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The owner and director of Five Birds Industries, has been a martial arts student for almost 50 years. He has also been a teacher of English Composition,Film as Literature, Creative Writing, Scriptwriting and Martial Arts for 2/3 of that time. Like any good journalist, he never made himself the story. On June 19th, 2010, Gordon was inducted into the Martial Arts Masters Hall of Fame. The next year he published his first novel, SHIDOSHI:The Four Ways of the Corpse and was then inducted into the U.S.A. Martial Arts Hall of Fame and the Legends Hall of Fame, both with Book of the Year awards. Barbara Rich, his wife and Gordon have been working and writing together for 10 years. She is the author of The Gradual Diet and is known as Ageless1der to family and friends. She is also one of 15 contributors to The Five Principles of Everything.

Friday, August 17, 2012

Bob Ozman dies in his home

It is with a sad heart that I announce that Bob Ozman, the first karate instructor in the San Fernando Valley, creator of Mushin-Gi-Tai, student of Tatsuo Shimabuku (the founder of Isshin-ryu)friend, teacher, colleague, actor, director, inspiration to a great many martial artists, and my first karate instructor...has died. He was found dead by his friend and landlord in their Santa Clarita home on Wednesday morning, an apparent victim of the diabetes that he'd battled for many years. He had been found unconscious several times previously, when his blood sugar had dropped dangerously low in the night where he had to be rushed to the hospital. In this case, however, there was no one nearby to assist him and, for whatever reason he died in his sleep. He will be buried in Indiana where some of his family members are still living. Your comments may be posted here, on WorldWideDojo.com or sent directly his niece, Audrey on my Facebook, Author-Page. Many of his students remained close and visited him often. Rico Rose said this," I hate this. I had just introduced my own son to Bob a couple of weeks ago. We will all miss him. At least now he can workout again with Johnny Atkinson."
SHIMABUKU AND OZMAN
BOB PRACTICING WITH A TIGER FOR THE FILM "Island of Doctor Moreau"
BOB OZMAN AND GORDON RICHIUSA LAST YEAR WHEN RICO ROSE AND GORDON GAVE BOB A SIGNED COPY OF "The Panda Chronicles"
BOB OZMAN AND JOHN ATKINSON, BOB'S longtime student and one of the many famous instructors who came through the Van Nuys Blvd. Dojo.

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10 comments:

  1. AnonymousJuly 29, 2013 at 9:35 PM

    I trained under Bob and john many years ago. John was in my wedding. I have traveler all over the world and his training has enable me to get out of many close calls. I think of both of them often. They were great men! Ken Keyes

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  2. UnknownOctober 4, 2013 at 10:02 PM

    Sorry to hear my estranged husband died already. We separated physically and we lost touch.

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  3. UnknownOctober 4, 2013 at 10:05 PM

    Sorry to hear my estranged husband died already. We lost touch due to a long standing misunderstanding.

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  4. ZenPupDogJune 10, 2015 at 9:49 PM

    I studied at the Van Nuys school starting at age 9 ... after a hot head at the Norris studio on Ventura choked beginner me. Street has really changed.

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  5. UnknownNovember 4, 2015 at 10:35 AM

    I studied at the Van Nuys dojo a long long time ago, I use to study under Chuck Norris but could not stand his teaching technique. I can still remember Bobs knuckle push-ups on hard wood floors.What an instructor (Great).

    He will be missed

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  6. UnknownNovember 14, 2015 at 10:49 PM

    I also took karate years and years ago in Van Nuys and I dated John Atkinson for a short time. I remember we went and saw "The Deer Hunter" at the movies. I did not know he had passed away though and I am sorry to her that.

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  7. UnknownNovember 4, 2016 at 11:03 PM

    I studied with Bob when I was a child at his Van Nuys Blvd Dojo. I too remember the bare knuckle push ups on the hardwood floor. Being a lazy kid from the valley I also remember finding a soft spot on the hardwood floor that would make the push ups hurt a little less. I would always line up near that spot. He was a very nice man.

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  8. SoCalChristianNovember 15, 2016 at 7:50 AM

    I had the honor of working with Bob at McDonnell Douglas in the 80's, we became good friends. I was just thinking about him and found out he passed. It was great to have known him. I loved his stories and his personality.

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  9. UnknownJanuary 5, 2017 at 10:03 PM

    I studied under Bob's training in the mid 60s, just back from Vietnam. He helped me to harness a lot of misguided energy with some truly tough training and technique, and helped me to realize how important it was to not act out aggressions when not necessary. Never will forget this good man.

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  10. ZenPupDogApril 23, 2017 at 2:03 AM

    Bob was nicer than Chuck Norris' kid black belt instructors were. I remember the Squirt plant dojo on Van Nuys. He was swell.

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