Jean-Claude Van Damme, born Jean-Claude Camille François Van Varenberg in Brussels, Belgium, kicked off his martial arts journey super young thanks to his dad, who basically thought his kid needed to toughen up. By 12, he was training at the Centre National De Karate with Master Claude Goetz, grinding for four years straight and eventually earning a spot on Belgium’s karate team. The guy was a beast, snagging a European middleweight championship as a teenager, even beating the world’s number two. But dreams of being number one got put on pause when he left Brussels. He started fighting professionally at 16, competing in both full-contact and semi-contact matches. His first fight, under his real name, was rough—he took a nasty roundhouse to the head but turned things around and knocked his opponent out. He kept going, racking up wins and losses, including a wild match in Florida where he got floored but bounced right back up, knocking his opponent out in less than a minute. Van Damme’s martial arts career was no joke: 18-1 in kickboxing (all knockouts) and a 41-4 record in semi-contact. He retired in 1982 after another knockout win and set his sights on movies, first hitting up Hong Kong, then moving to LA. There, he took odd jobs and even worked as a bouncer, thanks to Chuck Norris. After some background roles, his big break came when he literally showed off his moves to a producer on the street, landing him a spot in Bloodsport. The rest? Well, that’s action movie history.
Van Damme’s early Hollywood grind was no joke. The dude hustled hard—juggling gigs as a waiter, pizza delivery guy, even driving a cab just to scrape by. And get this, before he was a martial arts icon, he bounced at Woody's Wharf, a Newport Beach bar owned by none other than Chuck Norris. Yeah, THE Chuck Norris. That’s some wild crossover. Imagine clocking in to break up drunk brawls while dreaming of high kicks and movie stardom. The dude didn’t just show up and get handed roles—he had to claw his way in, just like everybody else. Real rags-to-riches stuff. Every odd job probably fueled his determination, too. You can almost see him, exhausted after a late shift, practicing splits on the bar floor while everyone else is cleaning up spilled beer. It’s wild to think the guy slinging pizzas would end up throwing roundhouse kicks on the big screen. That’s classic Hollywood hustle for you.
referencennSo there’s this absolute classic scene where the guy drops the line, “I am the Fred Astaire of karate.” It’s honestly one of those moments that sticks in your head whether you want it to or not. The whole movie rides that weird blend of martial arts and comedy, like it can’t decide if it wants to be a legit action flick or just make you laugh at how over-the-top everything gets. The plot basically takes this underdog—awkward, doesn’t really fit in, totally out of his element—and throws him into the wild world of karate. You’ve got training montages, some questionable fashion choices, and a mentor who’s just as quirky as the hero. But behind all the goofy lines and dramatic kicks, there’s actually a sliver of heart: finding confidence, standing up for yourself, and maybe, just maybe, busting out a few dance moves while you do it. It’s cheesy, but kind of impossible not to love.
October 18, 1960
5′ 9½″ (1.77 m)
Konidela Ram Charan
Berchem-Sainte-Agathe, Brussels, Belgium
Yes, Bianca Van Damme
Eugène Van Varenberg and Surekha
64 years old