About Joe Maurantonio

Joe Maurantonio was born in New York. He was drawn to the martial arts at a young age and enjoyed watching martial arts films and television shows with heroic ideals (perseverance, honor, courage, and awareness).

Initially, Maurantonio began training himself by watching martial arts and reading books. During this time, he trained on his own and with friends who had intermediate karate and judo rankings. He learned how to use the nunchaku, tonfa, and shuriken by himself. When he went to work with his father, he would watch tai chi and kung fu. In the evenings, he practiced some of the lessons he had seen.

In the late 1970s, he joined a high school with the hopes of entering their karate program. Disappointed that their program had been cancelled, Maurantonio found himself fortunate to become close friends with a Kempo Karate practitioner. Together, the two trained often. Thereafter, they joined a martial arts school offering karate, kung fu, and ninjitsu training. After practicing there for a few months, the instructor was impressed with Maurantonio's nunchaku skill and asked him to instruct several individuals in its use.

It was there that Maurantonio met one of the most humble and sincere sempai with whom he has ever trained. To this day, he remembers his first sempai and the training they shared with great fondness.

During his high school years, Maurantonio traveled around, visiting other dojo. He saw a variety of martial arts training and went to many libraries to research information on various styles. He also spent hours each week reading about the history and culture of Japan (and, to a lesser degree, China and India).

In 1981, on a trip to Hawaii, Maurantonio and his friend trained by the ocean and the nearby woods. He found, bought, and read a book by Andrew Adams called Ninja: The Invisible Assassins. In it, he learned about two amazing Japanese instructors named Takamatsu and Hatsumi. That book left him wanting much more.

When he returned home, he found another books on the subject of ninjutsu. One important book was "The Ninja and Their Secret Fighting Art" by Stephen Hayes. In less than one year, while at college, Maurantonio would meet a fellow student who would personally introduce him to Hayes-sensei and one of his senior teachers, Darryl Caldwell.