Charles Kalani, Jr.
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| Charles Kalani, Jr. | |
|---|---|
| Ring name(s) | Professor (Toru) Tanaka |
| Billed height | 5"11" |
| Billed weight | 275 |
| Born | January 6, 1930 Honolulu, Hawaii |
| Died | August 22, 2000 (aged 70) |
| Billed from | Japan |
| Debut | 1967 |
Charles "Charlie" J. Kalani, Jr. (January 6, 1930 - August 22, 2000) was an American professional wrestler, professional boxer,[1] college football player, soldier, actor, and Martial Artist who, in fighting rings, was also known as Professor Toru Tanaka, or simply, Professor Tanaka.
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[edit] Early life
He was born in Honolulu, Hawaii, the son of Charles J. Kalani and Christina Leong Kalani (who was part Chinese). Charlie began studying judo at age nine. At Iolani High School (class of 1949),[2] he was a natural at many sports, and Doris Kalani credited his time on the football team with keeping him away from trouble. "He was a street kid getting into trouble and would have ended up in reform school if Father [Kenneth] Bray hadn't helped him out by bringing him to Iolani. He felt Iolani saved him," she told the Honolulu Star-Bulletin.
He left Hawaii for Utah's Weber Junior College (now Weber State University). On December 6, 1951, the Associated Press reported he received honorable mention for playing football at the University of Utah. It was at the University of Utah that he also met his wife Doris in 1952. On December 3, 1952 the Associated Press reported Charlie would become a professional boxer. Drafted into the U.S. Army in 1955, Charlie rose to the rank of sergeant and excelled on the pistol team. For four years, Charlie and Doris were at the base in Nuremberg, Germany.
After his discharge from the service in 1966, the couple moved to Monterey, California, where Charlie ran a Judo and Danzan-ryu Jujitsu academy with Professor John Chow-Hoon. San Francisco promoter Roy Shire asked him to wrestle in 1967, but he had to get meaner. "Charlie was almost full-blooded Hawaiian," said Doris. "In wrestling, Hawaii seemed not as exciting as Japan, so they talked him into becoming a Japanese wrestler."
[edit] Professional wrestling
One of the characteristics of Kalani's wrestling gimmick was that he threw salt in his opponents' eyes.[3] Charlie's most famous tag team partner was Harry Fujiwara (better known as Mr. Fuji), whom he knew from high school in Hawaii. In his book, Listen, You Pencil Neck Geeks, Freddie Blassie explored the relationship between the two "Japanese" heels.
From Tanaka's point of view, he was passing time with Fuji because it made sense to team up with another Japanese villain. The two certainly had no great admiration for one another. Tanaka was a by-the-book guy, who looked at wrestling a means to make a living. He wanted to work his match, shake hands with everyone afterwards, and save some money. He was a professional.
If you wanted to talk about an angle beforehand, you always went to Tanaka. He was the ring general, who'd lead everyone else in the match. Fuji was certainly a good performer, but you couldn't control him. So, in addition to worrying about their opponents, Tanaka had the responsibility of making sure that Fuji didn't get out of hand. I guess he did a pretty good job because, years later, when Tanaka was relegated to working these tiny independent shows to earn a few extra bucks, Fuji himself had become a manager.—Freddie Blassie , Listen, You Pencil Neck Geeks
[edit] Other media
Professor Tanaka was also featured in a television commercial for a brand of rice in Puerto Rico. His other appearance in a commercial was for Colgate toothpaste with Pat Morita. Tanaka was seen as an extra in a few of David Lee Roth's music videos in the mid-1980s.
By the early 1980s, Kalani's body could not handle the beatings in the ring any longer, and he moved into the film world on a more permanent basis. His first film was 1981's An Eye for an Eye and his last film was 1995's Hard Justice. He appeared in Arnold Schwarzenegger's The Running Man.
Tanaka was one of three semi-retired professional wrestlers to compete in a tug-of-war match with two other wrestlers teamed up against a large group of children on the Nickelodeon series Wild and Crazy Kids in the early 1990s.
[edit] Personal life
He also dated female professional wrestler Leilani Kai in the 1970s.[3] Charlie died of heart failure on August 22, 2000 at the age of 70. He had a full military funeral.
[edit] Filmography
- Hard Justice (1995)
- Last Action Hero (1993)
- 3 Ninjas (1992)
- Deadly Game (1991)
- The Perfect Weapon (1991)
- Alligator II: The Mutation (1991)
- Darkman (1990)
- Martial Law (1990)
- Black Rain (1989)
- Tax Season (1989)
- Dead Heat (1988)
- The Running Man (1987)
- Catch The Heat (1987)
- Shanghai Surprise (1986)
- The A-Team - The Maltese Cow (1983)
- The A-Team - The Spy Who Mugged Me (1986)
- Bad Guys (1986)
- Volunteers (1985)
- Pee-wee's Big Adventure (1985)[3]
- Missing in Action 2: The Beginning (1985)
- Chattanooga Choo Choo (1984)
- Revenge of the Ninja (1983)
- Off the Wall (1983)
- Little House on the Prairie - A new beginning; "Alden's Dilemma" Season 9 aired first on December 6 1982
- Angel Of H.E.A.T. (1982)
- An Eye for an Eye (1981)
[edit] In wrestling
- Finishing moves
- Wrestlers managed
[edit] Championships and accomplishments
-
- NWA Georgia Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
- NWA Georgia Tag Team Championship (2 times) - with Assassin #2 (1) and Mr. Fuji (1)
- L&G Promotions
-
- NWA Americas Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
- NWA Americas Tag Team Championship (1 time) - with Dr. Hiro Ota
-
- NWA British Empire Heavyweight Championship (2 times)
-
- NWA Southeastern Tag Team Championship (1 time) - with Mr. Fuji
-
- IWA World Heavyweight Championship (2 times)
- IWA World Tag Team Championship (1 time) - with Skull Murphy
-
- WWWF International Tag Team Championship (1 time) - with Mitsu Arakawa
- WWWF World Tag Team Championship (3 times) - with Mr. Fuji
1Records don't show which NWA affiliate Tanaka worked for when his two reigns with the title began. While usually defended in Southeastern Championship Wrestling, it was occasionally used in other promotions.
[edit] References
- ^ Human:49443 - Boxrec Boxing Encyclopedia
- ^ Alumni Making Headlines (April 2006). "The Professor Toru Tanaka (Charles Kalani ’49) Remembered". Iolani School website. http://www.iolani.org/wn_alumni_051206_mm.htm.
- ^ a b c Ellison, Lillian (2003). The Fabulous Moolah: First Goddess of the Squared Circle. ReaganBooks. p. 145. ISBN 9780060012588.
[edit] External links
- Professor Toru Tanaka at the Internet Movie Database
- Charlie Kalani at the Danzan-ryu Jujitsu Homepage
