William Louis Wallace (born December 1, 1945), nicknamed "Superfoot", is an American martial artist, former professional kickboxer, and actor. Considered one of the first American superstars of kickboxing,[3][4] he was the Professional Karate Association (PKA) World Full-Contact Champion, and the Middleweight Kickboxing Champion for six years, retiring with an undefeated 23-0-0 record.[5][6] He was elected to Black Belt magazine's Hall of Fame in 1973 as "Tournament Karate Fighter of the Year" and again in 1978 as "Man of the Year". He is currently the International Ambassador for PKA Worldwide.[7]
Wallace was born in Portland, Indiana. He is of Scottish ancestry, and trained in wrestling during his high school years.[12] He began his study of Judo in 1966 and was forced to discontinue his Judo related activities because of an injury he suffered to his right knee during practice.[12] He then began to study Shōrin-ryūKarate under Michael Gneck[13] in February 1967 while serving in the U.S. Air Force. After entering the point fighting tournament scene and achieving success there, he switched to full-contact competition.
With the coaching help of veteran fighter Jim 'Ronin' Harrison, Wallace won 23 consecutive professional fights between 1974 and 1980,[14] becoming the Professional Karate Association middleweight world full-contact karate champion and retiring undefeated.[13][15] He was known for his fast left leg kicks,[16] especially his roundhouse kick and his hook kick, which was clocked at about 60 mph.[15] He focused on his left leg because of the Judo-related injury to his right knee, using the right leg primarily as a base. He also was kicked in the groin during a point fighting tournament and suffered the loss of one testicle.[17]
A year later, Wallace turned professional and captured the PKA middleweight karate championship with a second-round knockout. He relinquished the crown in 1980, undefeated. The PKA promoted the sport of full-contact karate. Full-contact karate differed from kickboxing in that leg kicks were allowed in kickboxing and forbidden in full-contact karate. It was PKA President, Don Quine, who coined the phrase "Superfoot" to describe Wallace after witnessing his fight first with Mark Georgantas and then with Jem Echollas.[18]
In 1990 Bill Wallace (166 lbs) fought one last exhibition kickboxing/karate match with friend Joe Lewis (198 lbs) on pay per view. Both Wallace and Lewis were refused a boxing license because of their age. The exhibition ended with one judge in favor of Wallace and the other two judges scored the bout a tie; ending the exhibition in a draw.[19]
Bill Wallace was a personal trainer and close friend of both Elvis Presley and John Belushi. On March 5, 1982, Bill Wallace found John Belushi dead of a cocaine and heroin overdose, in his room in Bungalow 3, at the Chateau Marmont, on Sunset Boulevard, in Hollywood, California.[23]
Wallace has written and co-written a number of books, including:
Bill Wallace also starred in the 1985 James Glickenhaus action film "The Protector" alongside Jackie Chan and Danny Aiello. Wallace played a tough ex karate champ bodyguard (for a criminal boss), who has an extended fight scene with cop Jackie Chan in a Hong Kong warehouse.
^McFadden, Robert D. (March 6, 1982). "John Belushi, Manic Comic of TV and Films Dies". New York Times. Retrieved September 25, 2007. John Belushi, the manic, rotund comedian whose outrageous antics and spastic impersonations on the Saturday Night Live television show propelled him to stardom in the 1970s, was found dead yesterday in a rented bungalow in Hollywood, where he had launched a film career in recent years. The 33-year-old actor ...
^Wallace, Bill. The Best of Bill Wallace. Black Belt Communications (April 2005) ISBN0-89750-146-2
^Gibson, Adam, and Wallace, Bill. Competitive Karate: Featuring the Superfoot System Human Kinetics; 1 edition (January 27, 2004) ISBN0-7360-4492-2
^Wallace, Bill. The Ultimate Kick. Unique Publications (January 1987) ISBN0-86568-088-4
