MARTIALFORCE.COM
UPDATE INTERVIEW
Sept / 2010
HANSHI DAN HECT
Interview By Eddie Morales
Martialforce.com
Online Magazine
Martialforce.com: Hanshi it is good to see you again, how are you?
DANIEL HECT: Good brother, it has been way too long.
Martialforce.com: Yes it has, the last time we spoke you were working on a Police training project, what ever happen with that project?
DANIEL HECT: The Police training project was a thesis for my Masters degree, I finished it and I can now say I am an Alumnus of the University Of Southern California.
Martialforce.com: Sounds great, what did you get your Masters degree in?
DANIEL HECT: Liberal Studies; I was drawn to the program because of its freedom to choose your own thesis topic. When I went to the Dean and told her I wanted to write about police tactics and the martial arts she was very supportive. 4 years later I finished the course work and wrote my thesis.
Martialforce.com: Were all your topics martial arts related?
DANIEL HECT: Not at all, I studied a wide variety of topics; from Dante’s Inferno with Professor Kincaid to the Libraries of the World with Professor Kevin Star. However, I was able to tie a warrior’s mindset in to a lot of my research and papers. In the process, I stretched my acceptable norms and now looked at things from a different perspective. I was very happy with how the process changed my view of the world.
Martialforce.com: I am glad I could play a small part in your academic education.
DANIEL HECT: Thanks Eddie, you were great. I have some photos I can send you from that shoot.
I should also thank Sensei David Dye, Sensei Paul Hayes for demonstrating the Martial Arts side for me; also I want to thank Shihan Robert Posslenzny for being my Uke (Demonstration Partner). He has been a life long friend and we have studied Taiho Jutsu together for over 25 years. Without the support of all my instructors and friends this project would have never been finished.
Martialforce.com: You have had a lot going on lately? Tell me about the Masters Hall of Fame and the Disney Martial Arts Festival.
DANIEL HECT: Where do I start? As you know I took the Masters Hall of Fame over in 2006. Over the last 5 years we have nearly tripled the attendance at the Masters Hall of Fame banquet. I made small changes to the way we operated and was able to make small improvements upon a great organization.
From the beginning I knew I wanted the Masters Hall of Fame to be more than an annual awards banquet that celebrated the achievements of Martial Artist; I want the Masters Hall of Fame to be the professional standard for all martial arts organizations to inspire and emulate. I wanted to move the martial arts from the sidelines into the main stream. I miss the 1970 and 1980’s prestige of being a martial artist.
Martialforce.com: Do you remember all the great training and the positive feeling of being part of the Martial Arts?
DANIEL HECT: As a martial artist who has studied and trained his entire adult life… when it was a very cool thing to do, I decided to use my experience and my martial arts training to improve the martial arts community, to bring back the prestige of being a martial artist.
Martialforce.com: What are you doing to bring Martial Arts back into the main stream?
DANIEL HECT: The first thing I did is attend a mainstream university to improve my credibility in the business community.
Martialforce.com: You attended USC , its a great place.
DANIEL HECT: Yes it is. I wrote my Masters thesis on how Martial Arts impacts Law Enforcement training. I hope to be an example to other martial artist out there that would like to use their warrior sprit in academics.
Martialforce.com: You've used the term, “Warrior Scholar” what is your defenition of a Warrior Scholar?
DANIEL HECT: Not what, but who! Did you know as far back as Alexander the Great and Julius Creaser both of these great warriors were also scholars? And when a city-state or county was concurred they acquired their literature?
Today we have great examples of Warrior Scholars, Soke Alonzo Jones, who is a dojo brother, Hanshi George Alexander and the late Hanshi Otto Johnson, all I have studied with. In my opinion, all are very notable martial artist that also excelled academically and pursued and achieved their Doctoral Degrees from accredited Universities.
The image of a warrior today is a mindless barbarian with a sign on his cage, “In Case of emergency, break glass.” I do not like that image. With all that is wrong with society, I feel Martial Arts have many of the answers our cities need to help the families in their communities. And that is a whole other interview.
Martialforce.com: Let’s get back on track, tell me about Disneyland.
DANIEL HECT: I went to Rob Hartman out of Florida who is the executive director for Disneyland Martial Arts Festival ® and told him what I was doing and where I wanted to go with the Martial Arts community. And after a couple months of negotiations we came to an agreement. The Masters Hall of Fame will be apart of the Disneyland Martial Arts Festival ® until 2013, and then we will look at the relationship again.
Martialforce.com: You brought martial arts to USC and Disneyland , its seems like your taking positive steps in accomplishing the task of bringing martial arts to the Main Stream.
DANIEL HECT: Not quite, I wrote about how martial arts could improve police defensive tactics and I brought the Masters Hall of Fame to Disneyland. Disneyland already had a Martial arts Festival. But you see where I am going with this; Martial Arts can be a mainstream entertainment media. Whether you watch MMA on TV or you are studying martial arts with your kids at the local dojo or attending a black tie dinner honoring marital arts legends.
Let’s look at little league baseball; I have nothing against baseball in fact both my boys play every year and love it. However can you as a parent participate with your children when they practice and play in games? With exception of being the coach no, however in martial arts training a family can train together, support each other at tournaments and develop a life long passion that will influence the rest of their lives.
Martialforce.com: So what you are saying is a family that Kicks together, stays together. What’s next for you?
DANIEL HECT: While the sun never sets on ambition, I started Law School, I am in my first year of classes; by the way I should be studying Torts right about now.
The Masters Hall of Fame is exploring the possibility of holding an event in Florida in conjunction with the Worldwide Martial Arts Festival in October 2011. We are going to have a Masters Hall of Fame executive meeting at the Worldwide Martial Arts Festival on Saturday 23 October 2010 in Kissimmee, Florida to meet with the Martial Arts leaders in Florida and discuss bringing the Masters to Florida in 2011.
Martialforce.com: Are you still going to have an event in California?
DANIEL HECT: Yes, in fact Isaac Florentine will be the Special Guest Speaker for Masters Hall of Fame in Disneyland in 2011. I have known Isaac for years, and we are happy to have him as the guest speaker for 2011, if you get a chance watch his newly released movie Ninja. Isaac is one of the best action film directors in the industry.
Martialforce.com: Actually Isaac and I have worked out together at his home Dojo and he is a strong traditional Martial Artist. Isaac and I have been friends for a few years now and I did watch his movie, it was great, but Wait a minute, did you say Law School? Well… now you really crossed over to the Dark Side… This will be a dangerous combination a lawyer that can do more than talk. Lol… You have to promise me one thing!
DANIEL HECT: Eddie, anything for you!!!
Martialforce.com: Don’t become a Criminal Defense Attorney!
DANIEL HECT: Brother, you do not have anything to worry about… I spent a lifetime putting criminals in prison… I don’t keep them out.
Martialforce.com: Good to hear, its been great catching up with you and we must keep in touch.
Sensei David Dye
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