Marshall Ho'o (1910–1993) was an American practitioner of
tai chi
Tai chi (), short for Tai chi ch'üan ( zh, s=太极拳, t=太極拳, first=t, p=Tàijíquán, labels=no), sometimes called " shadowboxing", is an internal Chinese martial art practiced for defense training, health benefits and meditation. ...
.
Ho'o was born in 1910 in
Oakland, California
Oakland is the largest city and the county seat of Alameda County, California, United States. A major West Coast of the United States, West Coast port, Oakland is the largest city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, the third ...
, and in his youth campaigned on behalf of
trade union
A trade union (labor union in American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers intent on "maintaining or improving the conditions of their employment", ch. I such as attaining better wages and benefits (s ...
s.
Having previously studied tai chi with Choy Hok Pang, Ho'o rediscovered the art in his 50s whilst on a health retreat in
Mexico
Mexico ( Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guate ...
.
After this, he began teaching as an assistant of
Huang Wenshan
Huang Wenshan (黄文山, Pinyin: Huáng Wénshān, also known as Wen-shan Huang, 1898-1988) was a Chinese scholar of cultural studies, sociology, anthropology and ethnology.
As a university student he was a well-known libertarian socialist duri ...
, one of his early instructors. The two of them founded the National T'ai Chi Association, a loose affiliation of tai chi schools, in 1962. In 1967, Huang left to teach at a university in Taiwan, leaving Ho'o in sole charge of the Association. On his return to China, Huang sponsored a teaching visit to America by
Dong Huling
Tung Hu-ling (董虎嶺, Pinyin: Dǒng Hǔlǐng, 1917–1992) was a master of t'ai chi ch'uan, known for teaching Yang style and Tung style, and an early leader in the spread of t'ai chi chuan worldwide. Born in Ren County, Hebei, China, his ...
to provide instruction to his American students.
In 1973, Ho'o founded the Aspen Academy of the Martial Arts, a centre for the study of martial arts located in
Aspen, Colorado
Aspen is a home rule municipality that is the county seat and the most populous municipality of Pitkin County, Colorado, United States. The city population was 7,004 at the 2020 United States Census. Aspen is in a remote area of the Rocky Mo ...
.
[
He held the post of professor of Oriental History at the ]California Institute of the Arts
The California Institute of the Arts (CalArts) is a private art university in Santa Clarita, California. It was incorporated in 1961 as the first degree-granting institution of higher learning in the US created specifically for students of bo ...
, and was Chairman of the National T'ai Chi Ch'uan Association.[ Ho'o was a licensed ]acupuncturist
Acupuncture is a form of alternative medicine and a component of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) in which thin needles are inserted into the body. Acupuncture is a pseudoscience; the theories and practices of TCM are not based on scientif ...
, and a member of the Black Belt Magazine
''Black Belt'' is an American magazine covering martial arts and combat sports. The magazine is based in Valencia, California, and is one of the oldest titles dedicated to martial arts in the United States.
History and profile
The magazine wa ...
Hall of Fame.[
Ho'o died in 1993, survived by his seven children.][
]
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ho'o, Marshall
1910 births
1993 deaths
American tai chi practitioners