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Thread: Passing of Master Steven Abbate

  1. #16
    Quote Originally Posted by RD'S Alias - 1A View Post
    That is good to hear. Where are they all located? Maybe they can pool thier oney and open a new school?"

    All options are currently being considered.

    "Also, one thing I would like to see is all of the decades of photos Master Abbate collected get put up on a website for all of us to sift through. I know it would be a massive undertaking, but there are a lot of memories there.
    AS far as pics go, Gm literally had 10's of thousands in his garage that he has collected and kept over at least 40 years. most martial arts and marine stuff.

    I will speak to my brothers in Tai Kit Kuen about openly posting a couple, but not alot. People on the internet tend to disect stuff and crap talk no mater how awesome a person or his art may be, and I will not allow that to happen to Gm.

    Anyone truly interested in learnign, can call up some of the blacksashes and see if a visit can be aranged to one of the schools. to take a look around at all of this awesome stuff. it's like a museum, really.


    either way, it's all at his home and his family is grieving, so nothing like that will happen in the near future. thank you to everyone for their kind words and support.

  2. #17
    I will speak to my brothers in Tai Kit Kuen about openly posting a couple, but not alot. People on the internet tend to disect stuff and crap talk no mater how awesome a person or his art may be, and I will not allow that to happen to Gm.

    Reply]
    Yeah, you are right. I have done some of that myself. Maybe just post pics from various social events, like the Christmas parties and such, so there is nothing to critique, just memories shared.

  3. #18
    Join Date
    Jan 1970
    Location
    Fremont, CA, U.S.A.
    Posts
    47,907

    The Real History of Cobra Kai

    My latest feature for Den of Geek: The Real History of Cobra Kai



    Thanks to our veteran forum member Gian for his help with this one.

    threads
    Cobra-Kai
    Passing-of-Master-Steven-Abbate
    Gene Ching
    Publisher www.KungFuMagazine.com
    Author of Shaolin Trips
    Support our forum by getting your gear at MartialArtSmart

  4. #19
    NICE!!

    Very well done!

    Theres lots more to the story though. You really need to talk to guys who were with him for years and years. I was only there for 8 or 9 months. My divorce put an end to Kung Fu for a while.

    I have a tribute reel of various footage I found on the internet over the years.

    If anyone wants to see what Cobra Kai looked like:

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9h_9U84riKw&t=1190s



    Quote Originally Posted by GeneChing View Post
    My latest feature for Den of Geek: The Real History of Cobra Kai



    Thanks to our veteran forum member Gian for his help with this one.

    threads
    Cobra-Kai
    Passing-of-Master-Steven-Abbate

  5. #20
    Join Date
    Jan 1970
    Location
    Fremont, CA, U.S.A.
    Posts
    47,907

    Thanks again for your help RDP

    Good to have you back here on the forums. You've had the weirdest journey with forum membership than any other member.
    Gene Ching
    Publisher www.KungFuMagazine.com
    Author of Shaolin Trips
    Support our forum by getting your gear at MartialArtSmart

  6. #21
    LOL!

    No Kidding!

    I think what happened is I got on the wrong side of a very green moderator. That guy went into the Kung Fu forum and found some weird obscure way to ban people, and then couldn't remember how he did it to un-ban me....and no one was able to figure out how it was done.

    So a 3 day ban became like 15+ forever years, but ONLY on the main forum. Everything else I had access to.

    So somewhere, buried deep in some hard to find 'un-thought of' forum admin menu is a little box missing a check mark, and no one knows how to find it.

    Then I lost the password to my RD Alias-1A replacement profile, and its connected to a dead e-mail address... I cant reboot it.

    So yeah, its been a wild ride.

  7. #22
    Join Date
    Jan 1970
    Location
    Fremont, CA, U.S.A.
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    47,907

    More on Cobra Kai & GM Abbate

    Local Kung Fu Training Group Has Strange Connections to Netflix’ Cobra Kai
    February 2, 2021 Steven Bonifazi


    Grandmaster Steven G. Abbate. Photo courtesy of Tracey Buchanan.
    By Tracey Buchanan

    Kung Fu Master James C. Likens never thought twice about his GrandMaster’s legacy until he began noticing strange coincidences watching Netflix’s Cobra Kai with his three youngest daughters.

    “Everyone loves the Karate Kid,” said Master Likens, a seventh-degree black belt. “So when we heard about Cobra Kai, we thought it would be fun to watch, being a Kung fu family and all.”

    That’s when the strangeness started. “I knew there was an actual Cobra Kai Karate dojo out of Chicago because it was run by one of my Grandmaster’s top students,” said Master Likens. “His name was Steve Abbate, and he was a decorated Vietnam veteran, Marine Force Recon, and the recipient of the Silver Star,” Master Likens said. “He was known for his “no mercy” philosophy and for being particularly brutal on his students, just like the Cobra Kai Master John Kreese in the series,” said Master Likens.

    Master Likens got a few opportunities to train under Master Abbate at his Grandmaster John Tsai’s seminars, and Abbate actually signed Likens’ Master Certificate, which hangs on his dojo wall. “When Abbate taught, it was never conceptual,” said Master Likens. “I have video of him from a seminar demonstrating techniques, and he went through about 4 or 5 students in one demonstration,” Master Likens said.

    But the uncanny connections don’t end there, as Master Likens’ legacy in his hometown of Indianapolis is one of shared spirit with Abbate’s teachings.

    “When I was training students in Indy, I was very concerned with giving them skills that would serve them in an actual street fight,” said Master Likens. Most of my inner circle students were law enforcement like myself, and they needed to be prepared for the average 4 fights a week,” Master Likens said.

    But as Master Likens points out, it’s actually the untrained officer that ends up using excessive force out of fear. As a police officer, he was known for his fairness in the street, and neither he nor any of the officers he trained ever went to internal affairs for civil rights violations or excessive force.

    “That’s the true meaning of being a peacekeeper, having the confidence to end a fight before it starts because your wits are about you,” said Master Likens. “If you’re afraid, you overreact, but if you’re confident in your ability to handle a fight, that calmness allows for compassion,” Master Likens said.

    As a result of this philosophy, several members of the Larimer County Sheriff’s Office train under Master Likens to this day.

    “Only a trained warrior can choose to be truly peaceful, for indeed it’s all about having a choice. If you have the ability to fight, you can truly choose peace; that is a stance that means something,” said Master Likens. “Training gives you self confidence that ends violence before it begins, and therein is the paradox and meaning behind the Cobra Kai philosophy,” Master Likens said.

    Master Likens has taught a hard/soft martial arts philosophy for over 30 years, with two large dojos and one underground fight club during the ’90s in Indianapolis, IN. He has trained MMA champions for the legendary Integrated Fighting gym, which has had several UFC contracts over the years. He also taught defensive tactics at the Indianapolis Police Academy and even did a stint teaching Criminal Justice at Front Range Community College’s Fort Collins Campus.

    “After years of training, I strongly recommend a hard/soft style martial art. That’s truly the way to go,” said Master Likens, “It’s that balance that gives you the capacity for peaceful resolution,” Master Likens said.

    Master Likens currently teaches a tiny closed-door Kung Fu group but would like to open a dojo large enough to train multiple classes and age groups.

    “Bag rounds and cardio kickboxing will certainly get you in shape, but those skills are no good in a fight,” said Master Likens. “I’d like to have a place big enough to do that and the funding to make it happen,” Master Likens said. “If you know a guy, let me know,” said Master Likens with a laugh.

    James C Likens was also a Larimer County Ranger for a number of years and recipient of the Meritorious Service Medal during the High Park Fire as well as a Sheriff’s Letter of Commendation for his lifesaving role in putting out an arson fire in the Deer Park neighborhood west of Horsetooth Reservoir.

    “I’ve spent 10 years in the Fort Collins area training students, and I finally have the black belts I need to start passing on the lineage,” said Master Likens. “There are some amazingly talented Senseis in other martial arts disciplines here in Fort Collins, and I’d love to give them space to do their thing as well,” Master Likens said. “The American Shaolin Temple has always been in the Midwest and the West Coast, but I say the Front Range is the future of American martial arts,” said Master Likens.

    For more information regarding Steven G. Abbat and Cobra Kai, visit: https://www.denofgeek.com/culture/th...-of-cobra-kai/
    Cool that they cited my article.

    threads
    Cobra-Kai
    Passing-of-Master-Steven-Abbate
    Gene Ching
    Publisher www.KungFuMagazine.com
    Author of Shaolin Trips
    Support our forum by getting your gear at MartialArtSmart

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