Library's review
The founders of what is probably the world's most popular martial art, tae kwon do, are fond of saying that the art is filled with old dynasties, hwarang warriors, and ancient techniques. In fact, the Olympic sport practised by an estimated 70 million people is only about fifty years old-seventy if
It began with a man named Choi Hong-Hi in a tiny village in a remote corner of what is now North Korea. Called 'Korean karate' in the beginnng, Choi re-named it 'tae kwon do' in a Korean geisha house in 1955. Within a few decades, the art with devastating kicks became a weapon of military dictatorships and secret service agents.
The Ollympic founder of tae kwon do, a high-ranking secret service agent named Kim Un-young, emerged wihin this context. Choi considered him to be both a subordinate and a 'close friend,' which is the same as saying that you like someone while kicking him in the kidney. Kim helped to lead 'Operation Thunderbird,' a mission to convince the most powerful people in international sports that South Korea should host the 1988 summer Olympics, where tae kwon do would make a splashy debut. He led a '007 operation,' as he called it, to ship the art into the 2000 Olympics. The North Koreans fought him all the way, sometimes crafting assassination plots.
A Killing Art: The Untold History of Tai Kwon Do takes you into the lurid dynasties of Chioi, Kim, and their disciples, who were surrounded by Confucian values and confused men-high ideals entwined with tragedy. From the Vietnam War (where the martial art evolved into a killing art), to the martial arts craze of the 1970s (during which Bruce Lee and other stars learned the kicks), to the 1980s Cold War between the two main styles of tae kwon do, the art spread from military gyms to more than 180 countries. Full-blown assassination attempts did not take place until the 1980s and limitless corruption blossomed in the 1990s.
You could say that tae kwon do is a martial art for the twenty-first century, and art of merciless techniques, indomitable men, and justice pumped on steroids. A Killing Art is part biography, part history, and part memoir-and always a wild ride to enlightenment.
Alex Gillis is an investigative journalist and university writing instructor who specializes in literary nonfiction. He has trained in varous styles of tae kwon do for 25 years. He first heard the incredible tales of tae kwon do from one of his instructors and entered the high-stakes world of Choi Hong-Hi and Kim Un-yong to interview tae kwon do's pioneers.
Contents
Introduction
Part I Indomitable spirit
Chapter 1 Men of the sacred bone
Chapter 2 Though ten million opponents might rise against him
Chapter 3 A superpower on every border
Chapter 4 SuperNam
Part II Perseverance
Chapter 5 Tae kwon do is named in a Korean geisha house
Chapter 6 One coup, two presidents, and the three spheres of power
Chapter 7 The ace team and the Korean CIA
Part III Self-control
Chapter 8 Enter the cloud dragon
Chapter 9 As if in a Bruce Lee movie
Chapter 10 The exiles
Chapter 11 From spooky Kukki to WTF
Part IV Courtesy
Chapter 12 WHAAA!
Chapter 13 Olympic mania and North Korean mayhem
Chapter 14 The Olympic summer of love
Chapter 15 'Branch trimming' at the 2000 Olympics and the street fight soon after
Part V Integrity
Chapter 16 Like a cult
Chapter 17 The little giant dies and traditional tae kwon do falls apart
Chapter 18 WTF leaders go to prison and Olympic tae kwon do faces oblivion
Chapter 19 Reprieve
Notes
Sources (bibliography)
Index
Show More
you include a wicked poker game in 1938. From its rough, military beginnings, tae kwon do has had high ideals and fought violence with violence, but the history of the martial art has always hidden the painful truths about its history.It began with a man named Choi Hong-Hi in a tiny village in a remote corner of what is now North Korea. Called 'Korean karate' in the beginnng, Choi re-named it 'tae kwon do' in a Korean geisha house in 1955. Within a few decades, the art with devastating kicks became a weapon of military dictatorships and secret service agents.
The Ollympic founder of tae kwon do, a high-ranking secret service agent named Kim Un-young, emerged wihin this context. Choi considered him to be both a subordinate and a 'close friend,' which is the same as saying that you like someone while kicking him in the kidney. Kim helped to lead 'Operation Thunderbird,' a mission to convince the most powerful people in international sports that South Korea should host the 1988 summer Olympics, where tae kwon do would make a splashy debut. He led a '007 operation,' as he called it, to ship the art into the 2000 Olympics. The North Koreans fought him all the way, sometimes crafting assassination plots.
A Killing Art: The Untold History of Tai Kwon Do takes you into the lurid dynasties of Chioi, Kim, and their disciples, who were surrounded by Confucian values and confused men-high ideals entwined with tragedy. From the Vietnam War (where the martial art evolved into a killing art), to the martial arts craze of the 1970s (during which Bruce Lee and other stars learned the kicks), to the 1980s Cold War between the two main styles of tae kwon do, the art spread from military gyms to more than 180 countries. Full-blown assassination attempts did not take place until the 1980s and limitless corruption blossomed in the 1990s.
You could say that tae kwon do is a martial art for the twenty-first century, and art of merciless techniques, indomitable men, and justice pumped on steroids. A Killing Art is part biography, part history, and part memoir-and always a wild ride to enlightenment.
Alex Gillis is an investigative journalist and university writing instructor who specializes in literary nonfiction. He has trained in varous styles of tae kwon do for 25 years. He first heard the incredible tales of tae kwon do from one of his instructors and entered the high-stakes world of Choi Hong-Hi and Kim Un-yong to interview tae kwon do's pioneers.
Contents
Introduction
Part I Indomitable spirit
Chapter 1 Men of the sacred bone
Chapter 2 Though ten million opponents might rise against him
Chapter 3 A superpower on every border
Chapter 4 SuperNam
Part II Perseverance
Chapter 5 Tae kwon do is named in a Korean geisha house
Chapter 6 One coup, two presidents, and the three spheres of power
Chapter 7 The ace team and the Korean CIA
Part III Self-control
Chapter 8 Enter the cloud dragon
Chapter 9 As if in a Bruce Lee movie
Chapter 10 The exiles
Chapter 11 From spooky Kukki to WTF
Part IV Courtesy
Chapter 12 WHAAA!
Chapter 13 Olympic mania and North Korean mayhem
Chapter 14 The Olympic summer of love
Chapter 15 'Branch trimming' at the 2000 Olympics and the street fight soon after
Part V Integrity
Chapter 16 Like a cult
Chapter 17 The little giant dies and traditional tae kwon do falls apart
Chapter 18 WTF leaders go to prison and Olympic tae kwon do faces oblivion
Chapter 19 Reprieve
Notes
Sources (bibliography)
Index
Show Less
ISBN
1550228250 / 9781550228250
Publication
ECW Press 22120 Queen Street East, Suite 200 Toronto, Ontario, Canada M4E IE2