Bert remembered seeing it on W. Magnolia Blvd, one of Burbank's main drags...It wasn't open at the time since it was after hours and we vowed to see it one day during a return visit and that day had come...
The cost is $10 for adults and $5 for kids (ages 6-15)...
This was the foyer before you entered the museum. On the wall was a poster depicting recipients of their Honor Awards (many were locals as well as a few famous folks on there). The props, we found out later, were donated by folks who make props for Disney and various movie studios. The boxes were also dropped off by a community member who was unloading his old issues of martial arts magazines as a donation. It turns out that most "in print" media is pretty much obsolete since everything is online nowadays.
We met the museum founder Michael Matsuda who was the lone employee working that day. He was a very friendly man and was happy to explain any questions we might have had about the exhibits. I also thought it was nice of him to give TC a "scavenger hunt" quiz since she was a "kid". If she answered all of the trivia questions correctly, she would get a "prize".
The museum is not really a "who's who" in martial arts, but more of a historical overview of the different types of martial arts in various Asian countries like China, Japan, Korea, Thailand, the Philippines, and Polynesia. The display boards, decor, and props were great and we enjoyed looking through each and every exhibit here.
Of course, no martial arts museum is complete without a mention of the legendary Bruce Lee!
Damn! "Chinese Connection" anyone? "Fists of Fury"?
Bert especially enjoyed this display of Chinese martial arts weapons...
There was a cool timeline with trivial facts along the top part of the walls...
We liked seeing these replicas of samurai gear...
Ninja weapons like throwing stars and picks...
Shark tooth edges weapons used by the Hawaiians...
There was also a nice display on the Philippines with Kris weapons, bamboo sticks (used in Eskrima)...
What I especially liked about the museum was how they tied in pop culture with martial arts so that people of all ages could make the "connection". They had the pizza loving Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, the penguins of Madagascar, Aang the Avatar from Nickelodeon's awesome animated series, "Avatar - The Last Airbender", and early 70's Marvel character, "Shang Chi"! I believe Bert's oldest brother has some Shang Chi issues still!
In addition, there were actual props from movies, such as this shield from "Mortal Kombat"...
Below it is one of the masks worn by Bruce Lee's character, Kato in the 60's TV show, "The Green Hornet", not that bullshit reboot with Seth Rogen (Really now??? Really?)
Here's the "mask" as worn by Bruce Lee:
He was a badass Kato!
There is a viewing room with an entertaining look at martial arts throughout history and in the movies...It was so cool seeing some of the older movie clips on there, from Run Run Shaw to modern times!
Another cool timeline below. Now, as a chick, I wasn't aware of this particular character, Billy Jack (played by Tom Laughlin, who also directed the movie), which Bert thinks is a travesty. In fact, Tom Laughlin passed away recently last December. I was reading the paper and saw an article that the actor who played "Billy Jack" died and wondered aloud who he was. "What do you mean you don't know about Billy Jack???" Bert exlaimed as I cowered in ignorance...
Apparently he was a bad @$$ tough guy; he was a "half breed Navajo", a former Green Beret and a Hapkido master. Hmmmph, how the hell am I supposed to know about Billy Jack? Anyways, Bert was quite impressed to see THE ACTUAL HAT and CLOTHES worn by Tom Laughlin...
Meanwhile, TC and I were more impressed with the headband worn by former teen heartthrob Ralph Macchio, in the movie, "The Karate Kid"!!!!!!
"Wax on! Wax off!"
Here's the headband "in action":
"You're the best!"
Here is that quiz I mentioned earlier...
Her prize? A Martial Arts History Museum Sticker...
Oooh whee. For a 13 year old, that wasn't much of a payoff, but all the same, the quiz gave her something fun to do as she searched for the answers.
Of all of the bathroom signs I've seen, this was probably one of the funniest and most detailed and also quite fitting since it had Hong Kong Phooey giving flushing instructions!!!
Remember that cartoon character? OMG, it could only have come out during the early 70's when Kung Fu and Blaxploitation were in full swing!
More of the Philippine exhibit (Kali is one of the martial arts used the islands, along with Eskrima)...
"Hong Kong Phooey Number One Super Guy!"
(Hmmmm, this isn't politically incorrect at all!)...sarcasm alert!
This theme song was also covered by Sublime, which they "reggae-fied"...It was on a compilation that came out in the early 90's in which rock and punk groups remade Saturday morning cartoon songs (The Ramones covered the "Spiderman" theme song and that was probably the best thing on that cd).
Bruce Lee rules!
Why did they make Bruce Lee's overdubbed voice sound like John Wayne???
Plus an awesome animated fight scene with Aang the Avatar versus Azula from The Fire Nation:
Trivia alert - Azula is voiced by voice actress extraordinaire, Grey De Lisle, a graduate of Chula Vista High (late 80's)...
I'm glad that we were finally able to check this place out! Their exhibits and decor were great considering the place is fully funded through donations. We liked the cultural and educational aspects of the museum most of all.
Martial Arts History Museum
2319 W. Magnolia Blvd
Burbank, CA 91506
(818) 478-1722
martialartsmuseum.com
Up next would be a short walk across the street to browse a small vintage/curio shop plus another small snack!
2 comments:
Hey, this is pretty cool! I know a few people who would probably want to see it with me. Doesn't look like there is any Vietnamese martial arts? I'll have to ask the owner to add it! :)
hi wc - yes, it was a pretty cool museum with lots to look at. i don't recall seeing anything from Vietnam though. Definitely ask the owner to include it!
Post a Comment