Michael Dudikoff
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Michael Joseph Stephen Dudikoff Jr. (born October 8, 1954) is an American actor and martial artist. Born in
New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
, his family later moved to
Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
. Dudikoff did different jobs to pay for his education, during this time he became a model. This led him to do acting auditions. He played supporting roles in films and television shows, until he got his break as the lead in the martial arts action film ''
American Ninja ''American Ninja'' is a 1985 American martial arts action film produced by Menahem Golan and Yoram Globus's Cannon Films. Directed by Sam Firstenberg, who specialized in this genre in the 1980s, the film stars Michael Dudikoff in the title rol ...
'' (1985). Dudikoff became an action film leading man and followed up with '' American Ninja 2: The Confrontation'' (1986), ''
Avenging Force ''Avenging Force'' is a 1986 American action film directed by Sam Firstenberg. The screenplay was written by James Booth, who co-starred in the film. It was originally intended as a sequel to the 1985 film '' Invasion U.S.A.'', which starred Chu ...
'' (1986), ''
Platoon Leader {{unreferenced, date=February 2013 A platoon leader (NATO) or platoon commander (more common in Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth militaries and the United States Marine Corps, US Marine Corps) is the officer in charge of a platoon. This pers ...
'' (1988), '' River of Death'' (1989), ''
Soldier Boyz ''Soldier Boyz'' is a 1995 action film directed by Louis Mourneau and starring Michael Dudikoff. It was written by Darryl Quarles. The film revolves around a group of convicts on a mission in Vietnam to rescue the daughter of a rich man. Plot The ...
'' (1996), ''
Bounty Hunters A bounty hunter is a private agent working for bail bonds who captures fugitives or criminals for a commission or bounty. The occupation, officially known as bail enforcement agent, or fugitive recovery agent, has traditionally operated outsid ...
'' (1996), '' Bounty Hunters 2: Hardball'' (1997), etc. In the 2000s, Dudikoff started to work in real estate, and made film appearances in the 2010s.


Early life

Dudikoff's father, Michael Joseph Stephen Dudikoff Sr., was Eastern Orthodox Christian. Born in New York to
Russian Russian(s) refers to anything related to Russia, including: *Russians (, ''russkiye''), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries *Rossiyane (), Russian language term for all citizens and peo ...
immigrants Mary Bogdanova and John Dudikoff, Michael Sr. served in the Army before marrying Dudikoff's mother, Rita T. Girardin, a
French-Canadian French Canadians (referred to as Canadiens mainly before the twentieth century; french: Canadiens français, ; feminine form: , ), or Franco-Canadians (french: Franco-Canadiens), refers to either an ethnic group who trace their ancestry to Fr ...
piano player from Quebec. The couple moved to California and had five children; the fourth, Michael Jr., was diagnosed with dyslexia. Dudikoff graduated from West High School in
Torrance, California Torrance is a city in the Los Angeles metropolitan area located in Los Angeles County, California, Los Angeles County, California, United States. The city is part of what is known as the South Bay (Los Angeles County), South Bay region of the m ...
, and went on to study
child psychology Developmental psychology is the scientific study of how and why humans grow, change, and adapt across the course of their lives. Originally concerned with infants and children, the field has expanded to include adolescence, adult developmen ...
at Harbor College.


Career


Mid 1970s to 1985: Modeling and early roles

To pay for his education, Dudikoff worked at a rehabilitation center for abused youth called Cedar House and waited tables at Beachbum Burt's in
Redondo Beach, California Redondo Beach (Spanish for ''round'') is a coastal city in Los Angeles County, California, United States, located in the South Bay region of the Greater Los Angeles area. It is one of three adjacent beach cities along the southern portion of Sa ...
. He was eventually approached to do some modelling, and did a catwalk at a shopping mall. During lunch one day, Dudikoff served Max Evans, a fashion editor with ''
Esquire Esquire (, ; abbreviated Esq.) is usually a courtesy title. In the United Kingdom, ''esquire'' historically was a title of respect accorded to men of higher social rank, particularly members of the landed gentry above the rank of gentlema ...
'' magazine, who had come in with some models. Evans asked Dudikoff to walk in a Newport Beach fashion show, and his mother encouraged him to try it out. After a couple of successful runways, Dudikoff retained an agent at the Mary Webb Davis Agency in Los Angeles. Dudikoff soon entered the high fashion world and counted Calvin Klein and ''GQ'' among his clients. He moved quickly to international print modeling and traveled between New York, Los Angeles, and
Milan Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city h ...
by his late 20s. Dudikoff soon began acting, and he starred in several commercials for companies, including
Coppertone Coppertone is the brand name for an American sunscreen. Coppertone is headquartered in Whippany, New Jersey. Coppertone uses a variety of branding, including the Coppertone girl logo and a distinctive fragrance. Product line The original prod ...
,
Coca-Cola Coca-Cola, or Coke, is a carbonated soft drink manufactured by the Coca-Cola Company. Originally marketed as a temperance drink and intended as a patent medicine, it was invented in the late 19th century by John Stith Pemberton in Atlanta ...
for Japan,
Army Reserve A military reserve force is a military organization whose members have military and civilian occupations. They are not normally kept under arms, and their main role is to be available when their military requires additional manpower. Reserve ...
and Stridex. Dudikoff's first television role took place after a meeting with theatrical agent Sid Craig. He went for some readings, and in 1978 he landed a supporting role in one episode of the hit TV show ''
Dallas Dallas () is the List of municipalities in Texas, third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 ...
'', and shortly after the part as Joanie's first boyfriend in the American sitcom ''
Happy Days ''Happy Days'' is an American television sitcom that aired first-run on the ABC network from January 15, 1974, to July 19, 1984, with a total of 255 half-hour episodes spanning 11 seasons. Created by Garry Marshall, it was one of the most su ...
''. Dudikoff said the president of Paramount Studio happened to be sitting in the audience while they were filming and gave him a contract.


Early 1980s to 1985: Subsequent roles and breakthrough

In 1980, Dudikoff acted in ''
The Black Marble ''The Black Marble'' is a 1980 mystery/romantic comedy film directed by Harold Becker and starring Robert Foxworth, Paula Prentiss and Harry Dean Stanton. It is based on the 1978 novel by Joseph Wambaugh. Plot Pragmatic Sgt. Natalie Zimmerman ...
.'' In 1981, Dudikoff acted in ''
Bloody Birthday ''Bloody Birthday'' is a 1981 American slasher film directed by Ed Hunt, produced by Gerald T. Olson, and starring Susan Strasberg, José Ferrer, and Lori Lethin. Its plot follows a group of three children born on the same day during a solar ec ...
'', and ''
The Best Little Girl in the World ''The Best Little Girl in the World'' is a 1981 television film directed by Sam O'Steen and executive produced by Aaron Spelling. The film is based upon the 1979 novel of the same name written by Steven Levenkron. Plot Seventeen-year-old Casey ...
.'' In 1982, Dudikoff acted in '' Neil Simon's I Ought to Be in Pictures'', ''
Making Love ''Making Love'' is a 1982 American drama film directed by Arthur Hiller and starring Kate Jackson, Harry Hamlin and Michael Ontkean. The film tells the story of a married man coming to terms with his homosexuality and the love triangle that dev ...
'', and ''
Tron ''Tron'' (stylized as ''TRON'') is a 1982 American science fiction action-adventure film written and directed by Steven Lisberger from a story by Lisberger and Bonnie MacBird. The film stars Jeff Bridges as Kevin Flynn, a computer programmer a ...
.'' Also that year he was one of the leads in the sitcom ''
Star of the Family ''Star of the Family'' is an American sitcom that aired on ABC from September 30 to December 9, 1982. The show featured Brian Dennehy as fire chief Leslie "Buddy" Krebs and Katherine Saltzberg, then Maisnik, as his singer daughter, Jennie Lee K ...
.'' In 1983, he acted in '' Uncommon Valor,'' one episode of ''
Gimme a Break! ''Gimme a Break!'' is an American television sitcom created by Mort Lachman and Sy Rosen, that aired on NBC for six seasons from October 29, 1981, to May 12, 1987. The series starred Nell Carter as the housekeeper for a widowed police chief ( ...
,'' and played
Huckleberry Finn Huckleberry "Huck" Finn is a fictional character created by Mark Twain who first appeared in the book ''The Adventures of Tom Sawyer'' (1876) and is the protagonist and narrator of its sequel, ''Adventures of Huckleberry Finn'' (1884). He is 12 ...
in a
Columbia Pictures Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. is an American film production studio that is a member of the Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group, a division of Sony Pictures Entertainment, which is one of the Big Five studios and a subsidiary of the mu ...
movie-of-the-week called ''Sawyer & Finn'' directed by Peter H. Hunt. In 1984, Dudikoff acted in the comedy film ''
Bachelor Party A bachelor party (in the United States and sometimes in Canada), also known as a stag weekend, stag do or stag party (in the United Kingdom, Commonwealth countries, and Ireland), or a buck's night (in Australia), is a party held/arranged by th ...
''. In 1985,
The Cannon Group The Cannon Group, Inc. was an American group of companies, including Cannon Films, which produced films from 1967 to 1994. The extensive group also owned, amongst others, a large international cinema chain and a video film company that invested ...
, an independent film company with a streak of successful action films, were looking to produce an action film starring
Chuck Norris Carlos Ray "Chuck" Norris (born March 10, 1940) is an American martial artist and actor. He is a black belt in Tang Soo Do, Brazilian jiu jitsu and judo. After serving in the United States Air Force, Norris won many martial arts championshi ...
called ''
American Ninja ''American Ninja'' is a 1985 American martial arts action film produced by Menahem Golan and Yoram Globus's Cannon Films. Directed by Sam Firstenberg, who specialized in this genre in the 1980s, the film stars Michael Dudikoff in the title rol ...
'', which Norris turned down. Shortly after, Cannon went on a worldwide search to find who would play Private Joe Armstrong, the American ninja. Over 400 candidates went on to audition for the part. The producer and owner of Cannon, Menahem Golan, and director
Sam Firstenberg Sam Firstenberg (born Shmulik Firstenberg on March 13, 1950) is an Israeli-American film director. He is best known for having made low-budget B-movies most of his career, among them the first two films in the American Ninja series, ''American Ni ...
thought Dudikoff was the obvious choice for the part. Golan even went on to say that he would be the next
James Dean James Byron Dean (February 8, 1931September 30, 1955) was an American actor. He is remembered as a cultural icon of teenage disillusionment and social estrangement, as expressed in the title of his most celebrated film, ''Rebel Without a Cause' ...
. It was a surprise for Dudikoff, who at the time was mostly known for supporting roles in comedies. It was Dudikoff's first collaboration with actor Steve James, who was hired to play the partner of the American ninja, a role he maintained for the first three installments. On a $1 million budget, it went on to gross over $10 million domestically in the US and did extremely well in foreign markets. This success would establish the start of the ''
American Ninja ''American Ninja'' is a 1985 American martial arts action film produced by Menahem Golan and Yoram Globus's Cannon Films. Directed by Sam Firstenberg, who specialized in this genre in the 1980s, the film stars Michael Dudikoff in the title rol ...
'' film franchise, with Dudikoff becoming a regular action star for
The Cannon Group The Cannon Group, Inc. was an American group of companies, including Cannon Films, which produced films from 1967 to 1994. The extensive group also owned, amongst others, a large international cinema chain and a video film company that invested ...
. That same year, Dudikoff and John Stockwell were co-leads in
Albert Pyun Albert Pyun (May 19, 1953 – November 26, 2022) was an American film director who made low-budget B-movies and direct-to-video action films. The Independent Film Channel said that Pyun "has carved out a unique niche as a director of low-budge ...
's post-apocalyptic film ''
Radioactive Dreams ''Radioactive Dreams'' is a 1985 post-apocalyptic science fiction-comedy film written and directed by Albert Pyun and starring George Kennedy, Michael Dudikoff, Don Murray, and Lisa Blount. The names of the two main characters are homages t ...
''.


1986 to mid-2000s: Action film leading man

In 1986, Dudikoff returned to the title role of Joe Armstrong in '' American Ninja 2: The Confrontation'', with Firstenberg directing. The film grossed $4 million domestically in the U.S. That same year, Dudikoff starred as retired
secret service A secret service is a government agency, intelligence agency, or the activities of a government agency, concerned with the gathering of intelligence data. The tasks and powers of a secret service can vary greatly from one country to another. For ...
agent in ''
Avenging Force ''Avenging Force'' is a 1986 American action film directed by Sam Firstenberg. The screenplay was written by James Booth, who co-starred in the film. It was originally intended as a sequel to the 1985 film '' Invasion U.S.A.'', which starred Chu ...
'', with Steve James, directed by Sam Firstenberg. Also, Dudikoff played the role of Lt. Rudy Bodford in the mini-series '' North and South, Book II''. In 1987, he had signed an agreement with
Cannon Films The Cannon Group, Inc. was an American group of companies, including Cannon Films, which produced films from 1967 to 1994. The extensive group also owned, amongst others, a large international cinema chain and a video film company that invested ...
to star and produce seven films. In 1988, Dudikoff played the lead in
Vietnam war film This article lists notable films related to the Vietnam War. Post-war films After the Vietnam War ended in 1975, there was an increase in American films that were more "raw", containing actual battle footage. A FilmReference.com article noted th ...
''
Platoon Leader {{unreferenced, date=February 2013 A platoon leader (NATO) or platoon commander (more common in Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth militaries and the United States Marine Corps, US Marine Corps) is the officer in charge of a platoon. This pers ...
'', directed by
Aaron Norris Aaron Norris (born November 23, 1951) is an American stunt performer, director, occasional actor, and film and television producer. He is the younger brother of action film star Chuck Norris. Career 1974 to 1988: Stunt work to directing W ...
. In 1989, Dudikoff starred as an adventurer in Steve Carver's '' River of Death''. In 1989, Dudikoff turned down '' American Ninja 3: Blood Hunt'' because he didn't want to get type cast in martial arts movies and didn't want to go back to South Africa as he was firmly against the
Apartheid Apartheid (, especially South African English: , ; , "aparthood") was a system of institutionalised racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa (now Namibia) from 1948 to the early 1990s. Apartheid was ...
movement. In 1990, he starred in '' Midnight Ride''. In 1991, Dudikoff acted in the television film ''
The Woman Who Sinned ''The Woman Who Sinned'' is a 1991 American television film directed by Michael Switzer and starring Susan Lucci and Tim Matheson. It was later released in 1992 by Genesis Home Video (UK) as a home video titled ''Mortal Passion'' (run time 90 min ...
''. That year in ''American Ninja'''s fourth instalment '' American Ninja 4: The Annihilation, ''he returned to the role of Joe Armstrong. In 1992, Dudikoff starred in ''
The Human Shield ''The Human Shield'' is a 1991 low-budget American film from B-movie film studio Cannon Films. It was directed by Ted Post and written by Mann Rubin and stars Michael Dudikoff and Tommy Hinkley. It is about a former government agent who must sa ...
'' directed by
Ted Post Theodore I. Post (March 31, 1918 – August 20, 2013) was an American director of film and television. Highly prolific, Post directed numerous episodes of well-known television series including '' Rawhide'', ''Gunsmoke'', and ''The Twilight Zone'' ...
. In 1993, Dudikoff co-starred with
Stephen Dorff Stephen Hartley Dorff Jr. (born July 29, 1973) is an American actor. He is known for portraying Roland West in the third season of HBO's crime drama anthology series ''True Detective'', PK in '' The Power of One'', Stuart Sutcliffe in ''Back ...
in
Arthur Allan Seidelman Arthur Allan Seidelman is an American television, film, and theatre director and an occasional writer, producer, and actor. Career Born in New York City, he received his B.A. from Whittier College and an M.A. in Theatre from UCLA. He subsequently ...
's '' Rescue Me''. Also that year, Dudikoff was the lead role in the action TV series '' Cobra.'' The hour-long show ran for 22 episodes from 1993–1994. In 1994, Dudikoff did his final film with
The Cannon Group The Cannon Group, Inc. was an American group of companies, including Cannon Films, which produced films from 1967 to 1994. The extensive group also owned, amongst others, a large international cinema chain and a video film company that invested ...
, called ''
Chain of Command A command hierarchy is a group of people who carry out orders based on others' authority within the group. It can be viewed as part of a power structure, in which it is usually seen as the most vulnerable and also the most powerful part. Milit ...
'' directed by David Worth. In 1995, Dudikoff starred in ''Cyberjack'', and ''
Soldier Boyz ''Soldier Boyz'' is a 1995 action film directed by Louis Mourneau and starring Michael Dudikoff. It was written by Darryl Quarles. The film revolves around a group of convicts on a mission in Vietnam to rescue the daughter of a rich man. Plot The ...
''. In 1996, Dudikoff starred ''
Bounty Hunters A bounty hunter is a private agent working for bail bonds who captures fugitives or criminals for a commission or bounty. The occupation, officially known as bail enforcement agent, or fugitive recovery agent, has traditionally operated outsid ...
'', ''Moving Target'', and ''Crash Dive''. In 1997, Dudikoff starred in '' Strategic Command,'' '' Bounty Hunters 2: Hardball'', and '' The Shooter''. In 1998, Dudikoff starred in '' Black Thunder'', ''Freedom Strike'', ''Musketeers Forever'' , and ''Counter Measures'' a sequel to ''Crash Dive''. He also played acted in the '' Ringmaster'' starring
Jerry Springer Gerald Norman Springer (born February 13, 1944) is a British-American broadcaster, journalist, actor, producer, former lawyer, and politician. He hosted the tabloid talk show '' Jerry Springer'' between September 30, 1991 and July 26, 2018, an ...
. In 1999, Dudikoff acted in Sidney J. Furie's ''In Her Defense'',
Fred Olen Ray Fred Olen Ray (born September 10, 1954) is an American film producer, director, and screenwriter of more than 200 low-to-medium-budget feature films in many genres, including Horror film, horror, science fiction, action film, action/adventure f ...
's ''
Fugitive Mind ''Fugitive Mind'' is a 1999 American sci-fi action film directed by Fred Olen Ray and starring Michael Dudikoff and Heather Langenkamp. Plot A man finds out that he was brainwashed to kill an important government official. Cast *Michael Dudikof ...
,'' and '' The Silencer''. In 2001, Dudikoff acted in '' Ablaze''. In 2002, Dudikoff played the main villain in ''
Gale Force The Beaufort scale is an empirical measure that relates wind speed to observed conditions at sea or on land. Its full name is the Beaufort wind force scale. History The scale was devised in 1805 by the Irish hydrographer Francis Beaufo ...
,'' starring
Treat Williams Richard Treat Williams (born December 1, 1951) is an American actor, writer and aviator who has appeared on film, stage and television in over 120 credits. He first became well known for his starring role in the 1979 musical film '' Hair'', and la ...
. He also starred in
Sam Firstenberg Sam Firstenberg (born Shmulik Firstenberg on March 13, 1950) is an Israeli-American film director. He is best known for having made low-budget B-movies most of his career, among them the first two films in the American Ninja series, ''American Ni ...
's ''
Quicksand Quicksand is a colloid consisting of fine granular material (such as sand, silt or clay) and water. It forms in saturated loose sand when the sand is suddenly agitated. When water in the sand cannot escape, it creates a liquefied soil that los ...
'', and Fred Olen Ray's ''Stranded''.


2003 to present day: Current works

Moving forward, Dudikoff worked in real estate. In 2014, Dudikoff was interviewed for '' The Go-Go Boys: The Inside Story of Cannon Films'' and '' Electric Boogaloo: The Wild, Untold Story of Cannon Films'', both highly publicized dueling documentaries about
The Cannon Group The Cannon Group, Inc. was an American group of companies, including Cannon Films, which produced films from 1967 to 1994. The extensive group also owned, amongst others, a large international cinema chain and a video film company that invested ...
. In 2015, Dudikoff played a supporting role in ''
Navy Seals vs. Zombies ''Navy Seals vs. Zombies'' (also known as ''Navy Seals: The Battle for New Orle'Zombies' (also known as 'Navy Seals: 'The Battle for New Orleans AVY SEALS: BATTLE NEW ORLEANS - postercontent/uploads/2017/03/new.jpg) NAVY SEALS: BATTLE NEW ORLEAN ...
'', released by
Anchor Bay Entertainment Anchor Bay Entertainment (formerly Video Treasures and Starmaker Entertainment) was an American home entertainment and production company. It was a subsidiary of Starz Inc. Anchor Bay Entertainment marketed and sold feature films, television ser ...
. In 2018, Dudikoff acted in ''Fury of the Fist and the Golden Fleece''.


Personal Life

Dudikoff has been married to Belle since 2004. They have three children: son, Michael Joseph Stephen III; opposite-sex twins, Lyzel and Andrei.


Martial arts and fitness

Dudikoff had no martial arts training before making the first ''
American Ninja ''American Ninja'' is a 1985 American martial arts action film produced by Menahem Golan and Yoram Globus's Cannon Films. Directed by Sam Firstenberg, who specialized in this genre in the 1980s, the film stars Michael Dudikoff in the title rol ...
'' movie, but he was already very athletic. Fight choreographer Mike Stone, an accomplished martial arts expert, assured the producers that Dudikoff would pick up the moves. Dudikoff has since trained in karate, aikido, judo, and
Brazilian jiu-jitsu Brazilian jiu-jitsu (BJJ; pt, jiu-jitsu brasileiro ) is a self-defence martial art and combat sport based on grappling, ground fighting (ne-waza) and submission holds. BJJ focuses on the skill of taking an opponent to the ground, control ...
. He began his training in Brazilian jiu-jitsu with
Rorion Gracie Rorion Gracie (; born January 10, 1952) is a Brazilian-born Gracie Jiu-Jitsu Grand Master, a prominent member of the Gracie family, writer, publisher, producer, lecturer, lawyer and the co-founder of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. He is the ...
and stays connected with the Brazilian jiu-jitsu fighting circuit, including
Rigan Machado Rigan Machado (born 2 July 1966) is an 8th degree red and White belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, earning his rank under Carlos Gracie, Jr. He is a former Pan American Champion (1996, 1997 weight and absolute) and a veteran medalist of the ADCC. Mac ...
, an eighth degree red and black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu and former world champion. In a 2012 Q&A, Dudikoff said that he doesn't lift weights, but is a swimmer and does isometric and dance exercises.


Filmography


Film


TV


Video games


References


External links

* *
Michael Dudikoff on Facebook
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dudikoff, Michael 1954 births Living people 20th-century American male actors 21st-century American male actors American people of Russian descent American people of French-Canadian descent American male film actors American male television actors American practitioners of Brazilian jiu-jitsu Actors from Redondo Beach, California Actors with dyslexia