DAN INOSANTO

Founder/Chief Instructor

Inosanto Academy of Martial Arts

Known as a world authority in Bruce Lee's Jun Fan Gung Fu/Jeet Kune Do Concepts and Filipino martial arts, Guro Dan Inosanto has over 40+ years experience in the martial arts. He is considered by many to be one of the world's greatest living martial artists. -A genuine legend indeed!
Sifu Dan was originally introduced into the martial arts at the age of ten. During that summer he was taught Okinawa Te and Jiu-Jitsu by a local from his home of Stockton, California. That experience left a favorable impression on him. - But, as boys will be boys, he followed his interest in football and track for the next ten years. At Whitworth College in Spokane, Washington he won a track conference with 9.5 seconds in the 100 yard dash. His senior year he was the leading ground gainer for the football team. Later, his primary career would be a Jr. High School Physical Education teacher.

After college in 1957, Guru Dan took up the art of Judo from a man called Duke Yoshimura. He trained in Judo until 1959, when he entered the service to become a Paratrooper in the 101st Airborne Division. During his tour of duty, he was stationed in Fort Campbell, Kentucky. While stationed there, he was exposed to various styles of Karate with exposure to some other arts as well. It was at this time that Sifu Dan got his first look at Kenpo Karate.

In 1961, Sifu Dan was discharged from the military service and he moved to Los Angeles, California, where he looked for an instructor in the art of Kenpo. This search would lead him to a path that would change his life. Sifu Dan found the "Father of American Karate", Kenpo Instructor Ed Parker. For the next several years, he would train with Ed Parker and attain a black belt in the Kenpo system.

It was Ed Parker that first inspired Sifu Dan to delve more into the roots of Filipino Martial Arts, of which he'd come from. But at that time, Sifu Dan thought, "the Filipinos had 'some stickfighting' called Eskrima." But Ed Parker informed him that there was a lot more than just stick work to the Filipino martial arts and much more being brought to the U.S.! This compelled Sifu Dan to later go to his father who in turn introduced him to many Escrimadors in the local Filipino community. The three of the most prominent of these where: Max Sarmiento, Angel Cabales, and Johnny Lacoste.

In 1964, Ed Parker was organizing his International Karate Championship. During that time, Ed Parker needed someone to escort one of his out-of-town guests around town. So Sifu Dan was assigned the task to take care of this "out-of-town guest" for the weekend - a man by the name of "Bruce Lee". From this meeting Bruce Lee and Sifu Dan started a life long friendship. Sifu Dan would later go on to introduce these Filipino Arts to his great fried - SiGung Bruce Lee, which became apparent in the movie 'Game of Death'.


Inosanto would later meet Sifu Francis Fong through his relation with Ajarn Chai Sirisute. Guro Dan had this to say about their meeting, "Sifu Fong is one of the most respected and recognized martial artists throughout the martial art community, as one of the most innovative and open-minded Wing Chun instructors teaching today! His warm nature and astonishing level of skill and energy have made him one of the absolute most sought after instructors on the seminar circuit in the world today!"
Respectfully, the three, sharing a mutual passion for the arts, began avidly training together and studying both integration and evolution in the martial arts. They would later go on to teach their respective arts at the "Great Smoky Mountain JKD/Kali/Silat/Thai Camp," which was held annually in Brasstown, NC. Since this time, the dynamic trio have remained close friends and training companions, instructing at the ever-popular 'South Eastern Martial Arts Trainging Conference' - held twice a year at the Francis Fong Martial Arts Academy and also the infamous 'Legends Camp' held at the Inosanto Academy in Los Angeles, CA.

In addition to having studied over 20 methods/styles of Filipino martial arts (being an instructor in more than several), he also instructs in Muay Thai under Master Chai Sirisute, is an instructor in Pentjak Silat under Pendekar Paul De Thouars and Pendekar Herman Suwanda, and an instructor in Shoot Wrestling (Shooto) under Yori Nakamura. In keeping with the spirit of always being a student and continuing to learn, Sifu Dan is currently studying Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu (and a black belt) under the Machado Brothers.

Sifu Dan has worked both in the television and the movie industry as a stunt man, fight choreographer, and trainer on numerous projects. In fact, he also helped with fight choreography efforts while also acting in Bruce Lee's movie 'Game of Death'.
In addition to these endeavors, Sifu Dan has several instructional videos and has authored several books: "A Guide to Martial Arts Training", "The Filipino Martial Arts", "Jeet Kune Do", and "Absorb What Is Useful".

Sifu Dan has also received the following awards from Black Belt Magazine's Hall of Fame: 1996, - Man of the Year, 1988 - Weapons Instructor of the Year, 1983 - Instructor of the Year, and 1977 - Jeet Kune Do Instructor of the Year.

"People are still trying to define 'Jeet Kune Do' in terms of distinct style, i.e. Bruce Lee's Gung-Fu, Bruce Lee's Karate, Bruce Lee's Kick-Boxing or Bruce Lee's Street Fighting, etc... To label 'Jeet Kune Do' as "Bruce Lee's martial art", is to miss completely its meaning; its concepts simply cannot be confined within a system.
To understand this, a martial artist must transcend the duality of the "for" and "against" and reach one unity that is without distinction. The understanding of Jeet Kune Do is a direct intuition of this unity.
Truth cannot be perceived until we have come to full understanding of our potential and ourselves. According to Lee, knowledge in the martial arts ultimately means self-knowledge."
- Guro Dan Inosanto