Bill Wallace (martial artist)

Bill Wallace
Born William Louis Wallace
(1945-12-01) December 1, 1945
Portland, Indiana, US
Other names Superfoot
Nationality United States American
Height 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)
Weight 166 lb (75 kg; 11.9 st)
Style Shorin-ryu Karate, Taekwondo, Kickboxing, Boxing, Judo, Wrestling
Stance Orthodox
Fighting out of Daytona Beach, Florida
Teacher(s) Michael Gneck
Trainer Jim "Ronin" Harrison
Rank      10th dan black belt Soke
Years active 1974–1990
Kickboxing record
Total 23
Wins 23
By knockout 13
Losses 0
By knockout 0
Draws 0
Website http://superfoot.com

William "Bill" Louis Wallace (born December 1, 1945) is an American martial artist who was a Professional Karate Association world full-contact karate champion. He was the Professional Karate Association (PKA) Middleweight Champion kickboxer for almost six years.

Background

Wallace was born in Portland, Indiana, and trained in wrestling during his high school years.[1] He began his study of Judo in 1966 and was forced to discontinue his Judo related activities because of an injury he suffered to his right knee during practice.[1] He then began to study Shorin-ryu Karate under Michael Gneck[2] in February 1967 while serving in the U.S. Air Force. After entering the point fighting tournament scene and achieving success there, he switched to full-contact competition.

With the coaching help of veteran fighter Jim 'Ronin' Harrison, Wallace won 23 consecutive professional fights between 1974 and 1980,[3] becoming the Professional Karate Association middleweight world full-contact karate champion and retiring undefeated.[2][4] He was known for his fast left leg kicks,[5] especially his roundhouse kick and his hook kick, which was clocked at about 60 mph.[4] He focused on his left leg because of the Judo-related injury to his right knee, using the right leg primarily as a base. He also suffered the loss of one testicle during a point fighting tournament, when his protective cup was struck at an unfortunate angle. He saved the testicle and showed it to football running back legend Jim Brown at the first Ultimate Fighting Championship (which also featured commentating from Wallace).[6]

A year later, Wallace turned professional and captured the PKA middleweight karate championship with a second-round knockout. He relinquished the crown in 1980, undefeated. The PKA promoted the sport of full-contact karate. Full-contact karate differed from kickboxing in that leg kicks were allowed in kickboxing and forbidden in full-contact karate. It was PKA President, Don Quine, who coined the phrase "Superfoot" to describe Wallace after witnessing his fight with Jem Echollas.[7]

In 1990 Bill Wallace (166 lbs) fought one last exhibition kickboxing/karate match with friend Joe Lewis (198 lbs) on pay per view. Both Wallace and Lewis were refused a boxing license because of their age. The exhibition ended with one judge in favor of Wallace and the other two judges scored the bout a tie; ending the exhibition in a draw.[8]

Education

Wallace studied at Ball State University, earning a bachelor's degree in 1971 in physical education.[5] In 1976, he earned a master's degree in Kinesiology from Memphis State University.[5]

Accomplishments

Wallace has taught karate, judo, wrestling and weight lifting at Memphis State University. The author of a college textbook about karate and kinesiology, he continues to teach seminars across the United States and abroad.[5] He has acted, most notably in A Force of One starring Chuck Norris.[9] Wallace was the play-by-play commentator for the inaugural Ultimate Fighting Championship pay-per-view event in 1993 alongside fellow kickboxer Kathy Long and NFL Hall of famer Jim Brown.[3] Wallace administers an organization of karate schools under his "Superfoot" system. He was elected to Black Belt Magazine's Hall of Fame in 1973 as "Tournament Karate Fighter of the Year" and again in 1978 as "Man of the Year."[10] His film credits include A Force of One with Chuck Norris; Kill Point, with Cameron Mitchell; Continental Divide and Neighbors, with John Belushi; The Protector, with Jackie Chan; Los Bravos with Hector Echavarria; A Prayer for the Dying, with Mickey Rourke; Ninja Turf; and Sword of Heaven.[11]

Trivia

Bill Wallace was a personal trainer and close friend of both Elvis Presley and John Belushi. On March 5, 1982, Bill Wallace found John Belushi dead of a cocaine and heroin overdose, in his room in Bungalow 3, at the Chateau Marmont Hotel, on Sunset Boulevard, in Hollywood, California.[12]

Wallace has written and co-written a number of books, including:

DVD format:

Kickboxing record

Kickboxing record

Legend:   Win   Loss   Draw/No contest

References

  1. 1 2 "Archived copy". Archived from the original on November 20, 2008. Retrieved 2009-02-19.
  2. 1 2 Corcoran, John & Farkas, Emil (1983). Martial Arts: Traditions, History, People. Gallery Books. p. 392.
  3. 1 2 Biography for Bill Wallace on IMDb
  4. 1 2 "Bill "Superfoot" Wallace". Fightingmaster.com. Archived from the original on October 4, 2011. Retrieved October 15, 2011.
  5. 1 2 3 4 Archived October 16, 2008, at the Wayback Machine.
  6. ↑ "Bill Wallace IMDB Biography". Retrieved July 28, 2010.
  7. ↑ Hayes, David (February 2017). "Bill "Superfoot" Wallace and the Taekwondo Connection". Taekwondo Life Magazine (3): 50. Retrieved 16 January 2017.
  8. ↑
  9. ↑ A Force of One (1979)
  10. ↑ Black Belt Hall of Fame Awards Archived January 28, 2010, at the Wayback Machine.
  11. ↑ "Bill Wallace IMDB Listing".
  12. ↑ McFadden, Robert D. (March 6, 1982). "John Belushi, Manic Comic of TV and Films Dies.". New York Times. Retrieved September 25, 2007. John Belushi, the manic, rotund comedian whose outrageous antics and spastic impersonations on the Saturday Night Live television show propelled him to stardom in the 1970s, was found dead yesterday in a rented bungalow in Hollywood, where he had launched a film career in recent years. The 33-year-old actor ...
  13. ↑ Wallace, Bill. The Best of Bill Wallace. Black Belt Communications (April 2005) ISBN 0-89750-146-2
  14. ↑ Gibson, Adam, and Wallace, Bill. Competitive Karate: Featuring the Superfoot System Human Kinetics; 1 edition (January 27, 2004) ISBN 0-7360-4492-2
  15. ↑ Wallace, Bill. The Ultimate Kick. Unique Publications (January 1987) ISBN 0-86568-088-4
  16. ↑ Wallace, Bill. Dynamic Kicking & Stretching. Unique Publications (November 1981) ISBN 0-86568-018-3
  17. ↑ Schroeder, Charles Roy and Wallace, Bill. Karate: Basic Concepts and Skills. Addison Wesley Publishing Company (July 1976) ISBN 0-201-06837-0
  18. ↑ Ferguson, Robert and Wallace, Bill. BOOST Karate for Children Black Belt Communications (May 1, 2005) ASIN: B0009T2JN8
  19. ↑ ASIN B000LBZLTI
  20. ↑ "Bill Wallace's record at STAR". Starsystemkickboxing.net. Retrieved October 15, 2011.
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