Charles J. Kalani Jr. (January 6, 1930 – August 22, 2000) was an American professional wrestler,

professional boxer Professional boxing, or prizefighting, is regulated, sanctioned boxing. Professional boxing bouts are fought for a purse that is divided between the boxers as determined by contract. Most professional fights are supervised by a regulatory auth ...

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

and actor. He was known by the ring names Professor Toru Tanaka, or simply Professor Tanaka. He was best known for his work with the World Wide Wrestling Federation from 1967 to 1978, and was a 3-time Tag Team Championship (with partner

Mr. Fuji was an American Professional wrestling, professional wrestler, actor and Manager (professional wrestling), manager, known professionally by his ring name Mr. Fuji (or Master Fuji to his protégés). He was famous for often throwing salt in the ...

) and one-time International Tag Team Champion (with Mitsu Arakawa). In

2019 This was the year in which the first known human case of COVID-19 was documented, preceding COVID-19 pandemic, the pandemic which was declared by the World Health Organization the following year. Up to that point, 2019 had been described as ...

, he was posthumously inducted into the

WWE Hall of Fame The WWE Hall of Fame is a List of halls and walks of fame, hall of fame which honors professional wrestlers and professional wrestling personalities maintained by WWE. Originally known as the "WWF Hall of Fame", it was created in 1993 when An ...

as a Legacy Member.

Early life

Kalani was born in

Honolulu Honolulu ( ; ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Hawaii, located in the Pacific Ocean. It is the county seat of the Consolidated city-county, consolidated City and County of Honol ...

Territory of Hawaii The Territory of Hawaii or Hawaii Territory (Hawaiian language, Hawaiian: ''Panalāʻau o Hawaiʻi'') was an organized incorporated territories of the United States, organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from Apri ...

, the son of Charles J. Kalani and Christina Leong Kalani. His father was

Native Hawaiian Native Hawaiians (also known as Indigenous Hawaiians, Kānaka Maoli, Aboriginal Hawaiians, or simply Hawaiians; , , , and ) are the Indigenous peoples of Oceania, Indigenous Polynesians, Polynesian people of the Hawaiian Islands. Hawaiʻi was set ...

, and his mother was of Chinese descent. Kalani began studying

judo is an unarmed gendai budō, modern Japanese martial art, combat sport, Olympic sport (since 1964), and the most prominent form of jacket wrestling competed internationally.『日本大百科全書』電子版【柔道】(CD-ROM version of Encyc ...

in 1939, and earned a black belt in Danzan-ryu

Jujitsu Jujutsu ( , or ), also known as jiu-jitsu and ju-jitsu (both ), is a Japanese martial art and a system of close combat that can be used in a defensive or offensive manner to kill or subdue one or more weaponless or armed and armored opponent ...

from Seishiro Okazaki. Kalani graduated from Iolani School in 1949. His wife, Doris Kalani, later credited Kalani's time on the

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

team and Kenneth A. Bray's influence with keeping him away from trouble. After graduating from high school, Kalani attended Weber Junior College (now

Weber State University Weber State University (pronounced ) is a public university in Ogden, Utah, United States. It was founded in 1889 as Weber Stake Academy and earned its current name in 1991. As of fall 2023, the student population reached 30,536 students, cons ...

), where he met his wife in 1952. He also played college football at the

University of Utah The University of Utah (the U, U of U, or simply Utah) is a public university, public research university in Salt Lake City, Utah, United States. It was established in 1850 as the University of Deseret (Book of Mormon), Deseret by the General A ...

, as a guard. In 1955, Kalani was drafted into the U.S. Army, where he rose to the rank of

sergeant Sergeant (Sgt) is a Military rank, rank in use by the armed forces of many countries. It is also a police rank in some police services. The alternative spelling, ''serjeant'', is used in The Rifles and in other units that draw their heritage f ...

. Kalani left the military in 1966 and moved to

Monterey, California Monterey ( ; ) is a city situated on the southern edge of Monterey Bay, on the Central Coast (California), Central Coast of California. Located in Monterey County, California, Monterey County, the city occupies a land area of and recorded a popu ...

. He ran a

Judo is an unarmed gendai budō, modern Japanese martial art, combat sport, Olympic sport (since 1964), and the most prominent form of jacket wrestling competed internationally.『日本大百科全書』電子版【柔道】(CD-ROM version of Encyc ...

and Danzan-ryu academy with John Chow-Hoon. Kalani was also a

heavyweight boxer Heavyweight is a weight class in combat sports and professional wrestling. Boxing Professional Male boxers who weigh over are considered heavyweights by 2 of the 4 major professional boxing organizations: the International Boxing Federation an ...

. He advanced to the finals of the 1950 NCAA Junior College Boxing Championships, but was defeated by Ed Sanders. He fought professionally from March 1953 to February 1954, retiring with a record of 3-2-0, with one win by knockout.

Professional wrestling career

Professor Tanaka - Wrestling in Denville - 24 June 1972

Kalani got into professional wrestling in 1958, making his debut in his home state of Hawaii during his service with the military. In 1966 after retiring from the military, Kalani began wrestling full time.

San Francisco San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...

promoter Roy Shire approached Kalani in 1967, launching his career in earnest. He also worked for

World Championship Wrestling World Championship Wrestling (WCW) was an American professional wrestling promotion founded by Ted Turner in 1988, after Turner Broadcasting System, through a subsidiary named Universal Wrestling Corporation, purchased the assets of National W ...

in Australia. Kalani adopted the

heel The heel is the prominence at the posterior end of the foot. It is based on the projection of one bone, the calcaneus or heel bone, behind the articulation of the bones of the lower leg. Structure To distribute the compressive forces exerted ...

gimmick of Professor Toru Tanaka (or simply Professor Tanaka), a Japanese villain from

Hiroshima is the capital of Hiroshima Prefecture in Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 1,199,391. The gross domestic product (GDP) in Greater Hiroshima, Hiroshima Urban Employment Area, was US$61.3 billion as of 2010. Kazumi Matsui has b ...

(though Kalani was actually of Hawaiian and Chinese origin). One of the characteristics of his gimmick was that he threw ceremonial salt in his opponents' eyes after "blessing" each corner of the ring, a tactic that is most commonly associated with Japanese villain wrestlers. Tanaka did play the stereotypical Japanese villain with the requisite knowledge of martial arts. He employed a combination of power skills, martial arts, and his feared Japanese sleeper submission hold. Tanaka'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. Tanaka had a long successful run with the WWF in 1967, including being #1 contender to champion

Bruno Sammartino Bruno Leopoldo Francesco Sammartino (October 6, 1935 – April 18, 2018) was an Italian-American Professional wrestling, professional wrestler. He is best known for his time with the WWE, World Wide Wrestling Federation (WWF, now WWE). Sammartin ...

. Sammartino was the one who requested Tanaka (who was working in Australia) to the WWF's owner at the time, Vince McMahon Sr. In their first Madison Square Garden meeting, Tanaka was disqualified for throwing salt. He was pinned by Sammartino in a rematch six months later, and Tanaka occasionally teamed with

Gorilla Monsoon Robert James "Gino" Marella (June 4, 1937 – October 6, 1999), better known by his ring name of Gorilla Monsoon, was an American Professional wrestling, professional wrestler, Sports commentator, play-by-play commentator, and Glossary of profess ...

. Tanaka also main evented the Garden in tag matches, twice with

vs. Sammartino and Spyros Arion (Tanaka and his partner winning the first via disqualification; losing the second in a Texas Death Match); a year later with Monsoon against Sammartino and Victor Rivera. Monsoon & Tanaka had other Garden matches, including victories over Al Costello & Dr. Bill Miller; and Bobo Brazil and Earl Maynard. Tanaka subsequently teamed with Mitsu Arakawa in the WWF in 1969, acquiring the International Tag Team Championship; losing it at Madison Square Garden to Tony Marino and Victor Rivera. He left the WWWF in 1970 and worked in Texas. In 1971, he retutrned to the WWWF. The team of Tanaka and Mr. Fuji won three WWF World Tag Team Championships, with Blassie as manager for the third reign and The Grand Wizard as manager for the first two. They first won the belts from Sonny King and Chief Jay Strongbow on June 27, 1972, in

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

, at a

House show A house show (also commonly called a live event) is a professional wrestling event produced by a major Professional wrestling promotion, promotion that is not televised, though they can be recorded. Promotions use house shows mainly to cash in o ...

. They lost the belts to Haystacks Calhoun and Tony Garea on May 30, 1973, again at a Hamburg house show, but regained them on September 11, 1973, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, before losing them again to Tony Garea and Dean Ho on November 14, 1973, again in Hamburg. Their third win came on September 27, 1977, at a Philadelphia house show when they defeated Tony Garea and Larry Zbyszko in a tournament final for the vacant belts, holding them until March 14, 1978, when they lost the titles to Dino Bravo and

Dominic DeNucci Domenico A. Nucciarone (January 23, 1932 – August 12, 2021) was an Italian-American professional wrestler and trainer better known by the ring name Dominic DeNucci. He held over a dozen championships around the world in the 1960s and 1970s. H ...

in Philadelphia. This third reign set a record for number of championship reigns which would not be bettered until The New Age Outlaws won a fourth reign in 1999. After WWWF, Tanaka returned to Japan, Hawaii and other territories until retiring in 1986.

Other media

Professor Tanaka while wrestling of the

World Wrestling Council The World Wrestling Council (WWC; Spanish: "Consejo Mundial de Lucha") is a professional wrestling promotion based in Puerto Rico. It was originally established as Capitol Sports Promotions in 1973 by Carlos Colón, Victor Jovica, and Goril ...

he was also featured in a television commercial for the Sello Rojo brand of

rice Rice is a cereal grain and in its Domestication, domesticated form is the staple food of over half of the world's population, particularly in Asia and Africa. Rice is the seed of the grass species ''Oryza sativa'' (Asian rice)—or, much l ...

Puerto Rico ; abbreviated PR), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, is a Government of Puerto Rico, self-governing Caribbean Geography of Puerto Rico, archipelago and island organized as an Territories of the United States, unincorporated territo ...

. 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 the 1981

Chuck Norris Carlos Ray "Chuck" Norris (born March 10, 1940) is an American martial artist and actor. Born in Oklahoma, Norris first gained fame when he won the amateur Middleweight Karate champion title in 1968, which he held for six consecutive years. H ...

vehicle '' An Eye for an Eye'' and his last film was 1995's ''Hard Justice'' (starring David Bradley and Charles Napier). He appeared opposite

Arnold Schwarzenegger Arnold Alois Schwarzenegger (born July30, 1947) is an Austrian and American actor, businessman, former politician, and former professional bodybuilder, known for his roles in high-profile action films. Governorship of Arnold Schwarzenegger, ...

in '' The Running Man'' as "Sub-Zero", the red-armor clad "stalker" who is a sadistic hockey-samurai with a scythe that "slices his enemies limb from limb into quivering, bloody sushi". Other notable roles include '' The Perfect Weapon'', ''3 Ninjas'', ''Black Rain'', '' Darkman'', '' Pee-wee's Big Adventure'', and ''

Last Action Hero ''Last Action Hero'' is a 1993 American fantasy action comedy film directed and produced by John McTiernan and co-written by Shane Black and David Arnott. It is a satire of the action genre and associated clichés, containing several parodies ...

''. 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 Nickelodeon (nicknamed Nick) is an American pay television channel and the flagship property of the Nickelodeon Group, a sub-division of the Paramount Media Networks division of Paramount Global. Launched on April 1, 1979, as the first ca ...

series '' Wild and Crazy Kids'' in the early 1990s.

Death

Kalani died of heart failure on August 22, 2000. His ashes were spread in the ocean near Haleʻiwa, Hawaii. He is survived by his wife Doris Kalani and his three children: Cheryle Kalani, Carl Kalani and Karen Kalani Beck.

Filmography

* 1981 '' An Eye for an Eye'' as "The Professor" * 1981-1982 ''Fantasy Island'' (season 5/episode 20) as Magog * 1982 ''Cassie & Co.'' - ''Gorky's Army'' as Kiro * 1982 ''Little House on the Prairie (A new beginning''; "Alden's Dilemma" Season 9 aired first on December 6, 1982) as Japanese Sumo (uncredited) * 1983 ''Angel Of H.E.A.T.'' * 1983 ''Off the Wall'' as Banzai Wrestler #1 * 1983 '' Revenge of the Ninja'' as Sumo Servant * 1983 ''Tales of the Gold Monkey '' (season 1/episode 17) as Sumo Wrestler #1 * 1984 ''

The A-Team ''The A-Team'' is an American Action television, action television series that ran on NBC from January 23, 1983, to March 8, 1987, about a fictional team of former United States Army Special Forces who work as mercenaries while on the run from ...

'' (TV Series) as Ling, The Bodyguard * 1984 ''Chattanooga Choo Choo'' as Hashimoto * 1985 '' Missing in Action 2: The Beginning'' as Lao * 1985 '' Pee-wee's Big Adventure'' as The Butler * 1985 ''

Volunteers Volunteering is an elective and freely chosen act of an individual or group giving their time and labor, often for community service. Many volunteers are specifically trained in the areas they work, such as medicine, education, or emergenc ...

'' as Sumo Guard * 1986 ''

'' - ''The Spy Who Mugged Me'' as Fröbe * 1986 ''Bad Guys'' as Lord Percy's Bodyguard * 1986 '' Shanghai Surprise'' as Yamagani San * 1987 ''Catch The Heat'' as Dozu * 1987 '' The Running Man'' as "Professor Subzero" * 1988 '' Dead Heat'' as "The Butcher" * 1989 ''Tax Season'' * 1989 ''Hyper Space'' as The Android * 1989 '' Black Rain'' as Sugai's Bodyguard * 1990 '' Darkman'' as Chinese Warrior #2 * 1990 ''Martial Law'' as Jimmy Kong * 1991 '' The Perfect Weapon'' as Tanaka * 1991 '' Alligator II: The Mutation'' as Joe "Tokyo Joe", The Wrestler * 1991 ''Deadly Game'' as Ikiru-Sun * 1992 '' 3 Ninjas'' as Rushmore * 1993 ''

'' as Tough Asian Man * 1995 ''Hard Justice'' as "Cookie" (uncredited)

Wrestling championships and accomplishments

50th State Big Time Wrestling 50th State Big Time Wrestling (sometimes referred to as NWA Hawaii or Mid-Pacific Promotions) was a professional wrestling promotion headquartered in Honolulu, Hawaii in the United States that promoted professional wrestling matches throughout Haw ...

** NWA North American Heavyweight Championship ''(Hawaii version)'' ( 1 time) *All-California Championship Wrestling **ACCW Tag Team Championship (2 times) - with Peter Maivia Jr. *California Pro Wrestling **CPW Heavyweight Championship (1 time) **CPW Brass Knuckles Championship (1 time) *

Championship Wrestling from Florida Championship Wrestling from Florida (CWF) was the corporate and brand name of the Tampa, Florida professional wrestling promotion, wrestling office existing from 1961, when Eddie Graham first bought into the promotion, until 1987, when it close ...

NWA Florida Tag Team Championship The NWA Florida Tag Team Championship is the primary tag team title in NWA Florida Underground Wrestling. It started out in 1968 as the main tag team title in Championship Wrestling from Florida Championship Wrestling from Florida (CWF) was ...

( 1 time) - with Dick Slater *

Continental Wrestling Association Continental Wrestling Association (later the Championship Wrestling Association) was a wrestling promotion managed by Jerry Jarrett. The CWA was the name of the "governing body" for the Championship Wrestling, Inc. promotion which was usually ...

** AWA Southern Tag Team Championship ( 1 time) - with

Georgia Championship Wrestling Georgia Championship Wrestling is an American professional wrestling promotion based in Atlanta, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. The promotion was affiliated with what had been the world's top sanctioning body of championship titles for decades b ...

** NWA Georgia Heavyweight Championship ( 1 time) ** NWA Macon Heavyweight Championship ( 1 time) **

NWA Georgia Tag Team Championship The NWA Georgia Tag Team Championship was the top tag team championship (professional wrestling), championship in Georgia Championship Wrestling from 1968 to 1980, when it was replaced with the NWA National Tag Team Championship. The title was r ...

( 2 times) - with Assassin #2 (1) and Mr. Fuji (1) *L&G Promotions :* L&G Caribbean Heavyweight Championship ( 1 time) *

National Wrestling Alliance The National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) is an American professional wrestling professional wrestling promotion, promotion and governing body owned by Billy Corgan and operated by its parent company Lightning One, Inc. Founded in 1948, the NWA be ...

** NWA Southeastern Heavyweight Championship ''(Northern Division)'' ( 2 times)¹ *Northeast Championship Wrestling (Tom Janette) **NCW Heavyweight Championship (1 time) * NWA Big Time Wrestling ** NWA American Heavyweight Championship ( 2 times) ** NWA American Tag Team Championship ( 1 time) - with Thunderbolt Patterson ** NWA Brass Knuckles Championship ''(Texas version)'' ( 4 times) * NWA Hollywood Wrestling ** NWA Americas Heavyweight Championship ( 1 time) ** NWA Americas Tag Team Championship ( 1 time) - with Dr. Hiro Ota * NWA New Zealand ** NWA British Empire/Commonwealth Championship (2 times) *

Southeastern Championship Wrestling Continental Championship Wrestling was a professional wrestling promotion based in Knoxville, Tennessee, and Dothan, Alabama, from 1985 until 1989, owned by Ron Fuller. The promotion evolved out of the NWA-affiliated Southeastern Championship W ...

** NWA Southeastern Tag Team Championship ( 1 time) - with Mr. Fuji *

World Championship Wrestling (Australia) World Championship Wrestling was an Australian professional wrestling promotion that ran from 1964 until 1978. History The promotion gained publicity through television programs on the Nine Network, which were presented at noon on Saturdays an ...

** IWA World Heavyweight Championship ( 2 times) ** IWA World Tag Team Championship ( 1 time) - with Skull Murphy * World Wide Wrestling Federation/WWE ** WWWF International Tag Team Championship ( 1 time, inaugural) - with Mitsu Arakawa ** WWWF World Tag Team Championship ( 3 times) - with Mr. FujiWWWF/WWF International Tag Team Title History
/ref> **

( Class of 2019) ¹Records do not show which NWA affiliate Tanaka worked for when his two reigns with the title began. While usually defended in

, it was occasionally used in other promotions.

References

External links

* * *
Charlie Kalani at the Danzan-ryu Jujitsu Homepage
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tanaka, Professor 1930 births 2000 deaths American male film actors American male professional wrestlers Faux Japanese professional wrestlers ʻIolani School alumni Weber State University alumni Sportspeople from Honolulu Professional wrestlers from Hawaii United States Army non-commissioned officers American military personnel of Native Hawaiian descent Heenan Family members Male actors from Honolulu 20th-century American male actors Hawaii people of Chinese descent WWE Hall of Fame Legacy inductees 20th-century male professional wrestlers 20th-century American professional wrestlers American football guards American male judoka American jujutsuka NWA Florida Tag Team Champions WCWA Brass Knuckles Champions NWA Americas Tag Team Champions NWA Americas Heavyweight Champions IWA World Heavyweight Champions (Australia) IWA World Tag Team Champions (Australia) NWA Macon Heavyweight Champions NWA Georgia Heavyweight Champions NWA Georgia Tag Team Champions Players of American football from Hawaii Utah Utes football players Weber State Wildcats football players WWF International Tag Team Champions World Tag Team Champions (WWE, 1971–2010) WCWA World Heavyweight Champions WCWA World Tag Team Champions Pacific Islander American players of American football Asian American players of American football 20th-century American sportsmen WWC Caribbean Heavyweight Champions