In the 1980's ninja flicks were big business. It did not matter if you were a legit martial artist or not, if you looked like someone who could do it, someone would put you in a movie. The Cannon Group took advantage of this fact and churned out a series of ninja movies throughout the 80's. After making a pair of Sho Kosugi classics (
Enter the Ninja and
Revenge of the Ninja), they shifted gears and turned State-side for their lead. This resulted in the original “classic” in
American Ninja starring Michael Dudikoff. A movie with a star featuring little actual martial arts experience, but able to fake it well enough for a mainstream film. Dudikoff has since trained in a number of martial arts.
