Steven Seagal: Action Movie Mega-God or Out-Of-Shape POS Has-Been

[Bush_Eats_Beef]

Discuss.

[Stew225]

1. He may be a POS has been but he's a

7th dan in Aikido and was the only Westerner to actually run a dojo in Japan. That is really cool, in my opinion.

[Tandalayo_Scheisskopf]

3. Oh, but the story behind that...

Is something to behold. Let us just say that he cannot return to Japan. Something to do with the family of his first wife.

[ForrestGump]

11. 'Story' being an instrumental word -- he IS a legitimate aikido master,

but just about everything else he claims is garbage, much of it borrowed from others, and he's one of the most arrogant SOBs to ever walk the Earth (though a nice guy in comparison to that f***wit from Brussels, Jean Claude Van Damnation). There's a widely-told story of an old, famous stuntman who, challenged by blowhard Seagal, knocked him down and made him wet his pants. It's true...it's documented by several people and I heard about it, right after it happened, from a stuntwoman who was on the set.

[lanparty]

4. He's truly an impressive individual ...

1st dan in Aikido is impressive enough. I have to much respect for my 3rd dan teacher to disrespect a 7th dan and close follower of the Dali Lama himself.

[ForrestGump]

12. He's an exampel of what a martial artist SHOULDN'T be: technically

proficient but obnoxious, arrogant, swaggering, deceitful, and basically dishonorable. Yes, exactly the qualities that allow one to get ahead in Hollyweird. He is not a role model for any decent martial artist, no matter how qualified he may be with the physical moves of his discipline.

[lanparty]

15. Well ...

When one gets on camera you have to ahve a persona.

For an example of a disgrace, look no farther than Jean Claude Van Dam who blinded a man on the set of a movie. Than HE (the expert) blamed it on the guy who was blinded.

[GOPisEvil]

2. I wonder if he ever made a movie that did not include a pool hall fight

scene.

[Diego360]

5. He can't control his bowels!

Okay, here's the story:

SS has a reputation for hurting the actors/stuntmen he works with-- doesn't pull his punches, kicks too hard, etc. Thinks he's a legit badass and let's everyone know it.

On the set of one of his movies, Segal tells a stuntman (older gent who was a judo expert) that he, Steve-o Segal, can escape any choke hold. So older stuntman slaps a rear-naked choke on SS who promptly goes unconcious and loses control of his bodily functions. When SS awakens, he let's everyone present know that if they talk about what they've seen, he will sue them. Some tough guy...

BTW-- the older stuntman was none other than "Judo" Gene Lebell-- judo legend, former pro-wrestler and one of the first martial artists to articulate the importance of ground/submission fighting over striking arts (was friendly with Bruce Lee and helped BL incorporate grappling/submissions into his fighting philosophy). Lebell still teaches judo in LA and his students include world class judoka and Mixed Martial Artists (Ultimate fighters). Segal, on the other hand, is still an asshole.

[bo44]

8. Musta sunk it deep or Seagal wouldn't holler Unka. Good Lawd

Never fuck with a hook and shoot master.

[ForrestGump]

13. There you go

Don't mess with old fighters. :D

[lanparty]

16. I handn't heard that ...

If it's true, he truly is an asshole and has learned NOTHING from the art of Morehei.

[Nevernose]

6. TOTAL POS

I can't reveal the details of this knowledge due to potential violations of RICO stautes. Let's just say that he was involved up to his neck with the mob. Not the happy sort of mob popularized by "The Sopranos," but the down and dirty mob.

This doesn't make him cool like Sinatra. In fact, he was a wannabe that befriended several mobsters, thinking it would make him cool. The mob would never have extorted him had he not been a total pantywaist, a jerk-off, and an asshole.

The loser tried to buy himself street-cred, and it backfired miserably.

[Bush_Eats_Beef]

7. I've read the mob story...at least what's available on the Web.

Your synopsis pretty much supports what I read.

One good link here for anyone interested:

http://www.crimelibrary.com/criminal_mind/scams/steven_seagal/4.html?sect=27

The opening paragraph:

"On February 11, 2003, Steven Seagal arrived at the Federal Courthouse in Brooklyn, wearing, as Anthony DeStefano reported in Newsday, "a chocolate-colored silk Mandarin jacket and blue jeans." He had a "deep tan," having just flown in from Thailand where he was shooting his latest film, Belly of the Beast. But despite his Eastern garb, Seagal was not at peace with the world that day. He clearly did not want to be there, but he'd been subpoenaed to testify for the prosecution in the government's attempt to put away 17 alleged members and associates of the Gambino crime family. The various defense attorneys made it plain that they had their legal knives sharpened for the movie star."

[Nevernose]

10. I'll tell ya something that the feds already know

A few years after the fact, I was very close friends with a woman who was married to one of the mob guys. I can prove this if you don't believe me. We got to be friends through our mutual intersts and our mutual drug addictions (I'm still not telling you anything the cops don't know or that the mob doesn't know).

Anyway, the extorion on him only started after he tried to buy his way into a wedding reception. Essentially, he was extorted due to his legendary levels of tackiness.

[BigMcLargehuge]

9. the saddest bit about this whole thread

is that I immediately recognized that damn still from his film "Half Past Dead".

Turning the whole thing from sadness to tragedy - I paid night-show prices to see that POS in the theater.

[AwakeAtLast]

14. One word

UGH!!!