came out did So. What I really wanted to talk to you about, 118 00:08:33,240 --> 00:08:39,440 though, is here you are. You're this world champion and you decide to 119 00:08:41,519 --> 00:08:45,639 chuck it all and head to LA and be an actor. Well, we 120 00:08:45,679 --> 00:08:50,320 can blame all that on Chuck Norris. Okay, Chuck and I became friends. 121 00:08:50,720 --> 00:08:54,279 I believe this nineteen eighty was the date of the fight, as nineteen 122 00:08:54,320 --> 00:08:56,279 eighty. I met him that he came to one of my fighters, and 123 00:08:56,519 --> 00:09:00,360 after the fight we went to his hotel room and I talked to them and 124 00:09:00,399 --> 00:09:03,720 he said, don I was a fighter. Bruceley called me up and asked 125 00:09:03,720 --> 00:09:05,159 me if I do a fight in a movie, So he said, I 126 00:09:05,240 --> 00:09:09,120 wasn't making a big career of movement. I did it and people thought I 127 00:09:09,159 --> 00:09:11,879 looked good, and I got other offers to hear in a movie, so 128 00:09:13,000 --> 00:09:16,840 I started acting and he said it turned up me a great second career for 129 00:09:16,919 --> 00:09:20,720 him. He went from fighting to acting. Now, of all the actors 130 00:09:20,039 --> 00:09:26,279 that do fighting, him, Chuck and I have the same background. We 131 00:09:26,279 --> 00:09:31,440 were known worldwide as fighters before we did our first line of dialogue. Now, 132 00:09:31,480 --> 00:09:33,720 all the other guys and I'm not saying it's a bad thing. I'm 133 00:09:33,759 --> 00:09:39,720 saying Van Damn Sigal Jeff speaks when any other martial artists, if they had 134 00:09:39,759 --> 00:09:43,639 never done a movie, we wouldn't be talking about it because they did nothing 135 00:09:43,639 --> 00:09:46,519 as fighters. They were not the top fighters. The reason Chuck got offered 136 00:09:46,519 --> 00:09:50,080 to Bruceley movie is he was known to be the best fighter in the world 137 00:09:50,519 --> 00:09:54,759 in his day, and that's why Bruceley wanted to beat him up in a 138 00:09:54,759 --> 00:10:01,320 movie. For me, it was a just talking a situation. I was 139 00:10:01,360 --> 00:10:03,000 known to be one of the best fighters of my day, and then I 140 00:10:03,039 --> 00:10:07,120 went to the movies and then not the way that's not the normal. Chuck 141 00:10:07,159 --> 00:10:11,559 and I are aberrations, not the way it normally happens. Get a guy 142 00:10:11,679 --> 00:10:18,879 like Van Damn who's skillful, looks apart and he can act talented, but 143 00:10:18,919 --> 00:10:20,720 he was not a like me and Chuck. He was not a famous fighter 144 00:10:20,759 --> 00:10:26,399 before he became an actor. Right, but when you went to LA you 145 00:10:26,440 --> 00:10:31,039 didn't have any offer or anything, Right, you just picked up and moved 146 00:10:31,080 --> 00:10:35,000 there. And and what was your plan? It was a big damn yeah, 147 00:10:35,120 --> 00:10:39,679 I would say, but Chuck suggested it, so look he should know, 148 00:10:39,879 --> 00:10:43,639 right, I mean other people hadn't suggested it before. But I never 149 00:10:43,639 --> 00:10:46,879 paid attention to him, because what do they know about the film business. 150 00:10:46,000 --> 00:10:52,480 Chuck Norris didn't go from fighter to movie start yet. I don't want to 151 00:10:52,519 --> 00:10:56,399 be called just an actor, not just an actor, but an actor, 152 00:10:56,399 --> 00:11:00,240 because I don't consider myself an actor. I'm a movie star, which is 153 00:11:01,000 --> 00:11:03,600 people will pay to see me in martial art action movies, but I doubt 154 00:11:03,600 --> 00:11:09,200 if they would pay to see me in the romantic comedies or many other genres 155 00:11:09,200 --> 00:11:13,919 of films and that and producers understand that, and they don't cast me in 156 00:11:13,039 --> 00:11:18,360 I'm not casting those kind of films. I'm basically martial art action star. 157 00:11:18,440 --> 00:11:22,519 I have a genre loyal fan base. Yeah, I can say this. 158 00:11:22,799 --> 00:11:26,360 When it comes time to throw the punching in the kicken, Robert de Niro 159 00:11:26,440 --> 00:11:30,279 can sit down and just take a break, and then I'll do that myself. 160 00:11:30,519 --> 00:11:33,720 You know when it comes to that, I'm well qualified to do the 161 00:11:33,720 --> 00:11:37,399 fight scenes fight actions, and my fight scenes are not the acrobatic kind of 162 00:11:37,480 --> 00:11:39,960 backflips and the split like Van Dam will do. No, I don't do 163 00:11:41,120 --> 00:11:43,559 that. I do the more practical stuff. Luckily, the choreographers, though, 164 00:11:43,840 --> 00:11:48,559 allow in my movies, allow the other martial arts to show off their 165 00:11:48,559 --> 00:11:50,039 best talents and mean Garry Daniels looked great from Ring of Fire, right, 166 00:11:50,200 --> 00:11:54,279 yeah, yeah, all of them. Eric let me look great. Here's 167 00:11:54,279 --> 00:11:58,240 a comedy comic relate for him. Yeah, But so so everybody can grow, 168 00:11:58,360 --> 00:12:01,840 they'll style what happened when you got to La. Well, I got 169 00:12:01,840 --> 00:12:03,960 to La. Nobody knows me, right, I did not know anything about 170 00:12:05,039 --> 00:12:07,840 some business. So I had some friends that were martial arts, and they 171 00:12:07,840 --> 00:12:09,320 said, well, there's this bookstore you can go to called Samuel French, 172 00:12:11,240 --> 00:12:13,080 and you go there and they got a lot of books on how to be 173 00:12:13,120 --> 00:12:16,360 an actor. And so I go to the bookstore. I go to the 174 00:12:16,360 --> 00:12:20,720 bookstorem Now I'm staying in a holiday inn in Glendale, California. I'd buy 175 00:12:20,720 --> 00:12:24,399 it like five or six books on how to be an act shows you how 176 00:12:24,440 --> 00:12:28,240 to get ahead shot and how to build your resume, and how to find 177 00:12:28,240 --> 00:12:31,600 an agent? Had an audition and the droll in acting classes. It shows 178 00:12:31,639 --> 00:12:37,559 you it just literally every human activity there are books about how to do. 179 00:12:37,720 --> 00:12:39,679 Like if you want to be a carpenter, there's books to say, how 180 00:12:39,720 --> 00:12:41,279 to be a carpent. Oh yeah, how to pick the right wood and 181 00:12:41,360 --> 00:12:45,360 measure it and okay. So I got the books on how to be an 182 00:12:45,360 --> 00:12:50,960 actor, and I just did what they said, Richard. Within three months, 183 00:12:52,080 --> 00:12:56,600 I was on General Hospital as a bad guy working. I was a 184 00:12:56,080 --> 00:13:00,480 It was a section of the story arc on General Hall or where they had 185 00:13:00,480 --> 00:13:03,799 it called the Asian Quarter. That's where I met Steve Lee, who you 186 00:13:03,840 --> 00:13:09,360 know and we've been friends. So I seem a working at just from after 187 00:13:09,440 --> 00:13:13,720 moving out to La getting an agent, reading the books, doing what the 188 00:13:13,720 --> 00:13:16,559 books say. How do you get the agent? You just called him sitting 189 00:13:16,600 --> 00:13:20,080 in the head chairs what the books said? The book said, the way 190 00:13:20,120 --> 00:13:24,000 to get an agent is this. Find an agent. It's got a client 191 00:13:24,200 --> 00:13:28,559 like you that he's making money on, and that guy's more likely to take 192 00:13:28,600 --> 00:13:33,200 you. So there was one Asian in all of Hollywood in nineteen eighty five, 193 00:13:35,039 --> 00:13:39,480 starring in marsha Art movie. His name was Shoka Sui, and Shoka 194 00:13:39,559 --> 00:13:43,720 Suvi was like me, six foot tall, a Japanese did ninja movies for 195 00:13:43,840 --> 00:13:48,600 a company called Kannon Films, which is a company Chuck was working for Tannon. 196 00:13:48,879 --> 00:13:52,120 So I went to Choka Suvi's agent and I said, hey, my 197 00:13:52,200 --> 00:13:54,840 name is Don Wilson. I know you. You represent Chovasubi. But I 198 00:13:54,840 --> 00:13:56,759 said, I'm not trying to replace him. I just said that, you 199 00:13:56,799 --> 00:14:01,399 know, maybe you could use another Asian. And he said, come on, 200 00:14:01,799 --> 00:14:05,240 I'll talk to you about it. So I go in and now he's 201 00:14:05,279 --> 00:14:07,519 just passed away by the way. He passed away a year ago. Ray, 202 00:14:07,879 --> 00:14:09,519 but Reddy looked at me and Ray, he said to me later, 203 00:14:09,720 --> 00:14:16,799 he said, there are many roles that show Gasuit gets offered good money rolls, 204 00:14:16,879 --> 00:14:20,039 but show doesn't want to do them. He looks at it. It's 205 00:14:20,080 --> 00:14:24,440 below him. So Ray said to me, gone, I'll send you out 206 00:14:24,600 --> 00:14:28,320 for all the roles and shows turns down because they're looking for a six foot 207 00:14:28,360 --> 00:14:31,960 tall Japanese guy because they want show. He said, would you mind that? 208 00:14:33,080 --> 00:14:35,720 I said, oh, absolutely. So the first one I got was 209 00:14:35,879 --> 00:14:41,840 a commercial for a Chinese first soy sauce and it was LaTroy Foods LATROI, 210 00:14:41,960 --> 00:14:46,879 which I believe it's Chinese food. But they had a soy sauce coming up 211 00:14:46,000 --> 00:14:50,120 and I did it and I worked one day and they said we're talking nineteen 212 00:14:50,159 --> 00:14:54,039 eighty five and I made ten thousand dollars. Wow, it took me, 213 00:14:54,480 --> 00:14:58,039 not would one day, like a half a day to shoot this commercial. 214 00:14:58,720 --> 00:15:03,279 And oddly enough, because my life is one series of odd coinstances, it 215 00:15:03,440 --> 00:15:07,879 was my character was the leader of the dragon squad. Yeah, so I 216 00:15:07,879 --> 00:15:11,960 had a draft fake dragon tattoo on my chest and I make a mean face 217 00:15:11,480 --> 00:15:15,960 and uh yeah, I don't know if you can google, but maybe it's 218 00:15:16,039 --> 00:15:18,600 on YouTube, right. I think at one time it was it was Le 219 00:15:18,799 --> 00:15:22,919 Choice soy sauce. But anyway, so what happened was I told Ray I 220 00:15:24,039 --> 00:15:26,320 was started going out for auditions. The show looked down on the roles. 221 00:15:26,399 --> 00:15:30,639 He didn't want to even auditions, I told Ray. And the roles were 222 00:15:30,720 --> 00:15:33,320 like this, which was they were not starring six foot tall Asians and stubborn 223 00:15:33,399 --> 00:15:39,759 access in movie. So it would be like a Chinese waiter who drops a 224 00:15:39,919 --> 00:15:43,879 bowl of rice, picks it up and it runs out, and it would 225 00:15:43,919 --> 00:15:48,279 be those kind of roles day player roles, not action stars, not starring 226 00:15:48,279 --> 00:15:52,840 in movie. So I told Ray, and this was maybe probably our first 227 00:15:52,840 --> 00:15:56,919 six months work as the Ray. Unless it's the starring role and it's a 228 00:15:56,960 --> 00:16:00,399 March large film, I'd rather not even audition because I'm not out here to 229 00:16:00,440 --> 00:16:03,639 be an actor. I don't want to just play, you know, all 230 00:16:03,720 --> 00:16:06,720 kinds of different roles or where like most actors. I said, I want 231 00:16:06,720 --> 00:16:10,879 to be an action stars. So now the contact between me and Ray where 232 00:16:10,879 --> 00:16:15,559 it's like zero because I told him I didn't want to audition for this other 233 00:16:15,559 --> 00:16:18,000 stuff, and there's nothing else out there for you, so the nothing's coming 234 00:16:18,039 --> 00:16:22,919 in. I'm getting no office. And then one day I come home and 235 00:16:22,039 --> 00:16:25,600 you know, we had answering machines puck in those days. You push your 236 00:16:25,639 --> 00:16:29,679 answering machine and says, hello, if you are the Don Wilson, the 237 00:16:29,960 --> 00:16:33,240 chick poxing Champion, my name is Roger Corman, and i'd like you to 238 00:16:33,440 --> 00:16:34,360 I'm producing a marshal Off. Look, I'd like you to come in and 239 00:16:34,399 --> 00:16:37,879 read of the lead of the movie. And I thought, well, I 240 00:16:37,879 --> 00:16:42,039 am the Don Wilson, that's the kickboxer. So I got head, the 241 00:16:42,080 --> 00:16:45,639 addressed and everything, and I go over there, and as soon as I 242 00:16:45,679 --> 00:16:48,919 get to the office in Brentwood, the casting richer looks at me says, 243 00:16:48,960 --> 00:16:52,480 oh, this Toilson, I'm sorry, we didn't realize you were a Pasian. 244 00:16:53,080 --> 00:16:56,080 He said, this is about Caucasian lead and the brothers already been cast. 245 00:16:56,799 --> 00:17:00,600 He goes, I'm sorry you were called out. He said, I 246 00:17:00,639 --> 00:17:03,639 don't want you to have wasted your time. So he said, let you 247 00:17:03,639 --> 00:17:04,359 come in and just read it. Maybe you could be one of the bad 248 00:17:04,359 --> 00:17:11,079 guys, which now I know it is courtesy read because Richard if Roger Corman 249 00:17:11,160 --> 00:17:14,640 wants a bad guy who looks like me. There's many of them in the 250 00:17:14,640 --> 00:17:18,960 Philippines. He's not gonna fly them to the Philippines put him in a hotel 251 00:17:18,079 --> 00:17:22,119 room to be's a bad guy. No, that was a courtesy read. 252 00:17:22,160 --> 00:17:25,039 He just wanted me to say. Now you know you memorize the line he 253 00:17:25,119 --> 00:17:29,720 can, so he read me I read for the casting grid, the courtesy 254 00:17:29,759 --> 00:17:33,200 read, and he looks at me and he doesn't say anything. He goes, 255 00:17:33,359 --> 00:17:37,079 I'll be right back to excuse me. He leaves his office and I'm 256 00:17:37,119 --> 00:17:40,720 sitting in the casting office and I'm waiting. There's a bunch of big line 257 00:17:40,720 --> 00:17:45,519 of martial artists, all guys I knew because they were legitimate world champions, 258 00:17:45,559 --> 00:17:51,759 but all Caucasians. Yeah, they were all Caucasian. The casting garden comes, 259 00:17:51,960 --> 00:17:53,720 says, Roger Corman wants to me. Now, Luckily for me, 260 00:17:53,839 --> 00:17:56,279 Richard, I had no idea who Roger Corman was. But because it said 261 00:17:56,319 --> 00:18:00,359 Joe Smith, I wasn't not the difference I need it. I didn't know 262 00:18:00,440 --> 00:18:03,799 he had started all these careers because that would have added another level of nervousness 263 00:18:03,799 --> 00:18:07,160 to my audition, right, I mean, So I go in there and 264 00:18:07,240 --> 00:18:11,240 meet him, and he says, done, I'm visure Frank Rovis Corn. 265 00:18:11,200 --> 00:18:15,160 You know, tell me about yourself. And I told him my backstory of 266 00:18:15,359 --> 00:18:18,240 my training and how I got the idea to try to be an actor from 267 00:18:18,279 --> 00:18:22,839 Chuck Norris and that's why I'm out in the Hollywood. So he says, 268 00:18:23,279 --> 00:18:27,880 would you read for him? And so the casting director He's playing the bad 269 00:18:27,920 --> 00:18:34,200 guy and I'm playing my character, the good guy. I get about I 270 00:18:34,200 --> 00:18:37,200 wish I even remembered that. You know this, we're talking nineteen eightien. 271 00:18:37,400 --> 00:18:42,079 I get out about four lines, which about four lines, and he stops 272 00:18:42,119 --> 00:18:45,000 me. Now, I know as an actor. When you get stopped after 273 00:18:45,079 --> 00:18:48,720 that, that means don't let the door hit your butt on the way out. 274 00:18:48,480 --> 00:18:52,359 You know, you've blown it so bad. He said, Oh my 275 00:18:52,400 --> 00:18:55,599 god, he guys got it. Yeah, but that's not Roger Corman to 276 00:18:55,720 --> 00:18:59,240 Roger stopped me at the four lines. He had seen enough. He cast 277 00:18:59,279 --> 00:19:02,079 me on the spot, handed me the script, said you leave in two 278 00:19:02,079 --> 00:19:06,039 weeks you start of the movie. And he said to me, He said 279 00:19:06,039 --> 00:19:07,960 to me, done, You're gonna do martial art. Me. Wow, 280 00:19:08,279 --> 00:19:11,599 wow. Later in your life, you're gonna do action as you're doing an 281 00:19:11,599 --> 00:19:15,240 action star. And I'm looking at him and I don't know who he is. 282 00:19:15,400 --> 00:19:18,559 He goes. He goes, much much later, you're gonna be a 283 00:19:18,240 --> 00:19:22,960 famous dramatic actor, and Hug, we're around the world because you're gonna be 284 00:19:23,000 --> 00:19:26,480 a famous So I didn't know who he was. So I'm just thinking, 285 00:19:26,599 --> 00:19:29,599 yeah, what do you want to do? Invest in the movie or something. 286 00:19:29,680 --> 00:19:32,039 You know. He's telling me I'm gonna be a movie star. And 287 00:19:32,200 --> 00:19:37,559 I got four lines out of this scene. So I go immediately to I 288 00:19:37,599 --> 00:19:40,920 was living every yells then, but don't think I had money because I was 289 00:19:40,960 --> 00:19:44,960 living in what we call the ghettos, which is the apartment compan I had 290 00:19:44,960 --> 00:19:47,839 an apartment, and really is but they still are great apartments and it was 291 00:19:47,880 --> 00:19:49,119 still nice place to live. But anyway, so I go to the guy 292 00:19:49,160 --> 00:19:53,559 named Barry Newman, who's an actor living there with me, very very experienced 293 00:19:55,039 --> 00:19:57,480 New York actor, and he said, I heard you had an audition. 294 00:19:57,480 --> 00:20:00,640 I said, yeah. The guy told me after the audition, I'm gonna 295 00:20:00,640 --> 00:20:02,839 be a big movie Starry, because he did. He starts laughing. He 296 00:20:02,880 --> 00:20:06,200 goes, what was the guy's name? And I said Roger Corman? Because 297 00:20:06,279 --> 00:20:10,160 Roger Corman told you you're going to become a famous movie So I said yeah. 298 00:20:10,640 --> 00:20:12,160 He said, come in here, come into my apartment, and then 299 00:20:12,200 --> 00:20:17,599 he sat me down and explained to me who Roger Corman. Wow, Now, 300 00:20:18,319 --> 00:20:21,519 thank goodness, Richard. I did not know who he was because I 301 00:20:21,519 --> 00:20:25,759 would have been so nervous because he is a guy I believe, Richard, 302 00:20:26,279 --> 00:20:29,880 and I don't know for a fact. I believe I am the last actor 303 00:20:30,119 --> 00:20:36,079 in Hollywood to go through what was called the studio system, where a non 304 00:20:36,119 --> 00:20:40,440 actor gets met by a producer. The producer turns him into a star by 305 00:20:40,519 --> 00:20:44,200 hiring acting coaches. Roger got me yet first of all, he putting me 306 00:20:44,279 --> 00:20:47,559 on a weekly salary of four thousand a week. Wow. Immediately after leaving 307 00:20:47,599 --> 00:20:48,799 his office, I got, yeah, well, you know that was a 308 00:20:48,799 --> 00:20:52,039 weekly salary. But that was what they did in the studio system. They 309 00:20:52,079 --> 00:20:56,759 gave actors like Steve McQueen weekly salary. Yeah, And Roger said, done, 310 00:20:56,839 --> 00:21:00,200 you could work for other companies. I only asked you for one thing, 311 00:21:00,880 --> 00:21:03,079 showing your contracts, and I'll tell you whether or not I think it's 312 00:21:03,079 --> 00:21:06,440 a good idea, because I said, he said, whatever you do outside 313 00:21:06,480 --> 00:21:10,000 my company's going to affect my movies with you, and I intend to do 314 00:21:10,039 --> 00:21:11,480 a lot. I did twelve movies with Roger. By the way, Richard, 315 00:21:11,759 --> 00:21:15,200 more than any actor in the history of the film that's flow was Roger 316 00:21:15,559 --> 00:21:18,640 twelve. Well that's because Roger used to say, if you do a good 317 00:21:18,720 --> 00:21:25,400 job with me on this movie, right right? You know what I want 318 00:21:25,440 --> 00:21:33,200 to mention something about when you were talking about roles for Asian actors in Hollywood, 319 00:21:33,400 --> 00:21:36,000 Well, Sean Dan told me that that shot. Dan said, they 320 00:21:36,000 --> 00:21:37,799 don't write them for doctor for people like you. Right. So, when 321 00:21:37,839 --> 00:21:42,720 we were doing Ring of Fire and I was auditioning people, all these Asian 322 00:21:42,759 --> 00:21:48,119 actors were showing up that I did not call in like nobody had called these 323 00:21:48,160 --> 00:21:52,200 guys and people hear the great mind though there is a great vine in Hollywood 324 00:21:52,559 --> 00:21:57,440 word of nowt worm. Well, so what happened was I said that to 325 00:21:57,960 --> 00:22:00,920 one of the guys. I was like, how did you find out about 326 00:22:00,960 --> 00:22:06,039 this? And he says, are you kidding me? We heard that there 327 00:22:06,119 --> 00:22:11,279 is a movie where the lead is an Asian doctor who's got a white girlfriend. 328 00:22:11,400 --> 00:22:15,519 He says, every Asian actor in town knows about this movie. I 329 00:22:15,599 --> 00:22:18,720 found that out later as well. Yeah, I found that out, lad 330 00:22:18,960 --> 00:22:22,000 Well, how unusual it was. Yeah, it was a different time, 331 00:22:22,160 --> 00:22:26,279 you know, to start. Yeah, we look I was doing when Joe 332 00:22:26,359 --> 00:22:30,039 came to me in anemy descript, I was doing a movie called Force the 333 00:22:30,079 --> 00:22:34,799 Fight where there's no female lead, there's no beautiful scenery. It's in a 334 00:22:34,920 --> 00:22:38,160 prison. He was depressing that, you know what, when you go in 335 00:22:38,200 --> 00:22:41,960 there, you're in the director you gotta sit in a cell for twelve hours, 336 00:22:41,960 --> 00:22:47,119 just like if you were in the prison. And it's not a happy 337 00:22:47,359 --> 00:22:52,000 anyway. It was not a wonderfully fun experience to do it in prison movie. 338 00:22:52,440 --> 00:22:55,839 And the very next one is bringing Fire, which is a love story 339 00:22:55,880 --> 00:23:00,480 for me. Richard, and I say to everybody, you know, you 340 00:23:00,799 --> 00:23:04,599 one of the most talented directors and matter of fact, probably the most talented 341 00:23:04,599 --> 00:23:08,480 directors for that specific type of film that I worked with. It might have 342 00:23:08,640 --> 00:23:12,359 been not fourty years acting eight. Nineteen eighty two was my first film Chinese 343 00:23:12,359 --> 00:23:18,039 movie. So from eighty two to today, I know directors pretty much. 344 00:23:18,559 --> 00:23:22,160 You know, I worked with a lot of them, the ones that I 345 00:23:22,200 --> 00:23:26,319 get along with the ones I don't. But I don't think anybody could have 346 00:23:26,440 --> 00:23:30,480 done a better job than need was ramp Fire. The five scenes came out 347 00:23:30,519 --> 00:23:36,720 great, but not just that a love story was told. A love story 348 00:23:36,799 --> 00:23:41,079 came out. People were I know, there was a few things that happen 349 00:23:41,079 --> 00:23:47,960 to be end like the music left it up and she was maybe gonna die 350 00:23:48,039 --> 00:23:51,160 from the wound or whatever. But I think it came through. You know, 351 00:23:51,240 --> 00:23:53,799 everybody loved the movie, Richard. To this day, I need women 352 00:23:53,880 --> 00:23:57,079 that say, oh, I love that movie Ring of Fire to this day. 353 00:23:57,440 --> 00:24:03,319 This is forty years after thirty years. That's very kind. Yeah, 354 00:24:03,359 --> 00:24:07,839 thirty years after we shot it, people are still watching it. It's considered 355 00:24:07,839 --> 00:24:12,240 a classic now. They call it Marshall just like Blotfist is. Tarantino showed 356 00:24:12,240 --> 00:24:17,680 blood Fist and he asked me to come and answer Jill Q and A after 357 00:24:17,720 --> 00:24:22,759 the screen. But his his theater only shows what he considers the iconic movies 358 00:24:22,799 --> 00:24:26,559 of the sixties whatever and and but this is one of them. He showed 359 00:24:26,920 --> 00:24:29,599 Actually Buck Thiss one and two. He showed book This one and two, 360 00:24:29,599 --> 00:24:33,880 a double feature and at his theater here in La and I went and sat 361 00:24:33,920 --> 00:24:40,920 down and answered questions about the making of it. You know what fills students. 362 00:24:40,960 --> 00:24:44,720 Since I am the guy who worked mostly with Rodger, they really asked 363 00:24:44,720 --> 00:24:48,960 me about Roger because he is he's producer of what three hundred movies, over 364 00:24:49,039 --> 00:24:52,839 three hundred movies, you know. Yeah, if you're gonna get hooked up 365 00:24:52,839 --> 00:24:56,240 with the guy when you first start off your first starring role, that's the 366 00:24:56,279 --> 00:25:00,079 one, right, He's the one. He the guy in the B movies, 367 00:25:00,559 --> 00:25:03,079 that King of the Bees, I think it was his nickname, right, 368 00:25:03,119 --> 00:25:06,599 Like when he's on the dragon, he's the King of the Bees. 369 00:25:07,319 --> 00:25:11,680 So he's not just another Hey, you know what, I think Number two 370 00:25:11,720 --> 00:25:15,759 is Joe Marry Not when I met him, he wasn't the King of anything 371 00:25:15,759 --> 00:25:25,240 when I met him. But he became very successful over movies and ninety nine 372 00:25:25,279 --> 00:25:30,240 percent successful correction and being big bike bombs no, which is the thing. 373 00:25:30,319 --> 00:25:34,000 You know, You know a movie can bomb. No, you don't make 374 00:25:34,000 --> 00:25:40,000 that ten percent twenty percent of the budget. And but that never happened to 375 00:25:40,079 --> 00:25:41,960 my knowledge with PM Entertainment. No. You know, they were in that 376 00:25:42,000 --> 00:25:48,480 action genre and they became the They were like the new King Cannon, you 377 00:25:48,519 --> 00:25:52,400 know, like Cannon Films was doing all the action film, martial art action. 378 00:25:52,960 --> 00:25:56,680 They do the Dude Cough movies, Chuck Norris movies, show Kasubi movies. 379 00:25:57,200 --> 00:26:02,880 The Cannon Films was the big eighties guys. And then I believe Joe 380 00:26:02,920 --> 00:26:07,079 Mary and Robert Corman was a nineties action iconic grecious. Yeah, and I 381 00:26:07,240 --> 00:26:11,160 got to work with both of them. Are you know that's the lucky part 382 00:26:11,160 --> 00:26:14,119 of my my life? You know? Yes, I was a gambler. 383 00:26:14,160 --> 00:26:15,960 I took a chance. I took the money I had and invested it in 384 00:26:17,000 --> 00:26:19,960 a movie career when I knew nothing about movies. It worked for me as 385 00:26:19,960 --> 00:26:23,480 a martial artist. I was working in the nightclub. I was managing a 386 00:26:23,559 --> 00:26:27,920 nightclub, had a great job. Quit my job became a broken fighter with 387 00:26:29,000 --> 00:26:32,640 the dream of being a world champion. I did gamble, right, I 388 00:26:32,720 --> 00:26:36,920 kicked some gamble. That team of your show is is gambling and then not 389 00:26:37,000 --> 00:26:41,960 gambling on the tables because I'm the worst at that. I lost two fight 390 00:26:42,079 --> 00:26:47,559 persons at the you know, after the playoffs. Well, listen, I 391 00:26:47,599 --> 00:26:51,039 want to thank you for doing this. I'm pretty much out of time here, 392 00:26:51,160 --> 00:26:53,920 so this has been great. It's we haven't seen each other in a 393 00:26:53,960 --> 00:26:56,759 long time. It's great to see you, and I really appreciate you doing 394 00:26:56,799 --> 00:27:00,680 this. Yep, we're gonna have to work together again though. Hey, 395 00:27:00,960 --> 00:27:04,680 yeah, I have a recommended which kind of came to me as I was 396 00:27:04,720 --> 00:27:10,640 talking to Don. And for those of you who are not familiar with Roger 397 00:27:10,720 --> 00:27:15,400 Corman, or maybe you are, he wrote a book thirty some years ago 398 00:27:15,519 --> 00:27:21,839 or twenty five years ago called How I Made a Hundred Movies in Hollywood and 399 00:27:22,039 --> 00:27:29,759 Never lost a dime. Roger Corman was the King of B movies and just 400 00:27:30,000 --> 00:27:34,880 so many famous people got their start working for him, almost everyone you can 401 00:27:34,960 --> 00:27:41,640 think of. So it's a fascinating book, often very funny. And that 402 00:27:41,799 --> 00:27:47,160 is my recommended. So that's it for this episode. I will see you 403 00:27:47,200 --> 00:28:03,920 all next time. That that that the