Martial Art Ads - 1972
This is another one of those great old ads offering martial art instruction. Interestingly unlike many similar ads this ad goes beyond the basic offer to teach jujutsu, karate or kung fu skills. In fact it specifically states it teaches the skills of “French Foot Fighting,” Aztec fighting skills, “secret” police methods, and the fighting techniques of the “Carib.”
WOW!
Okay I’ve heard of Savate, or Boxe Française, and from everything I’ve read and seen Savate is a viable form of self-defense. At least it is in its older version.
I’ll even be gracious and pass on any comments about the Aztec warrior fighting methods, since historically the Aztec warriors were reputed to be formidable fighters. While I’m unclear how much of their fighting methodologies survive to this day, there is a man in the San Francisco Bay Area who claims to teach authentic Aztec knife-fighting skills. So I guess there is remote chance the advertiser knows Aztec fighting--very remote!
Of course, back in 1972, seeing some “authentic” Aztec fighting skills would be intriguing enough for me to buy this program. I’m serious too. Heaven knows that over the years I’ve already spent about $200.00 to learn some “authentic” Aztec knife fighting.
As for the “secret” police method that’s crap, and I have to make some comments since I’ve heard this claim so many times before.
Pay close attention…. There are no “secret police techniques!” I know. I was a police officer; I went to the police academy. The hand-to-hand fighting they teach you at the police academy is very basic if not just plain silly. Actually in my day (the 80’s) it was a joke, and some of the techniques were more dangerous to the practitioner than the bad guy, especially the gun takeaways.
Fortunately, I’ve heard things have changed a lot since my days at the academy, but what is taught today is still basic self-defense, and not much more than the average civilian can acquire at any commercial self-defense course.
The fact of the matter is that police officers and those enlisted men in the military spend more time learning to shoot firearms than learning unarmed skills. When I went to the academy we spent two weeks, (about 10hours), learning hand-to hand combat, which included how to cuff someone, the use of the nightstick, and some joint locks humorously referred to as “come-alongs”. Eight weeks were spent learning to shoot firearms, handgun and shotgun.
The funny thing is that in my fifteen-year career as a police officer I drew my gun maybe five times, and never shot it once. I used hand-to-hand skills all the time.
Just like the military, police officers spend very little time learning hand-to-hand fighting skills. I’m not sure why, but that is the reality of the situation.
That is one reason so many noted martial arts instructors have teaching military and police department personal on their resumes. Most police academies and military branches just don’t have adequate martial arts programs developed. Like most cultures past and present, the police and military emphasize weaponry, not hand-to-hand.
Of course if offering “secret police skills” wasn’t enough bad enough I really have to wonder who or what are the “Carib,” and what possible fighting skills they possessed that could be included in this system.
The Craib were reputed cannibals who inhabited the region of the Lesser Antilles Island, whom the Caribbean Sea was named. The Carib call themselves the Kalinago and surviving populations can now be found in St. Vincent and Dominica.
While it is true that the Carib resisted European incursion for 200 years, and the Europeans that encountered them considered them aggressive deadly savages, I have been unable to find any information about any fighting methodologies they possessed.
I’m sure the Carib had fighting skills, and were fierce fighters, but I truly question why they are mentioned in this ad. Not because what I doubt their fighting prowess or think it may not have any value, but because I would bet most people don’t even have any idea who the Carib are.
Putting aside the martial styles offered, what I like most about this ad is the claim that this program will teach you to fear no man in just 24 hours, and that Joe Weider endorses this product with the claim that using the system will turn anyone into a “destructive self-defense terror fighter in just 30 days.”
First of all, I didn’t even know Joe Weider knew anything about martial arts. I thought he was a body builder, and that his true claim to fame was training champion body builders.
I tried to find anything that even remotely stated he had some martial art rank, but based on my research it sounds like he just took an opportunity to cash in on the growing martial arts craze of the 70’s.
Secondly, while researching this ad it appears that some individual in 1972 felt the claims in this ad were fraudulent enough to file a lawsuit against it, (mainly claiming mail fraud), a lawsuit they appear to have won. www.usps.com/judicial/1972deci/1-131.htm
Score one for the good guys, although this ad did resurface in 1974. Basically it is the same ad, but there are a few revisions, which reflect the outcome of the lawsuit.
Lastly, and this was also part of the lawsuit, is the fact this program did not cost the twenty-five cents as advertised. The actual price for the “complete” program was $40.00. That was actually quite expensive in the 70’s.
Overall, this ad while amusing is just another example of BUYER BEWARE!
Labels: Humor
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