BrownsKarate.com Grand Master Barry Brown/Browns Karate
Brown's Karate
Brown’s Karate draws its origins from the former Roberts School of Karate. While in the Army, James K. Roberts, Sr., was stationed in Korea in the early 1960’s. He had the unique experience of training directly under Grandmaster Hwang Kee, the founder of Tang Soo Do, and while in Korea he earned his 1st, 2nd, and 3rd dan belts. Upon his return to the United States Mr. Roberts opened his own karate school and it was in operation for over 40 years. During the years Mr. Roberts ran his school he was promoted through the ranks to 9th Dan. He is now retired and living in Hawaii. Here is how Grandmaster Roberts described his experience in Korea: "I arrived in Korea in 1963 for my third tour in that country. I was assigned to the 32nd Infantry, 7th Infantry Division. I was assigned as an instructor at the Counterguerrilla Warfare School and eventually became the Noncommissioned Officer in charge of the program. After settling in, I went looking for this "korean karate" that I had heard about but never seen. I found a school near the post and started training as a white belt. I didn’t tell the instructor that I had a black belt in kajukenbo so that I would be treated as a beginner. I trained as often as I could and impressed the instructors with how quickly I learned. My first teacher was Ahn Kyon Won, who was a 4th degree at that time. When I was allowed to free spar for the first time, I went through all of the students without much effort. I was not good with my feet, but my hands were better than theirs. I ended up sparring with black belts and soon was invited to visit with the style’s founder, Hwang Kee, Sr., at the main studio in Seoul near the railroad station. Besides meeting and training with Hwang Kee, I also met his son Hwang, Jr. and Jong Soo Hong, Dan Bon #10. I went with them to black belt exams and we became friends. They treated me with respect because they knew I was serious about the arts and was 31 years old at the time."
Name
Barry Brown joined Roberts Karate in early 1972 and stayed until the end of calendar year 2005 when the Roberts School closed. During his years there he rose to be the senior instructor and, over time, was promoted through the ranks until 2004 when he was awarded his 8th Dan. At that time, he was the only Roberts student ever to achieve this rank.
In early 2006 he opened Brown’s Karate. See www.brownskarate.com for details. Brown’s Karate teaches the Korean martial art of Tang Soo Do. Most of the former students of Roberts Karate joined Brown’s Karate when the Roberts school closed, thus the linkage from GM Hwang Kee to GM Roberts continues as an unbroken thread at Brown’s Karate.
Founder
GM Hwang Kee founded Moo Duk Kwan Tang Soo Do in 1945. His history, as well as the history of Tang Soo Do, is well-documented on the Wikipedia website. What is unique is that GM Roberts studied directly under the founder, and GM Brown studied directly under GM Roberts. This lineage represents a very direct line, and it is very rare in Tang Soo Do.
GM Hwang Kee passed away in 2002. Today his son runs the organization. See Soobahkdo.com [1]. While many schools still call their style Tang Soo Do, the organization originally founded by GM Hwang Kee now calls the art Soo Bahk Do. It is the same martial art with a new name.
When GM Roberts was in Korea GM Hwang Kee awarded him black belt number 6564 (That is the number for Mr. Roberts recorded in the dan bon books). Today, the black belt numbers are well into the 40,000’s.
Early History, Modern Changes and Current State
A search for "Tang Soo Do" on the www.wikipedia.com website will produce detailed information about the history of the art along with modern changes and the current status. Brown's Karate teaches the same Tang Soo Do taught by GM Hwang Kee and by GM Roberts.
References
References abound on the internet. Simply googling "Hwang Kee," "Moo Duk Kwan," "Tang Soo Do" or "Soo Bahk Do" will produce a wealth of information.
Languages
English
External Links
| 18 Dec. 2006 |
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