Tag: Combat

George Dillman may be the greatest fraud in the history of the martial arts world. The master of the no touch knockout has been a laughing stock for decades.

If you don’t know who George Dillman is, then get ready. Because this is the story of one of the most blatant frauds that has ever lived.

George Dillman’s Early Years

Before George Dillman was a professional shyster, he actually had a hard upbringing. The first martial art that he took up as a kid was Judo.

But after a falling out with his stepfather, he would begin bouncing from home to home. As a teen, he would take up boxing and becoming an amateur boxer. Earning a record of 25-3 before joining the military like his father.

He was stationed in Washington DC during the riots after the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. This is maybe the first of many lies that Dillman would claim over his lifetime.

At the riots, George claimed that he took on thirty men at the same time and put two of them in the hospital. No one can corroborate this story, which would be an ongoing trend in the martial artist’s life.

George Dillman’s Formal Training

In 1961, Dillman would begin practicing Karate and begin dedicating his life to his training. After earning his black belt, George said that he would become an active competitor. 

On his website, Dillman claims to have won 323 trophies from 1969 to 1972. Earning them in everything from sparring, forms, breaking, and weapons.

In 1972, George would meet Hohan Soken that would introduce him to the art of kyusho-jitsu. A martial art that focuses on pressure points to take down attackers.

It wouldn’t be until ten years later when Dillman saw Seiyu Oyata demonstrate the style in 1982. George would begin training with Oyata and begin his journey into being a famous fake martial artist.

George Dillman Cons The World

After learning how to apparently knock people out with pressure points, Dillman would begin holding seminars around the world. Duping suckers into believing that he really possesses this ability.

Later on, he would somehow develop the power to knockout people with his chi. That’s right, George Dillman can knock people out with electricity that he generates with his hands.

For forty years now, George Dillman has been giving seminars and selling instructional videos of his “abilities.” Getting publicity around the world and demonstrating his bs to the masses.

He has “taught” his abilities to everyone around the world from members of the military to celebrities.

In 1997, Dillman was awarded instructor of the year by Black Belt Magazine. Being a professional liar can be quite lucrative.

Truths That George Dillman Told

While there are decades of lies that George Dillman has told, there are a few apparent truths. Here are some things that Dillman said that may actually be true.

George Dillman Being Muhammad Ali’s Bodyguard

One thing that actually might have been true about George Dillman was that he had a relationship with Muhammad Ali. There’s numerous photos of the two together and Dillman.

He apparently walked with Ali to the ring for his fight against Floyd Patterson at Madison Square Garden.

Dillman and Bruce Lee’s Friendship

From a library of photos, Dillman may have also been friends with Bruce Lee. His story of his time with Bruce actually seems legit since he doesn’t boast at all about their sparring sessions.

As George tells the story, he asked Bruce to have a sparring match. When they started, George said Bruce kicked him so fast that he never saw him move.

Dillman Being a Millionaire

George seems to be an actual millionaire, which isn’t a stretch when you think about it. When you’ve been conning people for decades, you’re obviously going to have a little money.

George Dilmman Gets Outed as a Fraud

If it wasn’t obvious that George Dillman is a fraud, the whole world would have it spelled out for them. George Dillman would be covered by a National Geographic show that investigated if stories were fact or fiction.

In this particular episode, they covered if there was any truth behind Dillman’s claims of having chi power. He had previously done shows like Ripley’s Believe It Or Not, but the show would actually dig into his claims.

The NatGeo show would film Dillman and his followers at one of his many seminars. They filmed many of his students “practicing” these techniques and knocking each other out.

Producers of the show brought on an actual chemist to watch the demonstrations. For most of the time, the chemist and producers were trying to hold back their laughter.

Then the time would come for George to try his magic on the chemist. His assistants would try to use their chi on the chemist, but to no avail. 

When their moves didn’t work, George began listing every excuse in the book. He said that the chemist was a non-believer. Therefore, the move would never work on him.

Also something about his tongue could’ve been in a different position in his mouth. But whatever excuse he had didn’t matter. 

George was outed as the fraud that he’s always been.

What if George Dillman was Really Knocking People Out?

Let’s suspend our disbelief and say that George legitimately has this power he claims. What then?

Well, if Dillman does possess this power, he has spent the last forty years knocking thousands of people out. A knockout is brain trauma and that would mean that he’s nearly killed all of these people.

That would mean that Dillman would be on the hook for tens of millions of dollars in damages. But thankfully it was all a scam and only the dumbest of society have given this man money.

George Dillman’s Legacy as a Joke

If there was a Mount Rushmore for fake martial artists, George Dillman would no doubt be on it. He has spent his entire life conning simpletons out of their money with his lies. Dillman is a fake martial arts icon that deserves every joke made at his expense. 

Out of all the combat sports trolls, there is no other that’s gone to the lengths of Charlie Zelenoff. Doing everything from creating a fake record, fight promotion, buying his own belts, and calling out famous fighters. Also subsequently getting beat up by some of those fighters.

Here is the funny story of the undefeated Charlie Zelenoff. Going over how he became the biggest joke in the combat sports world and how karma finally caught up with him.

Charlie Zelenoff’s Early Days

Charlie Zelenoff lives in an apartment owned by his parents in southern California. One day, Charlie decided that he wanted to be a champion boxer.

Any normal person that wanted to be a fighter would find a gym and dedicate themselves to training. But that’s not what the Z-Man decided to do.

He decided to go on the most ridiculous route imaginable to become a fighter and put in zero work.

Charlie Zelenoff’s One Pro Boxing Match

In 2008, with no fighting experience, Z-Money would take a pro boxing match. Facing a 1-14 opponent named Andrew Hartley.

It was an embarrassing match between two low skilled fighters. Charlie would be on the losing end of the match and ended up quitting. He would also spit on the promoter and subsequently get banned from boxing.

Charlie Zelenoff’s Fake Boxing Promotion 

Since Z-Money couldn’t cut it as a real boxer, he decided to make up his own fake promotion. He would call it the Underground Boxing Federation(UBF).

Of course, being the founder of his fake boxing promotion, Charlie Zelenoff would crown himself the champion. Buying belts online and crowning himself the undefeated and undisputed champion.

The only problem with being the champion was that he had no opponents. That is when he created a partnership with a local shister named Frank to be the promoter and his manager.

Frank would set Charlie Zelenoff up in his first boxing match against an amateur boxer named Mario. He said he was an amateur boxer, but he turned out to be some kid in front of a Home Depot.

He was paid off to fight Charlie with no experience and go down after taking a few punches.

Z Money: The Undefeated King of Boxing

So, there’s literally too many incidents to cite, but literally any encounter Charlie has he considers a win. No matter what the outcome was or who it was against.

There’s numerous videos of him hitting random people or challenging people at 24 Fitness Gyms. He will post the “fight” online and claim that he is the undefeated king of boxing.

During many of these encounters, Charlie would actually alter the footage of the actual sparring matches to make it look like he did better than he did.

The List of People Charlie Zelenoff Has Called Out

Charlie Zelenoff became infamous by posting numerous daily videos of calling fighters out. Every day, he would talk trash to anyone that would listen.

Calling out everyone from Manny Pacquiao, Chuck Liddell, and even Floyd Mayweather Sr. He would even go to local boxing gyms to allegedly train with fighters.

When he would ask to spar them, he would then really try to fight them and think he would win. What would usually happen is that he would piss the fighter off and he’d really hit Charlie. He would then quit and run out of the gym or get run out of the gym.

But like Z-Money would always do, he would say he won and continue talking trash online.

Z-Money Goes In and Out of Jail

When Charlie Zelenoff isn’t calling people out or assaulting random people in gyms, he’s usually in jail. He has been arrested numerous times for everything from robbery and of course assault. But you know there’s no keeping the Z-Man down.

Karma Gets Charlie Zelenoff (Many Times)

There have been numerous times where karma hit Charlie like his parents should’ve. Here are some of the top moments, where Charlie got hit with a little Karma.

Floyd Mayweather Sr.

Charlie went into the boxing club, where Floyd Mayweather Sr and his crew were training. He approached Floyd Mayweather Sr and asked for a friendly sparring match.

In classic Z-Money fashion, he really tried to hit Mayweather and all hell broke loose. The retired boxer began to embarrass the young psycho and then his whole team took a shot at him.

From the video posted online, he was lucky to make it out alive. But this would be a trend with Charlie.

Deric The Giant

Deric was a retired boxer that Charlie Zelenoff actually paid $300 dollars to spar with him and record it. Charlie decides to hit a retired boxer outweighing him by 100 pounds and you can guess what happened. 

The retired boxer proceeds to blast Zelenoff a few times before he quits and runs out of the ring. Running to his home to post a video saying that he won.

Dajon Daniels

Dajon Daniels was a sixteen year old amateur boxer at the time. Charlie would enter the same gym, where he fought Deric. He began calling out people to fight him and the owner set him up to fight his young heavyweight boxer.

Daniels proceeded to beat Charlie in and out of the ring. He would actually throw him to the ground and put him in an RNC. 

Only releasing it after making Charlie say that he lost. This would technically make Daniels the reigning UBF World Champion

Deontay Wilder

Being the unhinged psycho that Z-Money is, he thought it would be a good idea to call out Deontay Wilder. Former world champion and arguably one of the greatest knockout artists in boxing history.

Wilder told Charlie Zelenoff to meet him at Legends MMA in LA and proceeded to humiliate the internet troll. Beating him all around the gym and running away from the knockout artist.

Crazy Tempo

An influencer named Crazy Tempo had a few back-and-forths online with Charlie and wanted to fight him. He would even show up to Zelenoff’s apartment, but Charlie would refuse to come outside.

What proceeded later was Crazy Tempo hunting down the undefeated Z-Man in public. Tempo while wearing boxing gloves began chasing Charlie through traffic and into a restaurant.

Somehow topping being beaten senseless by numerous professional boxers. 

Did Charlie Ever Learn His Lesson?

After all these years of trolling, assaulting people, and getting beaten up, you would think Charlie would give up. He’s even been banned from every boxing and fitness gym around the city of LA.

But there’s no room for logic in the mind of an insane man like Charlie Zelenoff. The video below is the most recent update of the self proclaimed best boxer in the world.

Since he’s not allowed in gyms anymore, Zelenoff is now challenging people on the street. Leading to him being arrested and viciously assaulted on numerous occasions.

One of the last videos he posted shows his face completely swollen from being beaten by a group of men. A group that he most likely instigated.

To make matters worse, Charlie Zelenoff was rewarded with a restraining order from Kim Kardashian after showing up to her residence.

Also after many failed relationships and his parents nearly cutting him off, Charlie is alone and a severe alcoholic. Anyone that has watched his antics for years are not shocked at how Z-Money’s life is going.

The Legacy of Charlie “Z-Money” Zelenoff

Charlie Zelenoff is arguably the biggest joke in the history of combat sports. He created this whole persona as a tough guy and got just what he deserved as a result.

Being a crazy person, Zelenoff is still out there calling people out and getting beat up. In his own mind, he’s still an undefeated champion and we’re still laughing at him.

Ashida Kim has been the butt of many jokes within martial arts communities for the last forty years. In all of this time, the self-proclaimed ninja has never wavered in his claims of being a ninjitsu master.

Here is the funny story of self-proclaimed ninja master, Ashida Kim. Going over how he started his scam in the 1980s and has continued pushing his delusions till this day.

Ashida Kim’s Origins

The origins of Ashida Kim are shrouded in mystery. Mostly because he has kept quiet about his upbringing to continue his grift that nobody believes.

What we know about the real Kim is that his real name is Radford W. Davis. Born in Florida sometime in 1948 and that’s just about all we know about him other than his proclaimed origins.

He has also gone by the name Christopher Hunter and also Dr. Ha-Ha Lung before later settling on Ashida Kim. 

Of course, the name is absolutely ridiculous as Ashida is a Japanese name whilst Kim is a very common Korean name. But logic has no place in the story of a self-proclaimed ninja master.

Ashida Kim’s Story of Learning Ninjutsu

As you would expect from a crazy person like Kim. He created his own elaborate story of how he came to be a ninjutsu master.

His journey to become a ninja in the late 1960s. Davis would travel to Chicago, Illinois of all places to learn from a ninja master.

Kim claimed to have been an affiliate of the infamous Black Dragon Society that was founded by Count Dante. One of the very first fake martial artists that we talked about before.

The Black Dragon group had no experience with ninjutsu, but that hasn’t stopped Kim from claiming it. Ashda claimed his teacher was a ninja master that simply went by the name Shendi.

He has also claimed that the Black Dragon Society doesn’t date back to the early 1960s, but 6000 years ago. In the ancient city of… Atlantis.

We weren’t aware of Atlantis being the birthplace of ninjas, but it’s his story.

Ashida Kim Ninja Manuals

Ashida Kim claims to be the highest selling author of martial arts books of all time. There’s nothing to back up this claim, but it’s just something he believes to be true.

He has written and released numerous ninja manuals to help you become a deadly martial arts master.

• The Secrets Of The Ninja(His First Book)
• Ninja Death Touch
• Ninja Secrets of Invisibility
• Ninja: Hands of Death
• Forbidden Fighting Techniques of The Ninja
• The Invisible Fist: Methods of Vanquishing an Enemy Without a Trace
• Iron Body Ninja: The Secrets of Superior Strength
• Deadly Grip of the Ninja
• The Making Of A Ninja: Ashida Kim’s Training Camp
• Ninja Cloak And Dagger: Espionage and Weapon Techniques
• Ninjutsu for Women 
• Dance of Death
• Ninja Training Manual 
• Book of the Ninja
• Way of the Mind Gate
• The Invisible Ninja: Ancient Secrets of Surprise
• Invisible Fist of the Ninja

Ashida Kim’s Erotic Fiction Novels

On top of writing various ninja training manuals, Kim has written numerous erotic fiction novels. Of course, centering around him and using his ninja skills to vanquish evil and have sex with lots of women.

One of the most absurd sex novels that Ashida wrote was The Amorous Adventures of Ashida Kim A “true story” of how Kim was hired to be a bodyguard at a South African brothel.

After saving the prostitutes, they make Kim their white god-savior. He then proceeds to kill all of the men in the village and then begins impregnating all of the women.

A gross and quite racist story of a delusional man.

Ashida Kim’s Ninja Instructional Videos

The internet is littered with clips of Kim’s old instructional videos. Many of which are filmed with a handheld camera and look like funny homemade video skits. 

He’s made videos on teaching everything from

Ninja Sentry Removal:

Invisibility:

Small Fist Techniques:

Sword Kata

Ninja Levitation:

Ashida Kim’s $10,000 Challenge

To attempt and silence his critics(which is basically anyone with a brain), Kim created the $10,000 challenge. Anyone that doubts his abilities can take up his challenge to face him in combat.

But this isn’t a challenge, where you’re given $10,000 for defeating him in combat. Instead, you have to give him $10,000 and agree to a number of rules that Kim makes up. On top of giving him $10,000, he also charges a $25,000 appearance fee. 

The rules of the fight may include something like:

• No Holds Barred Rules
• But Kim Can Win By Pinfall
• Physical From Challenger
• Athletic Commission Present
• Demonstration Of Skills

We could go on listing the various rules, but they honestly change by the day. Depending on how Kim is feeling that day.

People have actually come to him with money to fight him, but Kim ignores them and continues his fantasies.

Ashida Kim Selling Fake Black Belts

For a time, Kim was actually selling fake black belts on his site. Ninjutsu has no belt system, but that hasn’t stopped Kim from trying to make a buck.

It doesn’t even matter for which martial art. If you sent Kim money, he would give you a black belt.

The Black Dragon Society Sues Kim

For years, Kim has claimed to be part of Count Dante’s Black Dragon Society. Going so far as to claim that he was a champion fighter of the group.

But the heads of Black Dragon Society had enough of Kim making these claims. The group would file a lawsuit against Kim for a laundry list of reasons.

A former student of Count Dante claimed that Kim was illegally teaching his master’s style Dante-se. Also illegally selling memberships to the Black Dragon Society on his website.

Even a group of charlatans founded by one of the original martial arts scam artists had enough of Kim’s game. But a judge dismissed the lawsuit and probably wanted to get as far as he could from these idiots.

A Legendary Fake Martial Artist

Ashida Kim has been a joke for almost fifty years, but being a laughing stock for so long hasn’t stopped him. Even in his seventies, Kim is still pushing his various scams and delusions. He’s a charlatan of the highest order, but at least he’s something we can all laugh at.

Since the inception of Asian martial arts into the west, there have been many fake martial artists. But possibly the first was a man named Count Dante, who has one of the most absurd stories ever told.

Here is the crazy story of Count Dante, who may be the very first fake martial artist in American history. Detailing his various scams and the notorious dojo wars that took place in 1970.

Count Dante’s Early Life

Obviously, Count Dante was not the man’s real name. His real name was John Timothy Keehan and he was born into an Irish family in Chicago, Illinois.

His family was rather well off as his father was a physician and his mother was occasional in the Chicago Tribune. 

While Keehan has made many fabrications about his life, he was a legitimate martial arts practitioner. As a kid, Keenhan practiced boxing at Johnny Coulon’s 63rd Street Gym.

After graduating from Mount Carmel High School, Keenhan would enlist in the Marine Reserves. While serving his term, he would learn jujitsu and self-defense techniques from his hand to hand combat instructors.

Count Dante’s Martial Arts Training 

After serving his time in the military, Dante would pursue martial arts training. Practicing in several disciplines, but most notably training under American Karate pioneer Robert Trias.

Under Trias, Meehan would earn his black belt in Karate. Making him an actual legitimate black belt in Karate. Giving him a leg up on most fake martial artists that came after him.Meehan himself would later go on to become a Karate sensei and open his own Karate dojo.

The United States Karate Association(USKA)/World Karate Federation(WKF) 

When Meehan opened his own Karate dojo, he went all out in promoting himself. Something that we actually have to give him credit for.

He was able to become the midwest director of the United States Karate Association(USKA). Of course, his unconventional beliefs about training and competition would lead to a falling out with the association.

After leaving USKA, Dante would co-host the very first full contact martial arts style in the US. The competition drew a big audience at the University of Chicago on July 28, 1963.

This event drew a lot of criticism from many top martial arts instructors. Citing that having bouts with no protective gear was barbaric and dangerous.

Dante would ignore these criticisms and continue to have these full contact events sporadically. Bruce Lee was said to have attended one of these competitions. However, Dante most likely paid him to attend.

He also founded the World Karate Federation(WKF) in 1964. An organization of his own, so that he could do his own shows without answering to a governing body.

Dan-te

After a while, Count Dante became disenfranchised with Karate. Once stating that the martial art “was for sissies.”

He would go on to create his own martial art that he would call “Dan-te.” He would also refer to his style as “Dance of Death” and “Kata-Dante.”

A style that he claimed was the most street-effective self defense system in the world. Better than any other martial art system in the world.

Keehan claimed that anyone that perfected his fighting style would become a “fighting master.”

Count Dante Officially Changes His Name

While he was going by the moniker Count Dante for years, Meehan would officially change his name in 1967. Changing his full name to Count Juan Raphael Dante.

Count had created a whole backstory for why he went by this title. He claims that his family were nobles that fled Spain during the Spanish Civil War.

After fleeing, his family would change their names and hide their nobility, so as to not draw attention from possible assassins.

Keehan actually took his name from the protagonist of the novel The Count of Monte Cristo. The main character of course being Count Dante, which he thought no one would notice.

There was also not an ounce of Spanish blood in his body. He was born from an Irish American family, whose family immigrated from Ireland.

The Deadliest Man Alive 

To continue to promote himself and his “deadly martial art”, Dante would begin promoting within comic books. During this time, comic books had advertisements from various things, which included obvious scams.

The advertisement that the Count put in comic books was one of the most blatant scams of this era. In these ads, Dante would promote himself as “The Deadliest Man Alive.”

The so-called deadliest man alive would sell a manual that he called the World’s Deadliest Fighting Secrets. For just $5 he would mail customers a copy of this manual to learn his deadly fighting secrets.

The headline of these ridiculous ads read: “Yes, this is the DEADLIEST and most TERRIFYING fighting art known to man—and WITHOUT EQUAL. Its MAIMING, MUTILATING, DISFIGURING, PARALYZING and CRIPPLING techniques are known by only a few people in the world. An expert at DIM MAK could easily kill many Judo, Karate, Kung Fu, Aikido, and Gung Fu experts at one time with only finger-tip pressure using his murderous POISON HAND WEAPONS. Instructing you step by step thru each move in this manual is none other than COUNT DANTE — THE DEADLIEST MAN WHO EVER LIVED”

Customers would also receive a free membership card to Dante’s Black Dragon Fighting Society. The name of his martial arts school should not be confused with the Black Dragon Society. A secret group of Japanese nationalists

Count Dante The Hairdresser 

While Count Dante was busy promoting his dojo and full contact martial arts events, he was also a hairdresser. Not just a normal hairdresser, but an immensely talented one that had many rich clients.

He even dressed like a famous hairdresser with a perm, styled beard, and completely flamboyant clothes. One of his biggest clients was said to be Playboy founder Hugh Hefner.

Hugh was said to have frequently contacted Dante to get the playmates ready for parties and photoshoots. This was actually a thing in Keehan’s life that was actually true.

The Dojo Wars 

Now, the most notorious thing that Count Dante became known for was the infamous Dojo Wars saga. This embarrassing series of events started with Dante and “second deadliest man alive” Doug Dwyer getting drunk one night.

The two thought it would be a good idea to go to a rival dojo and throw dynamite through their window. While the explosive didn’t destroy the rival dojo, the police would arrest the two for attempted arson.

Their arrest didn’t stop the two, as they later gathered a group from their dojo to storm the rival dojo. They came to the Green Dragon Society’s dojo armed with various Chinese martial arts weapons.

But what Dante didn’t know was that the group from the Green Dragon Society were tipped off about the dojo storming. When Dante kicked their door down, his group was met with six Green Dragon Society members that were also armed.

Dante claims in the fight that he pulled several eyeballs out of the skulls of the rival dojo. But there were no medical reports from the local hospital of anyone getting their eyes pulled out.

But one of Keehan’s associates, Jim Concevic, was killed in the fight. Suffering a stab wound in the side from a sword.

Chicago PD would arrest everyone involved, including Dante, who was hiding in his office when police found him.

The judge presiding over the trial dismissed the Dojo Wars case as the story was so absurd. Before dismissing the case, the judge said everyone involved in the incident was guilty and should be ashamed of themselves.

Count Dante’s Death 

After the Dojo Wars incident, Dante would get into other various scuffles, but would go into obscurity. Spending most of his time either drunk or taking various substances.

His crazy life would catch up to him on May 25, 1975. Count Dante died in his sleep after suffering a hemorrhage of a bleeding ulcer in his intestines. 

Other Lies, Claims, and Things Count Dante Committed

There were other wild claims, lies, and incidents that occurred in the life of the Count. Here are some of the various stories that happened involving him.

Dim Mak

Count Dante claimed to know the Dim Mak death touch. A supposed Kung Fu technique that would kill a person with one touch. It’s a wild that Keehan could never back up.

Fighting a Bull

While creating publicity for a martial arts event, Dante claimed that he could kill a bull with one punch. He went so far as to create an event, where he said he would fight a bull.

Dante would drive around Chicago with a bull on a flatbed truck to promote the event. But on the day of the event he tried to make a student take his place, but the student refused.

He would then announce the cancellation of the event and claim that the ASPCA shut the event down.

Death Matches

Dante made a claim that he won numerous death matches that took place in Thailand and China in front of thousands. Although, nobody could ever corroborate these crazy stories. Keenhan was also reported to never have left the US in his life.

Challenging Fighters 

One thing that Dante did was go around challenging fighters to a match against him. Challenging everyone from Judo and pro wrestling champions. He even went to Muhammad Ali’s house to challenge him, but he was ignored by the champ.

1974 Chicago Purolator Vault Robbery

In a memoir written by Keenhan’s former attorney and mob lawyer Robert Cooley made a bold claim about his client. Cooley claimed that Count Dante was the mastermind behind the Chicago Purolator Vault Robbery in 1974.

A bank heist, where $4.3 million dollars was stolen. The police did interview Dante, but they dismissed him as a suspect after passing a lie detector test.

Dante’s Legacy as a Scam Artist

Jack “Count Dante” Keenhan was an insane scam artist that could’ve possibly started the trend of fake martial artists. But for whatever it’s worth, he was quite an absurd character. We can all look back at his life and have a good laugh at his ridiculous antics.

Since the inception of Asian martial arts into the west, there have been many fake martial artists. But possibly the first was a man named Count Dante, who has one of the most absurd stories ever told.

Here is the crazy story of Count Dante, who may be the very first fake martial artist in American history. Detailing his various scams and the notorious dojo wars that took place in 1970.

Count Dante’s Early Life

Obviously, Count Dante was not the man’s real name. His real name was John Timothy Keehan and he was born into an Irish family in Chicago, Illinois.

His family was rather well off as his father was a physician and his mother was occasional in the Chicago Tribune. 

While Keehan has made many fabrications about his life, he was a legitimate martial arts practitioner. As a kid, Keenhan practiced boxing at Johnny Coulon’s 63rd Street Gym.

After graduating from Mount Carmel High School, Keenhan would enlist in the Marine Reserves. While serving his term, he would learn jujitsu and self-defense techniques from his hand to hand combat instructors.

Count Dante’s Martial Arts Training 

After serving his time in the military, Dante would pursue martial arts training. Practicing in several disciplines, but most notably training under American Karate pioneer Robert Trias.

Under Trias, Meehan would earn his black belt in Karate. Making him an actual legitimate black belt in Karate. Giving him a leg up on most fake martial artists that came after him.Meehan himself would later go on to become a Karate sensei and open his own Karate dojo.

The United States Karate Association(USKA)/World Karate Federation(WKF) 

When Meehan opened his own Karate dojo, he went all out in promoting himself. Something that we actually have to give him credit for.

He was able to become the midwest director of the United States Karate Association(USKA). Of course, his unconventional beliefs about training and competition would lead to a falling out with the association.

After leaving USKA, Dante would co-host the very first full contact martial arts style in the US. The competition drew a big audience at the University of Chicago on July 28, 1963.

This event drew a lot of criticism from many top martial arts instructors. Citing that having bouts with no protective gear was barbaric and dangerous.

Dante would ignore these criticisms and continue to have these full contact events sporadically. Bruce Lee was said to have attended one of these competitions. However, Dante most likely paid him to attend.

He also founded the World Karate Federation(WKF) in 1964. An organization of his own, so that he could do his own shows without answering to a governing body.

Dan-te

After a while, Count Dante became disenfranchised with Karate. Once stating that the martial art “was for sissies.”

He would go on to create his own martial art that he would call “Dan-te.” He would also refer to his style as “Dance of Death” and “Kata-Dante.”

A style that he claimed was the most street-effective self defense system in the world. Better than any other martial art system in the world.

Keehan claimed that anyone that perfected his fighting style would become a “fighting master.”

Count Dante Officially Changes His Name

While he was going by the moniker Count Dante for years, Meehan would officially change his name in 1967. Changing his full name to Count Juan Raphael Dante.

Count had created a whole backstory for why he went by this title. He claims that his family were nobles that fled Spain during the Spanish Civil War.

After fleeing, his family would change their names and hide their nobility, so as to not draw attention from possible assassins.

Keehan actually took his name from the protagonist of the novel The Count of Monte Cristo. The main character of course being Count Dante, which he thought no one would notice.

There was also not an ounce of Spanish blood in his body. He was born from an Irish American family, whose family immigrated from Ireland.

The Deadliest Man Alive 

To continue to promote himself and his “deadly martial art”, Dante would begin promoting within comic books. During this time, comic books had advertisements from various things, which included obvious scams.

The advertisement that the Count put in comic books was one of the most blatant scams of this era. In these ads, Dante would promote himself as “The Deadliest Man Alive.”

The so-called deadliest man alive would sell a manual that he called the World’s Deadliest Fighting Secrets. For just $5 he would mail customers a copy of this manual to learn his deadly fighting secrets.

The headline of these ridiculous ads read: “Yes, this is the DEADLIEST and most TERRIFYING fighting art known to man—and WITHOUT EQUAL. Its MAIMING, MUTILATING, DISFIGURING, PARALYZING and CRIPPLING techniques are known by only a few people in the world. An expert at DIM MAK could easily kill many Judo, Karate, Kung Fu, Aikido, and Gung Fu experts at one time with only finger-tip pressure using his murderous POISON HAND WEAPONS. Instructing you step by step thru each move in this manual is none other than COUNT DANTE — THE DEADLIEST MAN WHO EVER LIVED”

Customers would also receive a free membership card to Dante’s Black Dragon Fighting Society. The name of his martial arts school should not be confused with the Black Dragon Society. A secret group of Japanese nationalists

Count Dante The Hairdresser 

While Count Dante was busy promoting his dojo and full contact martial arts events, he was also a hairdresser. Not just a normal hairdresser, but an immensely talented one that had many rich clients.

He even dressed like a famous hairdresser with a perm, styled beard, and completely flamboyant clothes. One of his biggest clients was said to be Playboy founder Hugh Hefner.

Hugh was said to have frequently contacted Dante to get the playmates ready for parties and photoshoots. This was actually a thing in Keehan’s life that was actually true.

The Dojo Wars 

Now, the most notorious thing that Count Dante became known for was the infamous Dojo Wars saga. This embarrassing series of events started with Dante and “second deadliest man alive” Doug Dwyer getting drunk one night.

The two thought it would be a good idea to go to a rival dojo and throw dynamite through their window. While the explosive didn’t destroy the rival dojo, the police would arrest the two for attempted arson.

Their arrest didn’t stop the two, as they later gathered a group from their dojo to storm the rival dojo. They came to the Green Dragon Society’s dojo armed with various Chinese martial arts weapons.

But what Dante didn’t know was that the group from the Green Dragon Society were tipped off about the dojo storming. When Dante kicked their door down, his group was met with six Green Dragon Society members that were also armed.

Dante claims in the fight that he pulled several eyeballs out of the skulls of the rival dojo. But there were no medical reports from the local hospital of anyone getting their eyes pulled out.

But one of Keehan’s associates, Jim Concevic, was killed in the fight. Suffering a stab wound in the side from a sword.

Chicago PD would arrest everyone involved, including Dante, who was hiding in his office when police found him.

The judge presiding over the trial dismissed the Dojo Wars case as the story was so absurd. Before dismissing the case, the judge said everyone involved in the incident was guilty and should be ashamed of themselves.

Count Dante’s Death 

After the Dojo Wars incident, Dante would get into other various scuffles, but would go into obscurity. Spending most of his time either drunk or taking various substances.

His crazy life would catch up to him on May 25, 1975. Count Dante died in his sleep after suffering a hemorrhage of a bleeding ulcer in his intestines. 

Other Lies, Claims, and Things Count Dante Committed

There were other wild claims, lies, and incidents that occurred in the life of the Count. Here are some of the various stories that happened involving him.

Dim Mak

Count Dante claimed to know the Dim Mak death touch. A supposed Kung Fu technique that would kill a person with one touch. It’s a wild that Keehan could never back up.

Fighting a Bull

While creating publicity for a martial arts event, Dante claimed that he could kill a bull with one punch. He went so far as to create an event, where he said he would fight a bull.

Dante would drive around Chicago with a bull on a flatbed truck to promote the event. But on the day of the event he tried to make a student take his place, but the student refused.

He would then announce the cancellation of the event and claim that the ASPCA shut the event down.

Death Matches

Dante made a claim that he won numerous death matches that took place in Thailand and China in front of thousands. Although, nobody could ever corroborate these crazy stories. Keenhan was also reported to never have left the US in his life.

Challenging Fighters 

One thing that Dante did was go around challenging fighters to a match against him. Challenging everyone from Judo and pro wrestling champions. He even went to Muhammad Ali’s house to challenge him, but he was ignored by the champ.

1974 Chicago Purolator Vault Robbery

In a memoir written by Keenhan’s former attorney and mob lawyer Robert Cooley made a bold claim about his client. Cooley claimed that Count Dante was the mastermind behind the Chicago Purolator Vault Robbery in 1974.

A bank heist, where $4.3 million dollars was stolen. The police did interview Dante, but they dismissed him as a suspect after passing a lie detector test.

Dante’s Legacy as a Scam Artist

Jack “Count Dante” Keenhan was an insane scam artist that could’ve possibly started the trend of fake martial artists. But for whatever it’s worth, he was quite an absurd character. We can all look back at his life and have a good laugh at his ridiculous antics.

The osoto gari is one of the most effective techniques within the grappling art of Judo. For anyone that practices any form of grappling or MMA, it’s a must know trip to get your opponent down.

Here is just about everything that you need to know about osoto gari. Giving you details about how to do the basic version of the technique to various setups to hit the move.

What is Osoto Gari? 

The osoto gari is a trip that was created within the grappling art of Judo. The name of the move translates to “major outer reap” and is classified as an ash-waza or foot technique.

It is one of the core techniques within the martial art, which is also one of the simplest to execute. The technique involves knocking your opponent off balance and forcing their weight on their outside leg.

Once you’ve compromised your opponent’s, you hook your heel behind your opponent’s leg. At the same time, you’re hooking the leg, you’re also pulling your opponent into you. Forcing them to the mat.

Osoto gari is so effective that it is taught within all of the major grappling arts. Numerous setups have been created for this technique and it’s one you must know to evolve your takedown abilities.

Osoto Gari vs. Ouchi-Gari

One technique that beginners always confuse osoto gari with is the ouchi-gari. Their movements are very similar, but there’s one main difference,

In the osoto gari, you hook your opponent’s outside leg and in ouchi-gari, you hook the inside leg. Completely different, but play off of each other well. You can easily fake one technique and go to the other. 

Basic Osoto Gari

We’ll go into a few of the various setups later and start with the basic mechanics of how to osoto gari. In the Gi, we’ll start with a basic collar and high sleeve grip like you would in most Judo techniques.

You’re going to pull with your opponent’s arm as you push them the same with your collar/lapel grip. At the same time you do this, you’re going to step forward with your outside foot.

Putting it directly in-line with the leg that you’re targeting. From there, your inside leg is going to kick up and hook behind your opponent’s leg. 

As your foot hooks your opponent’s leg, you’re going to make a punching motion with your lapel grip forward with force. Putting these motions together, takes your opponent off their feet and to the mat.

No-Gi Osoto Gari

Osoto gari is very effective in no-gi with a variety of setups like in the Gi. Here’s a simple set up that you should consider trying with an underhook.

Get your underhook by grabbing a collar tie. When you pull your opponent’s head down with the collar tie, they will try to posture and you take an underhook.

Keep your head against the side of your opponent’s head and take wrist control on their far arm. From here, you’re going to go foot to foot and hook behind your opponent’s leg with your inside foot.

At the same time, you lift them up with the underhook to further knock their base off and complete the technique.

A Common Osoto Gari Mistake

Osoto gari is easy to execute, but there is one mistake that a lot of people make with this throw. Here is how to correct this error that you might be making.

The mistake that many make is pulling their opponent in the wrong direction. Pushing them away, instead of pulling them with you in the same direction.

If you push your opponent away from you, you’re basically stuffing your own throw. They are leaning their weight on the leg that you’re hooking for osoto gari to work.

Ouchi Gari to Osoto Gari

As mentioned in the previous section, you can set up an osoto with your ouchi gari. Start the setup like you’re doing an ouchi-gari.

Pull your opponent forward and fake like you’re hooking their inner leg. They will naturally respond by stepping out, which puts you in-line for the osoto gari.

Just push/pull your opponent off balance and go right into the technique.

Deashi-Harai to Osoto Gari

If your opponent is not taking the bait, you can do a deashi-harai to osoto gari combo. When your opponent is keeping their leg too far away from osoto, you can set it up with desashi-gari.

Pull your opponent forward and place your foot on the outside of their inside foot. When they do this, your opponent will react by stepping back and bringing their back foot forward.

That is your moment to go right into osoto gari.

Sasae Tsurikomi Ashi to Osoto Gari

The fake sasae tsurikomo ashi is a great fake to set up osoto, because you’re moving in the same direction. When you step in for your sasae, your opponent will circle out.

When finishing circling, they make the mistake of staying heavy on their outside leg. Making it rather easy for you to step into an easy osoto.

Harai Goshi to Osoto Gari

Another great set up to hit an osoto is to fake an harai goshi attempt. When you hook your opponent’s leg for a harai goshi, they will defend by dropping their weight and bending their knees.

When they do this, you’re going to staple your plant foot behind your opponent’s foot. Change your direction and go right into a powerful throw.

All three of three of the previous setups are demonstrated in this video below. 

Self Defense Osoto Gari

Osoto gari is quite practical for a self defense situation. Here is how you can use this throw as a counter against an overhand punch.

When your attacker is coming forward with their punch, you’re going to quickly react by doing two movements. Use your forearm to connect at your attacker’s bicep and open your palm to grab their throat.

Use your palm to strike at the throat and go right into a nasty osoto gari.

Important Tips For Hitting the Osoto Gari

Osoto gari is a really easy technique to pull off, but the details have to be exact. Here are the important tips and details you must know for hitting the osoto gari takedown.

• Shift Opponent’s Weight: For the technique to work, you will have to force your opponent to shift their weight to the leg you’re targeting. If you don’t compromise their balance, you will not get the takedown.
• Push and Pull: Remember to get your opponent off balance, you must push and pull with your grips towards the leg you’re targeting. Pull on the sleeve grip and push with the lapel/collar grip.
• Angle Your Opponent: As you push/pull your opponent it should be at a slight angle to the side. Your goal should be to shift their weight and get their heels off the mat.
• Penetration Step: Your outside leg needs to make a penetration step in-line with the leg you’re targeting. If you step too shallow or too far it could compromise your attack.
• Hooking Leg: Your inside leg is the hooking leg and you kick it straight up and hook behind your opponent’s leg.
• Punching Motion: At the same time you hook your opponent’s leg, you should be doing a punching motion with your collar/lapel grip.
• Everything In Motion: Remember that the movements of the osoto gari are done all in one motion. When you do all the movements correctly and quickly, your opponent should go down with ease.