When the Universe decided to create a nearly perfect physical specimen, It put together athlete/actor Jim Kelly. Born in 1946 in Paris, KY, Kelly's high school and college life was filled with organized athletics including basketball, football and various track and field sports. After his freshman year at University of Louisville, however, Kelly quit collegiate sports and pursued martial arts, specifically Shōrin-ryū Karate.
Kelly continued his karate studies all his life starting a dojo in the 70's in Long Beach, CA which at the time was a hotbed of martial arts activity. The fabled Long Beach Internationals, which celebrates its 50th anniversary in 2014, started there and reached a peak in the late 60's and mid-70's with notables like Bruce Lee in attendance. Many martial artists worked in and around the area during the time that Kelly was redefining the sport by becoming one of the first African-American, world-recognized practitioners.
Kelly came into martial arts at a time when the U.S. was in turmoil. Black Power was in the hearts and on the minds of many young African-Americans and some of what manifested from that was using martial arts in a very martial way. Organizations like the Black Panthers (originally called the Black Panther Party for Self-Defense) used martial arts for physical training. In reflecting that mindset, a scene in the film that started Kelly's career, "Enter The Dragon," shows his dojo adorned with black power symbology; and as Kelly's character later walks home from his dojo, he is hassled by the 'Heat,' two (white) patrol cops who racially profile him and want him to cower. Kelly never cowered in film or life. It was all on his terms and in doing so, he created a legacy that stands today and will continue long after his death.
Films after "Enter the Dragon" came fast and furious for Kelly. Called "Blaxploitation" (or Blacksplotation) by the mainstream media, these B-movies showed African-American leads like Richard Roundtree, Pam Grier and Jim Kelly kicking ass and taking names like their white counterparts Clint Eastwood and Charles Bronson. Kelly's films like "Black Belt Jones" (1974) and "Three the Hard Way" (1974) (with Jim Brown and Fred Williamson) gave an entire generation of young African-Americans role models that looked and sounded like them but also combined an interest in the flying fists of the Far East. In the same way that early rap reflected the culture of the streets at the time, these movies showed a world we barely knew - "The Ghetto" and all its pain and anger. It was a dangerous place at times where desperation reigned, and violence came at you in several directions at once. It made sense to make yourself stronger by learning how to fight and Kelly led the pack in his films. Kelly looked like he could walk down any street and never be hassled. Interest grew on a national level for what gave him this type of confidence - namely, the martial arts. But the Ghetto was also a place of family, high moral values, and generational inspiration and Kelly strongly reflected that too.
There were action films and martial arts films before Kelly but none of them had leads who were as accomplished as Kelly and were African-American. Kelly looked so good because he was the real deal winning several tournaments and training in many sports. No actor at that time possessed his balletic power. When he spun into a backkick, it was a kick you could believe in. It wasn't the silly 'karate chops' of the James Bond films or the endless punches of any actioneer but rather a true martial warrior's execution. He kicked, punched and moved like no other black man of that time. And no one combined Kelly's stature (he was 6'2",) his remarkable swagger - or that insane 'fro of his. His language was the lingua franca of his culture - the vernacular of the 70's street dude who had spent his youth running into and from trouble but had then had found an outlet for his furious energy in karate.
The anger and pain Kelly experienced in his early life found control and mastery in the dojo. There, under the guidance of many masters, he began to understand the importance of being able to mitigate his emotions, to channel those emotions in a positive way. And by showing others by example his way, by being an African-American with mad karate skills, he inspired generations to become martial artists and to emulate the man who exuded quiet confidence but would kick your butt if you acted wrong. Kelly was just so superfly; all quiet cool and frosty with a white-hot core of physical skills.
Kaiso Shawn Cephas, Soke of American Shorinji-te and CEO of Warrior-Priest Productions said of Kelly: "My father, Willard Cephas, is my martial arts role model and hero, but actors like Jim Kelly were our (the young black community) superheroes. They did things we only dreamed of, drove cars (like souped-up Ferraris) we'd never seen before. The idea of an African-American being the star of a movie - and being an accomplished martial artist - made us believe we could also do just about anything with our lives."
Kelly continued his multi-genre, race-breaking barrier ways by becoming ranked as number 2 in senior men's doubles rankings and reaching the state's top ten in senior men's singles in tennis! This was in 1975 at the height of his prowess and it showed just how incredible a physical specimen he was but also, at a time when the 'face' of professional tennis was mostly white men, he shattered that color barrier.
You cannot under-estimate Kelly's contributions. Like a lot of innovators he was the perfect man at a perfect time. There were more famous, more accomplished actors but there was no one who combined Kelly's unique skill set. He was young, beautiful, and badass but practiced a quiet calm and inner confidence that completely destroyed the stereotypes. At a time when many of filmdom's villains were gangsta African-Americans here was a man who was the antitheses - he was/is a superb, positive role model and hero for generations of young men and women.
As he told Mr. Han in "Enter The Dragon" - "Man, you come right out of a comic book" - Kelly indeed did. But in all the positive, affirming ways that make those imaginary heroes so inspirational to us.
My article on "Enter The Dragon," which was the first of this martial arts film series I did, is HERE - the review talks about Kelly and his contributions to that film.
But if you want to remember Jim Kelly, head to Netflix or Amazon and watch some of his movies. And be inspired all over again.
Jim Kelly Filmography:
Melinda (1972)
Enter the Dragon (1973) as Williams
Black Belt Jones (1974) as Black Belt Jones
Three the Hard Way (1974) as Mister Keyes
Golden Needles (1974)
Take a Hard Ride (1975) as Kashtok
Hot Potato (1976) as Jones
Black Samurai (1977) as Robert Sand
The Tattoo Connection (a.k.a. E yu tou hei sha xing, Black Belt Jones 2) (1978)
Death Dimension (1978)
The Amazing Mr. No Legs (1981)
One Down, Two To Go (1982)
Stranglehold (1994)
Macked, Hammered, Slaughtered and Shafted (2004)
Afro Ninja Destiny (2009)
Afro Ninja (2009)
