September - October 2002

WORLD GRANDMASTER'S COUNCIL


Editor: Soke Frank E. Sanchez

Ph: 904-745-6019

Fax: 904-744-4625 (24hours/day)

6035 Ft. Caroline Rd. Unit 22 Jacksonville, Fl 32277


To borrow a phrase from a good friend; martial arts legend & karate pioneer, MAESTRO PETER URBAN of New Jersey. "It is indeed a pleasure to be back in your homes again"! After a brief hiatus due to extensive travel doing seminars & appearances, our newsletter is back again with Council news & happenings from members around the world. GRANDMASTER FRANK E. SANCHEZ

A table full of awards & bright smiles at the 2002 WHFSC Hall of Fame Banquet
(From left to right: Grandmaster Van Donk, Sensei Murdock,
Grandmaster Casarez & Grandmaster Edwards)

 

 

Seminar leaders take their bow on stage before the festivities start at 2002 Hall of Fame

 

2002 WHFSC INTERNATIONAL HALL OF FAME HIGHLIGHTS "AMERICAN" THEME. Unlike "gatherings" in the past, this years' Hall of Fame took on a distinctive "American" flair in remembrance of the 9/11 terrorist attack of last year. Special tribute was given to America for its bravery & steadfast courage in dealing with this cowardly attack. Many of our International friends were also kept from attending as their Visas were denied for the first time & some such as DR. DENNIS HANOVER of Israel & GENERAL (GRANDMASTER) ALEXANDER RETUINSKIH of Russia were simply "held back" because their countries were on "high alert" due to the terrorism issue. Aside from the usual seminars given by over 28 of the greatest grandmasters & masters in the arts & the usual grand attendance of the "who's who" of martial arts at the banquet. A special point was made to say America's "Pledge of Allegiance" in defiance of a U.S. Court order abolishing the Pledge because of the use of "God" in one of its passages. We are PROUD to say that the Court's decision was "reversed" recently & that the "Pledge" is once again "legal" to say.

Be sure to attend next years' WHFSC Annual Meeting/ International Hall of Fame celebrating our 10th year in existence! Many "arm chair" martial artists were predicting the fall of this grandmasters council since it's first inception in 1993, stating that with so many egos & reputations involved, along with the different styles arguing over whose art is better that there was "no way" this world council would last . We are STILL HERE, folks & STRONGER than ever. JOIN US on August 29th & 30th (Labor Day Weekend) in Orlando, Florida next year to celebrate & network with your peers. MARK YOUR CALENDARS NOW FOR THIS BIG EVENT & MAKE YOUR TRAVEL PLANS EARLY!

CONGRATULATIONS GO OUT TO MASTER DON "THE DRAGON" WILSON for his impressive 10th round knock out of Ed Butcher at the Tropicana Hotel & Casino in Atlantic City, New Jersey on July 19th! I attended the event along with Don's teacher, GRANDMASTER GLENN WILSON & GLENN's Wife, (Simo) Hilda as SPECIAL GUESTS of the promoters, CENTURY 21 PROMOTIONS. The fight was the Headliner for a night of mixed martial arts matches which aired later on Pay Per View TV. Unbeknownst to most who saw the fight, Don fought with a broken rib & still won handily with a knock out in the last round which certainly is a testament to his being a TRUE champion.  I later did a seminar for the WORLD KOBUDO FEDERATION in Ottawa, Canada on November 1st & 2nd (an EXCELLENT event attended by some 1,800 participants of mixed rankings) which was under the direction of KYOSHI JOHN THERIEN & SOKE RICHARD MORRIS & posed for pictures on stage with DON, but because we were at opposite ends of the stage & our seminars were going on at the same time, we never got the chance to speak to one another before I had to rush off to catch my plane. I did leave word with KYOSHI THERIEN to say "hello" to you, DON. Hope you got the message & CONGRATULATIONS again on your spectacular win in New Jersey & to KYOSHI THERIEN & SOKE MORRIS, "thank you" for having me at your event. I had a great time teaching.

CONGRATULATIONS also to GRANDMASTER JOHN PELLEGRINI on the 10th ANNIVERSARY of his COMBAT HAPKIDO FEDERATION which was celebrated in Lexington, Kentucky on November 9th.  In attendance as V.I.P.'s were Master Carlson Gracie Jr., BAPAK WILLEM DeTHOUARS, GRANDMASTER MARK SHUEY, GRANDMASTER VINCENT MARCHETTI, GRANDMASTER BOBBY TOBOADA & "YOURS TRULY".

GRANDMASTER VINCENT MARCHETTI was recently recruited by a nation-wide Bounty Hunters organization called U.S. RECOVERY to teach them restraint & control tactics.  VINCE's Son, Jeff is also making a name for himself on the Set of the popular TV series, THE SOPRANOS. According to VINCE, Jeff has been appearing off & on in the show & is slowly being worked in as one of the regulars. To add to all this, VINCE's daughter is also getting married in Scotland & he'll be flying off to old Scotland soon for the Wedding. His daughter has asked him to wear a kilt for the festivities, but Vince says he won't because it doesn't go well with his Italian heritage!. WE'LL SEE, VINCE. WE'LL SEE. 

 

"Oxygen Media" produced the "2002 USA National Wrestling Championships" in June with a historical lead-in to the matches highlighting the ancient art of PANKRATION. Images & historical data on PANKRATION for the show were supplied by Eric D. Hill, a desciple of GRANDMASTER JIM ARVANITIS. Eric's name appeared in the final Credits of the program along with GRANDMASTER ARVANITIS who was given credit for being the "Father of Modern Pankration".

MASTER SCOTT SONNON of GENERAL (GRANDMASTER) ALEXANDER RETUINSKIH's Russian R.O.S.S. System has introduced a modern concept of an old idea in weight training using clubbells (used in the Middle Eastern nations) to improve one's strength, martial arts & overall good health . For more information on purchasing clubbells & learning the new clubbell program, you can call 770-956-9765 or e-mail info@rmax.tv

MASTER ROBERT FERGUSON has been working on putting together a new martial arts business magazine. For more information you can contact ROBERT at AFGA101@aol.com .

The MISS MARTIAL ARTS USA PAGEANT, a televised contest highlighting martial arts skill along with beauty is set to air NEXT YEAR IN FEBRUARY! (date subject to change). If you would like more information on the contest & have single lady students who would like to participate; or if you know of someone from another school who might be interested , you can contact the Promoters: HOLLYWOOD EAST STUDIO, INC. at Hollywoodeaststudios@lycos.com or write to "MISS MARTIAL ARTS USA PAGEANT" c/o HOLLYWOOD EAST STUDIOS, INC., BOX 674, 1730 FLORIDA AVE., PALM HARBOR, FLORIDA 34683. The Council is endorsing this event which will be Hosted by GRANDMASTER STEVE LEE SWIFT, Kathy Long & Cynthia Rothrock.

PROFESSOR GARY DILL is mentioned in the JUNE 2002 issue of the "new" JEET KUNE DO Magazine put out by CFW ENTERPRISES no less than 3 times!. It also states that GARY is ONE OF THE FEW PROPONENTS of "ORIGINAL" JKD as taught by its Founder, BRUCE LEE. Great publicity for one of the leading practitioners of JEET KUNE DO by one of the TOP publishers in the industry!

And while we are on the subject of TOP publications. GRANDMASTER RON "THE BLACK DRAGON" VAN CLIEF is the 2002 "INSTRUCTOR OF THE YEAR" for BLACK BELT MAGAZINE's prestigious Annual magazine Hall of Fame. I agree with SOKE GLENN PERRY when he says "it's about time". CONGRATULATIONS RON!

CONGRATULATIONS to my Island Brothers, OLOHE SOLOMON KAHAIWALU who was the first Grandmaster of the Hawaiian art of LUA to expose his family's art to non-Islanders & PROFESSOR RUSS COELHO, Senior student of the late PROFESSOR SIG KUFFERATH of DANZAN RYU JIU-JITSU for being honored recently, along with MYSELF (for SAN-JITSU & this Council) as LIVING LEGENDS by the HAWAII MARTIAL ARTS SOCIETY of Hawaii (I personally feel that all on this Council deserve this accolade). It's "NICE" to be appreciated. Now, if we can only get our "better halves" to understand the significance of all this, they MAY give us less work to do around the house. I'm not "holding my breath" though, fellas. 

After almost 40 years in the making, SOKE SID CAMPBELL's new CD-ROM SHORIN-RYU KARATE ENCYCLOPEDIA is now available. Considered one of the most COMPLETE SHORIN-RYU works ever produced, you can obtain more information on this great CD by contacting SID at Dragun3@aol.com or writing to SID CAMPBELL'S SHORIN-RYU KARATE STUDIO, 2019 MacARTHUR BLVD, OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA 94602.

The first ever book on the Philippine wrestling art of "Harimaw Buno" has been published by our own GAT PUNO ABON BAET. For more information contact GAT PUNO BAET at GatPuno@aol.com or write to him at 1240 N.W. 92nd AVE., PEMBROKE PINES, FLORIDA 33024-4531.

GRANDMASTER GARY ALEXANDER , one of America's SUPER PATRIOTS is doing his part to combat terrorism by donating seminars on his system of ISSHINRYU PLUS to the U.S. Marine Corps. GARY's 39th I.A.M.A. (INTERNATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF MARTIAL ARTISTS) KARATE, TKD, KUNG-FU CHAMPIONSHIPS is also scheduled to take place April 6, 2003 in PISCATAWAY, NEW JERSEY. For more information, you can visit his website at www.realmartialarts.com or phone (908) 286-1164.

GRANDMASTER BUDDY AMATO of New Jersey is spear heading a movement there that would require martial art teachers to undergo strict screening for any criminal involvement before they would be allowed to open up a martial arts school.

GRANDMASTER JOHN CASAREZ of Ohio is making available to our members a custom made 14k gold medallion of our WHFSC logo. The gold medallion is about the size of a half dollar & 1 inches thick. JOHN informs me that the medallion would retail for a little over $400.00 if it was sold on the open market, but that it is being made available to members only for $200.00. For further information, you can contact JOHN at: (740) 867-8000 or you can write to him at: 45 TOWNSHIP RD. 1039, CHESAPEAKE, OHIO 45619.

 

GRANDMASTER JOON PYO CHOI hosts MARTIAL ARTS WORLD GAMES III at the 28th Arnold (Schwarzenegger) Battle of Columbus in Columbus, Ohio on February 8th- March 1st & 2nd, 2003. For more information, contact BOC Inc, 1349 Brice Rd., Reynoldsburg, Ohio 43068; call 614-864-4000 or e-mail jchoi@moogong.com

GRANDMASTER GERARDO CANTORE of Argentina announces that his 4th Annual Meeting for SHINSHINKAN KARATE DO takes place the 1st week of February 2003 at his world Headquarters located on Piltriquitron Mountain in Patagonia, Argentina.

MIYAKO FUJITANI, SENSEI of Japan e-mailed to say that a book she has written called "PRECIOUS TIME" was performed as a TV drama by NHK, which is the largest TV network in Japan. The drama entitled "Manten" is about an Aikido Master who raises two sons by herself & experiences many encounters. Her eldest daughter, Ayako, a very talented actress & writer (daughter of Screen Star, Steven Segal & famed Aikidoist, MIYAKO FUJITANI when they were married) also performed in the televised drama.

. AND NOW to our latest members that we would like to WELCOME "formally" to our Council. From Osaka, JAPAN, we have NIDAI ME SOKE MICHAEL J. HEENAN - Head of BEI-KOKU AIBUJUTSU RYU. From SWEDEN, SOKE DAVID COOK Founder of TSU SHIN KEN KARATE; from CANADA, the Grandmaster of the INTERNATIONAL HOSHINKIDO HAPKIDO FEDERATION, GRANDMASTER SERGE BAUBIL. From ILLINOIS, the protege of the late, great professional wrestling champion, Lou Thez & top exponent of AMERICAN CATCH-AS-CATCH-CAN WRESTLING, TONY CECCHINE. & from CALIFORNIA, the following Heads of systems: FARZAD NEKOOGAR, Head of the Iranian art of VARZESHE-PAHLAVANI; SOKE NICK STRATACOS, KAICHO of the WORLD HA SHITO RYU KARATE DO ASSOCIATION & last but not least, GRANDMASTER MICHAEL DeALBA, Founder of MODERN FARANG MU SUL. We are certainly PROUD to have you with us, gentlemen. WELCOME ABOARD!

 

In the media this time around. .The December 2003 issue of BLACK BELT features an article on Pankration with GRANDMASTER JIM ARVANITIS; mentions of "YOURS TRULY" & the WHFSC's endorsement of next years' MISS MARTIAL ARTS USA PAGEANT, GRANDMASTERS RON VAN CLIEF, GARY ALEXANDER, BUDDY AMATO, MASTER JACKIE CHAN. Photos of GRANDMASTER BART VALE, MASTER DON "THE DRAGON" WILSON & column by GRANDMASTER BILL WALLACE. The January issue features mentions of GRANDMASTER BILL WALLACE, MASTERS JACKIE CHAN & DON WILSON, an article featuring GRANDMASTER GARY ALEXANDER & the induction of GRANDMASTER RON VAN CLIEF into its (Black Belt Magazine's) Hall of Fame as "Instructor of the Year".  The December issue of INSIDE KUNG-FU mentions the inductions of OLOHE SOLOMON KAHAIWALU, RUSS COELHO & MYSELF into the Hawaii Martial Arts Society Hall of Fame as "Living Legends". . The January issue of INSIDE KUNG-FU mentions GRANDMASTER ERNESTO PRESAS, MASTER JACKIE CHAN, MASTER DON WILSON; with a profile of SENSEI KA'IMI KUOHA. The December issue of MARTIAL ART Magazine features a review of MASTER JACKIE CHAN's new movie, "Tuxedo" along with mentions of GRANDMASTERS GARY ALEXANDER, EMIL FARKAS, SID CAMPBELL & MASTER DON WILSON in attendance of the special "Roast" given to Movie icon & Karate pioneer, Grandmaster Bob Wall. The September issue of TAEKWONDO TIMES features GRANDMASTER JOHN PELLEGRINI on the cover with articles by GRANDMASTERS PELLEGRINI & MICHAEL DeALBA & mentions of GRANDMASTER RUDY TIMMERMAN, ERNESTO PRESAS, WILLEM DeTHOUARS, RON VAN CLIEF & GARY DILL. The November issue of TAEKWONDO TIMES mentions GRANDMASTERS SERGE BAUBIL, MICHAEL DeALBA, PAN QING FU, "YOURS TRULY" & MASTER DON WILSON. THE KARATE VOICE features mentions of GRANDMASTERS JOE WILLIAMS, JOE HESS, VINCENT MARCHETTI, EDDIE BADIANG, "YOURS TRULY"; MASTERS DON WILSON & MARK DACASCOS; with monthly columns by MAESTRO PETER URBAN & JUNG SHEE JAMES LACY & an Editorial by Publisher, KRATIOS GRANDMASTER VASILIOS KATSAITIS; and lastly, FILIPINO MARTIAL ARTS MAGAZINE features HANSHI TOM HUNNICUTT with an exclusive interview & cover shot.

Well, this concludes this particular issue of our newsletter . Again, it's great to have the newsletter back in circulation & in your homes again!. Remember to send in your newsworthy items to us for publication. We want to know what you've been up to! & MAY THE UPCOMING HOLIDAY SEASON & NEW YEAR BRING YOU & YOUR LOVED ONES PEACE, PROSPERITY & ALL YOU WISH FOR. As always, stay "aggressive" & "fair" in all you do.

Sincerely yours in martial arts brotherhood,

Grandmaster Frank E. Sanchez

10th dan (Judan)

Founder/ Executive Director International

NOTE: The WHFSC has been in existence since May of 1993 and is a private enterprise of Soke Frank E. Sanchez in service to its membership. Any additions or deletions to its membership must be in writing. RECEIVING THIS NEWSLETTER DOES NOT CONSTITUTE YOUR BEING AN ACTIVE MEMBER OF THIS COUNCIL. All membership certificates with an expiration date are NOT automatically renewed and MUST be renewed by written request to our Headquarters.