Book excerpt: "This history of American martial arts films, from major features to direct-to-video releases, begins with an overview of the martial arts in America, then moves on to discuss early trend-setting movies; the influence of Chinese kung fu film imports; martial arts on television; the explosive growth of the genre in the 80s; and recent releases, trends, and the direction of English-language martial arts movies. There is a selected filmography of 300 movies."--BOOK JACKET.