Martial Royalty: Richard Norton
DO YOU KNOW THIS MAN?
You should. He's martial royalty.
I’ve known Richard for decades.
He is a true martial artist and, more importantly, a student of the arts.
Many from the martial art community know of him from his stunt work (he's worked with everyone from Jackie Chan to Tom Hardy, to Chuck Norris).
He's also worked as a bodyguard to the Rolling Stones, David Bowie, and many other greats. Check out this pic of him and Stevie Nicks!
But this post isn't about his celebrity connections, it's about his mindset, professionalism, and personhood.
Context…
I first appeared in Black Belt magazine in 1980 and began traveling to LA, the Mecca for martial arts, every year or so.
On one of my trips, I was looking at the photographs on the walls of Black Belt Magazine and I remembered that back in the 60s Bruce Lee, Mike Stone, Ed Parker, Joe Lewis, and Chuck Norris (all legends) trained and hung out together. They were our heroes and role models. To say they inspired me would be an understatement.
It was 1985 or so and I thought that our generation of movers and shakers should network, much like Lee and Norris and the others did in the 60s.
And that was the premise of the letters I sent out.
Yes, letters.
In the 80s you actually had to write a letter - then mail it and wait for an answer 🤪 sorry, no texts or emails.
Fired up I wrote multiple letters and sent them to several well-known instructors.
Only Richard replied.🤷♂️😉
Yes, only Richard.
Pin that.
My 3 Favorite Richard Norton stories:
On one of my seminar tours to Australia, he took the time out of his crazy schedule to attend. He showed up unannounced and sat in the audience with the other attendees. Of course, I introduced him (most knew him) and then invited him up to talk and demo with me. (That’s the picture below that appeared in a magazine.)
Another time he showed up at my combatives camp in Vegas. He signed up as an attendee! Again, a reminder of how true martial artists live and conduct themselves as students of the arts. 'Beginners Mind' if you know the reference.
These two examples exemplify what I wrote in my first paragraph: Richard is a lifelong student of the martial arts and decades later he is still open to learning. There's a lesson for all of us here.
This one really touched me deeply. When my mom passed away last year, Richard called me from Australia. ❤️
Thank you for your friendship, Richard. 🙏
Friends, I'm excited to announce that Richard will be my special guest on the next KNOW FEAR® LIVE this Tuesday, February 7th at 1:00 PM PST - he’s logging in from Australia.
You can tune in and ask him questions on YouTube, LinkedIn, Twitter, or Facebook.
Coach Blauer
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Great article! My wife's favorite picture was Stevie Nicks..