52 Blocks a.k.a. Jailhouse Rock Video featuring actor Lorenz Tate:
http://www.bet.com/video/movies/2014/gun-hill/the-history-of-the-52-blocks-fighting-style.html
Here are some other videos
From Wikipedia (Yeah, we know, it's just a starting place)
The existence of this martial art has been debated, but some media
exposure has contributed towards verifying the existence of Jailhouse
Rock. According to researcher Douglas Century,
professional boxers, including
Zab Judah and
Mike Tyson, have testified to the existence of the style and it is referred to in rap songs by artists including the
Wu Tang Clan. Tales of the
pugilistic exploits of legendary 1970's New York prison fighter "Mother Dear" have also contributed to the extensive
urban mythology surrounding this system.
The 52 Hand Blocks aspect of JHR was first featured in the
Douglas Century's nonfiction book
Street Kingdom,
published in 1999, and is also detailed in the essay "Freeing the
Afrikan Mind: the Role of Martial Arts in Contemporary African American
Cultural Nationalism" by Professor Tom Green of
Texas A&M University.
The name 52 may be a reference to the
playing card games of
52 Pickup
and to the expression "let the cards fall where they may." Other
theories relate the name to a combat training game involving the use of
playing cards and/or to the
Supreme Mathematics of the
Nation of Gods and Earths.
It could even be a reference, coded, symbolic, or otherwise, to a
specific cell block. However, a more likely explanation is that it
simply refers to the fifty-two blocking techniques encompassed in the
art.
According to Dennis Newsome, a well-known JHR specialist, JHR is an indigenous
African American fighting art that has its origins in the 17th and 18th centuries, when
slaves were first institutionalized and needed to defend themselves.
Oral tradition
has the skill evolving secretly within the U.S. penal system, with
regional styles reflecting the physical realities of specific
institutions. This theory relates JHR to the fusion of African and
European/American bare-knuckle fist-fighting styles known as "cutting",
which is said to have been practiced by champions such as
Tom Molineaux,
and also to the little-known African-American fighting skill known as
"knocking and kicking," which is said to be practiced clandestinely in
parts of the Southern US and on the
Sea Islands.
Alternatively, it may be possible that JHR was not a product of penal
institutions, but rather an evolution of the many African martial arts
or fighting games which were practiced by slaves, with different styles
evolving separately in different penal institutions. According to this
theory, Jailhouse Rock may be a modern American manifestation of the
many African martial arts that were disseminated throughout the African
diaspora, comparable to martial arts including Afro-Brazilian
Capoeira,
Cuban Mani, Martiniquese Ladja, and
Eritrean Testa.
According to the individual known on YouTube as "52blocksinfo",in
response to a former inmate stating that he never witnessed Jail House
Rock or its variants in prison stated that "52blocks is created by
Veronnica Quinn ...its a black womans art but since we are a minority
but we make up the majority in prison there is no surprise people think
this is a prison system."
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jailhouse_rock_%28fighting_style%29
Contoroversy:
"I have no words for the movie or the actor but why miss lead our
African American people with untruth. Fact slaves did fight in more
places than Virginia, what a quatium leap to call that fighting 52
Blocks. Fact rough n tumble, knocking and kicking, cutting, the name 52
Blocks is from 1960 New York. You have to know our culture to talk
about or history. Why lie to our babies. Fact 52 Blocks is not A PRISON
ART. Yes some people learned in jail, bit not every prison every where
knows 52 Blocks or Jail Hoise Boxing. You can stunt and make it all
look good slow action, you watch us on youtube and brorrow all the
flavor C52G. But don't lie to our children slave fights like in the
movie Mandingo, Drum, and Django. I don't see 52 Blocks surely if it was
all the same we would see something k ike it. Since our elders past it
on to us. What prison in NYC did the character learn his 52 Blocks from.
Oh and this is an historical fact no such name as Virginia shuffle,
when are we going to stop hustlimg our future generation to live a lie
for a check. Once the money is gone what will be our legacy." - Daniel Marks
Harjit Singh Sagoo talks to Daniel 'Farisi' Marks a master of the 52 blocks system.
In a place like prison, home to numerous hostile individuals, violence
is bound to erupt. There is no doubt that the residents of such a grim
and unfriendly abode would ponder on developing realistic methods to
survive group-beatings, shankings, rape, etc.
52 Blocks
is said to be a once secretive style of fighting with roots in native
African fighting arts that was developed into a science by African
Americans within the confines of prison.
It has been talked about and rapped about, but only in recent times a few individuals have come forward to shed more light on
52 blocks. Daniel “Farisi” Marks is one of them…
Harjit Singh Sagoo: When did you first hear about 52 Blocks and how did you come to learn it?
Daniel Marks: Well like most people growing up
outside of NYC, I was unaware that there was this Style of Fighting. My
first contact with the craft was in 1986 while serving in Charlie
Company 35th Signal Battalion at Fort Braggs NC. One Autumn night myself
and others engaged in some impromptu Slap Boxing matches in which I
would square off with two practitioners un be known to me. Specialist
Elmore from Brooklyn and Specialist Reeves from Chicago. Both men were
savvy on the streets of their respected cities, and both were former
juvenile offenders. In short, they took turns laying the smack down on
me while everyone else got a good laughed. My first thoughts were “what
the hell are you doing!” Being no stranger to boxing or karate the
latter of which I obtain a first degree Black Belt in that same year.
So I was a little arrogant when we started, but they both made it look
too easy, and until this day I call one move picking up money. I
squared off with SPC. Reeves at this point he being smaller than I, he
would lean back and make me reach. He started turning his torso from
side to side slipping as I tried to keep him at bay. Just before his
last move he had caught me with a nice dip n hook combo that had my eyes
watery. So I jabbed at him then threw the right hand, but he kept
making me miss. Then all of a sudden he dropped on me (a ducking move)
like he was going to tie my shoes. My reach and my eyes followed him to
my surprise and that was the last mistake that I would make that night.
Reeve stayed under my out stretched arms spun out hitting me with
another open hand hook that made me bite my lip. SPC. Elmore yelled out
“that’s that 52 street boxing right there” laughing at me, and I was
hooked from that day.
Why is the style known as 52 Blocks? What is the significance of 52?
Daniel Marks: 52 Blocks is a
simple system but inside its simplicity lays layers of complexity
discovered by the practitioner. Now, the definitive meaning behind the
name
52 blocks at a glance the term seems to have
derived by the following method, a training regiment with a deck of
cards. Where the deck of cards represented a random insidious nature as
in the phase let the cards fall where they may, or whatever whenever-
without rhyme or reason. But you have to take into account that each
card was a repetition of a routine that was being done to sharpen up the
practitioner. Thus the name 52, as in 52 pick up the card game where
the cards equal the rep in the exercise that you’re performing.
However, randomness doesn’t explain the deceptive and systematic
process that the hands display while transitioning into guards
(defensive) position that became known as blocks. Indeed, the reason
the craft is called 52 has to do with the science of protecting the body
using the angles inside the square 90, 45, and 30 degrees respectfully.
The number 52 represents the geometry that the hands take while
defending/shielding the body from harm.
Harjit Singh Sagoo: Can you share with us some of the principles and techniques of 52 Blocks? I noticed you constantly use the elbows and forearms both defensively and offensively.
Daniel Marks: We believe in the preservation of the
body like the term “protect your neck” used in a song by the NYC rap
group Wutang Clan. When people here the term block they immediately
think that we mean stop as if we are trying to impeded the attack. The
core to 52 is timing as Kawaun “Big K” says timing is everything. We
move with a purpose to close the gap on our attacker thus we are not
blocking per say but hitting them in a rhythm that throws off the
attacker timing, allowing us to dictate the pace, take the lead in the
fray. The concept is this, we are displacing ourselves by presenting
targets (baiting) then moving them rapidly. Take the Bum rush as (Demoed
by Kawaun Adon Akhenoten VII “Big K” ) for instance; this signature
move is a combination of two other moves twirling elbows (L Boogie) and
the Woodbourne shuffle, a stutter step move where the feet move short
and fast. This is a Defensive and Offensive move without changing your
groove. That’s the key to 52 to transition smoothly from one guard to
the next guard, hiding your intent until the last minute then releasing
your blows for the beat down. We consider our forearms as pillars we
raise them to defend then use to attack all while maintaining the
integrity of their purpose to protect. The elbows are used to cut into
the body, or to put bone on him, bringing pain to the knuckles or soft
tissue of the head.
Harjit
Singh Sagoo: Being a street/prison fighting system, there must be
weapon tactics involved, right? Use of razor blades, etc?
Daniel Marks: Now you hit the nail with a hammer, the
science of 52 is based in weaponry as a means of survival from day one.
The whole concept of “sporting hands”, is dealing with a violent attack
where the other person is armed and you have no choice but to engage
them in a fight. Much like the gangs fights of the 50’ 60’s and 70’s of
New York’s inner city, and all of the max A and B prison of upstate New
York. There is a bit of history on the use of the Razor with regards to
52. I will try to keep it brief but our craft (art) dates back to a
time where men elevated themselves to a Noble status in society. Even
slaves that carried their Masters name could elevate their status and
thus needing the means to protect themselves from the least fortunate.
Black men usually stood on the outside of society except for a few
professions which put them into direct contact with aggressor of every
ethnic group. Jobs like Shoe shine and repair man, Railway Porters,
Doormen, Tailors, and Barbers were considered premium professions for
those of a certain order. As in Brazil the Straight Razor was a quick
and dirty means of self-defense, and was wielded with deadly and
accurate intent. Accounts of its use can be found in news paper
articles in NYC as early as 1907 when a riot broke out in the city
between Blacks and Whites. It would seem that by the 1940’s the use of
the Straight Razor was an epidemic, in places like Kentucky, St Loius,
Chicago, Indiana, Kansas, Tennessee, Georgia, the Carolinas , Virginia,
Up the East Coast to Boston, and making its way West by way of
Mississippi. What stopped this urban carnage from destroying our
community Professional Boxing began to focus on our inner cities thanks
to Joe Loius winning the Heavy Weight Championship of the world. Gyms
opened in every city/state offering an opportunity to become wealthy and
famous to poor inner city kids. However, that also leads to growth in
gang or organized crime families as the Mob controlled boxing from the
40’s into the 80’s. A good fighter could earn money either in the ring
or by collecting debts on the street. And now the stage is set for how
52 became Jail House boxing. A Key note to remember is how the Straight
Razor breaks down into several parts, the tang (butt), the shank (the
fixed metal between the tang and the edge), the edge (blade), the spine
(behind the blade) and the handle. The term shanking comes from the use
and understanding of the Straight Razor. Once the boxing programs in
prison were no longer funded, inmates would use the knowledge of the
shank (fixing and edge to a base tool) to protect themselves from other
inmates. Another Slang term used for shanking is “jigging” a term used
to describe the way or manor in which somebody was stabbed. A Jigging
motion looks like a sewing machine working, rapidly stabbing a person
multiple times with and edge weapon. The crackdown in Prison lead to
other means of protection that have survived to this day, and that is
the use of the flat razors, a substitute due to its size and ability to
be hidden in the hand or mouth. Which can be seen demonstrated by
Hassan” Giant” Yasin in the 52 documentary “Changing of the Guard” Brief
right.
Harjit Singh Sagoo: I’ve read that one famous exponent of 52 Blocks
was the notorious prisoner, Mother Dear. Can you tell us a bit about
him and his fighting ability? According to Lyte Burly, who claims to be
an exponent of 52 Blocks, Mother Dear’s signature move
was catching and kissing a punch before delivering a hook. Was he
actually able to do this during a real punch-up?
Daniel Marks: Mother Dear is but one of many good
practitioners of the craft, sadly he is more notorious for using his
skill to assault other inmates in a sexual way than with the use of his
knuckle game. Because he was gay he stood out above the others, however
he was much older than I so no one under 50 can speak with certainty
about him as a person or to his skills. That being said, I did interview
one man named King Saladin who as a child trained under Mother Dear
when he was not in Jail. It seems that the real Mother Dear was a bit
of a gangster who people feared because he was a gay man with a mean
knuckle game. As for his skills, Mother Dear was best known for
finishing fights quickly and at the same time clowning you. Whether he
was “shoe-shining” (blows from the ankle up) “baiting” with his hands
beside his face saying “you can’t *uck with the Mother” or “catching”
your punch, kissing it, and then throwing it back to you ( which works
on a lazy jab) this was his way of saying that you didn’t have any wins
in his house. There are a list of 52 warriors during Mother Dear’s time;
to focus solely on him seems a shame. Some were bandits (gay thugs),
but others were straight up knuckle artist of the highest degree. Eric
Twitty, Rique (Big K’s older brother), Old Man Sha- sha, Michael Duffy,
Supreme etc… Burley is simply too young to say with certainty how Mother
Dear got down in a fight being that the man if alive today would be in
his mid sixties. Now for his most famous move “The Catch” is holding
your hand like an open glove to bait a punch, catching it in the palm,
then locking the punching hand with the forearm of your opposite hand,
pulling your opponent into you, and your keeping your guard up to shield
against his other hand, place a kiss on his knuckles (which implies
this is week *ish) then from the other hand throw it back to him. You
have been disrespected so step off before you get knocked out.
Harjit Singh Sagoo: Dennis Newsome is known for being one of the
fight co-ordinators for the action movie, Lethal Weapon 1, teaching
prison-fighting moves. Was what he taught 52 Blocks?
Daniel Marks: I spoke to Mr. Newsome some time
ago and he told me the story of how he landed the job working on the
first Lethal Weapon movie. What Mr. Newsome taught was Jail house
techniques which have strong elements of
52 Blocks in
them, but those techniques were not based in the same rhythm as straight
52. The difference is due to the environment in prison not like the
streets where you have to watch your back in prison you can find a wall,
and block attacks while changing angles and levels (getting low) when
needed. He explained that it was hard for him to get them to use more of
what he knew because at that time there was only one thing ever written
about Jail house boxing in the public. An article in Black belt
Magazine titled “Karate in Prison”, and as you know the Gracie’s were
also on the film pushing for BJJ, like in the final scene. We commend
Mr. Newsome for forging a way that would later open up this door to
52 Blocks becoming a household name.
Harjit Singh Sagoo: Is it true that 52 Blocks has a link to breakdancing?
Daniel Marks: 52 Blocks is the
forerunner to Breaking as the dance became its own entity out of
necessity. Young Rockers found out that you could have more fun dancing
and busting moves than going the prison like so many of their older
brothers and neighbors. When we get into this part of the story I have
to bring in Cultural input otherwise it will not make sense. 52 carries
within it rituals of our past, for instance when we gesture we are
indeed invoking things that we as a people have done for years. Slavery
has made some of us forget these things, but they are still with us, in
spirit. Several Warrior arts in the Diaspora have survived into the
present, the one that I want to speak of is called Kalinda. Kalinda is a
song, a dance, and a war art that can still be found throughout the
Caribbean and the Southern US (New Orleans). The earliest practice of
this art was played with Matches, and sticks (stick lickin), due to
these dynamics a heavy focus was placed on evasive movements,
shielding, blocking, and closing the gap were emphasized. The dodging
and ducking made Kalinda practitioners, a hard target to hit. So now you
have the roots of 52 when dealing with a Straight Razor, and now the
term “protect your neck” comes into a different light. How did this
practice lead into breaking, as the earliest rockers where gang members,
the gangs were broken down into where in the city you lived, and from
where your ethnic group resided. In NYC most of the gangs in the Bronx
and Brooklyn were from the Caribbean and those young men still had ties
to Kalinda societies. The art was practice strongly in places like
Cuba, Trinidad, Jamaica and Hattie. The attitude and mannerism can be
seen in the tap dances of the past, and well as the Zute suited hustlers
as seen in the Malcolm X movie directed by Spike Lee. Mock Combat art
like Mani demonstrate some of the same characteristics of modern Break
dance protocol. The game or battle takes place in a cipher (circle) you
size up your opponent and then you proceed to burn him\Diss him for the
support of the crowd (for the Women). Just like it’s practice in Africa
where Villages would battle other Villages. So rocker crews would
travel to battle other crews, in the same way gangs would mark their
territories. Thank god for Hip-Hop, many lives were saved when she came
along.
Harjit Singh Sagoo: Can you tell us about your book, Framing 52,
which according to you, is the first book on this urban fighting
science?
Daniel Marks: Framing 52 is the first book of its kind
to focus solely the craft, its practitioners, and their personal
accounts and experiences using and witnessing the art. 52 has shown up
in other publications as an honorable mention, but no one thought at
that time to focus on more than just the tales of a few people with
random thoughts. We pulled the information directly from our first
person interviews while shooting the documentary “Breaking the Glass”
which later became “Changing of the Guard”. The photos in the book are
actual demos of real 52 moves as done by the practitioner not just a
description. It was sold as a complementary collectors item for people
who really wanted to invest in saving this cultural treasure.
Harjit Singh Sagoo: And lastly, what’s the 52 Blocks Preservation program all about?
Daniel Marks: Harjit, I’m glad you asked. 10 years ago
when we embarked on this journey our first task was to prove to the
world that our art did in fact exist. Once we found the right
Practitioners who still had a High Level of skill like Kawaun Adon
Akhenoten VII as well as others that I have mentioned. Big K as he’s
called told us how even though gangsters had guns during his heyday you
could still get it in (fight) with your hands. It seems that the bad men
wanted to be known as much for their Knuckle game as they wanted to be
known for using a weapon. As K put it, you had to stay sharp because
there were places where you wouldn’t be able to carry a weapon at all,
and in those spots (clubs) all you had for self-defense was you.
Recently we tried to engaged an old head in a knuckle up (fist fight),
when he pulled out a knife. At first we were like wow you can’t leave52
to the streets, and that’s we it hit us. Our Elders carried themselves
with distinction, as we are always trying to prove that the content of
our character is more than what you see. That we are Men and we are
able, competent and responsible to handle situations to gain respect
afforded every man of every ethnic group. Our program was to find a
platform were 52 could take center stage and to show young men that it
takes hard work to become good at this, and if you strived you could
achieve more than just a knuckle game. You could become a Champion. In
2007 we began our Boxing and MMA program working with various fighters
helping them to improve their combat skills in the field of boxing. One
fighter of note (Rashad Evans) early in his career made a trip to one of
our training seminars and would later become the UFC Light Heavy Weight
Champ. We continue to work and push the quality of the art while
dealing with all of the negative stereo types that follows, that we are
making it up; no one learns to fight in prison and so on. I guess
Professional fighters like Mike Tyson, Floyd Patterson, Sonny Listen,
Bernard Hopkins, and Marvin Haggler to name a few doesn’t count. This
has been the best 25 years of my life, finding and promoting this
cultural icon, and sharing this knowledge with the world.
When we raise teachers and champions then I will tell you of yet
another cultural treasure that has yet to make its way into light until
then I will enjoy this journey, peace and thanks for asking.
