Taimak Guarriello (born June 27, 1964), known

mononymously A mononym is a name composed of only one word. An individual who is known and addressed by a mononym is a mononymous person. In some cases, a mononym selected by an individual may have originally been from a polynym, a word which refers to one o ...

as Taimak (), is an American martial artist, actor, and stuntman, known for his lead role as Leroy Green ("Bruce Leroy") in the 1985 martial arts film ''

The Last Dragon ''The Last Dragon'' (sometimes listed as Berry Gordy's ''The Last Dragon'') is a 1985 American martial arts comedy film produced by Rupert Hitzig for Berry Gordy and directed by Michael Schultz. The film stars Taimak, Vanity, Julius Carry, C ...

''.

Personal life

Taimak was born on June 27, 1964, in Los Angeles, California, to an

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

father and an

Afro-American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of enslav ...

mother. He currently lives in New York City.

Career

Taimak's leading role in

Berry Gordy Berry Gordy III (born November 28, 1929), known professionally as Berry Gordy Jr., is a retired American record executive, record producer, songwriter, film producer and television producer. He is best known as the founder of the Motown record l ...

's ''

'', in which he played Leroy Green, a

Bruce Lee Bruce Lee (; born Lee Jun-fan, ; November 27, 1940 – July 20, 1973) was a Hong Kong and American martial artist and actor. He was the founder of Jeet Kune Do, a hybrid martial arts philosophy drawing from different combat disciplines th ...

-inspired martial artist in search of "The Glow," was his first major break in acting. The film was a financial success and grossed more than $25 million at the box office. Since ''The Last Dragon'', Taimak has appeared in a number of TV roles and over a dozen plays. Taimak later appeared in a number of TV roles and music videos including the lead male in

Janet Jackson Janet Damita Jo Jackson (born May 16, 1966) is an American singer, songwriter, actress, and dancer. She is noted for her innovative, socially conscious and sexually provocative records, as well as elaborate stage shows. Her sound and choreog ...

's "

Let's Wait Awhile "Let's Wait Awhile" is a song by American singer Janet Jackson from her third studio album, '' Control'' (1986). It was released on January 6, 1987, by A&M Records as the album's fifth single. The song was written and produced by Jackson and Jim ...

" music video and Debbie Allen's "Special Look" video. He played a date rapist in an episode of the TV show ''

A Different World ''A Different World'' is an American sitcom (and a spin-off of '' The Cosby Show'') television series that aired for six seasons on NBC from September 24, 1987 to July 9, 1993. The series originally centered on Denise Huxtable (Lisa Bonet) a ...

''. He appeared in

36 Crazyfists 36 Crazyfists were an American metalcore band formed in Anchorage, Alaska in 1994. The band's name comes from the Hong Kong martial arts film ''36 Crazy Fists'' (1977) starring Jackie Chan. To date they have released eight studio albums. Histor ...

' music video "Bloodwork." Taimak has worked with a number of celebrities, including

Madonna Madonna Louise Ciccone (; ; born August 16, 1958) is an American singer-songwriter and actress. Widely dubbed the " Queen of Pop", Madonna has been noted for her continual reinvention and versatility in music production, songwriting, a ...

, and starred in the play ''Cheaters'', which toured the United States. He starred in a hit

Off-Broadway An off-Broadway theatre is any professional theatre venue in New York City with a seating capacity between 100 and 499, inclusive. These theatres are smaller than Broadway theatres, but larger than off-off-Broadway theatres, which seat fewer th ...

show in 2004 called ''Roadhouse The Comedy'', based on the

Patrick Swayze Patrick Wayne Swayze (; August 18, 1952 – September 14, 2009) was an American actor, dancer, and singer known for playing distinctive lead roles, particularly romantic, tough, and comedic characters. He was also known for his media image and ...

film '' Road House''. In 2002, Taimak opened a gym called Fitness Concepts on the

East Side (Manhattan) The East Side of Manhattan refers to the side of Manhattan which abuts the East River and faces Brooklyn and Queens. Fifth Avenue, Central Park from 59th to 110th Streets, and Broadway below 8th Street separate it from the West Side. The ma ...

of Manhattan. He published a fitness DVD titled ''Taimak FIT (Find Inner Transformation)'', intended to be the first of a series. He is an accomplished

martial artist Martial arts are codified systems and traditions of combat practiced for a number of reasons such as self-defense; military and law enforcement applications; competition; physical, mental, and spiritual development; entertainment; and the preserv ...

and has received black belts in Goju Ryu

Karate (; ; Okinawan pronunciation: ) is a martial art developed in the Ryukyu Kingdom. It developed from the indigenous Ryukyuan martial arts (called , "hand"; ''tii'' in Okinawan) under the influence of Chinese martial arts, particularly Fuj ...

Jeet Kune Do Jeet Kune Do is a primarily wing chun kung fu inspired eclectic martial arts philosophy heavily influenced and adapted by the Taoist personal life philosophy and experiences of martial artist Bruce Lee. Overview and philosophy Jeet Kune Do ...

Wing Chun Wing Chun (Chinese: 詠春 or 咏春, lit. "singing spring"), sometimes spelled Ving Tsun, is a concept-based fighting art, form of Southern Chinese kung fu and close-quarters system of self-defense. In Mandarin, it is pronounced "Yong Chun. ...

Hapkido Hapkido ( , , also spelled ''hap ki do'' or ''hapki-do''; from Korean 합기도 ''hapgido'' ) is a hybrid Korean martial art. It is a form of self-defense that employs joint locks, grappling, throwing techniques, kicks, punches, and other s ...

Jujutsu Jujutsu ( ; ja, link=no, 柔術 , ), also known as jiu-jitsu and ju-jitsu, is a family of Japanese martial arts and a system of close combat (unarmed or with a minor weapon) that can be used in a defensive or offensive manner to kill or subd ...

Taekwondo ''Taekwondo'', ''Tae Kwon Do'' or ''Taekwon-Do'' (; ko, 태권도/跆拳道 ) is a Korean martial arts, Korean form of martial arts involving punching and kicking techniques, with emphasis on head-height kicks, spinning jump kicks, and fast k ...

, 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 studied Chinese Goju under "The Black Dragon", Ron Van Clief. He officiated the preliminary MMA bouts at

UFC 6 ''UFC 6: Clash of the Titans'' was the sixth mixed martial arts event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship on July 14, 1995, at the Casper Events Center in Casper, Wyoming. The event was seen live on pay per view in the United States, and l ...

and

UFC 7 ''UFC 7: The Brawl in Buffalo'' was a mixed martial arts event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship on September 8, 1995, at the Memorial Auditorium in Buffalo, New York. The event was seen live on pay per view in the United States, and l ...

. In 2006 he made a few appearances alongside

Jimmy Yang James Carson Yun (born May 13, 1981) is an American Professional wrestling, professional wrestler and actor of Korean and German descent. He is also best known for his appearances with World Championship Wrestling and the WWE, World Wrestling Fed ...

Ring of Honor Ring of Honor (ROH) is an American professional wrestling promotion based in Jacksonville, Florida. The promotion was founded by Rob Feinstein on February 23, 2002, and was operated by Cary Silkin from 2004 until 2011, when the promotion was s ...

. Yang's character at the time had adopted some of Leroy Green's traits as his own. In November 2015, Taimak and

Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa (Japanese: 田川洋行, ''Tagawa Hiroyuki''; born September 27, 1950) is a Japanese-born American actor, film producer, and martial artist. Often cast as villains, he is known for his film roles in ''The Last Emperor'' ...

were honorees for the Fists of Legends Legacy Award at the Urban Action Showcase & Expo at HBO. In March 2016, Incorgnito Publishing Press published Taimak's autobiography, ''Taimak, The Last Dragon''. In 2018, Taimak starred in

Sean Stone Sean Christopher Stone (born December 29, 1984) is an American actor, filmmaker, and television host. Stone hosted a show on the Russian state-funded network RT America until the network was shut down in 2022 after Russia's invasion of Ukraine ...

's martial arts comedy film '' Fury of the Fist and the Golden Fleece''.

Filmography

*''Fury of the Fist and the Golden Fleece'' (2018) as Dragon *''They're Just My Friends'' (2006) as Captain Taimak *''The System Within'' (2006) as Pastor Ricky *''Book of Swords'' (2005) as Lucky *''

Third Watch ''Third Watch'' is an American crime drama television series created by John Wells and Edward Allen Bernero that aired on NBC from September 26, 1999, to May 6, 2005, with a total of 132 episodes spanning over six seasons. It was produced ...

'' as Spider (1 episode, 2004) **"Family Ties: Part 2" (2004) TV episode (as Taimak Guarriello) as Spider *''Night Class'' (2001) as Kick boxing instructor *''Masquerade'' (2000) (TV) *''

Beverly Hills, 90210 ''Beverly Hills, 90210'' (often referred to by its short title, ''90210'') is an American teen drama television series created by Darren Star and produced by Aaron Spelling under his production company Spelling Television. The series ran for ...

'' **''I Will Be Your Father Figure'' (2000) TV episode (as Taimak Guarriello) as Barback **''That's the Guy'' (1999) TV episode (as Taimak Guari) as The Bartender **''Dog's Best Friend'' (1999) TV episode (as Taimak Guari) as The Bartender *''Dreamers'' (1999) as Sam *''

Red Shoe Diaries ''Red Shoe Diaries'' is an American anthology erotic drama series that aired on Showtime cable network from 1992 to 1997 and distributed by Playboy Entertainment overseas. It is a spinoff of an earlier film by the same name, also directed by Za ...

'' **''The Forbidden Zone'' (1996) TV episode as Zoner * ''WMAC Masters'' **"Battle of the Brothers" (1996) TV episode as Striking Eagle *''Kickback with Scott Pastore'' (1994) TV series as Guest *''No More Dirty Deals'' (1993) as Sean Halloway *'' The White Girl'' (1990) as Bob *''

'' **"No Means No" (1989) TV episode as Garth Parks *''

'' (1985) as Leroy Green

Stunts

*Madonna: Drowned World Tour 2001 (2001) (TV) (martial arts coordinator) (as Taimak Guarriello)

Self

*Acapulco Black Film Festival (2000) (TV) as Himself *''Singled Out'' ** Episode dated 13 December 1995 (1995) TV episode as Taimuk

References

External links

Official website
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Taimak 1964 births Living people American people of Italian descent American male film actors Male actors from Los Angeles Male actors from New York City African-American male actors American male television actors American Wing Chun practitioners American Jeet Kune Do practitioners American wushu practitioners American male karateka American jujutsuka American male taekwondo practitioners American practitioners of Brazilian jiu-jitsu American stunt performers Gōjū-ryū practitioners American hapkido practitioners